KIMBERLY JOY MORGAN
 
Hot Comb: Brandin’ One mark of oppression Hohot comb
 
Kimberly Joy Morgan’s one-woman play Hot Comb: Brandin’ One Mark of Oppression. Under the direction of Dr. Tawnya Pettiford-Wates is all about the hair! Whether it’s nappy, frizzy, fuzzy, puffy, weaved in or bone straight, writer/performer Kimberly Joy Morgan nimbly interrogates the politics of black hair: how society gazes at Black women through their hair choices and how they construct themselves because of this stare. Blending music, dance, spoken word and original text, the play spans from the Harlem Renaissance to the present as Morgan transforms into 12 different characters including knotty hair sistas, dreaded sistas, silky hair sistas and sistas of the perm and hot comb. Some of the characters Morgan has created for Hot Comb include Ernestine (sista of the hot comb), a 26 year old hairdresser who moved up from down south to New York City during the Harlem Renaissance in search of financial and social freedom: “That why I come up here to Harlem to learn from the best and use the best, Madame C.J. Walker’s System and Preparation.” Keisha (sista of the Afro), a model/actress who quickly learns that cutting the perm out of her hair has many unwanted social and political implications; but her beautician said, “Girl if you don’t stop perming your hair, you going to go bald, chile.” Tyra (sista of the weave), out on a Saturday night club hoppin’ excursion informs her weave is, “Part of how I see myself for the next eight weeks maybe a year or longer and it’s just as much a part of my identity and style as my stiletto, tight pants, and ‘okay’ sayin’ personality.” In her 90’s, Grandma Ruby is the wisest of the characters and she informs, “Y’all don’t know nothin’ ‘bout no hair. Youngin’s runnin’ around these parts don’t even appreciate their hair’s history.” Kimberly Joy Morgan originally wrote Hot Comb while she was at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where an earlier version of the play was performed in November 1998 and again in 2002 at the Mae West Fest in Seattle, Washington in 2002. A newcomer to Minnesota, Kimberly was named “Outstanding New Face” in 2004 by The Star Tribune for her performance as Abbey in Diva Daughters DuPree at Penumbra Theatre. She has performed at the Great American History Theatre in their Raw Stages festival, Amuthest Production’s The Last Minstrel Show and The Story with Pillsbury House Theatre. Regionally, she has performed for Childsplay in Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse in Arizona, Book It Repertory Theatre and G.A.P. in Seattle and danced with companies such as Opeyo, Adefua African Dance Company and Zeal. Her film credits include Fall into Me, Home Invasion, Mickey Bullock, and The Gathering. Her poetry has been published in Sauti Mpya. Kimberly was the recipient of a 2005 Artist Initiative grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board which supported, in part, the 2005 production of Hot Comb. She is also a recipient of the 2005-2006 Playwrights’ Center’s Jerome Many Voices Residency Program. Dr. Tawnya Pettiford-Wates directs the production. A director, actor, poet and educator, Dr. Pettiford-Wates is currently the Head of Performance at Virginia Commonwealth University. She has been awarded the Langston Hughes Cultural Arts Award for her contributions to the arts in Seattle and has performed on stage throughout the United States, Canada and Europe including For Colored Girls... on Broadway. The latest production of Hot Comb at Pillsbury House Theatre Company features sound design by Malo Adams, set design by Chris Morris, lighting design by Mike Wangen, costume design by Kathy Pepmiller and Emily Park Smith stage managed. All photos by Usry Alleyne Pillsbury House Theatre 2005 Minneapolis, MN