#2 - N*gger Wetb*ck Ch*nk Race Play

Scene from the show "N*GGER WETB*CK CH*NK" now touring nationally. A Los Angeles Times "Critic's Choice." Stars Allan Axibal, Rafael Agustin, and Miles Gregley. Liesel Reinhart and Steven T. Seagle co-wrote and directed. Produced by Speak Theater Arts. www.NWCLive.com for more info.

This is a play that has been shown at Trinity for the second time (first time in 2008). I remember my friends telling me that I had missed out on one of the amazing plays, so I was really excited that they were performing again this year. The title of the play, which contains words that many of us probably have heard of before is packed with the history of racial discrimination. The play began with a group chant in which the three actors called themselves using the words of the title of the play. It was really shocking but at the same time grabbed my full attention since these words are socially “banned” from using these days, but they were using it so freely and loudly. It is basically a skit about playing their race card in certain situations. They share stories in a humorous tone, which at that time, I’m pretty sure wasn’t funny at all for them. The three men tour around Universities to invoke laughter as well as to educate students that we are of the same race – the HUMAN RACE. They make it clear that this play is not to make white students feel guilty. It is purely about getting the message that, “There is only one race – the HUMAN RACE” across. One interesting aspect of this play is that all the stories they share are autobiographical. Some of them seem too ridiculous to be real, but they make it clear that they are all true memories. During Q/A time, one student asked about how they met, and they said they actually met at a community college in LA, and then went to UCLA to join the theatre program. Another student asked about how they came up with the title, and one of the actors said that their purpose was to create a dialogue using these words and to educate people on stereotypes. He said they thought about having ‘the minority friends’ as the title, but no one would want to see it. After all, the title is certainly attention-grabbing. Being an Asian, I honestly thought it was very funny and worth watching. I highly recommend the play for those students who have never seen it play before.