About Charles Smith
Charles Smith’s plays have been produced off-Broadway and from coast to coast by theaters such as Victory Gardens Theater, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Goodman Theatre, New Federal Theatre, The Acting Company, People’s Lights & Theatre Company, Penumbra, Crossroads Theatre Company, Penguin Repertory, Ujima Theatre Company, The Colony Theatre, St. Louis Black Rep, Seattle Rep, Jubilee Theatre, Ensemble Theatre in Houston, Berkeley Rep, The Robey Theatre Company, and Ensemble Theatre in Cleveland.
Many of this plays use various historical contexts to explore contemporary issues of race, identity, and politics in America. His work spans a gamut from contemporary investigations of historic icons such as Denmark Vesey, Marcus Garvey, W.E.B. Dubois, and Alexandre Dumas, to examinations of race and politics in a more current setting such as the impact of the end of segregation on Chicago’s Southside.
The Reclamation of Madison Hemings
It’s 1866, and the Civil War has ended. Madison Hemings, son of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, and Israel Jefferson, formerly enslaved footman, return to Monticello in search of Israel’s long-lost brother. Together, they must face their conflicting feelings about the man who wrote “All men are created equal.” Slavery has been abolished, but what really has changed? From what personal bonds do we need to break free? And where do we need to hold on tight? Don’t miss this gripping world premiere about history, family, and hard truths.