Interview: Theatre Life with E. Faye Butler

My fellow theatregoers! Ever since this pandemic began, we have been asking when and if will live theatre return to the DC area. I am happy to report it's going to happen sooner than maybe you thought it would.

Starting tomorrow, October 23rd for one week only the powerhouse actress known as E. Faye Butler will take the stage Transit Pier Floating Stage at The Wharf as she takes on the role of Fannie Lou Hamer who was one of the most powerful female voices of the civil and voting rights movements. The production entitled Fannie Lou Hamer Speak on It! is presented by Arena Stage and runs through October 30th. All tickets are free to the public. Click here to check availability and to see safety guidelines while in attendance.

E. Faye Butler's performances are always memorable. Her previous Arena Stage credits include August Wilson's King Hedley II, Smokey Joe's Café Pullman Porter Blues, Trouble in Mind, Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, Crowns, Ain't Misbehavin':The Fats Waller Musical and Polk County.

She recently directed Aint Misbehavin' at Portland Stage.

Ms. Butler has performed in some of the most prestigious regional theaters in the country including Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, Court Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Baltimore Centerstage, La Jolla Playhouse, Marriott Theatre, Paramount Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, Mixed Blood, Illusion Theatre, Signature Theatre, Olney Theatre, Yale Repertory Theatre, The Muny, St. Louis Repertory, Seattle Repertory, Drury Lane Theatre, Congo Square, Fulton Theatre, MSMT, Sacramento Music Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Victory Gardens Theatre, The Barn, The Kennedy Center, Arkansas Repertory, Chicago Children Theatre, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Porchlight Music Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre D.C., Milwaukee Repertory, Peninsula Players, Paper Mill Playhouse, Dallas Theatre Center and ASOLO Repertory.

She is the recipient of nine Jeff Awards, four Black Theatre Alliance, an After Dark, John Barrymore, RAMI, two Helen Hayes, two Black Excellence, Kathryn V. Lampkey, Ovation, Excellence in the Arts, 2016 Rosetta LeNoire, Sarah Siddons Leading Lady and Guy Adkins Awards. She was also named a 2011 Lunt-Fontanne Fellow. She was inducted into the National Women in the Arts Museum in Washington, D.C. and recently released her first House and Club single in Milan, Italy entitled "Down to the Rhythm."

To say that E. Faye Butler is a force of nature onstage is about as big of an understatement as any. If you've been lucky enough to have seen one or more of her stellar performances over the years then you'll understand my position on her work.

If you're lucky enough to get to see her in Fannie Lou Hamer Speak on It! then so much the better.

Stay safe everyone!!

How did you get involved with Fannie Lou Hamer Speak on It!?

This is my third collaboration with the playwright Cheryl L. West and the second with the director of the show Henry Godinez. One of the other projects I had done with Cheryl was Pullman Porter Blues which played here at Arena Stage a few seasons ago. The original version called Fanny is 90 minutes long. We did it at the New Works Fest at the Goodman in Chicago for one performance. The Goodman and Seattle Rep and others theatres wanted to do it. The idea was to start rehearsals this October and open in November. Then the pandemic hit and Godinez said "We can't let the character's voice be silent. So how about we do a truncated version." and here we are. Shelton Offard's music is just enough to compliment this 40-minute version.

What was your first impression of the material after your first read?

I knew it was great because of Cheryl L. West but I wanted to hear it out loud. Once that happened, I was sold.

Can you please tell us a little something about the play itself?

It is a call to action and look at the impassioned freedom fighter Fanny Lou Hamer who became one of the most powerful female voices of the civil and voting rights movements. She didn't vote until she was 44 years old. She went on to run for both the congress, and the senate. She was a true pioneer of her time and a great feminist.

Fanny's favorite phrase was "I believe if all women would hook to one another we would become one hell of a voting majority". That is quite a powerful statement.

Given the current conditions, when you were asked to take on this show, did you have any trepidation about getting back onstage?

No! I'm doing Fannie Lou Hamer! I have no trepidation at all. It's an experience more than a show.

What do you want audiences to take away with them after watching Fannie Lou Hamer Speak on It!?

There are several things.

We all matter. We all have a voice. We all have to love each other even with differences we all should be included. We are more the same than different and we need to embrace that.

And VOTE!! That's the whole point. Make your voice heard.

What will you be most looking forward to when theatre can return to "normal"?

Being around my family and friends again.

Special thanks to Arena Stage's publicist Lauren McMillen for her assistance in coordinating this interview.

Theatre Life logo designed by Kevin Laughon.

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