The Associates of the Boston Public Library warmly invite you to our fifth annual Pierce Performance, Faces of Phillis, a staged reading and panel discussion that will celebrate Phillis Wheatley Peters, the first African American and the second American woman in the United States to publish a book of poetry. The event commemorates the 250th anniversary of the publication of Phillis Wheatley Peters’s groundbreaking book, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral. Look for the statue of Phillis Wheatley on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall.
This three-part event includes:
1. a staged reading written by British-Nigerian playwright Ade Solanke and directed by Regge Life. Faces of Phillis includes two dramatized moments from Phillis Wheatley Peters’ life. Adeola Solanke, also known as Ade, is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and founder of Spora Stories. Her acclaimed debut play, “Pandora’s Box,” received a Best New Play nomination in London’s Off-West End Theatre Awards. Ade has been recognized as the Best Playwright in the Nigerian Entertainment and Lifestyle Awards and received Best Play honors in the African Film Awards. Her work has graced renowned stages across the UK, including Arcola, Young Vic, and Sheffield Crucible Theatres. Ade recently completed two Fulbright Distinguished International Fellowships at Emerson College and the University of Southern California.
2. a panel discussion featuring Ade Solanke, our playwright, Meredith Bergmann, the sculptor for the 2003 Boston Women’s Memorial, and Kyera Singleton, the Executive Director of the Royall House Museum.
3. a dramatic poetry reading by Boston’s Poet Laureate and BPL Trustee, Porsha Olayiwola.
The event will take place in the Boston Public Library’s Rabb Lecture Hall on Boylston Street on December 4 from 6 – 7:30. For those who can’t make it in person, sign up here to access the event virtually on Vimeo for one week following the production.
