The production, recommended for audience members age 14 and older, is part of RVCCArts' Tuesdays with Stories series.
The Theatre at Raritan Valley Community College in Branchburg will present Rhapsody in Black, written and performed by LeLand Gantt, Tuesday, Jan. 26, at noon and 7 p.m.
The production, recommended for audience members age 14 and older, is part of RVCCArts' Tuesdays with Stories series.
Developed at New York City's Actors Studio with Estelle Parsons, Rhapsody in Black is a one-man show that explores Gantt's personal journey to understand and eventually transcend racism in America.
Audience members follow his spellbinding life story -- from an underprivileged childhood in the ghettos of McKeesport, Pa., to teenage experiments with crime and drugs to scholastic achievement and an acting career that lands adult LeLand in situations where he is virtually the only African-American in the room.
How he manages to cope with the various psychological effects of consistently being marked "The Other" is recounted in remarkable and exquisitely moving detail, guaranteed to leave lasting impressions. Charming, self-deprecatingly funny and linguistically awesome, Gantt confronts heavy subjects with passion and poignancy.
Anyone interested in learning more about the presentation is invited to read "The Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison before or after attending the show.
This engagement of Rhapsody in Black is made possible through the ArtsCONNECT program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation with support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
The 2015-16 Tuesdays with Stories series is a unique way to experience great American stories. Performances include a discussion as well as light refreshments. Tickets cost $10 for noon performances and $25 for 7 p.m. shows. Tickets are general admission seating.
Audience members may pre-order a box lunch for $5 and have lunch at the theatre before the noon show. Audience members also may take part in the theatre's book exchange in the lobby. Feel free to bring any previously read novels.
To purchase tickets or for more information, call the Box Office, 908-725-3420 or order online at www.rvccArts.org. Raritan Valley Community College's main campus is located at 118 Lamington Road in Branchburg.