“I don’t speak for people, I speak to people.” playwright Dael Orlandersmith says in conversation about her new play ‘Until the Flood.’ Orlandersmith’s one-woman show is a docudrama about the ordinary citizens in and around Furguson, Missouri at the time of Michael Brown’s death. ‘Until the Flood’ was shortlisted for the 2018 Pulitzer in addition to its off-Broadway run.
‘Until the Flood’ is a lot like Anna Deveare Smith’s ‘Twilight’ in that it tells a story through monologue's of those involved. Instead of actors playing the people Orlandersmith interviewed, she does them herself. Though the set is sparse, her performance is transformative. With little segue, she moves through a dozen or so monologue's of people from all walks of life. In her play, no one is spared. She shows the depths of unadulterated racism as well as the subtle ways in which people may not even be aware is racism. She never presents a caricature of a type of person, but rather the human quality that has made this person who they are. Orlandersmith’s talent as a performer is that she never loses you. Through gesture and movement, she paints an entire portrait. You know these people.
‘Until the Flood’ concerns itself with the immediate aftermath of the Michael Brown police shooting, but it seems like an allegory for the place we’ve arrived as a country. It’s hard to believe that four years after the riots in Ferguson, there’s still so little accountability in law enforcement. It’s also hard to believe how politicized race relations have become in America since 2014. This play shows us why Trump won, and also hopefully why Trump (and his brand of government) will be tossed out. Even at the darkest moment of this play, there’s still a few moments when Orlandersmith makes you connect with a character. That’s empathy.
This is a brief play. Clocking in at an hour and fifteen minutes, ‘Until the Flood’ makes its point. It’s the kind of play that has so many specific character moments that it would be impossible not to unpack on the way home. That’s exactly what theater should be doing, creating a dialogue about things that are hard to talk about. It’s when we have those discussions that we learn empathy.
