By Collin Kelley
Editor

Before she became a household name when her novel What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day was selected by Oprah for her book club, Pearl Cleage was already well known for her work in the theater with plays like Flyin’ West and Blues for an Alabama Sky.

Both of those plays debuted at the Alliance Theatre and now Cleage is back again with The Nacirema Society Requests the Honor of Your Presence at a Celebration of Their First One Hundred Years. Yes, that’s a mouthful of a title, but Cleage has plenty to say in this new stage work.

Set in Montgomery, Alabama at the height of the civil rights era, the play follows six African-American debutants as they are introduced into a world of wealth and privilege. Unfortunately, the bus boycotts and freedom marches are seen as unpleasantness rather than landmark social change.

The Nacirema Society had its world premiere at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in September in a joint production with the Alliance before transferring to the Woodruff Arts Center this month. Cleage said after nearly 10 years focused on writing fiction she was thrilled to have a new full-length play on the boards.

“I wrote the one-act play A Song for Coretta after the death of Coretta Scott King and realized then that I missed theatre,” Cleage said in a recent interview. “Theatre is my first love.”

Cleage said she’s been thinking about writing a play set in Montgomery during the 60s, but wanted to tackle a subject that has become a side note in civil rights history: many African-Americans did not support the movement.

“When we talk about 60s, we present that everyone was in favor of the civil rights movement and everyone loved Dr. King,” Cleage said. “Many African Americans hated the demonstrations, marches and boycotts because it was ripping the familiar fabric of southern life.”

Cleage said one of the lasting benefits of being selected fore Oprah Winfrey’s influential book club was that her audience now knows she’s also a playwright. Cleage, a Detroit native who has called Atlanta home for more than 30 years, is also upbeat about the arts in the city.

“Atlanta is in a wonderful moment right now, especially in theater,” Cleage said.  “We’re in middle of wonderful renaissance. Atlanta has a thriving community of artists and I am constantly impressed by quality talent we have here.”

The Nacirema Society is sure to move on to New York and beyond, but Cleage said she prefers to “stay in the moment” rather than worrying about the play’s future.

Meanwhile, Cleage is getting ready to start writing her next play. This one will be set in Atlanta during the election of the late Mayor Maynard Jackson, the first African American to hold the office of a major southern city.

The Nacirema Society Requests the Honor of Your Presence at a Celebration of Their First One Hundred Years continues through Nov. 14 at The Alliance Theatre. www.alliancetheatre.org.