I captured this scene because it was important for me to learn, and teach others, just how hard it is in the theatre world for black women. You could do three times the work, and it be completely taken for granted. Nothing I did during that time was good enough for Mrs. C to acknowledge the work was mine, or to even remember my name. When you have been working with someone for months and they constantly mix you up with other people who don’t really even look like you, it’s hard. I felt undervalued, and overused. I learned to stop giving these particular people my everything and focus on other things that were important to me. I was constructed into a more well-rounded person because I had to learn to take my talents and use them for other things. My leadership in design was used for extracurricular activities that made me happier, and that gave me a sense of worth. And I learned that it was not okay to live without that worth. This experience molded me into someone who will not stop fighting for the recognition I and others deserve in lines of work that would be lacking without us.
I liked how you explained what you learned from the experience in the artist’s statement, and I also liked seeing the story from your perspective, as you did a great job presenting how frustrating the situation was. You mentioned that you got this teacher again, so my question is did the teacher continue to discredit your work, and did anyone ever confront this teacher?
Thank you for sharing Empress! You articulated your frustration with this fucked up treatment through your dialogue so well. Your scenes are also super detailed and I enjoyed how you kept this story real – cursing, honest character descriptions, and how you had to learn to protect your peace. Your artist statement is a beautiful expression of your growth and understanding of your self-worth. Your high school self would be proud of you!
I could feel the stress and frustration throughout this whole screenplay because of how detailed and real you wrote this. I’m glad you were able to grow away and leave the people who did not appreciate all of your work, and that you were able to direct your talents toward other projects that made you feel valued!
I think the end of the dialogue was particularly powerful. You really showed the way that you were rendered invisible. Even when Colin tried to make you seen, you were still not recognized. Based on your artist statement you seemed to express obvious frustration over your treatment by Ms. C. But I think that there is so much to unpack with Colin and Mr. D. It is not clear to me, but it seems likely that both Colin and Mr. D. identified as white men. What is telling from your story are the ways that white men can be celebrated for mediocrity. This comes through with Colin in the scene clearly. But it also comes through by your early claims that Mr. D. is cool. But how is it that Colin and Mr. D. are not made to account for that not showing up (Colin) and speaking up (Mr, D). I am not trying get Ms. C. off the hook, not by any means, but I think it is important to recognize the culpability of the Mr. D’s of the harm created by the Ms. C’s and how the Mr. D’s are rarely, if ever, made to account.