After numerous interviews, hours of field research and three books, Communication Dean E. Patrick Johnson had the honor of his longtime mentor adapting his book “Honeypot: Black Southern Women Who Love Women” for the stage.
The book, which explores the lives of queer Black women in the South, was adapted into a play by Communication Prof. D. Soyini Madison. Johnson was one of Madison’s undergraduate students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and she was the one to introduce him to oral history and performance, he said.
Madison said she read the manuscripts of “Honeypot” before the book was published.
After field research in the South, Johnson originally planned on writing two books: one about men and one about women. He published “Sweet Tea: Black Gay Men of the South” in 2008, and then ultimately wrote two books about the women he talked to. One, “Black. Queer. Southern. Women.,” was an oral history, whereas the other, “Honeypot,” was a creative nonfiction.
Johnson said he was excited for his first attempt at creative nonfiction and knew the book would suit a performance well, but that he couldn’t be the one to stage it.
“He had faith that I would do it right,” Madison said. “And he knew that I would put everything I had into it.”
Madison said that she feels ever present in the work since she is not only the adaptor but also a co-director.
“Honeypot” was a joint production between Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre and the Wirtz Center for the Performing Arts. The cast was made up of both Northwestern students and actors from Evanston and Chicago. It opened with a preview May 17 and currently runs on Saturdays and Sundays through June 1 at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center.
The show follows Dr. EPJ (Jelani Julyus) as he is taken to the mythical world of Hymen by Miss B (Tuesdai B. Perry) to hear the stories of the women there. The stories are real-life experiences of queer Black women that Johnson talked to across the South. The ensemble is made up of six Black actresses who each play several of these women, sharing their stories of coming out, falling in love, navigating spirituality, political activism and sexual violence.
“There’s something really cool about these being real stories and some of these words being actual quotes from women who are still alive,” said Communication senior Angelena Browne, a member of the ensemble.
Browne said reenacting true stories on stage was truly rewarding since the stories are ones that are not often represented in theatre.
Although many of the topics discussed in the show are heavy, the team was still able to enjoy high-energy moments with each other, according to Weinberg junior Sadie Stickler, another member of the ensemble. She said they all connected with each other right away and even got distracted telling jokes to each other sometimes.
“It makes this great balance where you can hit those emotional scenes and also know that you’re in a safe, loving environment,” Stickler said.
Ensemble member and Communication senior Kaitlyn Fields also appreciated the team’s environment, she said. It was her first time working with an all-Black production room.
She felt supported by the people at Fleetwood-Jourdain in a way she said she hasn’t felt supported before at Northwestern.
Fields said “Honeypot” is also different for her because she is not just playing a character. Instead, she is playing women that really exist.
Some of these women attended the show’s performance on May 25 for a post-show discussion with Johnson. Johnson said several of the women participated in events while he toured the book after it was published.
It is important that the audience sees “these women’s humanity,” particularly in “a moment where the LGBT community at large is under attack,” Johnson said.
“I think part of why people ‘other’ people is because they don’t understand,” Johnson said. “And so, through storytelling, through performance, I think we can bridge that gap of informing people about the lives of these women and helping them understand that they go through the same experiences that many of us go through, as well.”
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