Plainfielders have a unique opportunity to asssess the conflicting visions of America held by two iconic figures from the tumultous 1960s: Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X.
The two are featured in a fictitious meeting in Malcolm X's suite at Harlem's famed Hotel Theresa in Jeff Stetson's 'The Meeting'. The play is being offered at the Plainfield Public Library on Sunday.
Street-savvy, totally urban and looking at the issues from the bottom up, Malcolm has invited the Southern Baptist minister who preaches nonviolent resistance to meet and share their views.
The time is 1965, just days before Malcolm X was assassinated in another Harlem landmark the Audubon Ballroom, and the meeting is laced with bitter humor and the tension created because the audience knows of real outcomes of which the characters are unaware.
Forty-five years later, we can see what an impact the Voter Registration Act of 1965, about which Dr. King was passionate, has had. We observe a federal holiday in his memory.
Meanwhile, Malcolm X, who mocked the civil rights movement, is not often or deeply recalled.
But is it because he struck too close to a nerve?
'The Meeting'
Dramatization of the historic meeting
between Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X.
Produced by Shades of Truth Theatre
Sponsored by the Plainfield Public Library
Tickets: $10/adults, $5 kids
$25 for the play plus a champagne reception to meet the artists
Info: (908) 757-1111 x111
In the Anne Louise Davis Room
Plainfield Public Library
Park Avenue and 8th Street
-- Dan Damon [follow]
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