Audiences that expect to find a soft, nostalgic tone in the reminiscences of two centenarian sisters will certainly get a jolt when they see Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years. There’s a lot of what my own grandmother used to call “piss-and-vinegar” about these African-American sisters, who share their life stories in this humorous, heartwarming show.
Born to a life of relative privilege – their father was a former slave who became the nation’s first African-American bishop in the Episcopal Church – the sisters talk about a lifetime of racism and gender-inequity throughout the 20th Century.
Having Our Say is a historically accurate, non-fiction account as first told by the sisters to a newspaper reporter. The article became a book, which became a bestseller. The book was made into a play. In 1995, the show opened on Broadway at the Booth Theatre.
The play’s success rests on the credibility of the two sisters, and artistic director Ron Celona has chosen wisely in casting a pair of Los Angeles-area actors. H. Chris Brown and Regina Randolph seem as close as real sisters onstage (although during a post-performance meeting they note that this is the first time they have worked together).
As the show opens in the sisters’ shared residence, the women begin by directly addressing the audience. They appear pleased that someone has come to visit, and they insist the audience stay awhile as they tell the story of their lives. And what a life it was! For the next two hours, the actors captivate us with tales about their loving parents, their many brothers and sisters, and the scary Jim Crow years of the South. This eventually prompted them to move as young adults to Harlem. They were peripheral figures in the Civil Rights movement, joining protests against injustice.
Privately, they made history of their own as successful career women. Neither sister ever married (which one sister slyly states is probably the reason they lived so long). One sister, Bessie, became a dentist and had her own practice. Her sister Sadie became a school teacher. When Sadie aimed for a higher-paying, more prestigious position teaching high school, she had to do some sleight-of-hand to land the position. This demonstrates the craft and ingenuity required for the sisters to overcome racial and gender barriers.
The sisters, who remain in their twilight years throughout the play, still seem playful and competitive with each other. Their gentle teasing adds a humorous element to the story. Many of the play’s jokes – intentional and otherwise – are handled by Dr. Bessie Delany (H. Chris Brown), the brassy, “don’t mess with me” type. Her sister Sadie, (Regina Randolph), is the opposite: a quiet, demur woman who prefers to “attract more flies with sugar instead of vinegar.” Together, they demonstrate the backbone and ingenuity – as well as their devotion to family – that allowed these sisters to prosper.
“I wish more white people knew about people like us,” Bessie says at one point in the play. “They think all coloreds are either in prison or homeless.” Bessie explains at the outset that she always uses the term “Negro” or “colored” to describe herself and others instead of African-American. “For one thing, I’m brown, not black,” she says. “And I’ve never even been to Africa. I’m an American.”
Thanks to some excellent, age-appropriate costumes (by Aalsa Lee) and make-up (Lynda Shaeps), the two actors move, walk and gesture as one might expect of women their age (although neither actor is close in age to the actual sisters). A set design that shows both the exterior and interior of their home is nicely created by Jimmy Cuomo.
Rancho Mirage, Calif., where the company is located, rests on the outskirts of Palm Springs. The play seems a perfect fit for this fledgling Equity company, which is only in its fourth season. Plays are produced in an intimate, newly constructed theater space set within a shopping and office complex. It provides the perfect space for the deeply personal Having Out Say. It also demonstrates that while golf, swimming and shopping may dominate this area, there are many hidden cultural attractions waiting to be explored.
