Greta Oglesby is spectacular as civil rights legend Fannie Lou Hamer in TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s “Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer.
Director Tim Bond and Oglesby are reunited here after last having worked together in TheatreWorks’s production of August Wilson’s phenomenal “Gem of the Ocean” in April of 2022. That collaboration bore harmonious fruit, as does this one, with Oglesby portraying the civil rights leader and voting rights crusader whose every devastating scar and gaping wound crafted from courage is revealed.
Hamer, a former Mississippi sharecropper and the youngest of 20 children, saw her life end at 59 after battling multiple health issues, plenty of those accelerated by horrific beatings which were the price of speaking truth to power. Her approach to catching bees was to use honey instead of vinegar, but that doesn’t mean she hesitated to use her own sharp stinger when needed, wielding it with ferocity mixed with empathetic pleas.
During moments when Hamer is being beaten by five men in a prison, each sickening slap heard loud and clear, all Hamer can do is sing to the promised land as her world crumbles. “Oh, Lord, we sho’ do need you now,” Fannie croons with composure, in a most profound understatement.
Entertainment Entertainment Latest News, Entertainment Entertainment Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: AustinChronicle - 🏆 593. / 51 Read more »