Featured photo-Josh Wilder, a playwright and producer whose work has been performed regionally across the United States
Written by Tanya Terry
The play “Wrong River” made its world premiere in Flint earlier this month.
Flint Native Jeremiah Davison, director of Wrong River at the Flint Repertory Theatre, said it is not a coincidence the play has an all-Black cast.
“Josh Wilder, the playwright, definitely wrote it that way,” Davison continued. “One of the things about Josh’s stories is he writes for the Black community and, specifically, you’ll find in his pieces he tends to write with characters and families that are people who are not necessarily often represented.”
Davison said these characters may be people of color who are in lower income areas. Therefore, he said, it was not a coincidence who the characters are, and it makes the characters more representative of Flint, Michigan-as a predominantly Black city.
“More of our stories need to be heard-and told by us,” Davison expressed.
“Wrong River” is a touching story told through the dramatic fantasies of a 10-year-old girl living through the Flint Water Crisis, based what she sees and hears around her as she attempts to escape her surroundings.
“Magical” set designs are used by the production team of “Wrong River” in order to better help the audience enter the world of her imagination.
“What you normally don’t see, we’re able to do-with sound, lights and projections as well,” Davison said.
Davison was involved heavily in the casting process, along with Michael Llubres, producing artistic director of Flint Repertory Theatre, with Davison making the final decisions.
Davison told the Courier why he casted some of the characters the way he did.
According to Davison, Madelyn Porter, of Flint, was casted as June (the 10-year-old girl’s grandmother) because of the positive light and aura she brings into a room that is also seen in her character. To Davison, and likely many who see the play, this is a beautiful contrast to the drama seen in “Wrong River.”
Porter describes her character as an “OG: old-school grandma.”
“My 10-year-old daughter is my legacy,” Porter expressed. “I raised her. She has my spirit and my energy. She is a reflection of me. I want to fix the Flint Water Tower for the city I love so much, and secure a healthy environment for the future, my granddaughter.”
Nikyla Boxley, of Detroit, plays 10-year-old Dayla.
“When you see her in person you don’t think she’s a grown woman…We forget because just her playfulness, her ways that she moves around the space; it can be very kid-like.”
Jade Radford plays Leah, Dayla’s mother and the daughter of June. Radford is a Brooklyn based actor born and raised in New Orleans, LA.
“I love the fight that she brought with the character. There’s something about a Black woman. It’s easy for this role to be looked at and perceived as a damsel in distress. But, she shows it as the fighter who is just caught up in a situation as a Black woman who has all these things going on but still so strong! That was one of the most important thing I wanted the audiences to walk away with.”
Curtis Morlaye plays Vick, Dayla’s father. Morlaye is also from New Orleans, but he lives and works in New York.
“With Vick, similar to Jade, he can be perceived as a stereotype. But, Vick brings a lot of color to the character…You get to see this love he has for his wife-whereas, you get to see how all of them are entwined and weighed down by this toxicity surrounding them. The toxicity of the water, yes, but also the toxicity of the poverty, the racism, unemployment, violence, even crime in the schools, disinvestment and all things other things within this city. You get to see how all that kind of affects his moves.”
Wilder, of Philadelphia, said his intention when he wrote the play was for the children of Flint to see the play now, when they’re 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70. He called the play “political.” He didn’t want to be too pointed and, instead, wanted the audience to be able to make up their own minds
“Most of all I really wanted them to be able to sit back and enjoy a child’s imagination manifested through reality,” Wilder explained.
For details, visit https://flintrep.org/.
