Too Heavy for Your Pocket by Jiréh Breon Holder
Hattiloo Theatre, Memphis TN (2019)
“In the summer of 1961, the Freedom Riders are embarking on a courageous journey into the Deep South. When twenty-year-old Bowzie Brandon gives up a life-changing college scholarship to join the movement, he’ll have to convince his loved ones—and himself—that shaping his country’s future might be worth jeopardizing his own..”
— Dramatists Play Service
Credits:
Director: Patricia Smith; Lights: Tim Travis; Costumes: Marisa Sellers; Sound: Zachary Badreddine; Photos: Susannah Hyde
The Process
“Too Heavy for Your Pocket” revolves around a very specific historical moment — the Freedom Rides in 1961 — and their consequences for two couples in a rural African-American community outside of Nashville. Given the importance of the setting to the play’s narrative development, it was important that the Carter’s home — where the vast majority of the scenes take place — felt as authentic as possible. The extreme poverty of a community barely beyond its sharecropper roots should be apparent. All their belongings are handmade or have been passed down many times, while the house itself is weathered and sagging. But despite its humble bones, the house feels like a home thank to Sally-Mae Carter’s efforts. Consequently, set dressing was crucial in order to create a cozy, hospitable environment so that the audience might feel welcomed in like guests.
“It almost reminds you of the house your grandparents might have lived in except there is no floor. Just beautiful green grass in the place of creaky wooden boards”
— Stage Directions, pg. 6
