Tucson, AZ ---“A woman with a vision is a powerful thing.” Shirley Chisholm is back ... to tell it like it really is! Guest Artist Ingrid Griffith’s award-winning production is the largely unheard story of Shirley St. Hill Chisholm. This trailblazer, visionary and woman, was a Brooklyn-born politician of immigrant parents (father from Guyana and mother from Barbados). In the 20th century, she was the first African American woman to win a seat in the U.S. Congress and run for the Presidency of the United States. The story journeys back to 10-year-old Shirley returning to the U.S. after being separated from her parents during The Great Depression. We see how the years living with her grandmother in Barbados manifested and reinforced Shirley’s Caribbean heritage in her speech pattern and expectations of herself. Shirley Chisholm’s childhood also shows how race and gender were intended to determine how far she would go in life, why as a young woman she chose to fight for the disenfranchised, and what it took for her to rise.

 

UNBOSSED & UNBOWED dramatizes the Civil Rights era, the unrest of the 1960s, the patriarchal system and the all-boys network Shirley Chisholm was up against, many of the themes that exist in politics today. Visuals and music establish the tenor of the times and create mental images of the economic, political, and social upheavals in America from the 1930s to the early 1970s. The characters in UNBOSSED & UNBOWED all have strong voices and valid points-of-view. But it’s Shirley Chisholm’s narrative that delivers the story’s message.

 

UNBOSSED & UNBOWED will be performed at the Berger Performing Arts Center at 1200 W Speedway for two performances only:  January 20, 2024, at 7:30 PM and January 21, 2024 2:00 PM.  Run time is 85 minutes with no intermission. Age recommendation is High School PG

Tickets are available through AudienceView at www.invisibletheatre.com .

 

About Ingrid Griffith: Solo Show Artist / Writer / Actor (SAG/AFTRA, Dramatists Guild)

Ingrid is the writer and performer of UNBOSSED & UNBOWED, a story inspired by the life and times of the icon/trailblazer Shirley Anita (St. Hill) Chisholm.   “I’ve been moved to write and share Shirley Chisholm’s story in the hope that more people will become aware of her contributions and appreciate how her voice resonates today. I’m drawn to tell stories about the immigrant experience, about being an outsider and daring to be oneself.   I’m interested in social norms and cultural barriers that keep girls and women down, and in stories that promote and celebrate girls and women’s empowerment.” In March 2020, Griffith participated in Conch Shell Productions Hear Her Call Caribbean American Women’s Theater Festival where she received the “Outstanding Playwriting That Inspires Social Change” Award for UNBOSSED & UNBOWED. Griffith has been in off-broadway theatrical productions in and around New York City.  Some of her favorite roles are  Lady Reveller in the 18th century play, THE BASSET TABLE by Susanna Centlivre, Mrs. Muller in John Patrick Shanley’s DOUBT Hedda Gabler in Henrik Ibsens HEDDA GABLER; various characters in Eve Ensler’s “VAGINA MONOLOGUES; Elaine Brown in Anna Deavere Smith’s TWILIGHT: LOS ANGELES and Mama Nadi in Lynn Nottage’s RUINED.   For the past five years Ingrid has been performing her award-winning and internationally- successful solo show, DEMERARA GOLD, about a Guyanese girl’s immigrant experience. 

 

About The Invisible Theatre

 

The Invisible Theatre (IT) of Tucson, a non-profit 501 (c) 3 organization, has been dedicated to producing quality theatre and arts education experiences for all facets of the community in an intimate setting that showcases local professional talent and guest artists for 52 years.  Started in 1971 as an arena for local playwrights, the theatre has expanded its programs to include adaptations of classics and recent Off-Broadway plays and musicals, while continuing to encourage new playwrights through both full productions and stage readings.

Under the leadership of Managing Artistic Director Susan Claassen and Associate Artistic Directors James Blair and Betsy Kruse Craig, IT is strongly committed to community service and outreach programs. The Invisible Theatre is located at 1400 N. First Avenue (at Drachman), Tucson, AZ 85719. For additional information visit www.invisibletheatre.com or call the box office at 520-882-9721  or administration at (520) 884-0672.

 

 

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