Dunbar Blues Away

By Gwendolyn Cahill

WELCOME TO THE BIGGEST RENT PARTY IN HISTORY

The challenges, upsets, and victories of the voices of Harlem create an interesting storyline in this historical play that celebrates the achievements that occurred during the Harlem Renaissance. Little-known artists, politicians, businessmen, musicians, and community leaders who had the courage to follow their dreams are joined together in a play that celebrates their contributions to Harlem’s African American history. Rent parties became a necessary staple for residents who fell behind in their rent.
Dunbar Blues Away, an original historical comical play was set up as a musical. This comical historical play focuses on the Harlem Renaissance and is primarily staged in two buildings that housed many of the prominent and rising Negroes voices of this era. Board Members of the NAACP and female number runner, Madam St. Claire resided at 409 Edgecombe Avenue, a historical landmark building where many pioneers lived. 2588 Seventh Avenue known as The Dunbar was once home to Matthew Henson, an explorer, W.E. B. DuBois, A Phillip Randolph, a union activist, and poet Countee Cullen. Then we’ll tap dance with Richmond, Virginia’s native son, Bill Bojangles, and groove to the beats of Count Basie at the Cotton Club. John Nail will lead us on a guided tour of the architectural wonders by this famed realtor and investor whose sister was married to James Weldon Johnson, a scholar, and NAACP activist. We’ll mingle with Harlem Renaissance painters and sculptors at Augusta Savage's art show at the Studio Museum of Harlem.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jan 8, 2020
• ISBN: 9781794854062

Book preview

Dedication

To the memory of my parents, Gwendolyn and Govenor Francis Cahill, Aunt Emily C. Brisbane, and John Strachan.

Acknowledgements

Edited by Mike Valentino

Formatted by Fiverr Istvanszaboifj

Location: The action of the play is set primarily in the building of 409 Edgecombe Avenue, Harlem, New York. Secondary location Dunbar apartment 2588 Seventh Avenue, NY, NY and Cotton Club.

Time: The Harlem Renaissance Era 1930s into the 1960s. Primary focus from 1930 to 1937.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Elizabeth Catlett - sculptor

Carroll Boyd - renter in the building, pianist

Julius Bledsoe - composer musician

Aaron Douglas - painter

Clarence Cameron White - violinist

MC

Asa Phillip Randolph

Countee Cullen

Luckey Roberts - musician

Madam St. Claire - bookmaker

Zoot Berry Sims - tap dancer

Count Basie - bit part

Morgan - Vice-President of Jumbo Art Company

Dana - Delivery person for a courier

Judge Charles E. Toney - municipal court Judge

John Nail - famous Harlem realtor and investor

Bill Bojangles - Robinson-tap dancer

William Stanley - Braithwaite-poet

Adam Clayton Powell, Sr. - politician

Augusta Savage - sculptor

Mr. Mike Fletcher - Landlord

Lena Horne - Singer

Dunbar Blues Away

An original musical

Act One Scene One

The entranceway of the 409 Edgecombe Avenue Neo-Georgian E shaped complex designed in art deco to reflect the era. Two staircases Western and Eastern, one side for artists (Western) and the other side (Eastern) for businesspeople and politicians.

Introduction: (no one on stage; voice and music words; spoken flashes of various places cited in Harlem)

Female voice: It all goes back to Harlem. When I think of Harlem, I think of love, Obe's, Harlem Hospital, the Apollo, Harlem Week, and the arts. I still see LaRoc Bay dancing on stage. I remember waiting on the corner of 135th Street and Malcolm X Blvd. for the school bus to come. I think of the love that filled the air and smile. There is warmth in the air whenever I return.

When I walk down the streets of Harlem, I think about the Brownstones and I am full of pride. Vendors line the streets with books, clothes, and incense. I remember when 125th Street showcased the fabrics of Africa in carts sold by my African sisters and brothers. Do you remember the crab man? I do! He cooked steamed crabs in a large steel barrel. How can I forget the watermelon man?

(Female strolls onto the stage wearing a form-fitting dress cotton dress from the Roaring Twenties era.)

Look, there he is, the watermelon man. WATERMELON, WATER-MELON man. Those were the days. I think of love, family, and friends like John Strachan, who was the first person of color to be the Postmaster General in NYC, Aunt Emily ran the daycare center at The Dunbar. I have seen the many shades of Harlem; I've seen it evolve and transform. Could it be the second Harlem Renaissance is here? I think it is, as there's new growth and a renewed interest in the place where I once lived. I was three when my family moved from The Dunbar in Harlem to Mount Vernon, New York. The crackle of gunshots seldom rang out. I wonder if the honor roll sign that carries my father's name still graces the entranceway of the building? I last saw the sign about four years ago. The broken glass to the display was large, but no one removed his name from the sign. The glass-enclosed case contained the names of residents of The Dunbar who served in the World War.

(Female voice)

We lived in apartment 5E. Harlem has been home to many famous and influential individuals.

Frank: It was wartime and our men were sent to fight a raging battle by sea, land, and air. The horns blew the troops out to sea, and the drummers kept the beat for the endless parade of soldiers who marched aboard the battleships, and some flew high into the sky. Families patiently awaited the return of their loved ones who left the boundaries of