Stay Curious. Stay Connected.
MailNewsletters♡Donate Now
Sign up
*Password must be at least 8 characters and contain one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number and one symbol.
Already have an account?
By submitting, you consent that you are at least 18 years of age and to receive information about MPR's or APMG entities' programs and offerings. The personally identifying information you provide will not be sold, shared, or used for purposes other than to communicate with you about MPR, APMG entities, and its sponsors. You may opt-out at any time clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email communication. View our Privacy Policy.
Sign in to your profile
Forgot Password?
New to MPR News?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Reset Password

Enter the username on file and we'll send you a code to reset your password.

Still require assistance or not sure what your User Name is?
Welcome back
to news
for you
Email Verification

A verification code has been emailed to

Still awaiting the code?

Penumbra's 'The Ballad of Emmett Till' and the legacy of violence

'The Ballad of Emmett Till'
Mikell Sapp, T. Mychael Rambo, H. Adam Harris, Sha Cage and Greta Oglesby in "The Ballad of Emmett Till" at Penumbra Theatre.
Courtesy Penumbra Theatre/Allen Weeks

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Log inCreate a free Account

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!

You may have seen the photographs: The misshapen and brutalized boy in his coffin and his grief-stricken mother kneeling at his side.

Emmett Till was 14 when he was beaten and shot after supposedly flirting with a white woman in a Mississippi Delta town. His suspected killers were never indicted.

But this nearly 60-year-old-crime isn't just Civil Rights era history. It has vivid and violent echoes in today's world.

The Penumbra Theatre is staging "The Ballad of Emmett Till" through March 2. The performance has been called "devastating" and "austere, impassioned, and soul nourishing."

Sarah Bellamy, Penumbra's co-artistic director, said the theater chose to stage the play in the wake of the Trayvon Martin hearing to spark a conversation about what she calls a legacy of violence.

Penumbra founder Lou Bellamy and playwright Ifa Bayeza join The Daily Circuit to discuss the intersection of race, history and art.

#