Anderson Directs 'The Meeting' July 18

SALISBURY, MD---If the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had met for a talk, what would these prominent—but very different—civil rights leaders have found to say to each other?

That is the premise of Jeff Stetson’s one-act play The Meeting, staged as a special performance at Salisbury University 4 p.m. Sunday, July 18, in the Black Box Theatre in Fulton Hall. Dr. Victoria Hutchinson, Department of Theatre and Dance chair, introduces the performance. A question-and-answer session follows, led by Dr. James King of the English Department. Proceeds benefit the department.

Directed by Thomas E. Anderson, assistant professor of theatre, the work is set in 1965, one day after the bombing of Malcom X’s home. Working with the New Salisbury Players, Anderson also takes the play to Scotland’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world’s largest art festival, August 6-30. This will be Anderson’s third appearance at the festival as director or technical director in seven years.

“I feel privileged to represent Salisbury University at this honored festival,” he said. “I think it will provide a great learning opportunity for all involved. The Fringe is a life changing event.”

At SU, the cast and crew include Salisbury students and alumni Alfonso Giscombe, Cedric Hardnett, Stephanie Kratz and Terron Quailes.

The script, adapted for PBS and the American Playhouse, has garnered honors including an Emmy, a Louis B. Mayer Award and eight NAACP Theatre awards. It has been produced throughout Asia, Europe, South Africa, the Virgin Islands, Canada and the United States.

The Los Angeles Sentinel calls The Meeting “the perfect play.” The New York Post describes it as “an unforgettable evening of drama.” The Chicago Tribune has praised it as “eloquent and engaging,” while The New York Times lauds its insight into the lives of the lead characters: “The scenes in which these two men reveal the shared pain behind their very different philosophies of the racial struggle is compelling."

Admission to the SU performance is $15, $12 for seniors age 62 and up, SU alumni with benefit card, non-SU students with ID and current Gull Card holders.

Advance tickets are available through the Department of Theatre and Dance Web site, www.salisbury.edu/theatreanddance, or through the SU Box Office, Fulton Hall Room 100, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday. The theatre opens 30 minutes prior to curtain.

For more information call 410-548-5588 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.