RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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A tale of abuse, mental illness and death, Lady in Red’s monologue is the most harrowing in “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf.”
But actress Teena Marie is embracing the role with confidence and conviction.
“I can visualize it because I’ve been there, and I’ve seen it,” said Marie, who stars in ETA Creative Arts Foundation’s upcoming rendition of the late Ntozake Shange’s landmark 1976 play. Directed by Donn Carl Harper, the production opens Saturday and runs through Aug. 30 at the group’s Grand Crossing theater.
“I have family that went through mental health issues. I’ve witnessed aunties putting the man before the kids until it was too late.”
Beyond nailing the part, Marie said she is driven by a mission to help women leave dangerous relationships .
“That’s why I’ve got to do this story,” she said. “I’ve got to tell it right.”
Teena Marie, Lady in Red (center), sings during a rehearsal of “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf” at the ETA Creative Arts Foundation.
Anastasia Busby/For the Sun-Times
“For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf”
When: Aug. 1 - 30 Where : ETA Creative Arts Foundation, 7558 S. South Chicago Ave. Tickets : $30.75 to $51.25 at etacreativearts.org
Audiences will hear other visceral narratives during the play, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Featuring poetry, song and dance, the “choreopoem” grapples with everything from abortion and sexual assault to love and sisterhood, and is considered quintessential work in the Black theater canon. The cast members and understudies are all Black women from Chicago, ranging from 20-somethings to those in their 70s. They portray characters who are identified by the colors of their clothing.
The actresses said they are passionate about empowering Black women, while showing both their hidden pain and resilience.
“I don't think that people are going to think, 'All these issues are from 50 years ago,’” said Markena Peavy, ETA Creative Arts Foundation’s board president and the show’s choreographer.
“They're going to say, ‘I can resonate with each and every one of these monologues in 2026.’”
Madison Savannah, Lady in Purple, dances during a rehearsal of “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf” at Creative Arts Foundation in Grand Crossing. “It’s OK to be bold and be brave,” said Savannah, who hopes the play encourages young women.
Anastasia Busby/For the Sun-Times
Breaking new ground on Broadway
In 1976, “For Colored Girls” broke new ground as the second play written by a Black woman to be performed on Broadway. ( Lorraine Hansberry achieved the feat in 1959 with “A Raisin in the Sun.”)
Shange’s piece stood out because of its unconventional structure and bold subject matter, said Avery Willis Hoffman, artistic director at University of Chicago’s Court Theatre, which staged the production in 2019.
“To focus on women and the experiences of Black women, specifically, was definitely revolutionary,” she said. “It took a lot of courage to write that piece and express this kind of Black feminism.”
In addition to its stage renditions, the production was adapted for TV in the 1980s and reimagined by Tyler Perry as a film in 2010. In 2022, it was revived on Broadway to critical acclaim by director and choreographer Camille A. Brown. But the Tony-nominated production’s run was cut short due to industry-wide attendance challenges following the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As you see different productions of it, it opens up an avenue of creativity that more structured plays don't necessarily do,” Hoffman said. “It offers you so many opportunities for interpretation, and the positioning of women at the center of the conversation is still very much needed.”
In 1976, Ntozake Shange’s “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf” broke new ground as the second play written by a Black woman to be performed on Broadway. ETA Creative Arts Foundation will present the production beginning Aug. 1.
Anastasia Busby/For the Sun-Times
Speaking up about inner struggles, abuse
For the production at ETA Creative Arts Foundation, director Donn Carl Harper shifted a few of the monologues around to different characters to complement the talents of each actress. Otherwise, he hewed very closely to the original version, which he saw as a teenager.
“It blew me away because I had never seen all Black women onstage,” Harper said. “I always knew that Black women have power. They can change situations.”
Harper said he prefers the play to Perry’s film, which lost some of the original’s power because of its shortened monologues and addition of male characters.
“That's why we have people see it after 50 years to experience the real version – before it got diluted,” Harper said.
Donn Carl Harper will direct ETA Creative Arts Foundation’s production of “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf.”
Anastasia Busby/For the Sun-Times
The actresses said Harper challenged them by giving them multiple roles. L.A. Holts portrays both Lady in Yellow, who is a virgin, and another character, who is a sex worker.
“It’s actually crushing her soul,” Holts said of the latter character. “She adorns herself with all of the glitter and embroidered things because it’s her mask. I have to find that emotional space where I am presenting as if I’m OK with it, but on the inside, I’m shrinking.”
That duality is a commentary on real life for Black women, who often hide their pain while taking on too much responsibility, said Tracey Reneé, who portrays Lady in Orange.
“I think it shows the inner struggles that Black women are undergoing on a regular basis just to survive this existence here in this country,” she said.
The production also sheds light on the secrets women have kept about abuse. Adrienné Cherry, one of the older ensemble members, said she knows women, fr...
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