Stritch to present Milwaukee debut of "10 Perfect: A Lynching Survivor's Story"
One-man play is based on the life of Dr. James Cameron
posted Feb. 4, 2011
In conjunction with African American History Month, Cardinal Stritch University and Pannell Production Company will present a moving and thought-provoking one-man play inspired by the life of Dr. James Cameron, the only known survivor of a lynching in U.S. history and founder of America's Black Holocaust Museum in Milwaukee.
"10 Perfect: A Lynching Survivor's Story," which will be performed for the first time in Milwaukee on Feb. 26 and 27, takes audiences on a journey into the life of Jimmy “The Salmon” Solomon. Born and raised in the heart of northern Ku Klux Klan territory, Solomon revisits his earliest memories as a child growing up with his best friend, Tommy, who is white. As the two youths age and society demands their innocence, their troubled friendship comes to a screeching halt on a fateful night in August, 1930. “10 Perfect,” a study in character transformation, is a tale that demonstrates the triumph of the human spirit and the healing powers of storytelling.
The play was written and is performed by Patrick Sims, founding director of the Theatre for Cultural and Social Awareness at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an associate professor of acting and head of the undergraduate acting specialist program in the Department of Theatre & Drama there. Prior to that, Sims was a company member at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Ore., as well as a faculty associate in the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. On stage, some of Sims’ favorite roles include Sterling North and Cephus Miles in the Madison Repertory Theatre’s productions of “Permanent Collection” and “Home”; Neal in “The Story” at Chicago’s Goodman Theater and the Milwaukee Repertory Theater; and Hippolytus in “Phaedra” and Priam in “The Greeks” with the Shanghai Theatre Academy in Shanghai, China.
The production is directed by Sheri Williams Pannell, an established Milwaukee writer, performer and director. Pannell’s directing credits include “A Brother’s Goodbye” for the Milwaukee Chamber Theater, “Ain’t Misbehavin’” by the Skylight Opera, and many others. Her works as a playwright include numerous plays for the Milwaukee Repertory Theater, the Milwaukee Art Museum Commission, the African American Children’s Theatre and Theater X. She has served as an education artist for the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Skylight Opera, Milwaukee Public Theater, Arts@Large, Milwaukee Public Schools, the Children’s Theatre of Madison and the Milwaukee Repertory Theater.
The play will be performed at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26 and 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27 in Stritch’s Nancy Kendall Theater. A panel and Q&A will follow. Admission is free, but pre-registration is required. To pre-register, e-mail events@stritch.edu or call (414) 410-4340. Pre-registrations are valid until 6:50 p.m. on Saturday and 4:50 p.m. on Sunday. At this time, empty seats will be available to patrons without tickets.
Those attending the performances should be aware that the play is for mature audiences and contains adult themes and language.