BlAcKpOeMoLoGuE: Men of Color in Transitional Stages: A Pseudoautobiographical Tragicomic Choreopoem

By David Vincent Brooks

A Note from the Poet/Playwright:

(BLACK) an adj. of the darkest color; without light; dark, evil, somber, dishonorable. Wow! I wanted to challenge these objectionable definitions, and show that out of DARKNESS comes: LIGHT, LOVE, GROWTH, BEAUTY and HEALING, too.

(POEM) an imaginative composition in rhythmic or free verse lines is the genre of this choreopoem, that tells a TALL TALE, with a HINT of some TRUTH & REALNESS.

(OLOGY) is an indication, or root word, a noun that defines various kinds of speech, writings, or a collection of writings, (e.g., eulogy or trilogy). In words of this type, the “-ology,” element is derived from the Greek noun – logos: speech, debate, narrative, account, and story, etc., etc.,). The suffix has the sense of a certain kind of speaking, writing, and/or storytelling.

(MONOLOGUE) a dramatic composition with only one speaker; a long speech by one person. But BLACKPOEMOLOGUE includes eleven speakers.

I am taking a few artistic licenses/liberties with this choreopoem.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jun 16, 2024
• ISBN: 9798823026109

David Vincent Brooks

Blackpoemologue is still a work-in-progress since its first publication in 2001. It has taken me twenty-plus years to get it down on paper, never mind presenting it to the entire world. Now twenty years later, I am reintroducing this performance piece in an attempt to tell a story of struggle, victory and courage. Twenty years later, I am no longer sitting comfortably in front of a computer, within the four walls of my small Harlem apartment and only day dreaming. Now, I am stepping out on faith that I will be able to widen my audience, and share this labor of love, that truthfully has taken me over forty years to bring out of its proverbial closet. In 2001, I thought that this choreopoem, which initially consisted of eighty-seven poems written between 1980 and 1999; and was presented in a play format was going to be my SWAN SONG. For you see, over the years, I have been diagnosed with three forms of Cancers since 1996. So here I am lugging out those old LPs and CDs; and re-reading, while listening to a lil’ Coltrane, Carol Sloane, Shirley Horn, Miles Davis, and of course Lady Day, along with Jill Scott, Remy Shand, and Ledise, too. And, asking you to join me. Any enlightened folks, or millennials will be pleased to known that I also listen to H.E.R., Adele, and Harry Styles, just to name a few. So lay back, put your feet up, light some SAND & FOG aromatherapy candles, burn some SAGE incenses, and allow me to transport you back to a time of growth . . . (if you are one type), and a few revelations . . . (if you are the other type). FOR . . . I am a product of the CIVIL RIGHTS ERA, the BEATLES, the SURPEMES, the

Book preview

© 2024 David Vincent Brooks. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse  06/14/2024

ISBN: 979-8-8230-2612-3 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-8230-2611-6 (hc)

ISBN: 979-8-8230-2610-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2024908785

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Act IFrom 1841 (Revolt on the Ship Creole) to the Mid-1950s

Before

Act IIThe Mid-1950s to the Late 1980s

Then

Act IIIThe 1990s and Moving toward the New Millennium

Now

Other Works by David Vincent Brooks

Blackpoemology: Men of Colour in Transitory Stages—a Pseudo-Autobiographical Tragicomedy (A Choreopoem) AuthorHouse 1997-2001 1st ed. (2013) 2nd ed. (2024)

Golden Voices: Past and Present Anthology Fine Arts Press 1989

Blackhearts III: The Telling of Us—Past Present and Future 1984

Blackpoemologue: Men of Color in Transitional Stages—

a Pseudoautobiographical Tragicomic Choreopoem

A poetic narrative of the lives of some people of color who

succumb socially physically and spiritually toward what they

think is their journey’s end—wounded or fallen soldiers from

the aftermath of slavery to the onset of the AIDS epidemic.

David Vincent Brooks

The following writers have encouraged me to tell my truth by way of storytelling:

Melvin Dixon, Craig G. Harris, David Fréchetté,

Issac Jackson, Assotto Yves Saint, Donald Woods

To my family:

My mother Dorothea B. Brooks and my supportive sisters,

Dolores S. Brooks and Denise N. Brooks

To my extended family and friends:

The Baptist family, the Cooper family, the Crawford family, the Delgato family, the Dunkley-Corbin family, the Duke family, the Eli-Toppings family, the Ennis family, the Garcia family, the Golden-Burnett family, the Grant family, the Hardy family, the Haynes family, the Holman family, the Jones family, the Jordan family, the Lewis family, the Lord family, the Maltee family, the Mann family, the Merchant family, the Morales-Ojeda-Barbosa-Marcano family, the Morston family, the Neil family, the Perry family, the Rich family, the Reynolds family, the Robinson family, the Rushmore family, the Slaughter family, the Sledge family, the Spooner family, the Stewart family, the Stokes family, the Stone family, the Sullivan-Taylor family, the Tinsley family, the Thomas family, the Tarver family, the Wallace family, the Warner family, the White family, the Williams-Brightmon family, the Williams-Petersen family, the Young, the Zachery family, and all our ancestors.

And to the organizations that have allowed me to learn, grow, and thrive as an artist in their creative and nurturing communities:

All Out Arts Blessed, Trinity Baptist Church, Cents Ability, the Covenant House, Gay Men of African Descent, Gay Men’s Health Center, the Helping Hand Community Center, Hudson Guild, Theater Life Force: Women Fighting Against AIDS, MNN Public Access, Cable Nunu Radio.com, the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, the Sledge Group, and WBAI 99.5/Out FM

I would not be here today, if it had not been for all your prayers, late-night talks, and truth-telling, even when I didn’t care to hear it.

David

East Harlem NYC 2023

Caution: Professionals and amateurs are hereby warned that all eighty-seven poems set within this choreopoem, being fully protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America, the British Empire, including the Dominion of Canada, and all other countries of the Berne and Universal Copyright Conventions, are subject to royalty. These poems are for the reading public only, and all performances rights in part, or whole, including professional, amateur, motion picture, recitation, lecture, public reading, radio and television broadcasting, and the rights of translation into foreign languages, are strictly reserved. Anyone disregarding the author’s rights renders themselves liable to prosecution. Inquiries concerning these rights should be addressed to the author or agent named in the acknowledgments appearing after the copyright notices. All other inquires pertaining to performing permission, and interviews should be addressed to the author directly via e-mail: [e-mail], and/or in writing to D. V. Brooks at P. O. Box 930012, Rockaway Park, New York 11693-0012.

East Harlem, New York City

November 2023

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ACT I

Movement in Time—Man-to-Man Relationships

From 1841 (Revolt on the Ship

Creole) to the Mid-1950s

The Bible says that men help form each other.

As iron sharpens iron so a man sharpens his friends.

—Proverbs 27:17

(Overture: Ancestral Call by Jay-U Experience.)

(The stage is dark and quiet for the moment.)

A man and a woman appear center stage in a spotlight. They are fully dressed in African attire resembling royalty. Later the same man and woman are stripped placed in peasant clothing and sold on an auction block. All of a sudden there’s a flash of light and screams are heard from somewhere from offstage. People are running and screaming in what appears to be a state of frenzy. Then comes silence once again. A man wearing black emerges from the audience and steps into a dim light that appears center stage. It seems as if all of a sudden he is overtaken by panic yet upon seeing the audience he begins to relax. More screams are heard from offstage. The lights come up and suddenly the audience sees masses of bodies lying on the stage floor in what appear to be chains and torn sheets. The interior resembles a slave ship similar to the Creole which docked in Virginia in 1841 just the day before. The Creole left Hampton Virginia for New Orleans only to experience a revolt of the slaves on board. Later Great Britain granted the slaves asylum and set them free in various parts of Nassau Bahamas. This story is about the slaves who remained in Virginia in 1841 and later moved to the North and/or other parts of the New World preparing themselves for the new millennium.

Note: Throughout the entire performance a huge screen projects images of city streets parks buildings and wooded areas along with images of famous and not-so-famous people.

Before

A man wearing black standing center stage suddenly starts to speak directly to the audience. All the other men are shirtless. They are wearing black slacks and are lying on the floor. The man wearing black is the narrator and protector of them all. The man wearing black is screaming Sikiliza! (Listen! in Swahili) to the other men and women. One man yells Nisaidie (Help!) then all the other people start yelling Nisaidie! The man wearing black yells Simameni! (Stop! in Swahili) and everyone stops. He looks out toward the audience and his comrades. Then the man wearing black starts speaking again while the woman starts tending to each individual man caring for their wounds and preparing their souls for some discomfort ahead. She begins to dress them in their new clothing. Their new garments represent each man’s color (sort of a coat of arms). The woman helps each man get dressed except for one man who remains in bondage. Later that same man becomes the man wearing purple.

Prelude

MAN WEARING BLACK    For you the New World / the promised land/

here are some things: blank empty lily-white stones;

hot spicy and tasty dishes / old dried crusty bloodstained

clothed patches / broken dreams; /

torn / ripped outdated / and highly faded photographs from years past.

(Throws down a couple of photos.)

These things /I leave for you.

I

(Man wearing green rises from the floor putting on his shirt.)

MAN WEARING GREEN    On a hot spring day / a spring day /

in the month called May

I dreamed / I dreamed /

I swam across the Mediterranean Sea and landed.

(Man wearing white rises from the floor.)

MAN WEARING WHITE    I dreamed

I landed / upon the mainstream with homemade apple pie and French vanilla ice cream. /

Then / I / was forced to dress up in drab and insipid colors

colors of red white and blue …

(Looks over at the other two men who will later become those same colors.

Man wearing beige rises from the floor. Going Back to My Roots

by Odyssey is heard in the background.)

MAN WEARING BEIGE    … colors / that contrast /

with my natural ancestral colors of black and indigo blue.

II

(Man wearing blue rises from floor.)

MAN WEARING BLUE    I then / headed farther north or was it south?

Or maybe I went to the Far East? /Oh my God for sure I am now completely lost!

(Man wearing brown rises from the floor.)

MAN WEARING BROWN    I am lost /

as I continue to look for the promised land

the promised land the promised land.

(Man wearing orange rises from the floor.)

MAN WEARING ORANGE    For you see / time has passed / and now I find myself

on some crowded vessel /a vessel / you / described as being / fit for a king.

(Man wearing red rises from the floor.)

MAN WEARING RED    You said this while waving your flag /

of stars and stripes / that had been stitched together by some animal that /

from what I later learned /

was a representative of Borden’s mascot Elsie the cow.

(Man wearing purple rises from floor.)

MAN WEARING PURPLE    I also learned to turn cartwheels /

and perform some wild / and amazing somersaults / while standing on something.

(Stares menacingly out toward the audience.)

Once again you said that this fit for a king / and once again I learned that / it is called an auction block!

(Man wearing beige runs over sizing up the man wearing purple

as if the former were a slave owner. Man wearing purple

continues speaking somewhat embarrassed.)

Standing there / on your godforsaken auction block / just a-grinning/

and you never returned a single grin / as if … as if I were invisible—

except for the gleaming of my pearly whites /

(Flashes his teeth afterward looking downright mean and evil.)

my pearly white teeth as you continued to probe my mouth and genitals with your fingers.

(Woman turns her head in shame while handing the man a purple shirt.)

MAN WEARING BLACK    I then became mad too / madder than the Mad Hatter /

my emotions stirring /boiling as a matter of fact /hotter than some Salem witch’s poisonous brew.

(Man wearing red rushes in and interrupts man wearing black

repeating himself twice before being interrupted by man wearing brown.)

MAN WEARING RED    Don’t you know who I am?

MAN WEARING BROWN(interrupting man wearing red.)    I am the dark prince /

called Baye (pronounced Bay-yah) / straightforward /

the prince of a West African king / Khary (pronounced Car-ree) /

who was kingly in Senegal and Gambia.

MAN WEARING BLUE    My sister’s name is Assata (Ah-sah-tah). / She’s a warrior too!

MAN WEARING GREEN    My brother / Idrissa (Eee-dree-sah) / is immortal / you fool!

(Addressing the audience.)

For sure /you must realize that you are declaring war!

MAN WEARING BLACK    Kidnappin’ me from my motherland

Fatou Mata (Fah-too-mah-tah) / I was beloved by all who knew me.

III

(Man wearing beige is pantomiming the act of juggling balls.)

MAN WEARING BEIGE    Now I’m juggling colorful bouncy balls and actin’ the court jester.

MAN WEARING WHITE    Do you know who I am?

EVERYONE shouting. Baye! Baye! Baye!

MAN WEARING BLACK    I … am … a … a … /

dark prince and while you sat down / and wrote letters to the newly elected government at city hall …

MAN WEARING ORANGE    … I was gagged /

beaten in my blackness /

chained to your slave ship

and threatened with being put to death!

MAN WEARING YELLOW    I didn’t escape /yet / somehow /

I managed to effect /your independence on the Fourth of July in 1776.

IV

MAN WEARING BLACK    I was there / when against the Declaration of Independence

in Rochester New York /Frederick Douglass / a distant relation of mine / read his rebuttal /

in your own language titled I Hear the Mournful Wail of Millions.

V

MAN WEARING YELLOW (interrupting man wearing black.)

I / believe my brother that /

that was the summer of 1852. /

And the title