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A monthly publication
of the
Thomas Merton Center
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 The Thomas Merton Center presents
A night at City Theatre celebrating Ida B. Wells
Come support the Thomas Merton Center by joining us for a reception and
screening of Constant Star, a play by Tazewell Thompson, that chronicles the
life of Ida B. Wells on June 12, 2002 at City Theatre in the South Side.
Reception starts at 6:30 pm. Show starts at 8 pm.
Tickets are $50 for one, $75 for a pair, and $25 for low-income and students.
Tickets include
fine appetizers, wine, and the peace of mind that you are supporting the
nonviolent movement against racism. TMC members and supporters will get the
opportunity to gather and discuss what we can do more specifically to oppose
racism in our city. Click here for a printable form. Fill out the form and
send it to us. Contact Marie at (412) 361-3022 for more information.
The Performance
Performing the role of Ida B. Wells is Etta Cox, Nadiyah Dorsey, Wabei
Siyolwe, Brenda Thomas and Maria Becoates-Bey.
Constant Star is writer-director Tazewell Thompson’s tribute to one of the
foremost African-American civil rights pioneers, Ida B. Wells. Over 70 years
before Rosa Parks refused to give her seat up on the bus, Ida B. was a
passionate, fiery champion of equality for women and black Americans. The
daughter of freed slaves, Wells was a suffragette, newspaper editor and
publisher, co-founder of the NAACP, mother, wife and the single most powerful
leader in the anti-lynching campaign in America. Playwright Thompson states,
"She was a seminal figure in Post-Reconstruction America. Yet her formidable
contributions to the Civil Rights movement have until most recently been under-
appreciated. My play with song is an answer to her insistent promptings." To
encapsulate the many facets of this dynamic and controversial figure, Thompson
uses five actresses to play Wells in various ages and circumstances.
Underscoring the action are twenty classic spirituals performed a cappella by
the women. The Washington Post states that the writer-director paints, "a
crowd-pleasing portrait of the tart-tongued Wells." – Hartford Stage Review
Ida B. Wells spent only the first six months of her life as a slave... but
she spent the rest of it fighting for the rights of freed blacks and justice for
all others. (1862-1931) Ida B. Wells was born in Mississippi to former slaves.
The yellow fever epidemic of 1878 left her an orphan, forcing her to support her
five brothers and sisters as a teacher. In 1883, she began her crusade against
racial injustice and, in 1889, as editor and part owner of The Memphis Free
Speech she gained nationwide notoriety for her scathing anti-lynching
editorials. In New York, she joined the staff of The New York Age, and became a
much-sought-after lecturer and organizer. In 1895 Wells married Ferdinand L.
Barnett, a Chicago lawyer, and published The Red Record, a full-length expose of
lynching. From then on Wells-Barnett devoted most of her time to civil rights
activities, including reporting on race riots during and after the first World
War. She organized and became the first president of the Negro Fellowship
League, served as secretary of the National Afro-American Council, and founded
the Negro Fellowship League. She also worked for women’s suffrage and with Jane
Addams successfully stopped the creation of segregated schools in Chicago.
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