You only have until Sunday, Dec. 14 to go to the ArcLight Theatre and experience a one-man tribute to Frederick Douglass. Playwright and performer Phil Darius Wallace presents a work in which he speaks as Douglass to tell his whole story—a story that has a lot of heart, suffering, abuse, strength, love and pride.
Wallace is a powerhouse on stage as he transitions between 14 characters. “Self Made Man: The Frederick Douglass Story” shows the audience how this famous abolitionist became the man he was. Wallace lets the audience learn of Douglass’ sad childhood and how he grew up partly raised by his grandmother, who taught him many important lessons about being the best man that he could be. Though a slave, Douglass was raised to have pride in himself, and he was not taught to feel as though he were beneath any man, including the master.
The audience learns who taught Douglass to read, write and speak well as a young boy. We learn of the beatings he endured, the owners he was passed on to and the skills he would master.
The audience then sees Douglass go from being a slave to a free man in his own mind and eventually making this a reality. We experience the passion he felt as he joined the abolitionist movement and spoke out against slavery, using his own brutal experiences as examples of the inhumanity of this practice.
Wallace delivers the story in 80 minutes, but this short period will leave an impression on you, which will last for some time. Wallace is poignant, powerful, funny and very engaging as he comes out and talks directly to the audience at times. When the play—which is amazingly directed by Melania Levitsky—ended, I felt a renewed interest in Douglass and a desire to learn more about him.
This play should be experienced by young and old. I walked out enlightened. For tickets, call 212-352-3101 or visit FrederickDouglassPlay.com.