How many of us remember bomb drills in school? An alarm would ring and students would hide under their desks. Or be ushered out into the hallways and hope that as one layer of students was placed over the other to lean against the wall or lockers that you got to be last not first.
It was all nonsense since neither location was going to protect us against any bomb, let alone the nuclear device that adults thought was on the way. It was the Cold War dominated by ignorance and fear in equal measure. Who would drop the bomb first and would anyone survive.
Playwright Ro Reddick has taken her school experiences with Cold War paranoia in 1987 Syracuse, New York and conjured up a surreal and award-winning play (The 2026 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, the 2026 aka 15th Annual Off Broadway Alliance Award for Best Play, and the 2026 Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award for a new American play) Cold War Choir Practice now making its regional debut at Main Street Theater.
Jessica Jaye who directed Christmas at Pemberley last year at Main Street was asked to direct this very different play. “It’s a little girl on a mission to save the world. The girl’s name is Meek [Bria Washington]. She’s developed a Soviet pen pal and he sends her on a mission for some documents that her uncle has,” says Jaye.
“Through this mix of the Cold War and dealing with Black life around ’87, we’re getting to view how the fear of the Cold War really set in on Black life,” she says of the one-act, 90-ish minute play.
“I don’t think the story is told enough. The author sets it with this Black family who is running a roller rink. The father is trying to maintain community and point out how important community is while his brother is working in the White House trying to fight against this Cold War.
“I think it just shows different aspects of what life was like during this [period] in a fantasy way, in this abstract way. The fear, the financial struggles.”
“Through this mix of the Cold War and dealing with Black life around ’87, we’re getting to view how the fear of the Cold War really set in on Black life.”
The play incorporates roller disco and spycraft, with references to Reaganomics. Main Street has built a distinctive set that mimics a roller skating rink.
The cast also includes Andrea Boronell-Hunter, Cedric Duplechain, Kara Greenberg, Hannah Hall, Jade Kelly, Leslie Lenert, Angela Pinina and Steve Scott. Music direction is by Debbie Wylie.
On top of that, and in keeping with the title, there is the Seedlings of Peace Children’s Choir, acting as a sort of Greek chorus. “They move throughout the piece, giving us these almost weird songs that you would never expect a choir to sing.”
That too is a reflection of Reddick’s experiences as a very young child. She was a member of a children’s choir called Peace Child whose members would sing songs about nuclear war and making connections with people from other countries.
Jaye says she was especially attracted to directing this play due to “the abstractness of it. To jump into this avant garde world. And how beautifully it was told. It’s not your typical Black story that you run into. In a sense we’re going through the same thing now with this war. I think it’s interesting how history is repeating itself in a sense.
“There’s some many dark undertones that lie underneath it, we’ll as a family, as a community, continue to progress. And that’s important for us, to remember., adding that despite this “This show is hilarious.
“Come with an open mind. Come ready to have fun and engage,” she says adding that the songs are good. “Good in an unexpected way.”
Performances are scheduled for September 12 through October 11 at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays at Main Street Theater – Rice Village, 2540 Times Boulevard. For more information, call 713-521-6706 or visit mainstreettheater.com. $45-$64.
