Loquacious & Bodacious:The Life & Times of Zora Neale Hurston celebrates Black History

Feb. 23, 2013 - PRLog -- LOQUACIOUS & BODACIOUS: The Life and Times of Zora Neale Hurston opens March 9, at 8:00 p.m., at The Bhetty Waldron Theatre; with Karen Stephens, directed by Bob Carter
Alongside great reviews at Zorafest in Fort Pierce and The Actors Rep., this one-woman show sizzles with the magnetic energy of actress Karen Stephens portraying author, genius, and colorful Florida icon Zora Neale Hurston.

The show was conceived by the late Bhetty Waldron (who portrayed Zora for Actor’s Rep in 2002), in co-creation with actor/director/teacher Bob Carter.

“I found Loquacious and Bodacious to be the authentic Zora Neale Hurston.  She comes alive in all her splendor.  After seeing this play you understand completely why this literary genius had the map of Florida on her tongue.”  -Robert E, Hemenway, author of Zora Neale Hurston: A Literary Biography.

“Karen Stephens brings Zora Neale Hurston to vibrant life in her performance of Loquacious and Bodacious. Interacting with the audience in a natural, engaging way, Stephens captures Hurston's keen intellect, sly humor, down-home charm and disarming sophistication. In Stephens' performance, Zora Neale Hurston gets the kind of stage remembrance that she deserves--as a raconteur, an adventurer, an intellectual, and a woman. . .” -Valerie Boyd, author of Wrapped in Rainbows: The Life of Zora Neale Hurston.

Hurston (1891-1960) grew up in the all-Black township of Eatonville, Florida. Her happy early childhood was shattered when her mother passed away and her father remarried. Following Howard University and a Barnard College graduate degree, Hurston began her writing career. It was the 1920s, and a group of gifted and prolific Black artists, musicians and other talent were part of New York’s Harlem Renaissance at that time.  Her writings show her struggles and how color can liberate and imprison all at once, how genius can or cannot be born, and how womanhood can both adorn and strangle a life.  

The late Bhetty Waldron once said of the play, “You’ll take with you the determination to follow your own dreams. You’ll walk out much taller, because the wind at your back is imbued with the spirit of this unforgettable woman.”

The Actors Workshop & Repertory Co., 1009 North Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, will host LOQUACIOUS & BODACIOUS: The Life and Times of Zora Neale Hurston starting March 9, at 8 p.m., with a closing performance Sunday, March 10, at 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at boxofficetickets.com, actorsrep.org or by calling the Box Office, at 561-833-7529, one hour before curtain.

For more information, contact Bob Carter at 561-301-2588.