Having Our Say

"Having Our Say"

Based on the lives of Sadie and Bessie Delany Having Our Say opens as 103-year-old Sadie Delany and 101-year-old Bessie Delany welcome us into their Mount Vernon, New York, home as they prepare a celebratory dinner in remembrance of their father's birthday, they take us on a remarkable journey through the last hundred years of our nation's history.

They recount a fascinating series of events and anecdotes drawn from their rich family history and careers as pioneering African-American professionals. Their story is not simply African-American history or women's history. It is U.S history, told through the eyes of two unforgettable women as they look not only into the past, but also ahead into the twenty-first century

"The daughters of a minister born in slavery and a brilliant woman of mixed ancestry, the story of the Delany sisters begins in Reconstruction and progresses through the rise of Jim Crow, two world wars, the triumphs of black culture during the Harlem Renaissance and through the civil war and women's rights movements, up to the present …

(Emily Mann adapted From Having our Say by Sarah L. & A. Elizabeth Delany with Amy Hill Hearth) Mann has staged the three relatively brief acts with a keen eye for the jigsaw fit that a hundred years of living together would bring" ~ Variety

"The most provocative and entertaining family play to reach Broadway in a long time …" ~ NY Times.

"…when the show is over, you want it to go on and on … Having our Say is a must for audiences of all races" ~ BackStage

"In fact, this must be the nicest show and inspirational pep rally in town … what a life these women have led, and how lovely to hear about America's real history from witnesses who are such good company. The Delany sisters may seem too good to be true, but here they are" ~ NY Newsday

Actors
	Kristoff Skalet (Prisoner 1) is performing in “The Island”.	Teddy Harrell, Jr. (Buntu) was recently seen in the role of Amonosoro in AIDA at Actor’s Playhouse. He founded the African American Performing Arts Community Theatre in 1999 having produced, directed or performed in the company’s’ productions, The Island, Riff Raff, Once on this Island and Having Our Say. Mr. Harrell has performed in numerous productions in the South Florida region including Mame, Blues in the Night, A Raisin in the Sun, Pretty Fire, Storyville, Ain’t Misbehavin, Hair N Da Kitchen, Pearlie Victorious, Parade and Red, Hot and Cole. An alumnus of Miami-Dade College and the University of Miami, Mr. Harrell has toured with the world-renowned Drifters in Europe and was featured in the independent films The Big Switch and Two Sides of Life. He is a loving father to Olivia and Trey.

Behind the scenes