Mike Wiley introducing his students' work in progress, a play about the Freedom Riders, April 2010. Photograph by Bonnie Campbell.
Playwright and actor Mike Wiley, who has more than twelve years of credits in theater for young audiences and in film, television, and regional theater, is the Visiting Joint Chair Professor in Documentary Studies and American Studies at Duke and UNC–Chapel Hill in spring and fall 2010. The Center for Documentary Studies coordinates the Lehman Brady Chair professorship, which brings distinguished writers, photographers, filmmakers, and other practitioners and scholars of the documentary arts to Duke and UNC to teach courses on both campuses and engage in lectures, screenings, and other events for students, faculty, and the general public. Mike Wiley’s work focuses on expanding cultural awareness through dynamic portrayals based on pivotal moments in African American history, which he hopes will unveil a richer picture of the total American experience. His expanding repertoire of original productions displays his acclaimed ability to bring to life multiple intertwined characters, with Wiley often portraying more than two dozen persons in a single “one-man” drama.
special opportunity for new duke students: august 28 performance of dar he: the story of emmett till
On August 28, Duke students will have an opportunity to go behind-the-scenes at one of Mike Wiley’s productions. In a trip to the legendary Manbites Dog Theater in downtown Durham, students will learn about how a regional theater produces new and challenging pieces, showcases and nurtures developing playwrights, directors, and actors, and facilitates cross-displinary and cross-community projects. Wiley will be performing Dar He: The Story of Emmett Till. Duke students can register for this opportunity on the Student Affairs website.
fall 2010 course
This fall Wiley is also teaching a course, “Staging History.” Utilizing the research and development garnered in his spring 2010 undergraduate course, this class will shape, rehearse, and stage the world premiere of Breach of Peace, a documentary play based on the 1961 Freedom Rides. Freedom Riders were integrated groups of black and white civil rights activists who rode Greyhound buses into the South to challenge segregation laws. This hands-on course is intended for undergraduates and community members. It will delve into race, gender, and class identity in 1961 America. This is an opportunity to step into the shoes of a powerful variety of Civil Rights icons. No experience with historical research or theatrical production is necessary. Many kinds of talent are necessary and anyone can make a valuable contribution on stage or off.
Registration information for “Staging History”: undergraduates | general public/continuing education
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Screen grab from the "North Carolina Now" broadcast
UNC-TV’s “North Carolina Live” feature Mike Wiley’s interpretation of Blood Done Sign My Name from his performance at the Temple Theater in Sanford, N.C., earlier this month. This story also features author Tim Tyson and gospel singer Mary D. Williams, who, like Mike Wiley, are teaching classes this semester at CDS.
watch the video of “north carolina live” on the unc-tv website
Mike Wiley at a reading at CDS in May 2007. Photographs by Christopher Sims.
the documentary theater project | mike wiley
Students in this class will delve into various aspects of sharing stories through documentary theater. This course explores the way humans narrate, document and illuminate their lives through storytelling, individual and dramatic interpretation. After grounding themselves in the history and methodology of this approach to storytelling and narrative strategy, students will research, write and perform an informal staged reading for a Duke community audience of invited guests. The performance component is a culmination of the class’s fieldwork, archival research, and shared experiences.
Mondays, February 15–April 5 (16 hours) • 6:30–9 p.m.
Course fee: $100.00 • Center for Documentary Studies, Bridges 104
Enroll in “The Documentary Theater Project” now via the CDS Continuing Education registration website
Mike Wiley is the Lehman Brady Visiting Joint Chair Professor in Documentary Studies and American Studies at Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for spring and fall 2010. Formerly of Theatre IV and Shenandoah Shakespeare Express, Mike Wiley has more than twelve years of credits in theater for young audiences, plus film, television, and regional theater. An Upward Bound alum and Trio Achiever Award recipient, he is an M.F.A. graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A gifted playwright and actor, Wiley’s overriding goal is expanding cultural awareness for audiences of all ages through dynamic portrayals based on pivotal moments in African American history and, in doing so, helping to unveil a richer picture of the total American experience. Sought by performing arts centers large and small and by educators from middle schools to universities, Wiley’s work will also be featured in the 2009 National Black Theatre Festival. He has been jury-selected for professional industry showcases by both the Midwest Arts Federation and Southern Arts Federation. His expanding rich repertoire of original productions each display his acclaimed ability for bringing to life multiple intertwined characters, with Wiley often portraying more than two dozen persons in a single “one-man” drama. His work includes Blood Done Sign My Name; Life Is So Good; Tired Souls: The Montgomery Bus Boycott; Dar He: The Story of Emmett Till; Jackie Robinson: A Game Apart; Brown v. Board of Education: Over Fifty Years Later; and One Noble Journey: A Box Marked Freedom.
Allan Gurganus, photographed during his term as the Lehman Brady Visiting Joint Chair in Documentary Studies and American Studies at Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill (fall 2004-Spring 2005). Photograph by Christopher Sims.
allan gurganus on the american south
Recorded on November 15, 2009 at CDS
The first ever Listening Institute, a partnership between CDS and the Third Coast International Audio Festival, brought fifty audio/radio producers from across the United States, and several foreign countries, to Durham for three days of intensive listening and discussion. The group listened to audio documentaries submitted by the participants themselves and took part in teaching workshops. For the final Sunday morning session, acclaimed fiction writer Allan Gurganus joined CDS audio program director John Biewen to listen to and reflect on a selection of audio pieces on the American South.
Listen to the recording (1 hour, 10 minutes).
You can also listen to the recording via the CDS iTunes U site (under “CDS Events”).
Images courtesy of Molly Renda
interview with deborah willis, author of posing beauty: african american images from the 1890s to the present
The State of Things, WUNC (91.5 FM)
September 30, 2009
On October 1, Deborah Willis filled the CDS auditorium for a talk and book signing for Posing Beauty: African American Images from the 1890s to the Present. If you missed her presentation, you can listen to an audio interview of her speaking with host Frank Stasio about the book on WUNC’s (91.5 FM) program, The State of Things.
An exhibition of work from the book is currently on view at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts through October 18. Deborah Willis was the Lehman Brady Visiting Joint Chair Professor in Documentary Studies and American Studies at Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2000–2001.
Cover of Posing Beauty: African American Images from the 1890s to the Present
posing beauty: book signing
a public event with deborah willis
Thursday, October 1, 2009, 7 p.m.
Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University
Presented by the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University and the Regulator Bookshop
Posing Beauty: African American Images from the 1890s to the Present (W. W. Norton, October 2009)is the first photographic history of black beauty. It tells a story overlooked by most of America, and promises to transform the way we think about the history of African American visual culture. Deborah Willis, whose much-celebrated Reflections in Black provided the first definitive history of black photographers, has now collected over two hundred photographs that provide a lasting statement on beauty in the African American community. From posed studio portraits to dandies on parade to elegant debutantes, Willis has constructed a bold narrative of the ever-changing idea of beauty, both female and male, and shows how history books, newspapers, and mainstream magazines deliberately excluded black models until the late 1960s and early 1970s.
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Poster from Beyond Beauty: Conversations about Photography
beyond beauty: conversations about photography
an informal half-day discussion
Friday, October 2, 1–6 p.m.
Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University
Free and Open to the Public
Some of the most renowned photographers, curators, and documentary writers working today will gather for a free half-day conference on Friday, October 2, at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. Throughout the afternoon, these internationally known artists and photography experts will share their experiences as they explore the idea of beauty and its relationship to, and representation in, the photographic image.
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Mike Seeger at CDS on March 16, 2009. Photograph by Nick Pironio.
When Mike Seeger died late Friday night last week we lost a remarkable musician, an indefatigable documentarian, and a fine soul. What Mike Seeger gave us is hard to measure—from his own recordings, beginning with his albums with the New Lost City Ramblers, to his documentary field recordings, which number beyond an easy count.
This past March, on the night he visited the Center for Documentary Studies, Mike told me that it had taken two wheelbarrow loads to move his instruments from his Lexington, Virginia, house to his car to make the trip to Durham. At first I assumed he was joking. But when it came to music, Mike was seldom joking. He played what seemed every instrument that night: gourd banjo, old-time banjo, guitar, jaw harp, autoharp, harmonica, pan pipes, and no doubt something I’ve let leave my memory. He was the consummate virtuoso, but much more. His ongoing research and his role as a public advocate for folk music and creativity have inspired countless musicians and listeners.
Like most of us, I heard Mike Seeger on record long before I met him. I first met Mike in person in the living room of Tommy Jarrell’s house in Surry County, North Carolina, in 1981 when I went with Cece Conway to visit Tommy. When we walked in, Mike and Tommy were playing fiddle tunes, Mike on banjo and Tommy on his fiddle. I was in awe of both of them, and before the night was over Mike had explained to me the history of much of the music I’d heard. He was a natural teacher, a passionate interpreter. Jim Watson, one of the original Red Clay Ramblers and now with Robin and Linda Williams, said it clearly, “Without Mike many of us might never have started playing this kind of stuff.”
Nothing, no one is immortal, but Mike Seeger’s music will outlast us all, along with the music he documented and introduced to the world through his many beautiful recordings. We’ve lost a great one, but he left us his perfect pitch, lyrics, and tunes that will live forever.
–Tom Rankin
Director, Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University
mike seeger performed at cds on march 16, 2009, in a public event held in conjunction with alice gerrard’s course documenting traditional music. to see more photographs of his visit to cds, click here.
an evening with alice gerrard
Event photographs from the April 16 concert and presentation
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an evening with alice gerrard
April 16, 2009
7–10 p.m.
Alice Gerrard has been documenting music through performance, writing/editing, and film throughout her forty-year career as a traditional musician. She has known, learned from, and performed with many of the old-time and bluegrass greats and in turn has earned worldwide respect for her own important contributions to the music.
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