Dominique Morisseau's award-winning "Detroit '67" hits the T2 stage

“CRACKLING WITH HUMOR. Fire up some Motown, get those hips moving, and everything will work out fine.” —The New York Times

DETROIT ‘67

by Dominique Morisseau

Heart, Humor, History, Hope

NORTHWEST ARKANSAS—October 1—Tony nominee and MacArthur “Genius” grant winner Dominique Morisseau’s critically acclaimed play, Detroit ‘67, begins October 12 at TheatreSquared (477 W. Spring St., Fayetteville) and runs through November 6. Tickets, from $20-$54, can be purchased by calling (479) 777-7477 or by visiting theatre2.org.

It’s 1967 in Detroit, and Motown music is getting the party started. Siblings Chelle and Lank are making ends meet by turning their basement into an after-hours joint. But when a mysterious woman finds her way into their lives, the siblings clash over much more than the family business. As their pent-up feelings erupt, so does their city, and they find themselves caught in the middle. This vibrant, raw, “crackling with humor” drama (The New York Times) won the Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama.

“I think there’s a lot of people who would say Dominique Morisseau is one of the most revolutionary writers in the theater today,” says director Dexter J. Singleton Dexter J. Singleton, Director of New Play Development at T2, who previously directed The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity and The Royale. “She captures working class Detroiters perfectly, and the heart of Black women in Detroit. She is great at giving you a socially conscious moment and then flipping it, turning it into something comedic. Ultimately, it’s a play about hope, and the resilience of the human spirit.”

Singleton is the ideal director for the show: He has both produced and starred in it—he was among the first actors to play the character of Lank—but just as importantly, he was born and raised in the neighborhood that serves as the play’s backdrop.

“I’ve walked on those streets, I’ve seen those things, I’ve been in those places,” he notes. “I hope people come away from this play thinking, ‘Detroit is love.’”

Morisseau’s play is the second in a trilogy of plays she’s written about the Black experience in Detroit. T2 previously produced Skeleton Crew, the final play in the trilogy, in 2018.

The acting company includes Devereau Chumrau, Tenisi Davis, Na’Tosha De’Von, Christopher Alexander Chukwueke, and Jenna Krasowski. The Scenic Design is by Baron Pugh, the Costume Design is by Azalea Fairley, the Lighting Design is by John Alexander, and the Sound Design is by Bill Toles.

“There are folks who’ve been coming to TheatreSquared for a decade or more, who, once every year or so, walk straight up to me with a huge smile, saying, ‘this is the best one yet,” said T2 Executive Director/Producer Martin Miller. “This is going to be one of those shows.”

Tickets

Performances of Detroit ‘67 are scheduled from October 12 until November 6, with 7:30pm performances Tuesday through Saturday and 2pm matinees on Saturday and Sunday. The play is in the West Theatre at TheatreSquared, 477 W. Spring Street in downtown Fayetteville, Arkansas. Tickets range from $20-$54. All fees are included, with no additional charges at checkout.

Subscription packages for TheatreSquared include full seven-play packages starting at $105, with four-to-six-play flex packages starting at $89. Benefits for season ticket holders include savings of up to 20% on every show, free unlimited exchanges, discounted reserved parking, and same-day discounts in The Commons Bar/Café and other T2 Restaurant & Hotel Partners.

Through T2’s Lights Up! For Access program, with lead support from the Walmart Foundation and the Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation, SNAP benefit recipients can purchase $1 tickets, while students and patrons under the age of 30 can purchase $10 tickets. Fully subsidized, free tickets are also available for clients of a number of local community service organizations. For more information, visit theatre2.org/lights-up.

Subscription packages and single tickets can be reserved by calling TheatreSquared at (479) 777-7477 or by visiting theatre2.org/subscribe.

About TheatreSquared

TheatreSquared’s signature offering of bold new plays in an intimate setting has driven its growth to become the state’s largest theatre, offering more than 350 performances annually in two intimate spaces and online. The playwright-led company is one of mid-America’s leading laboratories for new work, having launched more than 60 new plays. Notable collaborators have included Bryna Turner, Anne García-Romero, Pulitzer Prize finalist Lisa D’Amour, Qui Nguyen, Mona Mansour, Tony Award nominee Lee Blessing, Amy Evans, and many others. TheatreSquared’s remarkable expansion—with a twentyfold increase in audience in just the past decade—parallels the emergence of its home region in the northwest corner of Arkansas as a booming population center and destination for American art. Offering far-reaching access and education programs and an open-all-day gathering space, The Commons Bar/Café, TheatreSquared remains rooted in its founding vision, that “theatre—done well and with passion—can transform lives and communities.”

Major funding for the TheatreSquared Season 17 is provided by the Walton Family Foundation; the Walmart Foundation; the Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation; the Windgate Foundation; the Shubert Foundation; the Tyson Family Foundation; the Arkansas Arts Council, an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage; the National Endowment for the Arts; Bob and Becky Alexander; Jane Hunt; Margaret and Dick Rutherford; the Francis Lee Scott Estate; Barbara Shadden; the John & Robyn Horn Foundation; Todd Simmons and Melissa Hall Simmons; and Simmons Foods.

Marketing support for TheatreSquared Season 17 is provided by Experience Fayetteville, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Fayetteville Flyer, 3W Magazine, CitiScapes, KUAF, and MailCo USA.

###