Posted on Dec 22, 2023
'Everyone walked away with part of themselves healed' – 'The Color Purple' reimagined
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https://www.npr.org/2023/12/22/ [login to see] /new-adaptation-of-the-color-purple-finds-new-joy-in-the-pain-of-the-original-wor
Some stories just seem to stay with us.
That's certainly the case for Alice Walker's The Color Purple. Her 1982 novel won a Pulitzer Prize and has since been the basis for a movie, then a Broadway musical, then a radio play. On Christmas Day, it's coming back to the big screen as a musical but with new music and a new treatment.
The story about African-American women who face physical and emotional brutality in early-20th-century Georgia — but manage to find hope and healing — is still an emotional whirlwind. In this latest version, director Blitz Bazawule finds new joy in the work — an antidote to some of the pain.
Some stories just seem to stay with us.
That's certainly the case for Alice Walker's The Color Purple. Her 1982 novel won a Pulitzer Prize and has since been the basis for a movie, then a Broadway musical, then a radio play. On Christmas Day, it's coming back to the big screen as a musical but with new music and a new treatment.
The story about African-American women who face physical and emotional brutality in early-20th-century Georgia — but manage to find hope and healing — is still an emotional whirlwind. In this latest version, director Blitz Bazawule finds new joy in the work — an antidote to some of the pain.
'Everyone walked away with part of themselves healed' – 'The Color Purple' reimagined
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Posted 5 mo ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."MICHEL MARTIN
What do you hope you have added to the legacy of this work?
BLITZ BAZAWULE
Well, first, I hope I've added some deeper layering. You know, Mister's character may have been perceived as one dimensional. Colman Domingo, who brilliantly plays Mister, and I had deep conversations around: how do you make him human? How do we understand how his dreams deferred make him who he is? They say: "Hurt people hurt people." That is truly what this story's about. So that layering is very important.
I also ultimately hope that people take away the healing qualities that have always existed in The Color Purple, but amplified in this one. One of the most rewarding things that ever happened was when I reached out to Fantasia [Barrino] to play this role [Celie]. She was deeply hesitant. And I understood why: she had dealt with deep trauma. And when she played the role on Broadway, she struggled to find that balance. After, you know, convincing her to play the role, she was asked what's the take away? And she said, "I was healed."
There's no award or reward anyone can ever give me that would equate to being a small part of my sister's healing journey. That is why we do this work. And I believe that everyone who had a hand in this project walked away with a part of themselves healed."
..."MICHEL MARTIN
What do you hope you have added to the legacy of this work?
BLITZ BAZAWULE
Well, first, I hope I've added some deeper layering. You know, Mister's character may have been perceived as one dimensional. Colman Domingo, who brilliantly plays Mister, and I had deep conversations around: how do you make him human? How do we understand how his dreams deferred make him who he is? They say: "Hurt people hurt people." That is truly what this story's about. So that layering is very important.
I also ultimately hope that people take away the healing qualities that have always existed in The Color Purple, but amplified in this one. One of the most rewarding things that ever happened was when I reached out to Fantasia [Barrino] to play this role [Celie]. She was deeply hesitant. And I understood why: she had dealt with deep trauma. And when she played the role on Broadway, she struggled to find that balance. After, you know, convincing her to play the role, she was asked what's the take away? And she said, "I was healed."
There's no award or reward anyone can ever give me that would equate to being a small part of my sister's healing journey. That is why we do this work. And I believe that everyone who had a hand in this project walked away with a part of themselves healed."
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