Cullud Wattah is about three generations of Black women living through the current water crisis in Flint, Michigan.
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Written by Susan Smith Blackburn Prize winner Erika Dickerson-Despenza and directed by Lilly Award winner Candis C. Jones, Cullud Wattah follows three generations of Black women living through the Flint Water Crisis. The world premiere began preview performances in The Public's Martinson Hall on Tuesday, November 2 and officially opened last night, Wednesday, November 17.
Check out photos from the red carpet below!
The complete cast of Cullud Wattah features Crystal Dickinson (Marion), Jennean Farmer (Marion/Ainee Understudy), Lizan Mitchell (Big Ma), Ta'Neesha Murphy (Plum/Reesee Understudy), Andrea Patterson (Ainee), Alicia Pilgrim (Plum), Chavez Ravine (Big Ma Understudy), and Lauren F. Walker (Reesee).
2021 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize winner Erika Dickerson-Despenza's new Afro-surrealist play premieres at The Public about three generations of Black women living through the current water crisis in Flint, Michigan. It's been 936 days since Flint has had clean water. Marion, a third-generation General Motors employee, is consumed by layoffs at the engine plant. When her sister, Ainee, seeks justice and restitution for lead poisoning, her plan reveals the toxic entanglements between the city and its most powerful industry, forcing their family to confront the past-present-future cost of survival. As lead seeps into their home and their bodies, corrosive memories and secrets rise among them. Will this family ever be able to filter out the truth? Directed by Lilly Award winner Candis C. Jones, Cullud Wattah blends form and bends time, diving deep into the poisonous choices of the outside world, the contamination within, and how we make the best choices for our families' futures when there are no real, present options. Cullud Wattah comes to us from the same playwright and director duo behind the thrilling digital production of shadow/land.
Photo credit: Andres Otero
Natalie Paul
Kenita Miller Hicks
Brandon Nick and Donja R. Love
Taa??Neesha Murphy
Lauren F. Walker
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