VALDOSTA – D’Amante M. Wilson wishes “Pipeline” played when she was a student acting at Valdosta State University.
But she’s excited to be a part of the play now as co-director.
“There’s a freshness,” she said of recent VSU Theatre & Dance productions. “A lot of modernity now. There’s representation that looks more like the students here.”
Wilson performed in VSU plays such as “A Lesson Before Dying,” “Love, Loss & What I Wore” and “Skin of Our Teeth” about a decade ago.
Since, she has worked as a professional actor in shows such as “A Christmas Carol” and “Bird Brain” with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, “We Are the Forgotten Beasts” with the Garry Marshall Theatre, according to bio information provided by VSU Theatre. She has participated in the short film “Painted Amethyst” and has an upcoming web series.
She is co-directing “Pipeline” with VSU Theatre faculty member Dr. Melissa Rynn Porterfield. It is Wilson’s directorial debut, according to VSU.
“Pipeline” fits into the idea of a fresh, new script at VSU.
By playwright Dominique Morriseau, the play was first produced in 2017 at the Lincoln Center Theatre in New York City.
“It is about a single mom who is a teacher who sends her son to a private school where he gets into trouble,” Wilson said.
Omari, the son, is filled with anger. Nya, the mother and a public school teacher, questions her choices as she tries to save him.
“She has to wonder was this the best move for him,” Wilson said. “Was this the best choice?”
The story of a Black family, Studio Theatre refers to “Pipeline” as a “searing, eloquent and deeply compassionate look at a broken education system, the moments we are pushed to our limits and the ferocity of a parent’s love.”
Can a parent overcome the school to prison pipeline – an educational system that criminalizes some students? Can a teacher learn the consequences to save her son?
THE CAST: Adanna Moore, Lauren Jacobs, Jamie Springer, Joshua Troupe, Trey Harrell, Shy’Tavian Jenkins; voiceovers and understudies: Candice Pace, Madeline Allen, Malaysia Dorsey, Donovan Martin, Keyes Sanders.
DIRECTION, PRODUCTION: Dr. Melissa Rynn Porterfield, director; D’Amante M. Wilson, assistant director; Alex Battenfield, stage manager; Madison Grant, technical director; Kyle W. Jensen, lighting/sound design; Brianna Lauser, costume design; Lauren Gorr, scenic/projections design.
VSU Theatre & Dance’s “Pipeline” plays 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 8-10; 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 11, Lab Theatre, VSU Fine Arts Building, corner of Oak and Brookwood. Reservations, more information: Call (229) 333-5973 or visit www.valdosta.edu/comarts.
NOTE: This play contains mature themes and language. One act with no intermission.