Jackie Sibblies Drury’s 2014 play, We Are Proud to Present a Presentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as Southwest Africa, From the German Südwestafrika, Between the Years 1884–1915 is a satirical dramedy about three Black actors and three white actors who meet to rehearse events from the Herero genocide that occurred from 1904-1908 by German soldiers in Southwest Africa. The play centers on racial terror from the genocide in Africa that parallels the “spectacular” lynching events in the United States. This paper is about directing the play by Zoom during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a global racial reckoning in 2020 after the killing of George Floyd. Traumatic as it was for actors, especially the actor playing “Black Man,” I deployed theatre practice-as-research defined as practice exploring the theory that morphed into an Afro-dystopian praxis using digital media of imagery and voiceovers, confronting legacies of genocide and lynching of the “Black Man.”
Keywords: Afro-Dystopian Praxis, Genocide, Lynching drama, Jackie Sibblies Drury, Theatre Practice-as-Research, Virtual Production, African and African Diaspora, Black body as spectacle, Directing, Digital Media
How to Cite: Forbes-Erickson, D. A-R. "The Running 'Black Man': An Afro-Dystopian Praxis in Directing Jackie Sibblies Drury’s We are Proud to Present a Presentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as Southwest Africa, From the German Südwestafrika, Between the Years 1884–1915." the Black Theatre Review 2 no.1 (2023): 23-55.
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Content Warning: The digital media montage contains violence against Black people including images of murder, lynching, and death. Viewer discretion is strongly advised.
Oooh, I am terrified! Oooga booga! Oooga booga! Oooga booga boo! from D Amy-Rose Forbes-Erickson on Vimeo.