Decades of Day Work©

Our first project was influenced by the movie version of the book The Help. After its opening, we invited people to share their own real life stories about ‘domestic day work’, the limited job opportunities available to black women across the decades, and the effect of the institution of ‘day work’ on the families of workers and their white employers. We write scripts based on the stories collected, and produce shows with professional actors and theatre technicians. Each program in this Decades of Day Work series is presented in two parts: a dramatic reading of the stories by the actors interspersed with relevant poetry and songs. The program ends with a journalist-moderated panel discussion that includes the original storytellers and reaches out to the audience. Our special guest storyteller for Decades of Day Work IV was Dr. My Haley, widow of author Alex Haley and collaborator with him on the iconic book and television mini-series Roots.