MLK Jr. commemorative play running this week

'The Man in Room 306' runs this Thursday through Sunday in Memphis

Patricia Satterwhite
dm Staff writer

On the eve of his death, Martin Luther King Jr. met with the audience at the Lorraine Motel, crying and laughing before his assassination the next day on April 4, 1968.

Instead of a statue, a portrait, or a section in the history books, audience members were personally introduced to the historical civil rights leader in a play presented by the Memphis Black Repertory Theatre in Memphis, Tenn., this weekend.

"The Man in Room 306: A Human Portrait of Dr. King" is now playing at Theaterworks in honor of King and will continue performances Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through Jan. 30.

This fact-based theatrical account is a sensitive tribute to a man who has touched the lives of not only African Americans, but of all. King was dynamically portrayed by actor Craig Alan Edwards, who is both the sole performer and the playwright.

Edward's re-creation of Martin Luther King, Jr. is an intimate portrait of the man in the Lorraine Motel, on what is tragically the last night of his life.

"We wanted to bring out the mind of Dr. King," Edwards said. "I've never got a chance to meet King and never will. But in my acting and having his character possess me, I was able to see him and show others."

King earned his doctorate from Boston University in 1955. While Edwards was a student there in the early 80's, he became inspired by King's fight for civil rights and began drafting his play.

Edwards depicts King pacing from side-to-side in Room 306 as he tells his audience about himself. "I am not the Messiah," Edwards told them. "I am just another man..... But it's about the foot soldiers in the battle, not the generals."

Portraying King, Edwards said even though he had given at least ten speeches that day and traveled from city to city, he continued the march despite the countless lives lost, including four children from Montgomery, Ala. who were murdered in a church bombing. His voice conveys his discouragement and anger, but his strength and courage kept him pressing onward.

King's final night was more than just brought to life in Edward's production. With simplistic scenery, you feel like you really are in his hotel room.

Edwards set the play in the two bed hotel room with gold drapes. On one bed was draped his dark gray suit coat, along with a black and red suitcase. On the other, the unmade and crumpled dusty rose bedspread. On his night table rested a copy of "Life" magazine and pieces of yellow and white documents were scattered everywhere. The scene also included a small table which was set for dinner, complete with biscuits, mashed potatoes and drumsticks. Edward showcased King smacking on the piece of chicken while he light-heartedly spoke of his wife Coretta and his father Martin Luther King, Sr. "I knew if Daddy King and my Coretta could make amends, than any nation, or race of people could come together."

An evening spent at Theatreworks is an evening that will leave audience members with a truer look at Martin Luther King, Jr. "I got to know real the King," said audience member, Carlton Witherspoon, a Rust College student. "It gave me a deeper understanding of the trials and tribulations of what Dr. King was going through."

"The Man in Room 306" was directed by Cheryl Katz and written by Edwards.

Tickets are $15 and $10 for seniors and students. For more information contact Memphis Repertory Theatre at (901) 276-9555 or the Playhouse on the Square box office at (901) 726-4656. It's well worth the drive.