First Posted: 3/10/2015
LIMA — Encore Theatre will present Lorraine Hansberry’s play “A Raisin in the Sun” for two weekends, opening tonight.
The play is set in the late 1950s just before the civil and women’s rights movements. The show highlights the daily struggles of a five-member African-American family living on the south side of Chicago. The father of the family dies and leaves behind a $10,000 life insurance payment. The family differs on how the money should used.
“The money represents freedom to each individual in the family,” said Ron Hesseling, director of the play. “The money represents freedom, but that freedom is viewed differently by each member of the family.”
Hesseling said the play presents a true sense of family. There are lighthearted and humorous moments and also many moments where intense feelings take place.
“There are a lot of twist and turns in the movie,” Hesseling said.
The play was made into a move of the same name in 1961, starring Sidney Poitier.
One of the plans with the money is to buy a home in an all-white neighborhood, but their plans are thwarted by racial intolerance. Another family member wants to use the money for medical school and yet another wants to start a business.
“The story is very interesting,” Hesseling said. “It is a story about family and their interaction with each other.”
