Sisters discuss century full of experiences

A story of two unmarried sisters who lived together for 90 years comes to life tonight at the John Waldron Arts Center Auditorium in the Cardinal Stage Company’s production of “Having Our Say,” a stage adaptation of the memoirs of the same name of Sadie and Bessie Delany.

Based on their best-selling book, the show tells of the high and low points of the Delany sisters’ long lives.

Mijiza Soyini plays 103-year-old Sadie Delany and Gladys DeVane plays 101-year-old Bessie Delany, although the women died at the ages of 109 and 104, respectively.

“Having Our Say” takes place in the Delany sisters’ kitchen, as they make and eat dinner. While they are cooking, they talk to the audience about their experiences during 100 years of American history.

“It is important to talk to older people about history because it makes a face on history,” director Wendy McClellan said, “and makes it more real.”

Their story walks the audience through the rise and fall of Jim Crow laws, the world wars, the Harlem Renaissance and the women’s and civil rights movements.

The last lines of the show are a conversation between the sisters about the possibility of a future black president. Bessie felt it could never happen, while Sadie said she knew there would be a black president one day.

McClellan said she thinks the timing of the show is incredible and fortunate.

“You can’t help but sit there and listen to their stories and know that Obama is in office,” McClellan said. “We get to sit there with the full knowledge that we get to push past that point.”

Like Obama, the Delany sisters were prominent black figures in their community.
Sadie Delany became the first black home economics teacher in an all-white school in New York City, and Bessie Delany became one of the first licensed black female dentists.

Artistic director Randy White said in this play, the audience will learn about history from the inside and have a laugh at the same time.

“You are going to love these women,” White said. “They are remarkably funny ... You get to watch a couple of old ladies make a remarkable dinner. It’s like a home-spun ‘Top Chef.’”