Frank talk of current events guides black history event at Naperville North
In preparation for Naperville North High School's second annual Black History Month Showcase, students have had some frank discussions about topics making the local and national news.
Police killings of blacks. Protests asserting "Black Lives Matter." Or, as one parent who's helping organize Friday evening's show puts it, "The things that actually look eerily similar to the civil rights movement back in the '60s."
Karyn Morgan, chairwoman of a parent organization at Naperville North called SUCCESS, which stands for School Using Coordinated Community Efforts to Strengthen Students, said this year's Black History Month Showcase will offer historical perspectives on current social issues by discussing them through actor portrayals of prominent civil rights leaders.
Historical figures from the time of the Emancipation Proclamation to the present will be brought to the stage at 7 p.m. Friday in the school's performing arts center at 899 Mill St. by students, faculty members and parents performing in the second annual theatrical production.
The event begins at 5:45 p.m. with an hourlong reception for a discussion of Black History Month and current topics affecting black students. As with the discussions during rehearsals, conversations during the event itself are meant to expand cultural perspectives and teach that no issue is one-sided, said Inell Lawrence, an organization member who is directing the showcase.
"If we can open our eyes and put ourselves in that person's shoes for a moment, maybe we'll learn a little bit more about how to behave," Lawrence said.
Actors will portray such leaders as Frederick Douglass, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall and W.E.B. DuBois.
New this year, the show will begin with chorus members from Beebe Elementary and Washington Junior High, both of which feed into Naperville North, performing "Lift Every Voice and Sing."
"We have new singers; we have interesting vignettes," Morgan said. "It's going to be really amazing."
Students also will share their reflections on Black History Month and in a rap, with poems and through spoken word performances incorporated into the show. The production is expected to last more than 90 minutes, giving plenty of time for young performers to express their views.
"We also see a real strong presence of the student's voice," Lawrence said.
Tickets are being sold at the school for $5 in advance or $8 at the door. For details, contact NNHSSUCCESS1516@gmail.com.