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TABLE OF CONTENTS Common Core Standards 3 Guidelines for Attending the Theatre 4 Artists 5 Themes for Writing & Discussion 8 Mastery Assessment 10 For Further Exploration 11 Suggested Activities 16 Suggestions for Further Reading 18
Š Huntington Theatre Company Boston, MA 02115 March 2018 No portion of this curriculum guide may be reproduced without written permission from the Huntington Theatre Company’s Department of Education & Community Programs Inquiries should be directed to: Alexandra Smith | Interim Co-Director of Education asmith@huntingtontheatre.org This curriculum guide was prepared for the Huntington Theatre Company by: Lauren Brooks | Education Apprentice Ivy Ryan | Education Apprentice Alexandra Smith | Interim Co-Director of Education
COMMON CORE STANDARDS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
STANDARDS: Student Matinee performances and pre-show workshops provide unique opportunities for experiential learning and support various combinations of the Common Core Standards for English Language Arts. They may also support standards in other subject areas such as Social Studies and History, depending on the individual play’s subject matter. Activities are also included in this Curriculum Guide and in our pre-show workshops that support several of the Massachusetts state standards in Theatre. Other arts areas may also be addressed depending on the individual play’s subject matter. Reading Literature: Key Ideas and Details 1
Reading Literature: Craft and Structure 5
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Grade 7: Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
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Grade 7: Analyze how a drama’s or poem’s form or structure (e.g., soliloquy, sonnet) contributes to its meaning.
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Grade 8: Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
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Grades 9-10: Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks), create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
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Grades 9-10: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
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Grades 11-12: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
Grades 11-12: Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text (e.g., the choice of where to begin or end a story, the choice to provide a comedic or tragic resolution) contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact.
Reading Literature: Key Ideas and Details 2
Reading Literature: Craft and Structure 6 •
Grade 7: Analyze how an author develops and contrasts the points of view of different characters or narrators in a text.
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Grade 7: Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.
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Grade 8: Analyze how differences in the points of view of the characters and the audience or reader (e.g., created through dramatic irony) create such effects as suspense or humor.
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Grade 8: Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide and objective summary of the text.
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Grades 9-10: Analyze a particular point of view or cultural experience reflected in a work of literature from outside the United States, drawing on a wide reading of world literature.
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Grades 9-10: Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shape and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
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Grades 11-12: Analyze a case in which grasping point of view required distinguishing what is directly stated in a text from what is really meant (e.g., satire, sarcasm, irony, or understatement).
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Grades 11-12: Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to produce a complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.
Reading Literature: Key Ideas and Details 3 •
Grade 7: Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact (e.g., how setting shapes the characters or plot).
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Grade 8: Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision.
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Grades 9-10: Analyze how complex characters (e.g. those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the themes.
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Grades 11-12: Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop related elements of a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced and developed).
Reading Literature: Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 7 •
Grade 7: Compare and contrast a written story, drama, or poem to its audio, filmed, staged, or multimedia version, analyzing the effects of techniques unique to each medium (e.g., lighting, sound, color, or camera focus and angles in a film).
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Grades 8: Analyze the extent to which a filmed or live production of a story or drama stays faithful to or departs from the text or script, evaluating the choices made by the director or actors.
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Grades 9-12: Analyze multiple interpretations of a story, drama, or poem (e.g. recorded or live production of a play or recorded novel or poetry), evaluating how each version interprets the source text (Include at least one play by Shakespeare and one play by an American dramatist).
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MASSACHUSETTS STANDARDS IN THEATRE ACTING
TECHNICAL THEATRE
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1.7: Create and sustain a believable character throughout a scripted or improvised scene (By the end of Grade 8).
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1.12: Describe and analyze, in written and oral form, characters’ wants, needs, objectives, and personality characteristics (By the end of Grade 8).
4.6: Draw renderings, floor plans, and/or build models of sets for a dramatic work and explain choices in using visual elements (line, shape/form, texture, color, space) and visual principals (unity, variety, harmony, balance, rhythm) (By the end of Grade 8).
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1.13: In rehearsal and performance situations, perform as a productive and responsible member of an acting ensemble (i.e., demonstrate personal responsibility and commitment to a collaborative process) (By the end of Grade 8).
4.13: Conduct research to inform the design of sets, costumes, sound, and lighting for a dramatic production (Grades 9-12).
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1.14: Create complex and believable characters through the integration of physical, vocal, and emotional choices (Grades 9-12).
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1.15: Demonstrate an understanding of a dramatic work by developing a character analysis (Grades 9-12).
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1.17: Demonstrate increased ability to work effectively alone and collaboratively with a partner or in an ensemble (Grades 9-12).
CONNECTIONS •
Strand 6: Purposes and Meanings in the Arts — Students will describe the purposes for which works of dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and architecture were and are created, and, when appropriate, interpret their meanings (Grades PreK-12).
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Strand 10: Interdisciplinary Connections — Students will apply their knowledge of the arts to the study of English language arts, foreign languages, health, history and social science, mathematics, and science and technology/engineering (Grades PreK-12).
READING AND WRITING SCRIPTS •
2.7: Read plays and stories from a variety of cultures and historical periods and identify the characters, setting, plot, theme, and conflict (By the end of Grade 8).
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2.8: Improvise characters, dialogue, and actions that focus on the development and resolution of dramatic conflicts (By the end of Grade 8).
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2.11: Read plays from a variety of genres and styles; compare and contrast the structure of plays to the structures of other forms of literature (Grades 9-12).
GUIDELINES FOR ATTENDING THE THEATRE Attending live theatre is a unique experience with many valuable educational and social benefits. To ensure that all audience members are able to enjoy the performance, please take a few minutes to discuss the following audience etiquette topics with your students before you come to the Huntington Theatre Company.
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How is attending the theatre similar to and different from going to the movies? What behaviors are and are not appropriate when seeing a play? Why?
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Remind students that because the performance is live, the audience’s behavior and reactions will affect the actors’ performances. No two audiences are exactly the same, and therefore no two performances are exactly the same—this is part of what makes theatre so special! Students’ behavior should reflect the level of performance they wish to see.
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Theatre should be an enjoyable experience for the audience. It is absolutely all right to applaud when appropriate and laugh at the funny moments. Talking and calling out during the performance, however, are not allowed. Why might this be? Be sure to mention that not only would the people seated around them be able to hear their conversation, but the actors on stage could hear them, too. Theatres are constructed to carry sound efficiently!
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Any noise or light can be a distraction, so please remind students to make sure their cell phones are turned off (or better yet, left at home or at school!). Texting, photography, and video recording are prohibited. Food, gum, and drinks should not be brought into the theatre.
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Students should sit with their group as seated by the Front of House staff and should not leave their seats once the performance has begun.
SKELETON CREW CURRICULUM GUIDE
ARTISTS PLAYWRIGHT DOMINIQUE MORISSEAU Dominique Morisseau is a self-proclaimed “daughter of Detroit” having grown up in the city with strong familial ties to its industrial history. Although she spent her impressionable teenage years in that city, she largely credits experiences elsewhere with providing her most meaningful education. Morisseau’s initial interest in writing was poetry, but she attended University of Michigan, where she received her BFA in acting and experimented with playwriting. While there, Morisseau grew frustrated with the program’s traditional casting and lack of opportunities for performers of color. Her desire to diversify her college theatre experience led her to write her first play which she subsequently cast, choreographed, and directed. The work, titled The Blackness Blues — Time to Change the Tune (A Sister’s Story), was originally intended for a cast of three Black women, including herself, but grew to a cast of 20 due to high interest of other women of color in the college. The demand for and success of her first play inspired her to continue writing. Following graduation, she briefly worked as a drama teacher at the Henry Ford Academy in Detroit before heading to New York to try competing in the Slam Poetry circuit. She eventually began work for the Creative Arts Team as a theatre educator before joining the Emerging Writers Group at The Public Theater in 2011. In 2012, Morisseau received a Playwrights of New York fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center. She has since received many other honors including the NAACP Image Award, the Stavis Playwriting Award, the Spirit of Detroit Award, the Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama, the Steinberg Playwright Award, and the Obie Award. Morisseau is the fifth most-produced playwright in the in the United States for the 2017-2018 season and has recently expanded her writing portfolio to include work as the executive story editor on the Showtime series “Shameless.”
Morisseau is probably most famous for the Detroit Project (a three-play cycle made up of Detroit ‘67, Paradise Blue, and Skeleton Crew), inspired by August Wilson’s Century Cycle and her hometown. According to Morisseau, when she set out to write about Detroit, her friends and family paid little heed except to banter that she make Detroit look good. Morisseau had more in mind, setting out to challenge common stereotypes of Detroit and to instead show a shred of reality in all of its human, gritty, but also warm and loving renown. Morisseau’s mother’s family is from Mississippi, her father’s family is from Haiti, and she draws heavily on narrative research within her family to create dialogue that is representative not only of Detroit’s diverse community, but also of her own upbringing. Morisseau speaks openly about her identity, having written and spoken about race in a variety of contexts from being a theatregoer amidst a largely white audience to translating Skeleton Crew across cultures for its debut in Russia.
QUESTIONS: 1.
Research the other two plays in Morisseau’s Detroit Project series. Compare and contrast them with Skeleton Crew in terms of themes, characters, subject matter, and writing style.
2.
Even though it has been 15 years since Morisseau last lived in Detroit, her cell phone still has the 313 Detroit area code. She says that despite splitting time between New York and North Hollywood for work, she has never stopped thinking of Detroit as home. How is Morisseau’s geographic identity reflected in her work? Where do you consider to be “home”? How does that location characterize who you are?
PLAYWRIGHT’S RULES OF ENGAGEMENT by Dominique Morisseau
You are allowed to laugh audibly. You are allowed to have audible moments of reaction and response. My work requires a few “um hmms” and “uhn uhnns” should you need to use them. Just maybe in moderation. Only when you really need to vocalize. This can be church for some of us, and testifying is allowed. This is also live theatre and the actors need you to engage with them, not distract them or thwart their performance. Please be an audience member that joins with others and allows a bit of breathing room. Exhale together. Laugh together. Say “amen” should you need to. This is community. Let’s go. peaceandlovedominique :)
Playwright Dominique Morisseau
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community-based performance at Brown University and Yale University, and was a co-organizer of the “Making, Meaning, and Context: A Radical Reconsideration of Arts Work” conference at Goddard College in 2011. Megan is proud to be part of the current conversation on diversity and inclusion in the American theatre, both nationally and in the Boston community, and part of the first ever Theatre Communications Group Diversity and Inclusion Institute. She published “The Ferguson Theatre Syllabus” in American Theatre magazine in 2014, co-authored with fellow artist-activist Claudia Alick.
QUESTIONS: NILE HAWVER
1.
Megan Sandberg-Zakian has devoted her career to developing new plays and new playwrights all over the East Coast. Why are new plays important/valuable? How does this specialization make her uniquely qualified to direct Skeleton Crew?
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Read two plays on the list of “The Ferguson Theater Syllabus” from American Theatre and analyze the themes, subject matter, and social necessity of these scripts.
3.
Megan Sandberg-Zakian has discovered many artistic homes in New England. Research the mission of the theatres she has worked with, including Underground Railway Theater, Merrimack Repertory Theatre, and the Providence Black Repertory Company. What is the mission of each organization? Why would they be appealing places for an artist such as Sandberg-Zakian to work? Where does the Huntington fit into her artistic portfolio?
Director Megan Sandberg-Zakian
DIRECTOR MEGAN SANDBERG-ZAKIAN Megan Sandberg-Zakian is a freelance theatre director in the Greater Boston area and the director-in-residence at Merrimack Repertory Theatre in Lowell, MA, where she focuses on the nurturing and development of new plays and playwrights. In addition to her directing work, she is an activist and consultant supporting theatres to work towards inclusion and equity, and is a founding member of Maia Directors, a consulting group for artists and organizations engaging with Middle Eastern stories. She previously served as the associate artistic director of Underground Railway Theater (Cambridge, MA), the Providence Black Repertory Company (RI), and the 52nd Street Project (NYC). She is a recipient of the Princess Grace Theater Award and the Theatre Communications Group Future Leaders fellowship. She is a member of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab and a Merrimack Repertory Theater “Artistic Patriot.” She is a graduate of Brown University and holds an MFA in interdisciplinary arts from Goddard College. Previously for the Huntington, Sandberg-Zakian directed a staged reading of Eleanor Burgess’ The Cave for the 2017 Summer Workshop and Jacqui Parker’s Jeanie Don’t Sing No Mo’ for the 2009 Breaking Ground festival of new work. Other directing credits include Nat Turner in Jerusalem (New York Theatre Workshop); The Broken Record (FringeNYC); The Royale, Chill, A Christmas Carol, It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (Merrimack Repertory Theatre); No Room for Waiting (Company One/Central Square Theater/Boston Playwrights’ Theatre) The Convert, Our Town, Sila, The Mountaintop, Roots of Liberty: The Haitian Revolution and the American Civil War, Ti Jean and His Brothers (Underground Railway Theater); Measure for Measure (Actors Shakespeare Project); Never Far From Home, Harriet Jacobs (Central Square Theater); In the Red and Brown Water, 1001 (Company One); Born Naked (SpeakEasy Stage); Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Trinity Repertory Company); Holy Laughter (WAM); Bug, The Etymology of Bird, Done (Providence Black Repertory Company); Peggy Pickit Sees the Face of God (Apollinaire Theatre); and Lava Fossil: A Suitcase Show (Sleeping Weazel Theater). Of the many shows she has directed, more than 13 of them have been world premieres. In addition to her artistic practice, Sandberg-Zakian works as an organizational consultant specializing in connecting arts organizations more deeply to their communities, as well as initiatives around equity, diversity, and inclusion. She has taught classes and workshops in 6
SKELETON CREW CURRICULUM GUIDE
MEGAN SANDBERG-ZAKIAN — ARTIST STATEMENT I believe in the question, “Why are we doing this play here and now?” I want to participate in a necessary theatre - one that we feel we must experience in order to make sense of our lives. A commitment to collaboration and interdisciplinarity guides my directing process. I lead with the intention to create the space for truthful narratives to emerge, to make theatre that is generous without being patronizing, sincere without being sentimental, and pleasurable without being complacent. I’m interested in making theatre that is sustainable to produce and inclusive to all audiences. From developing and producing the work of nine-year-old playwrights at the 52nd Street Project to incubating the work of playwrights of color at the Providence Black Repertory Company, I’ve always been guided by a passion for nurturing and championing new plays and playwrights. My favorite projects have been ones other artists have brought to me saying, “I don’t know how to do this, but I know I have to. Can you help?” The fierce urgency of my collaborators to tell their stories guides and inspires me to discover the unique process and aesthetic that will best bring that project into the world. Because the art and artists that I care about are wildly diverse, the diversity of our field is a key passion for me. This is challenging but critical work if we want our field to be at the vanguard of a changing culture. In every community, theatres should be the most equitable and inclusive places to work, the most generous and welcoming places to visit. Theatre has the power to shape and challenge ideas, and to inspire civic engagement through live, communal witness. We can amplify often-silenced voices. We can challenge false narratives. In counterpoint to the intractable and repetitive stream of mainstream news and social media, we can offer the surprising, the delightful, the transformative.
As an Armenian-Jewish woman, with 20th century genocides on both sides of my heritage, I am very aware of the human tragedies that repeat throughout history and geography. When these forces encourage us to view others with suspicion and hostility, I believe that a performance represents a space where we – artists, audiences, citizens – may come together to practice curiosity, compassion, and generosity towards other human beings.
QUESTIONS: What do you think Megan Sandberg-Zakian means by “necessary theatre”? Do you think it is important that art created by theatre artists be in conversation with the world around it? Why or why not?
2.
Why is it important to tell diverse and inclusive stories? What do we as a society gain by engaging with narratives other than our own?
3.
Write your own artist statement about the kind of art (visual or performance) that you want to make and experience. Investigate what motivates your art and what topics it intersects with.
NILE HAWVER
1.
The cast and director of Skeleton Crew: Patricia R. Floyd, Megan Sandberg-Zakian, Maurice Emmanuel Parent, Jonathan Louis Dent, and Toccarra Cash
THE FERGUSON THEATRE SYLLABUS Pittbulls by Keith Josef Adkins The Etymology of Bird by Zakiyyah Alexander Blacktop Sky by Christina Anderson Lyrics from Lockdown by Byron Bain Blues for Mr. Charlie by James Baldwin Dutchman by Amiri Baraka The Ballad of Emmett Till by Ifa Bayeza Through the Night by Daniel Beaty The Exonerated by Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen Seed by Radha Blank Deep Azure by Chadwick Bozeman The Little Tommy Parker Celebrated Minstrel Show by Carlyle Brown The Taking of Miss Janie by Ed Bullins Jump Jim Crow by Jesse Cameron Collidescope: Adventures in Pre and Post Racial America by Ping Chong and Talvin Wilks Force Continuum by Kia Corthron Bulrusher by Eisa Davis Smart People by Lydia R. Diamond Outcry by Thais Francis Zooman and the Sign by Charles Fuller Low by Rha Goddess Rust by Kirsten Greenidge Hurt Village by Katori Hall A Raisin in the Sun and Les Blancs by Lorraine Hansberry
Dreamscape by Rickerby Hinds Appropriate by Branden Jacob-Jenkins An Evening with Dead Essex and Sleep Deprivation Chamber by Adrienne Kennedy The Shipment by Young Jean Lee Crumbs from the Table of Joy by Lynn Nottage Insurrection: Holding History by Robert O’Hara I Am a Man by Oyamo The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World; The America Play; Father Comes Home from the Wars, Parts One, Two, and Three; and In the Blood by Suzan-Lori Parks The Mojo and the Sayso by Aishah Rahman All the Way by Robert Schenkkan Measure for Measure by William Shakespeare Spell #7 and for colored girls… by Ntozake Shange Contribution by Ted Shine The Riots by Gillian Slovo Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 and Fires in the Mirror by Anna Deavere Smith Party People by Universes (Steven Sapp, Mildred Ruiz-Sapp, Ninja) Gem of the Ocean by August Wilson The Colored Museum by George C. Wolfe Hands Up: 6 Playwrights: 6 Testaments by Nathan James, Nathan Yunberberg, Idris Goodwin, Gleen Gordon, Dennis Allen II, Eric Holmes
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THEMES FOR DISCUSSION AND WRITING PROFESSIONAL VS. MORAL
DEFINITION OF FAMILY
Throughout Skeleton Crew, the characters struggle with what their perceived professional obligations versus what they feel is morally right. In the first scene, Reggie, the factory foreman, rolls a heater into the break room, presumably one that he brought from home due to the company’s failure to supply one. Though he does not have a legal obligation to supply the heater, Reggie sees that his employees are suffering and feels a personal obligation to fix it. Faye similarly blurs the lines between professional obligation and moral obligation by keeping news of the stamping plant’s impending closure under wraps despite her duties as a union representative. Though Faye knows that keeping information regarding closings from the union violates union interests, she also knows that allowing Reggie to negotiate with management in the interest of the workers will result in greater benefits for her co-workers. She also feels pulled by her moral obligation to protect Reggie and honor his word, even if it may be at odds with her professional duties.
In the play’s final scene, Reggie reads the caption on Faye’s photo: “Faye and Cathryn. Summer 1985. Love for life.” (Act II, Scene 5) Throughout Skeleton Crew, Reggie and Faye both hint that their relationship is more familial than collegial. Faye’s relationship with Reggie’s mother Cathryn transforms her into a second mother in his life; Faye was a present maternal figure during Reggie’s later adolescent years, and she shared in mourning of equal intensity upon Cathryn’s death. Though not biologically related, Faye and Reggie experience devotion and respect to each other on a level akin to that of a parent and child. Throughout the play, Reggie frequently seeks Faye’s advice regarding the factory’s impending closure, and ultimately, Faye decides to sacrifice her own job so that Reggie can save his. By putting Reggie’s livelihood above her own in importance, Faye demonstrates unconditional love, the kind of love generally associated with the bond between family members.
Read the Skeleton Crew quotes below, then answer the questions that follow: DEZ: Ya’ll gotta be kiddin’ gettin’ moral on me right now. You think any of this is moral? Keep us workin’ these presses til’ we pull a fuckin’ shoulder blade, and then replace us in a heartbeat if we can’t keep up the production. You think when this ship sinks the captain’s going down? Ya’ll got this blind faith in a crew that don’t even eat lunch with you. Don’t know your kid’s first name. (Act II, Scene 1) REGGIE: I’m sick of walking that line...Line that say I’m over here and you over there and even though we started with the same dirt on our shoes....I’m supposed to pretend like you ain’t more than an employee ID number. Like I don’t know what happens out there when you leave these plant grounds. Why every man feels the need to arm himself before he walks into the grocery store or drops his kids off at school. Like I don’t know the fear that’s come over all of us lately. Walk around with your manhood on the line cuz you never know who’s gonna try to take it from you. Cuz you never know when you’re gonna be the next one out there, desperate and needin’ to feed your family by any means necessary. (Act II, Scene 2)
QUESTIONS: 1.
2.
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Compare and contrast Dez and Reggie’s quotes. Do they agree that there is a disconnect between management and the line workers? How do their thoughts differ? Who do they blame? Towards the end of the play, Reggie becomes upset when management refers to Faye as “dead weight.” Write a discussion of the connotations of “dead weight.” Is this term dehumanizing?
SKELETON CREW CURRICULUM GUIDE
Faye’s maternal instinct extends beyond her love for Reggie. Within the breakroom, Faye regularly checks up on her co-workers and even shares with them the little luxuries in her life, such as gourmet coffee beans from her son. Her caring attitude does not go unnoticed. Dez, in particular, compares Faye not only to his Aunt Debra but also to his own mother. Dez expresses concern for Faye in a similar way, worrying about her being cold in the play’s early scenes and about her housing situation as the play progresses. Faye also acts as a female support system for Shanita by helping her prepare to become a mother and to name her unborn child. Though none of the characters are biologically related, Faye brings them together as a family of necessity. Each person is essentially alone: Faye’s partner has passed away and her biological son has removed himself from her life. Shanita is with child but never mentions a father. Dez never speaks of his family, and though obviously interested in Shanita, he busies himself with business pursuits and dreams. And Reggie, though he has a family at home, feels isolated as a black man working among white men in white collars. The added stress of the Great Recession and the inevitable closure of their factory provides the necessary stress to bond the four isolated characters together, with Faye overseeing the group as a provisional mother figure. The group challenges the biological nature of family instead proving that an open-minded community, who has your back, can be all the family you need.
QUESTIONS: 1.
What does “family” mean to you? Does “family” have to be biological?
2.
To what degree can a group of friends be considered a “family”? Where is the line between “friend” and “family”?
3.
Think of someone who is not related to you by blood but who has been influential in your life. What has made them influential to you? Do you consider them to be family? Why or why not?
NILE HAWVER
The cast of Skeleton Crew: Maurice Emmanuel Parent, Patricia R. Floyd, Toccarra Cash, and Jonathan Louis Dent
SELF VS. COMMUNITY Labor unions are a construct that require a group of individuals to act as a collective for the good of the entire group; by coming together as a group, they have greater bargaining power against their employers. Skeleton Crew demonstrates, however, that despite being part of the same work community and demographic, self-interest can be more tempting than bettering the entire community. Reggie, in particular, epitomizes the conflict between self-interest and community. Though he sees himself as an equal to his employees since he grew up in the same community and shares their African American heritage, Reggie constantly struggles to set himself apart, both because he feels a degree of separation is necessary to earning respect and also because he is driven and wants to be a provider for his own family. He struggles with wanting to help the people of his community while also being initially unwilling to put his career at risk. This conflict comes to a head when Faye asks Reggie whether he has thought about the risk to which he has exposed his employees to ensure his own job security. After repeatedly defending the company’s managers and demonstrating that his own career is more important than giving the workers notice of the plant’s closure, Reggie finally speaks up for his employees and proves that his affinity for community is truly greater than his own self-interest.
To a lesser extent, the other characters also demonstrate similar sacrifices for the greater good, such as Faye’s willingness to stop smoking for Shanita’s unborn baby, despite her previous disregard for the no smoking rule. Skeleton Crew maintains a continued sense that the community needs each other. Even when they have the desire to act in their own self-interest, they generally put those interests aside in favor of the community’s needs because the community, like a union, is a support system where one must pay certain dues in order to reap the benefits.
QUESTIONS: 1.
Reggie is hesitant to disagree with any of his bosses’ orders. Why might Reggie be afraid of speaking up? What does he have to lose?
2.
How do you define the word “community”? How is a “community” different from a “family”?
3.
Think of a time where you prioritized your own needs over the needs of a group. How did that make you feel? How do you feel when you instead prioritize the group?
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MASTERY ASSESSMENT ACT I
SCENE 5
SCENE 1
29. What does Faye pretend to be hiding from Reggie? What is she actually hiding?
1.
Who is Reggie?
2. Why is Faye hot when everyone else is cold?
30. Why is Reggie fixated on the theft at the plant?
3. Who has been working at the plant the longest?
31. What does Faye advocate for her fellow workers?
4. Describe the power dynamic among the characters.
32. What is at stake for Reggie? What is he afraid of losing?
5. How does Shanita respond to Dez’s advances?
SCENE 6
6. Why is Shanita upset at Faye for smoking in the break room?
33. Why do Dez and Reggie fight about warrants?
7. How has the crew recently changed? How does that affect the members of the crew that remain?
34. Describe the ending of Act I. Does it feel resolved? On a cliffhanger? Tense? What is Reggie going to do?
8. What is Dez saving up for?
ACT II
9. How does Faye feel about the United Automobile Workers (UAW)? What are Dez’s problems with the UAW?
SCENE 1
10. Why is it a big deal that Kemp is closing?
1.
Describe Faye’s divided loyalties.
11. What secret does Reggie tell Faye?
2. What does Dez think is immoral? How is he taking action to get what he feels he deserves?
12. Why does Reggie turn to Faye for advice?
3. What happens when Reggie returns?
SCENE 2
SCENE 2
13. What rumors are workers passing around on the line?
4. Why doesn’t Faye see her son anymore?
14. What is Faye an expert in? Who resists her attempts to educate them?
5. What line is Reggie walking? How does he feel about it?
15. How do Faye, Shanita, and Dez feel about guns? 16. What does Faye do when she is confronted about the rumors flying around the plant? 17. What factors does Shanita think it is important to consider when choosing a name for her baby? 18. What does Dez deduce about Faye when he sees her clothes in the break room? Why is he concerned? 19. How does Faye respond to Dez getting into her personal business?
SCENE 3 20. Who puts up the signs on the bulletin board? Why do they resort to this measure to enforce policy? 21. Describe the conflict between Dez & Reggie. How does the difference in the color of their collars contribute to the building tension?
6. How does Faye react to Reggie pitying her and trying to help? 7. Why did Faye turn to gambling? 8. Who wins the argument in this scene?
SCENE 3 9. Where did Dez get the materials Reggie found in his bag? Why does Dez not correct Reggie when he accuses him of being a thief? 10. Why does Shanita kiss Dez? 11. How did Dez get the scar behind his ear?
SCENE 4 12. Who is the new person that management wants Reggie to push out? 13. Why does Reggie freak out? What does Faye propose to eliminate Reggie’s dilemma?
22. Why does Faye trust Reggie?
SCENE 5
23. How does Faye say her life experiences have shaped her?
14. What choice did Faye make? What gifts did she leave for her coworkers?
24. How do Faye and Dez spin the “plane heading toward a tree” metaphor in different ways?
SCENE 4 25. Why is Shanita not eating a lot? What are Faye’s words of wisdom about pregnancy, food, and love? 26. What is behind the strict crackdown on rules in factory? 27. Why does Shanita like her job at the plant? 28. How does Shanita feel about Dez?
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15. How has the way in which Reggie addresses the plant closing changed? 16. Who is Cathryn?
FOR FURTHER EXPLORATION process biases, push into minority positions, lack of access to network and mentors, difficulties in advancement, and psychological and emotional maltreatment. African American women often encounter hostile work environments where they are targeted by both sexual and racial harassment. This culture of discrimination and inequality reinforces the system of injustice and social stratification characterized by imbalance of power and resources.
A woman works in a Ford automobile plant.
WOMEN IN MICHIGAN In Dominique Morisseau’s Skeleton Crew, two strong blue-collar women fight for survival in a world where the odds are not in their favor. Both Shanita and Faye are outspoken, resilient, hard-working, African American women who are employed in the male dominated autoindustry, forging their paths alone in the inhospitable socioeconomic climate of Detroit, Michigan. According to a study conducted in 2013 by the Center for American Progress Action Fund, there are major economic and health obstacles for women across the United States, but especially in the state of Michigan. With regards to compensation, there is a cavernous wage gap in Michigan where women make approximately 77 cents for every dollar a man makes. The pay disparity is even worse for women of color, with Black and Latina women in Michigan earning 65 cents and 54 cents respectively, for every dollar that white men earn. Additionally, an overwhelming 37.3% of African American women in Michigan live in poverty. In Skeleton Crew, Shanita is pregnant with her first child and Faye’s cancer is in remission, amidst their grim lack of access to high quality medical care. In Michigan, 14.6% of African American women lack health insurance and there is only one OB-GYN for every 10,095 women in the state. Michigan also has the worst maternity mortality rate in the nation, with 21 deaths for every 100,000 live births. While Black women make up only 14% of the Michigan’s female population, they had 49.7% of all abortions in the state in 2014 according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. With regards to maternity leave, Michigan has no individual state laws guaranteeing job protection or benefits for new parents. Though employers are obligated to follow federal laws, there have still been many reported cases of women in Michigan being denied pregnancy leave. Gender discrimination in the workplace has received significant global media coverage in the past decade. Although there may appear to be a collective consciousness about these issues for women in the workforce, nationally 68% of women still believe that their employers discriminate against workers based on their gender according to a survey by TNS Global Market Research. Dr. Lilly Fernandes and Dr. Nora Hadi Q Alsaeed asserted in their article “African Americans and Workplace Discrimination” for the European Journal of English Language and Literature Studies, that African American women face employment
Dr. Gloria Thomas, director of the Center for the Education of Women at the University of Michigan, summed it up best when she said, “If you can address women’s issues, you’re addressing the economy, economic sustainability and growth for everyone because in many families, women are heading the families.” The Center for American Progress Action Fund cites that nationally, mothers are the sole, primary, or co-breadwinners in 63.3% of families. In Michigan, that rate is even higher, with mothers as the sole, primary, or co-breadwinners in 66.1% of Michigan families.
QUESTIONS: 1.
What are some of the health obstacles for women living in Michigan? How would these apply specifically to the female characters in Skeleton Crew? How do you define the word “community”? How is a “community” different from a “family”?
2.
Shanita and Faye are both the primary breadwinners in their families. Why might it be difficult for them to support a household on their salaries? What is the wage gap?
MORISSEAU, WILSON, ODETS, AND MILLER Dominique Morisseau writes with a unique, yet familiar, American voice, that has led her to be connected to other distinguished American playwrights, namely August Wilson, Clifford Odets, and Arthur Miller. The overlap with these prestigious playwrights spans from the professional (themes, characters, language, emphasis on dialogue) to the personal (background, artistic mission, community), positioning Morisseau as a modern inheritor of the mantle of American classic. Morisseau herself has explicitly cited August Wilson’s Century Cycle as a major influence on her own collection of plays, the Detroit Project. In the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, she reflected that she was inspired by the light Wilson shed on the people of his hometown of Pittsburgh. “I wanted to do that for Detroit,” she explained. “I don’t like the way Detroit is depicted in the media. None of them know Detroit. They don’t know the people. I wanted to tell the truth about my city, about the people and not about the politics. People make up a city . . . I wanted to share something different about my hometown.” Both Wilson’s and Morisseau’s bodies of work give voice to the stories of under- or inaccurately-represented Black working-class Americans. Both writers have devoted their careers to truthfully chronicling the African American experience, with all the scars, heart, and flaws present. They bring nuance and complexity to their characters, who are directly inspired by people in the playwrights’ home communities. Wilson and Morisseau also heavily infused their scripts with songs steeped in their cultures. Both playwrights have writing roots in poetry, which translates into their ability to craft dialogue that feels like music. “We speak in poetry,” Morisseau says of her family and her husband’s family. “They’re not trying to be poets; it’s just something a little more obscure and specific about how they’re talking. It’s very colorful language. I’ve never thought about why it is; it’s just how I hear it.” Wilson also spoke about the SKELETON CREW CURRICULUM GUIDE
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power of language in a similar vein. After moving from his predominantly Black Pittsburgh neighborhood to a white-dominated area of Minnesota, Wilson noticed that, “There weren’t many Black folks around. In that silence, I could hear the language for the first time. Until then I hadn’t valued or respected the way Black folks talked. I’d always thought that in order to create art out of it you had to change that . . . I got lonely and missed those guys, I could hear the music.” There are countless points of overlap between the stories Clifford Odets and Morisseau elected to tell. Skeleton Crew bears a resemblance to Clifford Odets’ 1930s and 40s era dramas about the oppressed and restless working class. Odets wrote about the Great Depression, while in Skeleton Crew, Morisseau shines light on the Great Recession, the two most traumatic economic events in the 20th and 21st centuries. Additionally, both playwrights’ work digs into the power dynamics between unionized workers and the leaders of big businesses, as Odets did in one of his most well-known plays, Waiting for Lefty. These dialogue-driven playwrights both capture the authentic language of working class characters, which brings an elevated level of social realism to the stage and speaks to the present moment of their world. Odets articulated that his plays stemmed from sympathy for the working class, similar to Skeleton Crew which is dripping with compassion and a very human look at working class Detroit. In a personal parallel, both Morisseau and Odets started out in the theatre as actors and boast performance credits that include their own writings. Skeleton Crew effectively falls in line with Arthur Miller’s pattern of exploring morality and the American identity. Both Miller and Morisseau explore the conflict of consciences, namely in relationship to personal success. They both lovingly write characters who are resilient in the face of crippling adversity, who are trapped in a system that makes sin and self-sabotage inevitable. The two playwrights are so markedly in conversation with each other, that in 2017 Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, Rhode Island, staged Miller’s Death of a Salesman and Morisseau’s Skeleton Crew in tandem with each other as a spotlight on the evolution of the American dream. There are clear ties between Miller’s characters of Willy Loman (Death of a Salesman), Rodolpho (Miller’s A View from the Bridge), and Morisseau’s character Reggie (Skeleton Crew), who are each men attempting to build better lives for their families, following their American dreams, though the odds are ultimately not in their favor.
Playwright August Wilson
THE DETROIT PROJECT The Detroit Project is a three-play cycle by Dominique Morisseau about her hometown of Detroit, Michigan. The plays shine light on the stories of communities that are marginalized both in America at large and specifically in the African American community. Inspired by her family’s own history and the people who shaped her, Morisseau’s plays beat with the pulse of the Motor City. Morisseau writes complex visceral characters with clear passions, dreams, flaws, humor, history, and poetry that are ultimately deliciously human. •
Detroit ’67 (2013) takes place during the 1967 riots and explores the volatile struggles with racial tension and economic uncertainty.
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Paradise Blue (2015) is a jazz-infused exploration set in Paradise Valley in the late 1940s as urban renewal is uprooting communities.
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Skeleton Crew (2016) focuses on a group of autoplant workers in the 21st century who cling to each other as family in a small stamping plant amidst the decline of the auto-industry and the looming possibility of unemployment.
QUESTIONS: 1.
Read “The Skin We Are In” by Dominique Morisseau in Chicken Soup for the African American Soul. Watch “Home for Yale Repertory Theatre,” a poem by August Wilson. Compare and contrast the message, language, and journeys of these two pieces.
2.
Read Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller. How do Arthur Miller and Dominique Morisseau both depict the American dream? How are they similar? How are they different? What is your American dream versus your parents’ generation?
3.
Of these three illustrious playwrights (Wilson, Odets, and Miller), which do you believe to be the most like Morisseau? Use text from both playwrights in support of your argument.
The Detroit skyline
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AFRICAN AMERICAN MIGRATION TO DETROIT According to the United States Census Bureau’s 2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 80.1% of Detroit’s population claims to be Black or African American alone. While Detroit has a long history of African American civilians, rooted in its involvement as a stop on the Underground Railroad and the formation of the Second Baptist Church, started by 13 former slaves as a refuge for African American worship and education, Detroit’s rich African American community is largely a result of the Great Migration, the mass movement of millions of African Americans from the country’s southern states to the North and Midwest. The Great Migration occurred in waves, but the first large movement began in 1915 in correspondence with World War I. At the time, though slavery had been abolished over 30 years, African Americans in the South continued to face heavy discrimination in the form of Jim Crow laws and violence from the Ku Klux Klan. They also faced immense economic hardship. Former slaves predominantly worked as sharecroppers, which was rarely profitable and when a boll weevil insect infestation occurred in cotton fields in the 1910s, large numbers of sharecroppers were forced to seek alternative employment. Moreover, up North, World War I had taken millions of men out of the work force and instituted laws such as the Immigration Act of 1924 that meant there was no longer an influx of immigrants to add to the workforce. As such, the great demand for workers created an opportunity for African Americans to flee oppressive conditions in the South. According to Black Past’s African American History Encyclopedia, some companies,
such as the Pennsylvania Railroad, had such an urgent need for workers that they paid the travel expenses for thousands of African Americans to move north. History.com states that, as a result of the migration, Detroit’s African American population increased by over 600% in the decade between 1910 and 1920. Unfortunately, upon their arrival in Detroit, the migrants still faced heavy discrimination in the form of redlining, which illegally restricted where Black Americans could live. As a result, neighborhoods became racially segregated, restricting African Americans from access to opportunities necessary for upward economic mobility. Segregated migration patterns within the greater Detroit area also led to the coinage of the term “white flight,” used across the nation to describe the migration of whites from cities to the suburbs. Interestingly, due to 21st century events such as the Great Recession and Detroit’s bankruptcy in 2013, migration trends somewhat reversed with many African American families moving to the suburbs and into the southern US, while large numbers of whites moved into Detroit’s metro area. In fact, the NY Post cited that from 2010 to 2013, Detroit’s white population grew from just under 76,000 people to over 88,000. The result has birthed the idea that the city exists as two Detroits: one that continues to collapse and face abandonment and another that is becoming increasingly gentrified.
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QUESTIONS: 1.
An “ABC News” report in 2009 stated that “the nation’s 60 or so African American automotive suppliers…employ some 8,000 people, about 70% of them Black.” Assume that the demographics of the company where the characters in Skeleton Crew work are similar to the above statistic with around 70% African American employees. Why do you think Morisseau chose to make all her characters in Skeleton Crew black? How do their racial identities impact the narrative?
2.
Research the Supreme Court case Milliken v. Bradley. How has the acceptance of de facto segregation in schools contributed to migration patterns? Do you agree with the Supreme Court’s decision? Why or why not?
3.
Gentrification is characterized by an influx of money and construction aimed at aligning the lower-income neighborhoods with more affluent tastes. It’s often associated with urban revitalization since it aims to bring new populations into economically disparate areas. However, gentrification often forces people of lower income to move from neighborhoods that they may have lived in for generations. Research gentrification in a major US city. What neighborhoods are gentrifying? How have longtime residents been affected? What is the difference between gentrification and neighborhood investment?
Abandoned buildings in Detroit, circa 2013
Detroit was hit especially hard with the highest rate of unemployment in any metropolitan area in the country. Its whopping 15.1% unemployment rate, as recorded by EPI, was more than 5% greater than the national average and largely due to the decline in the auto industry. Detroit, as well as the rest of Michigan, was already in a prolonged economic slump prior to the start of the Great Recession, but increasing gas prices and increasingly conservative consumers greatly expedited Detroit’s decline. At that time, Detroit was also experiencing a significant decrease in population that led to less available revenue and decreased demand for services. As a result, the city government cut back on public transportation and public services such as street lights and trash collection in less populated neighborhoods so that resources could be directed towards more heavily populated areas. Mike Cherney of The Wall Street Journal states that at its worst, 40% of Detroit’s street lights were out, entire blocks of the city were abandoned, and emergency personnel often failed to respond to certain areas of town due to understaffing and lack of resources. Cutbacks also included the elimination of public funding to bury unclaimed bodies. As homelessness and joblessness increased, the inability to pay for funeral costs increased, resulting in more abandoned corpses and a stockpile of unclaimed bodies at county morgues with no public funding to bury them. Nevertheless, despite critical and arguably sensational media reports of the devastation in Detroit, there was also a strong sense of community and pride within the city even during the recession years. In the spirit of Detroit’s motto, “Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus” (Latin for, “We hope for better things; It shall rise from the ashes”), local corporations offered up funds to help subsidize the cut public services which, in the years to come, helped pull the city out of bankruptcy. A lot has changed in Detroit since 2008: the 15.1% unemployment rate at the recession’s peak has dropped to a rate of 5.7% in 2017, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The most lasting effect, however, is the recession’s unequal impact across different racial demographics. According to EPI’s study across 50 metropolitan areas in the US, the national Black unemployment rate was nearly twice the white unemployment rate. In Detroit specifically, the black unemployment rate was 20.9% compared to the white unemployment rate of 13.8% at the height of the recession. Moreover, according to Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist and Detroit community activist Desiree Cooper, the housing crisis affected racial groups in disparate ways. Immediately prior to the
THEN AND NOW: RECESSION IN DETROIT Though it officially lasted only from December 2007 to June 2009, the economic devastation of the Great Recession lingered in households across the country for years after. The recession began when an $8 trillion housing bubble burst; housing prices skyrocketed to record highs in 2006 only to be followed by a steep decline and record lows by 2012. The burst triggered cutbacks in consumer spending and a collapse of business investment. In addition to the housing bubble, subprime lending, predatory lending, and increased financial risk-taking are also commonly cited causes of the Great Recession. The decreases in spending and investment caused widespread, massive job losses. According to The State of Working America, the flagship publication of the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), between 2008 and 2009 alone, the US labor market decreased by 8.4 million jobs which is the equivalent of 6.1% of all payroll employment and the most dramatic loss of jobs since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Even over a year after the official end of the recession, there were still 5.4% fewer jobs that at the start of the Great Recession. United Auto Workers on strike 14
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domestic product, so a 30% decline in auto sales was equivalent to a 1% decrease in total US economic output.
The Detroit skyline
recession, home equity made up approximately half of the average white family’s wealth versus 71% of the average Black family’s wealth. As a result, white homeowners, for the most part, have stabilized and recovered their wealth at quicker rates. Since Detroit’s population is over 80% black, its rise back to pre-recession levels has been a slow climb. Further exasperating the crisis, the city’s bankruptcy in 2013, the largest municipal bankruptcy in US history, made it impossible for the city to aid its residents in their financial recovery. Yet the city’s struggle, in some ways, ushered in new opportunities for cultural revitalization. Alarmingly inexpensive property allowed for new residents and businesses to move in, leading to a wealth of craft breweries, tech startups, and pop-up shops. As such, through government intervention, Chapter 9 restructuring, corporate and foundational giving, and bountiful community support, Detroit has begun the process of reestablishing itself as a vibrant, cultural hub.
Controversially, when the “Big Three” sought loans from the federal government in 2008, the Bush administration agreed to help subsidize the companies. Due to their bankruptcies, General Motors and Chrysler were both granted loans as part of TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) which was originally created to address the subprime mortgage crisis. Because it was believed that Ford would be unable to compete in the auto market without subsidies, Ford was also provided with loans from separate funds. The CEOs of all three companies agreed to a salary of $1 for a year and to sell their corporate jets. The companies also agreed to prioritize energy-efficient vehicles, to reduce payments to laid-off workers, to streamline the number of brands they produced, and to close underperforming dealerships. The auto bailout cost the government $9.3 billion, as reported by the US Department of Treasury. The Treasury’s official statement suggests that government action not only saved General Motors and Chrysler, but also businesses up and down the supply chain in addition to hundreds of thousands of jobs. Many economists and politicians, such as James Sherk, a senior policy analyst in labor economics at The Heritage Foundation who points out that union members did not take pay cuts at General Motors, continue to be skeptical, though, claiming that the UAW (United Automobile Workers) union unfairly benefited from the bailout. In a weekly address in 2012, President Obama declared, “We refused to let Detroit go bankrupt.” Nevertheless, a year later Detroit filed for bankruptcy, further exasperating the question: was the auto bailout successful?
QUESTIONS: 1.
Faye lost her house during the Great Recession. In what other ways does the Great Recession impact the characters in Skeleton Crew?
2.
Detroit was built on industrialization, and as such, many large companies such as Ford and General Motors feel a strong sense of obligation to the city. Do you believe that corporations have a moral obligation to help when their community is financially strained? Keep in mind that businesses also struggled significantly and made major cutbacks during the recession. If you were a business owner in 2008 Detroit, would you have offered financial aid?
3.
Part of Morisseau’s goal in writing the Detroit Project was to humanize a city that is often attacked by the media. Why is it important to look at the stories of individuals rather than just statistics? Can you think of any other examples of people trying to humanize a population through art (theatre, writing, photography, painting, dance, etc.)?
QUESTIONS: 1.
The characters in Skeleton Crew work at a stamping plant producing car parts that would then be sent to automobile assembly plants. How would the bankruptcy of major car producers impact the stamping plant?
2.
Do you think it was appropriate for the government to intervene when the auto companies were failing? Is government intervention in one sector of business unfair to the rest of the market? How involved do you think the government should be with private businesses?
3.
Conduct further research on the auto bailout. In your opinion, was the auto bailout successful? Why or why not?
AUTO BAILOUT As gas prices increased in the early 2000s, auto industry leaders, such as Honda and Toyota, began developing increasingly efficient vehicles. By contrast, the American “Big Three” car producers, General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford, initially refused to evolve their technology. Combined with the reduction of consumer spending caused by the Great Recession, the American auto industry felt a severe financial strain. According to Kimberly Amadeo, a business and economics news journalist, auto sales had decreased by 37% in 2008, the equivalent of 400,000 fewer vehicles or two factories’ worth of annual output. At that time, the auto industry contributed 3.6% to the United States gross
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SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES ELA WRITING ACTIVITY Playwright Dominique Morisseau brought Skeleton Crew to Russia to be translated and performed for a Russian audience. This created challenges, namely that her cast was entirely white with only minimal, superficial knowledge of African American culture. How would you approach translating a culturally specific work to a different language and culture? Does the work lose value when it is removed from the context in which it was written? Write a brief essay that addresses the above questions and explains the importance of contextual information to cultural understanding.
BULLETIN BOARD Federal employment law requires employers to publicly post certain notices to their employees. At most companies, as demonstrated by the break room in Skeleton Crew, this takes the form of a company bulletin board. If you were creating a company bulletin board, what information would you include? How would you encourage employees to take notice? Write a list of items, both those that are legally required and ones you think would be useful to employees, that you would include on your bulletin board and explain how you would make it engaging. Use a poster board to create an example of what this bulletin board would look like using replicas of the documents that would be posted.
TOWN MURAL The Detroit Industry Murals are a collection of 27 fresco panels at the Detroit Institute of Arts painted by Mexican artist Diego Rivero. They were commissioned by Edsel Ford, the son of Henry Ford and president of the Ford car company in 1932 in collaboration with William Valentiner, the then director of the Detroit Institute of Arts. The works depict Detroit’s rich industrial history. Imagine that you’re being commissioned to create a mural for your town. Using words and/or images, draft a sketch for your mural. Write a brief explanation for what you included and why.
An example of a company bulletin board
COMMERCIAL Watch Chrysler’s “Born of Fire” commercial from 2011 (www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKL254Y_jtc) . Discuss how the commercial challenges the stereotype of Detroit portrayed in media. Consider the imagery, language, and music. Discuss why Eminem’s involvement in the campaign was significant. Then, select music, imagery, and a spokesperson that you would include in a commercial for your own town.
NAMING A BABY In Skeleton Crew, Shanita enlists her co-workers help in the difficult process of choosing a name for the baby she is expecting. Imagine there is a baby joining your family and you are called upon to help select its name. Pick your top two choices and write a letter to your family member explaining your reasoning behind the names you’ve chosen and why it would be a good idea to choose it! To begin brainstorming, browse through names at www.babynames.com and consider:
The Detroit Industry Murals by Diego Rivera located in the Detroit Institute of Art
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A family name to pass on
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A name from your favorite character in a book, movie, TV show, or play
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A name that translated has a meaning that resonates with you
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A name that pays homage to your mentor or idol
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A name after your favorite historical figure or celebrity
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A name that is phonetically interesting
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A name that is unique – that no one has
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A name that is on the Top Baby names list for 2017
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A name that starts with the same letter as your family member
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A name that is gender neutral
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A name that rhymes with your family member
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A formal name that has a cute nickname
ACTING EXERCISES Explore the tight-knit, interdependent environment of the factory through some ensemble and community-building exercises. 1.
2.
3.
The Human Knot: Arrange group members in a circle, standing shoulder to shoulder. Have each person put their right hand into the center of the circle and grab hands with another person across the circle. Next, have them do the same with their left hand. Tell the students not to hold hands with the person next to them, and to choose a different person for each hand. Now, tell the students they must untangle themselves without breaking the chain of hands! Counsel them to go very slowly and be very gentle. Do it once allowing the students to talk, and once in silence. Pass the Clap: Standing in a circle, be sure students can see the person on their left and on their right. Begin “passing the clap” by asking one person to turn at their waist and clap (sending energy) together with the person on their left. The person receiving the clap “takes it” by clapping simultaneously with the person on their right, then continues the action by “giving the clap” to the person on their left. Tip: In order to successfully receive and give a clap, students must make eye contact, stand with feet shoulder width apart and make the sound of a single clap. When the clap goes all the way around the circle, repeat, this time trying to increase the speed. If the clap falls apart, start over. A Big Wind Blows: Someone in center declares something that is true about themselves. For example: “A big wind blows for everyone who loves to sing.” Then, everyone who loves to sing must run from their place and find a new place. Someone is then stuck in the middle again.
4. From One Side to Another: One of the challenges with Big Wind Blows is that people can get wrapped up with finding another spot that they often don’t notice who shares their interests. Try having the class stand on one end of the space. One person goes to the other side and declares something that is true about them. Anyone who shares their interest joins them. Players are then able to notice who is with them. This version lacks the frenetic energy of the traditional Big Wind Blows, but it allows participants to actually get to know the other players (which is the point of the original game). 5.
Counting to 20: Stand in a circle. The idea is for the group to count to 20, one person saying one number at a time. Anybody can start the count. Then a different person says the next number – but if two or more people happen to speak at the same time, counting must start again from the beginning. It is possible to get to twenty if the group really listens to one another. The order must be random, no prompting each other. Try doing it with and without eye contact. Try doing it with your eyes closed.
6. Flocking: Invite students to stand in a group, all facing the same direction. The students should have enough room to move from a standing position without touching one and other. The individual at the front most part of the group leads everyone in controlled movement. The teacher should model this first. “I am going to move slowly and invite you to follow, or mirror my movement as accurately as possible. I’m going to move in a way that allows for everyone to follow me.” The students should follow, mirroring the leader. When the teacher shifts direction and therefore shifts out of the group’s line of vision, a new leader at the front of the group emerges and leads until his/her movement shifts focus to another leader. The object of the activity is for the group to look like they are moving as one. All movement should be improvised. This activity can be done with or without music. Students’ names can be called out if you get stuck on switching leaders.
A Chrysler TV commercial featuring Eminem
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SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER READING WORKS BY DOMINIQUE MORISSEAU Follow Me to Nellie’s (2011)
AUGUST WILSON’S CENTURY CYCLE / PITTSBURGH CYCLE
Sunset Baby (2013)
Jitney (1982)
Blood at the Root (2014)
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (1984)
Pipeline (2017)
Fences (1985)
“The Skin We’re In” from Chicken Soup for the African American Soul (2012)
Joe Turner’s Come and Gone (1986)
“Why I Almost Slapped a Fellow Theatre Patron, and What That Says About Our Theatres” from American Theatre Magazine (2015)
Two Trains Running (1990)
An Interview by Dominique Morisseau with The Interval (The Smart Girl’s Guide to Theatricality) (2017)
King Hedley II (1999)
http://theintervalny.com/interviews/2017/07/an-interview-withdominique-morisseau/ Shameless (on Showtime) (2011 – 2017)
WORKS BY PEARL CLEAGE (Detroit-raised playwright, essayist, novelist, and poet whose work serves as one of Dominique Morisseau’s creative inspirations) PLAYS
The Piano Lesson (1987)
Seven Guitars (1995)
Gem of the Ocean (2003) Radio Golf (2005)
SKELETON CREW PLAYLIST Explore this list of hip-hop artists who were either born and raised in Detroit, or are currently based there. These musicians embody the beats and rhythms of their hometown that Dominque Morisseau describes in Skeleton Crew as “a cacophony of working class hustle.” •
J Dilla (particularly the songs “The Factory,” “Slum Village,” “Workinonit,” “Motor City 4, 5, 9, and 13,” “Expensive Whip”
Late Bus to Mecca (1992)
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Eminem
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Chain (1992)
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Royce Da 5’9”
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Blues for an Alabama Sky (1995)
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Big Sean
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Bourbon at the Border (1997)
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Trick Trick
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Dej Loaf
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Flyin’ West (1992)
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BOOKS •
What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day (1997)
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Bay Brother’s Blues (2006)
Hassan El-Amin and James A. Williams in the Huntington’s production of August Wilson’s Radio Golf (2006)
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Rapper and music producer J Dilla
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