This demure, pensive vision of miscegenation and its dire consequences was made by the popular British sculptor John Bell. 2023 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Hiram Mattison, New York: N. Tibbals and Son, 1870. An Octoroon Austin Smith being dragged in this comedy by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at the Polonsky Shakespeare Center in Brooklyn. Solon from The Octoroon Summary & Breakdown | StageAgent Although Sunnyside calls Wahnotee a nuisance, Zoe defends him as a gentle, honest creature who loves Paul with the tenderness of a woman (30). The Reverend Hiram Mattison (1811-1868) was born on February 8, 1811, in Norway, Herkimer County, New York. The Octoroon quickly garnered popular and critical acclaim. online is the same, and will be the first date in the citation. "The Octoroon" tells the late of when In the deep south of 1850's USA, an octoroon is given her freedom by her white father but is later bought as a . The solitary scuffle thrillingly raises the productions pulse. Through Brechtian elements such as direct address, Jacobs-Jenkins explores "the idea that you could feel something and then be aware that youre feeling it". Decent Essays. An Octoroon vs. The Octoroon - An Octoroon Dramaturigcal Blog Through the playful lens of theater, An Octoroon invites us to take a good long look at the cultural history of slavery. Louisa Picquet, the Octoroon: or Inside Views of Southern Domestic Life (1861) is not so much a narrative as a series of Picquet's first-person answers to Mattison's questions, which seem to have transcribed verbatim, along with his own commentary. He almost proposes to Dora to get her fortune and save Terrebonne, but he cannot bring himself to lie. [9] Prior to the first performance, Alexis Soloski for The Village Voice published an email from cast member Karl Allen who wrote, "the play has transformed from an engaging piece of contemporary theatre directed by Gavin Quinn to a piece of crap that wouldn't hold a candle to some of the community theater I did in high school". Because of a nefarious plot by Mr. MClosky to buy the plantation out from under its inheritor, Mrs. Peyton, the estate is put up for auction along with all of the slaves, including Zoe. Role Size. In an act of desperation she drinks a vial of poison, and Scudder enters to deliver the good news that McClosky was proven guilty of murdering Paul and that Terrebonne now belongs to George. [22], From May 18 to July 1, 2017 An Octoroon was performed at the Orange Tree Theatre in Richmond, London[23] in a production directed by Ned Bennett and designed by Georgia Lowe. She is the so-called illegitimate (not produced by marriage) daughter of a plantation owner named Mr. Peyton and one of his slaves on this plantation, which is called Terrebonne. Bartleby the Scrivener, A Tale of Wall Street. Though it would hardly seem likely at first glance, this pallid image of slavery directly addresses the condition of black bondage. All monologues are property and copyright of their owners. Picquet solicited for donations to reach the one thousand dollar price, and in her travels asking for donations, she made it all the way to New York City where she met the Reverend Hiram Mattison. MClosky then breaks some tragic news: The bank is foreclosing on their mortgage and Terrebonne is up for sale. The men accuse Wahnotee of the murder, and McClosky calls for him to be lynched. The group immediately calls for his lynching, but they agree to try him first. Paul was carrying bags of mail, and MClosky wanted to intercept the mail to prevent notice of a loan repayment to Mrs. Peyton (that might save the plantation). The second date is today's Dissatisfied with ongoing Methodist support for slavery, on November 1st of 1861 Mattison formally withdrew from the church and became a pastor of St. John's independent Methodist church. George reveals his love to Zoe, who loves him too, and the fact that she is the daughter of a slave does not deter him. The most striking characterization is by Pam Trotter, who as Minnie, one of the enslaved workers at the house, seizes every moment of her stage time. Bachelor. [19], Dobama Theater in Cleveland Heights, Ohio presented An Octoroon from October 21, 2016 to November 13, 2016, directed by Nathan Motta[20], The first West Coast premiere of An Octoroon was held at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre, directed by Eric Ting with Sydney Morton in the title role. Jacobs-Jenkins reframes Boucicault's play using its original characters and plot, speaking much of Boucicault's dialogue, and critiques its portrayal of race using Brechtian devices. The word Octoroon signifies "one-eighth blood" or the child of a Quadroon by a white. To settle his debts, the creditors made Cook sell his slaves, so at thirteen, Picquet was separated from her mother, who was sold to Colonel Albert Clinton Horton of Wharton, while Picquet went to New Orleans with Mr. John Williams. His work typically mixed the conventional standards of classical form with the emotive pathos of contemporary romanticism. Despite being physically separated, Picquet explains, "I often thought her prayers followed me, for I never could forget her" (p. 18). Landmark court cases in the Southern states eventually erased the legal proscription against such unions, but the legacy of Zoes predicament still casts its long shadow over the affairs of the heart. Act V begins in the slave quarters, where Zoe approaches one slave woman, Dido, to ask for a liquid to use for curing fevers. Dora Sunnyside, the daughter of another local planter, falls in love with George. Dora falls in love with George, but George loves Zoe. Besides race, what are some representations of slaves and slavery that are not complicity with the dominant ideology of this time? Chapter-by-chapter summaries and multiple sections of expert analysis, The ultimate resource for assignments, engaging lessons, and lively book discussions. eNotes Editorial. An Octoroon (Play) Plot & Characters | StageAgent Download the entire The Octoroon study guide as a printable PDF! What ensues is an upside down, topsy-turvy world where race and morality are challenged and intensified. NYT Critic . Narrative context is dispensed with to focus on the essential plight of the victim, a process often leavening compassion with a less chaste voyeurism. He then confesses his love for Zoe. They are all distraught and she cries over her fate, as that means she could be sold to someone else at the slave auction. Research Playwrights, Librettists, Composers and Lyricists. MClosky escapes while being taken to justice but is confronted and killed by Wahnotee. After they leave, MClosky reveals he actually hates the Peytons and vows to sweep [them] from this section of the country (33). The archive and Harvard University Press collaborated to create The Image of the Black in Western Art book series, eight volumes of which were edited by Gates and David Bindman and published by Harvard University Press. Discussion of themes and motifs in Dionysius Lardner Boursiquot's The Octoroon. MClosky overhears their conversation, but still vows hell have her if it costs [him] [his] life (44). His design for the narrative was moralistic and therefore he focuses many of his questions on Picquet's identity as a sexual victim and concubine. Word Count: 361. In Bells mind the sentimentality and clamor of the stage were elevated to a higher conceptual plane that confronted the viewer with the image of Zoe in her most vulnerable state. He doesnt want audience members to feel too secure in what theyre seeing. George is courted by the rich Southern belle heiress Dora Sunnyside, but he finds himself falling in love with Zoe, the daughter of his uncle through one of the slaves. She may even be unaware of her status before being so reduced. Boucicault's manuscript actually reads "Indian, French and 'Merican." At the Plantation Terrebonne in Louisiana, Dido and Minnie chat about the arrival of George, and the passing of his uncle, their previous master. Key Information Character Solon Show The Octoroon Gender Male Age Range Adult, Mature Adult Role Size Ensemble Time & Place mid 1800's, louisiana, plantation terrebonne, mississippi river Tags african-american slave server cook good-natured loyal ensemble southern creole accent Analysis African-American, Southern Creole Accent. A theatrical, melodramatic reality is created to tell the story of an octoroon woman (a person who is black) named Zoe and her quest for identity and love. Where: The Fountain Theatre, 5060 Fountain Ave., L.A.When: 7 p.m. Fridays-Mondays. Mrs. Peyton hopes that the letter shes awaiting from Liverpool will save the estate, as it concerns a debt owed to her husband that may now be paid back. 'An Octoroon': Intellectual rollercoaster ride of a play about race in So, instead of giving up, he decides to play the white male roles himself. This character allowed abolitionists to draw attention to the sexual . Later, her husband Henry served in the Union Army until receiving a medical discharge, leaving Louisa as the household's sole provider. online is the same, and will be the first date in the citation. This image is part of a weekly series thatThe Rootis presenting in conjunction with the Image of the Black Archive & Library at Harvard Universitys Hutchins Center for African and African American Research. This role is. BJJ, Playwright, and Assistant explain the significance of the fourth act, the sensation scene in melodrama. Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story Is Our TV Pick Of The Week, Small Town Horror Story: The Racist Attack Of A FedEx Worker. He accompanied her until she was successful in raising nine hundred dollars and bought her mother's freedom. George, upon arriving at the plantation from Europe, begins to fall in love with her. ZOE is declared a slave as well and is put up for sale. He is beloved by an old Indian man named Wahnotee, who lives nearby and keeps watch over Paul. This page is not available in other languages. Miscegenation in Marble: John Bell's Octoroon - Taylor & Francis Bells own distilled response to the theme of miscegenation in the play seems to have evolved rather quickly. The Octoroon (Play) Plot & Characters | StageAgent He tells Wah-No-Tee, an Indian and his protector, to remove the cap from the camera. publication in traditional print. "The Octoroon" tells the late of when In the deep south of 1850's USA, an octoroon is given her freedom by her white father but is later bought as a slave by the evil Jacob McCloskey. Summary and Analysis. Note: Dion Boucicaults original play was adapted by Branden Jacob-Jenkins in 2014 into a new play entitled An Octoroon which premiered at Soho Rep. The position of the octoroon along the edge of this fragile divide afforded some degree of maneuverability, often termed passing. Before the abolition of slavery, however, such light-skinned mulattoes faced the even more likely prospect of a life in bondage. Jacobs-Jenkins looks at the consequences of putting oneself onstage in their own work, if it is a real self or a fake self, which Jacobs-Jenkins embodied himself in the roles of Br'er Rabbit and Captain Ratts. The story overtly concerns racial identification, making it clear that even a small amount of African American blood would taint a person at that time, making them unable to marry a white person and, depending on their mother (whose status determined whether or not their children are slaves), potentially born into slavery. Extremely popular, the play was kept running continuously for years by seven road companies. The play, which follows many conventions of melodrama, was deemed to be too tragic when performed in the United Kingdom, and the ending was changed to feature Zoe and George leaving for England to get married in a land without miscegenation laws. The narrative begins with a description of Piquet's physical appearance as a passable mulatto to emphasize that despite "at first view, [looking like] an accomplished white lady," she was denied of any rights or liberty given to white women because of her African ancestry (p. 5). He comes across a therapist who recommends adapting his favorite play, The Octoroon by Dion Boucicault, as a jumping off point out of his writers block. 2023 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Note: When citing an online source, it is important to include all necessary dates. Review: 'An Octoroon,' a Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Comedy About Race Literally, anything can happen. New York, NY, Escape To Margaritaville In art and literature, these figures were almost exclusively female. MClosky announces that Terrebonne is for sale and plots to steal Zoe; because she is an octoroon, she is a piece of property and therefore a part of the estate. The stage provided the inspiration for Bells subject. Zoe tells George: Of the blood that feeds my heart, one drop in eight is blackbright red as the rest may be, that one drop poisons all the blood (43). Everything was handled with extraordinary care and concern, from the ticketless check-in to the spacing of the quite comfortable chairs. This page is not available in other languages. New York, NY, Accessibility Statement Terms Privacy |StageAgent 2020. Following the act three climax: the plot lines must converge, the moral is made clear, and the audience has to be hit with a "theatre trick" which overwhelms the audience with technical elements. Salem Scudder, a kind Yankee, was Judge Peyton's business partner; though he wishes he could save Terrebonne, he has no money. Collected Black Women's Narratives, New York: Oxford University Press, 1988; Minor, DoVeanna S. Fulton, and Reginald H. Pitts, Speaking Lives, Authoring Texts: Three African American Women's Oral Slave Narratives, Albany: State University of New York Press, 2010; Thomson, Edward, and N. Vansant, Work Here, Rest Hereafter: Or, The Life and Character of Rev. The Art of Dramatic Composition: A Prologue, "Branden Jacobs-Jenkins: Feel That Thought", "The Great Work Continues: The 25 Best American Plays Since 'Angels in America', "Amber Gray on 'An Octoroon,' at Soho Rep", "The Octoroon Delayed Opens This Week at PS122", "Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Tries to Revive The Octoroon", "Disgruntled Cast Member Issues Invite to P.S.122's Troubled Octoroon", "Soho Rep Reading of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' An Octoroon to Feature Saycon Sengbloh and William Jackson Harper | Playbill", "Review: 'An Octoroon,' a Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Comedy About Race", "BERKELEY REPERTORY THEATRE | An Octoroon", "Cast announced for An Octoroon at Orange Tree", "Review: An Octoroon (Orange Tree Theatre)", "An Octoroon is taboo ridden, but thoughtful (Shaw Festival)", "Georgia Southern Theatre & Performance to Present "An Octoroon", "2017 Results | Critics' Circle Theatre Awards", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=An_Octoroon&oldid=1152449650, This page was last edited on 30 April 2023, at 08:55. Picquet was sold to Williams of New Orleans and her mother was sold to Texas. An Octoroon By Brandenkins Summary - 683 Words | Bartleby Although she claims its because someone is sick, she actually wants to use the liquid to poison herself. Download the entire The Octoroon study guide as a printable PDF! The Octoroon - Wikipedia When Dora finds out, she is very angry at them and asks her father to buy the plantation, which he does. All scenes are property and copyright of their owners. [2] In a 2018 poll by critics of The New York Times, the work was ranked the second-greatest American play of the past 25 years. She faces the horrible prospect of being sold at auction, most likely to share the fate of her mother as the mistress of a rich white man. In the colonial societies of the Americas and Australia, a quadroon or quarteron was a person with one quarter African / Aboriginal and three quarters European ancestry. Tags. The play was first produced in 1859, at the Winter Garden Theatre in New York City, and was both controversial because of its sympathetic and human portrayal of slaves before the civil war, and extremely popular from the moment it premiered. An Octoroon is set way down yonder in the land of cotton during the antebellum period. Join StageAgent today and unlock amazing theatre resources and opportunities. Cook, who wanted to sleep with Picquet, asked her to wait on him at night, yet each time Picquet evaded his bedroom thanks to the protection of Mrs. This is no easy task, and the cast has mixed results. Jacobs-Jenkins himself took on the role of Br'er Rabbit and Captain Ratts.[14]. The Octoroon Summary and Study Guide | SuperSummary The combination was a formula for success among critics and laypeople alike, who had become accustomed to viewing works of art as outlets for their own emotional sensibilities. But neither the absurdity nor the horror will disappear by closing our eyes. With the judges death, Zoe loses his protection, and her situation becomes precarious. In 1867, she moved her family to New Richmond, Ohio where she stayed until her death in 1896. Cora, educated in Britain, returns to her fathers plantation in Louisiana to explore the truth about her mother's. The crunch comes when the good-hearted George Peyton has to choose between his love for Zoe, of one-eighth black ancestry, and his need to save the estate by marrying a rich heiress. As indicated by the inscription on the base of the statue, she is instead an octoroonthat is, an exceptionally light-skinned person of mixed race, technically defined as one-eighth black and the rest white. Mature Adult. [1] The buyers gather to take away the slaves they have purchased on a steamship. Though he wanted her to run off and escape with him, she was too afraid of getting caught so he left without her. The title refers to a person who is one-eighth black. New York: The Author, 1861. The time is now for the American play, and An Octoroon is just one of many groundbreaking works by women and writers of color. one-eighth African American), and how these . After Williams sickened and died, Picquet describes her relief at his passing; to celebrate her freedom from sexual abuse and "sin", she attended church that very Sunday (p. 22). George proposes to Dora, but Zoe confesses their love, which turns off Dora. The audience is catapulted into a space that plays to their stereotypes and questions our societys relationship to humanity and our history. This outdoor production is an ideal way of easing back into this most public of art forms, free of any pandemic misgivings about breathing the same air of fellow theatergoers. We may earn a commission from links on this page. Upon his return to the ministry in 1856, Mattison took an active part in the anti-slavery movement. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Coming to an L.A. stage: Proof were in a golden age of American playwriting, Michael Ritchie will retire from Center Theatre Group and make space for a new voice, Hollywood writers strike over streaming pay after talks fail, Models and climate activists hit the streets to protest the star-studded 2023 Met Gala, Gordon Lightfoot, mournful Canadian singer-songwriter, dies at 84, Tim Bachman, founding guitarist of Bachman-Turner Overdrive, dies at 71. eNotes.com "The Octoroon - Characters" eNotes Publishing When Paul goes missing, Wahnotee is the first person blamed for Paul's death, until it is revealed that M'Closky is responsible. With Dora's wealth, he explains, Terrebonne will not be sold and the slaves will not have to be separated. [26], An Octoroon was staged by the Georgia Southern University Theatre & Performance Program from November 8 to November 15, 2017.[27]. Log in here. Mrs. Peyton instead tells Paul to go fetch the mailbags because she is waiting for an important letter from Liverpool. transform as a part of life. An extremely beautiful young slave girl, who is treated like a member of the family, Zoe is kind, generous, and adored by every man who lays eyes on her. Paulwith the mailbagsstops to take a photo of himself with Georges camera. "[2] This examination of race as a social construct is also in Appropriate and Neighbors. New York: The Author, 1861. The young Frenchman when he meets Eveline falls madly in love with her in spite of the fact that . Scudder tells them that all could be saved if George marries Dora, but says he knows that Zoe and George are in love. Nataki Garrett directed the first production of An Octoroon outside of New York with Mixed Blood Theatre Company in the fall of 2015. Set on the fictional Terrebonne Plantation in Louisiana, The Octoroon depicts life in the American South with honesty and empathy. While posing, MClosky comes from behind and kills Paul to take the letter. The Octoroon - M. E. Braddon - Google Books A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Dora tells Sunnyside that he must buy Terrebonne and he does so, winning the auction. An Octoroon is a radical, incendiary and subversively funny riff on Dion Boucicault's once-popular 1859 mustache-twirling melodrama set on a Louisiana plantation. He comes across a therapist who recommends adapting his favorite play, The Octoroon by Dion Boucicault, as a jumping off point out of his writer's block. A short time later, Cook was taken to jail because of his debts, and all of his slaves were sold. Start your 48-hour free trial to get access to more than 30,000 additional guides and more than 350,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts. Johnson openly acknowledged these children and provided the girls with a superior education and marriage to prominent white men. MClosky, meanwhile, has killed a young slave named Paul, and he tries to frame an Indian named Wahnotee for the murder. Why is Frank McCourt really pushing it? Dora runs off crying, saying: I hate you both (52). The plot focused on Zoe, a young woman who is an octoroon (i.e. Mattison glosses over this violence, stating that "it is too horrible and indelicate to be read in a civilized country" (p. 15). This pocket Bluetooth printer lets you print your precious memories before they hit Instagram. The evil McClosky desires her for himself, opposed by the sincere love for her by George, the heir to the family fortune. He plans to buy her and make her his mistress. BJJ is focused on a play, The Octoroon, but runs into issues staging it because the white actors quit, so he applies whiteface in order to play them himself. eNotes critical analyses help you gain a deeper understanding of The Octoroon so you can excel on your essay or test. Paul is also regarded as a slave and referred to by other characters as a darkey (43), although he is only one-quarter black (then referred to as a quadroon). The Octoroon (Play) Scenes | StageAgent Zoe reciprocates his feelings but says that they cannot be together, as she is an Octoroon and interracial marriage is illegal. Mara Klein as Zoe is tragically demure in a sweet yet one-note manner. The Octoroon. The founding director of the Hutchins Center is Henry Louis Gates Jr., who is also chairman ofThe Root. The female "tragic octoroon" was a stock character of abolitionist literature: a light-skinned woman, raised in her father's household as though she were white, until his bankruptcy or death has her reduced to a menial position and sold. All Picquet wanted was to "get religion" (p. 22). An extremely beautiful young slave girl, who is treated like a member of the family, Zoe is kind, generous, and adored by every man who lays eyes on her. Also, he emphasizes that the defining point of this "whole narrative is the deep moral corruption which it reveals in the families concerned, resulting from the institution of slavery" (p. 50). This shuffle of identities is insouciantly performed as a minstrel carnival. The Octoroon: A Tragic Mulatto Enslaved by 1 Drop - The Root Before long it was widely reproduced on a smaller scale as one of Mintons ceramic Parian-ware figurines, as well as in bronze replicas. George says he can overcome the obstacle (43), but Zoe protests that they cannot be together. Summary In 1828, Louisa Picquet (1828-1896) was born near Columbia, South Carolina to fifteen year old Elizabeth Ramsey, a quadroon slave, and John Randolph, Ramsey's white master, which made her an octoroon, or an individual with one black and seven white grandparents.