Art Community Headlines

‘The Soul of Mary Wells’ educates, inspires and entertains Flint community

Written by Tanya Terry

“The Soul of Mary Wells” began in September and is continuing to run at the New McCree Theatre through October 12, on Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

“First of all, our audience here is Flint love the Motown story period,” said Charles Winfrey; executive director of the McCree Theatre, producer and playwright.

Winfrey added: “Of course, Mary Wells was an integral part of the success of Motown. So, it was kind of a natural thing to write about her – in addition to the fact that she led such an interesting life and that her life can be a lesson to so many.”

Kimberly Harris, who is 41, plays Mary Wells in the production.

During the Christmas season in 2019, Harris participated in a play called “The Gift” at Christian Tabernacle Church (CTAB). “The Gift” was directed by Karen Abercrombie,  an award-winning actress in faith-based films who starred in the 2015 hit film “War Room.”

Harris started acting with the McCree Theatre in the fall of 2021 in “Those Dazzling Divas of Motown,” written by Charles Winfrey and directed by Cathy Johnson. She was also in “Sanctified” at the McCree, directed by Cathy Johnson. “Santified” was written by Hollywood Actor Javon Johnson, who plays the butler on the Oval. Harris was also recently in “The Moonglows” and “The Motown Story.”

Harris shared many of the plays she’s been cast in are musicals.

“A lot of times I play Tammi Terrell or Gladys Knight,” shared Harris.

She also shared her knowledge of Mary Wells prior to the current production was “very limited.”

“I knew some of the songs that she sang,” stated Harris. “However, I didn’t know how important she was to Motown. I didn’t know she was considered the Queen of Motown and she had its first top ten hits. I don’t know who to compare her to nowadays, but she basically built Motown. Of course, they had been established prior to her…I don’t know if Motown would have been Motown without her.

“After doing research and looking at a lot of videos online and reading up on her, a lot of the stars of that day would say the exact thing. The big names, the Supremes and Dionne Warwick and a lot of the other singers of that day had nothing but great things to say about her – about how big of a deal she was.”

Harris tries to convey that Wells was “a real person with real emotions” when portraying her in “The Soul of Mary Wells.” Harris pointed out Wells “doubted herself – but had to eventually believe in herself.”

“I can relate to being a Black woman from Michigan – because I am a Black woman from Michigan,” said Harris. “I can relate to that – maybe in growing up having a dream to sing and wanting to do something extraordinary…I can definitely see myself in her as being a singer and a performer because that’s something that I aspire to do and actually love to do.”

Harris told the Courier she is grateful to be able to play Mary Wells in the production.

“This is my first leading role in any production. So, I am grateful for it. It’s a lot of work. I didn’t realize how much work it was going to be before saying yes to this role. However, I was grateful that Mr. Winfrey wrote this play…I’m definitely growing in this role as an actress and putting myself out there. I’m grateful for the opportunity to be able to use the gifts that God has given me to share with others and to bless people and the world.”

Winfrey said: “The message we hope to convey with the Mary Wells story, in addition to just the entertainment value is the fact that we have to be very cautious about entering into things without more knowledge of the ramifications of that decision. Mary Wells opted to leave Motown because of some misguided kinds of information that was being fed to her.

“We just want everyone to come out and support. We’re not doing this just for the sake of doing it. We’re doing it for the people here in the community. If not, what we’re doing is in vain. We really want people to come out and support.”

Tickets will be available at the door. The New McCree Theatre is located at 4601 Clio Rd, Flint, MI 48504.

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