Inspired by actual events, The Lesson looks at a single day in July 1978 in a small South Carolina town, a date that fell on the fourteenth anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. The play follows two generations of white men shaped by very different Southern and Northern upbringings, whose paths cross in a series of events that expose one man’s quiet, unexamined bigotry and the other’s genuine absence of prejudice. It is a thoughtful, unflinching look at how hidden bias survives long after the laws meant to end it have already passed.
Who’s In It
- Tommy, a young man in his early twenties, long-haired and easygoing
- John, a man in his thirties with a strong Southern bearing
- Hany Thomas, an elder in his seventies with deep roots in the community
- Abby, a young woman in her late teens
- Junior, a man in his late twenties
- Marvin, a man in his mid-twenties
- Chaps, a young man in his late teens
- Sammy, a man in his thirties who uses a wheelchair
Drama, Full-Length, Cast of 8.
If this story belongs on your stage, I would love for you to read it.
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