In the spring of 2019, Encore had an idea: what would happen if we brought together local students, professional theatremakers, and historians to learn, discover, and explore to create an original piece of theatre centered around African-American voices right here in Arlington?

The answer: Flip the Script. Through site visits, presentations by historians, and personal research, a group of young people, under the direction of Madaline Langston, spent the summer and early fall learning more about the desegregation of public schools in Virginia; this story began to shape their narrative into a show titled “The Day Nothing Happened.” Today on The Front Row, we’re honored and excited to welcome a parent of one our of Flip students to share her observations on the experience:

Flip the Script actors performed scenes as part of the “Tribute to the Life and Legacy Dr. Martin Luther King” on January 19, 2020.
Photo by Deb Kolt

After a successful first-time run of “The Day Nothing Happened” [in November], the Flip the Script cast, including my daughter Yahney-Marie Sangaré (who portrayed the character “Green”), was invited to perform select scenes of the play at a tribute honoring the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at Wakefield High School in Arlington, VA. As a 54-year-old mixed-race, black, self-proclaimed progressive who skipped school in the ’80s to attend a march in Washington, D.C. to advocate for Martin Luther King’s birthday to be recognized as a national holiday, one would expect that I’d be thrilled, right? Well, to the contrary, I privately dreaded having to endure what felt like the redundancy of yet another performance about the Civil Rights movement that I had seen and heard countless times before and had long ago taught my child. I couldn’t help but think, “Here we go again with the only narrative repeatedly being told about the black experience (along with slavery). Isn’t there more to us as a people than our history of enslavement and the Civil Rights era?”

Yahney-Marie Sangaré performed in Flip the Script scenes as part of the “Tribute to the Life and Legacy Dr. Martin Luther King” on January 19, 2020.
Photo by Deb Kolt

Upon further consideration, I reflected on the powerful and emotional impact I had recently witnessed from audience members at Flip the Script’s performances and Q&A sessions: an elderly black man, visibly moved and crying during the show; a middle-aged Latina woman’s shock at learning Stratford Middle School, located in her “backyard,” was the first school to desegregate in the state of Virginia; a young white boy’s curiosity regarding why he was not taught this history at his local Arlington County school; one of the white actors reflecting on how this experience taught them about their own biases; and my 14-year-old daughter’s responses to questions drawing parallels to her character’s experiences and her current school environment.

Students devised scenes based on historical research and interviews to create the script of “The Day Nothing Happened.”

It was then that it dawned on me–since Yahney-Marie’s involvement with Flip the Script, my young teenage child is actually “talking the walk” of an experienced elder of the Civil Rights movement. She had to become emotionally attached to the history to channel feelings of angst, anxiety, and fear to portray her character – one of four teenagers about to enter an all-white school for the first time in Virginia history.

Members of Flip the Script after a community research session in July of 2019.

Not only has my daughter’s life been enriched by her involvement in the Flip the Script production, but she is having active and ongoing conversations about it at school, during cheer practice, on social media, and in other environments, spreading the message of equal rights and justice and influencing her peers to do the same. The experience has a life and is having a ripple effect beyond the theatre performance that is opening a whole new dialogue among young people in her circles. This realization changed the initial feeling of dread I had about the MLK performance to guilt as I reckoned with the shallowness of my reluctance and came to terms with the fact that, somehow, my life experiences desensitized and numbed me to the importance and monumental significance of telling and retelling the story of an individual who lived and died fighting for our Civil Rights. Humbled, I said a prayer of thanks as my daughter accepted the invitation with my full blessings to participate in the Martin Luther King Day tribute.

The cast and crew of Flip the Script, November 2019

After all, I was 15-years-old on that cold, wet winter day on January 15th, 1981 (just one year older than Yahney-Marie) when the foundation of my social justice advocacy was lit on fire as I marched for hours in the snow alongside Stevie Wonder, Jessie Jackson, Gil Scott Heron, and other Civil Rights activists to advocate for Dr. King’s birthday to be recognized as a national holiday. I was inspired by the speakers’ stories of their fight for freedom and equality over the years and the speeches calling for action against the continuing struggles that were before us. There was absolutely nothing redundant about it then nor is there anything redundant about it now. Although we have made tremendous strides, we continue to find ourselves battling for the same issues today (equal rights, access to housing, employment, schools, etc.) that we battled for back then. We must never forget from whence we come and recognize, respect, and always remember, with pride, the people who paved the path before us so we can reach and teach others and further build on our future.

Flip the Script actors performed scenes as part of the “Tribute to the Life and Legacy Dr. Martin Luther King” on January 19, 2020.
Photo by Deb Kolt

Fast forward to the performance day of the “Tribute to the Life and Legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” I rocked the most ethnic outfit and accessories I could find in my wardrobe and entered the doors of the theatre with my head held high, a smile on my face feeling extreme pride knowing my child is part of a production that holds countless possibilities of planting a new seed in someone’s mind; changing someone’s life, perspective and vision with the words and voices of everyone onstage, stronger together than when spoken independently. Pride in knowing that every time the Flip the Script cast put on this production, they were part of a mission to create a world that Dr. King envisioned in his dream. As I walked down the aisles searching for my seat, feeling free and grateful to sit anywhere I desired, I stopped and giggled at how cliché it all seemed to observe the diversity of the audience—so many different races, cultures, backgrounds all gathered in this one place to witness yet another play about Civil Rights, but this time I’m humbled and thankful and can’t help but think and feel: “Say it loud, I’m black and I’m proud!” as we are all gathered in this space bearing witness to Martin Luther King’s dream and inspiring a whole new audience of people to keep it alive. Asé!

Encore Stage & Studio is proud to share that Flip the Script has been invited to perform “The Day Nothing Happened” on the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage on Wednesday, February 5th, 2020 (tomorrow!) at 6 PM. This event is free and open to the public.

Photos by Aileen Pangan Christian, Jordan Wells, and Deb Kolt. Additional research photo contributed by the Rogers family. Blog contribution by Claudine Bostick Sangaré. Edited by Shannon McCarthy.