The central character is not alive to tell the story. In steps the writer to ensure the important story is told. Paul Levy talks to playwright Monica Bauer, and actors Kailah S. King and Russell Jordan about Vivian’s Music, 1969.
“Inspired by real events: in 1969, in a segregated city in the American Midwest bursting with racial tension, a 14-year-old black girl, Vivian, was shot by a white cop, igniting one of the worst race riots in American history. No one knew anything about her: just her name, her age and how she died. This fantasia for two actors gives Vivian a life, a family, a love of music and a reason to live; the jazz legend who’s back in the neighborhood might be her real father. Can they find each other before the city explodes?”
