Shakespeare Theatre to perform two one-act plays by Alice Childress

MADISON, NJ — The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey will bring two very different one-act plays, “Florence” and “Mojo,” by Alice Childress to its main stage, 36 Madison Ave. in Madison. Childress, who has written, produced and published plays for four decades, was at the height of her powers in the 1950s and ’60s. Her broad literary universe earned her a Pulitzer Prize nomination for her novel “A Short Walk.” “Florence” and “Mojo” will run from Oct. 26 through Nov. 13. Patrons can purchase tickets by calling the box office at 973-408-5600 or by visiting shakespearenj.org.

In early 2020, while searching for one-act plays to produce for the company’s Pandemic Playhouse Entertainment online productions, artistic director Bonnie J. Monte read “Florence” and fell in love with the script. Part of STNJ’s mission is to bring rarely seen classics to life and, though Childress’ full-length play “Trouble in Mind” recently finished a long-overdue run on Broadway, her work is still largely unknown. 

Veteran company actor Lindsay Smiling, who is making his directorial debut with STNJ, said, “I’m thrilled to drive into Alice Childress’ work. While putting the ordinary lives of black people in America on stage, she writes characters that demand their full humanity to be seen. It’s not just a political argument that she presents. She shows the fullness of a life. This insistence of humanity feels radical in many ways.”

  Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey