Cheryl L. West: Her Work and the Playwriting Process By ABBY WESLEY
“In my family, if you could tell a good story… they liked to see you coming.” - Cheryl L. West Who Is Cheryl L. West? Coming from a long line of storytellers, Cheryl L. West is a playwright originally from Chicago, Illinois, who now calls Seattle, Washington home. From children’s shows to plays to musicals, her work has graced the stages of numerous regional theatres, including the Goodman (Puddin N’ Pete, Play On!, Pullman Porter Blues). Her plays have also been performed on Broadway, off- Cheryl L. West, the playwright of “Fannie Lou Hamer, Speak on It!”. Photo by A. Booker. Broadway, and internationally. are often left out of the overall because “you don’t have theatre landscape. to hurt people and I felt in Why Is She Important? journalism sometimes you Early Career had to make those choices, West is the playwright of and they hurt people.” Fannie Lou Hamer, Speak On Before Cheryl L. West’s journey It!. She is the most produced as a playwright began, she In 1987, West won the living playwright at Seattle worked as a social worker and opportunity to participate Reperatory Theatre and the teacher and studied journalism. in the Group Theatre’s first African-American woman Although newspapers recruited Multicultural Playwrights to win the Susan Smith her early on in her career, she Festival, which she credits Blackburn Prize. As both an as launching her career. She decided that she wanted to accomplished playwright pursue playwriting full-time workshopped her first play and woman of color, and gave herself a timeline Before It Hits Home at this West advocates for more of five years to be able to festival. West succeeded in diversity in theatre for young support herself financially. supporting herself financially audiences, calling for a wider When speaking on this decision as a playwright within the range of stories to be told in an interview with Seattle fourth year of her timeline onstage by actors, directors, Rep’s Artistic Director, Braden when her first play was and playwrights of color, Abraham, West remarked that produced. giving voice to stories that she wanted to write fiction 24
