Phylicia Rashad to Star in Radio Drama PULLING THE LEVER

American Slavery Project is partnering with Crossroads Theatre Co. (Tony, Outstanding Regional Theatre) to present Black Women and the Ballot, three short radio plays that will be available nationally and experienced virtually on Saturday, August 15 at 8 p.m.(EST). The performances, depict rebellions large and small mounted by Black women to progress voting rights, and can be accessed from the American Slavery Project website, on ASP's YouTube Channel and through Crossroads Theatre's website.

The centerpiece play is "In the Parlour" which features the story of the ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA Sorority, Inc. (KAMALA HARRIS' SORORITY and the first Black Greek women's association) and their offshoot DELTA SIGMA THETA Sorority Inc. and how the women of these sororities fought to participate alongside white suffragettes in the first parade for women's suffrage in Washington D.C. in 1913.

Black Women and the Ballot examines the relationship between America and Black women voting in this 100th anniversary year of Women's Suffrage. Specifically, it sheds light on African-American women's contribution to suffrage over multiple decades and the undocumented and disenfranchised Black immigrant women overlooked today and highlights ASP's platform Voter Outreach Thru Theatre Engagement (V.O.T.E.).

The radio dramas evoke radio plays of the days before television and will be accompanied by visuals to enrich the virtual experience, including photos from previous productions of the plays as well as historic milestones.

The event ends with the actors sharing what voting means to them, followed by a talkback hosted by ASP on their YouTube Channel including a representative from Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

Black Women and the Ballot Play Descriptions

Don't/Dream, By Saviana Stanescu, Directed by Judy Tate - On Election Day, an undocumented immigrant housekeeper, burdened with endless chores, fantasizes about voting and tries to make sense of her entitled employers' obsessions. Running time: 6 mins.

In the Parlour, By Judy Tate, Directed by Dianne Kirksey Floyd - On the eve of the historic 1913 Women's March for votes, young Howard University student, Edna Brown stiches up walking skirts for her sisters of the newly formed sorority, Delta Sigma Theta, to wear. But when she learns that the famous white suffragette, Alice Paul, the march's organizer has other plans, she gets help from the formidable Mary Church Terrell and the shrewd president of the Alpha Kappa Alpha, Sorority, Inc. It is a battle of wit and will in this original imagining of a very true story. Running time: 25 mins.

Pulling the Lever Written and Directed by Judy Tate - Three generations of Black Women remember their most important experiences voting.

Phylicia Rashad in the role of "the Ancestor" in Pulling the Lever sums up the importance of voting saying, "The only thing I pray for now is that somebody tells the children what happened because they got to tell their own. If you don't pass it on people forget."

time: 8 mins. Promo Video:

American Slavery Project - http://www.americanslaveryproject.org

The brainchild of Judy Tate, an Emmy® Award-winning writer and playwright, American Slavery Project is a theatrical response to revisionism about Black beginnings in America with an aim to make connections between this moment and the past; and to create conversations that educate and enlighten.