Outcry, A Play Based On The Lives Of Travon Martin, Sean Bell And Others To Make Debut On St. Croix

ST. CROIX — OUTCRY, a play set in an imaginary universe that merges the lives of Trayvon Martin, Emmett Till, Sean Bell and Amadou Diallo — all men of African descent, who were either shot to death or killed by white law enforcement — will debut on St. Croix next week. The play also features Mamie Till, the mother of Emmett Till, whose murder mobilized the African-American Civil Rights Movement.

According to a press release issued to The Consortium on Wednesday, OUTCRY has been performed all over the US and was featured in American Theater Magazine. It will be performed here, at the Education Complex, Thursday, Dec. 17 and Friday, Dec. 18 at 7:00 p.m.

The play is set in the dream of Nicole Bell, whose fiancé was murdered the night before her wedding. It begins when two teenage boys (Trayvon Martin and Emmett Till) meet for the first time and as the story continues, the lives of Mamie Till (Emmett’s mother) Amadou Diallo and Nicole Bell unfold. Through the characters onstage, the audience is forced to ask “what happens when you scream and no one hears”.

OUTCRY was written immediately after the death of Trayvon Martin, the release made known. And three months later, in May of 2012, it debuted for a two-night showing at the New York University to sold out audiences. Since then, the play has had three productions and has been seen by thousands of audiences in both the New York and the DC/Maryland and Virginia areas.

After NYU, the play was produced by Thais Francis, Kelley Girod, and Horse Trade Theater on September 6th-9th 2012 at Horse Trade Theater. This production had a sold out run as well. It was then work-shopped with high school students at the Harlem Conservatory for the Arts.

In February of 2013, OUTCRY opened at the JACK theater as the first show of its inaugural season. Due to the overwhelming response and interest by the public, the show received an extension. In September 2013, OUTCRY had a Mid-Atlantic regional premiere at the Public Playhouse in Maryland in which over 1000 people attended, according to the release.

Correction: December 10, 2015

A previous version of this story, because of a text error, gave incorrect dates for the upcoming OUTCRY showings. The performances will take place on Thursday, Dec. 17 and Friday, Dec. 18 at 7:00 p.m., not Nov. 16 and 17. The story has been updated to reflect the correct information.