“The first step to being free is accepting we are trapped in the first place.”
Set in a diner on the outskirts on Memphis, 1968, Halfway to Memphis is a drama exploring tensions and evolving beliefs among a diverse community following the shocking death of Martin Luther King Jr. A fast-building storm forces a confinement of nine unlikely individuals and a collision of their attitudes towards a developing society, with the stage serving as the soapbox for their conflicting convictions.
Written by up-and-coming playwright and poet, Whit Cook, the show intends to demonstrate an alternative perspective on social issues including race and abuse. With signals of hope and redemption, Halfway to Memphis provides the audience with a thought-provoking vantage point for adversity in action.
Halfway to Memphis is the debut performance from Laura Belle Productions, an organisation passionate about providing opportunities for breakthrough talent to bring their visions to life across the arts.
Then & Now
Five decades after the assassination of Dr Martin Luther King and we’re still fighting the same battle.
Dates may have changed but racism remains.
How can the world have progressed yet still be the same?
We are the human race. We are one race. We are one.
This short film, Then & Now, is an adaptation of the play, Halfway to Memphis, which should have debuted at the Gilded Balloon, Edinburgh Fringe, 2020. The adaptation was written in response to the murder of George Floyd. We hope that this video continues to raise awareness of the injustice and anti-black attitudes which insidiously seep into corners and crevices of society; we must challenge the toxic voice of racism when it rears it’s ugly head.
#Blacklivesmatter #nojusticenopeace #halfwaytomemphis
Performing at
Edinburgh Fringe 2021
Dates // TBC
Venue // Gilded Balloon Tenot, 6H8 9AJ
Tickets // TBC
Notes // Suitable for ages 12+