Summary
"Trouble in Mind" is a play set against the backdrop of a racial melodrama called "Chaos in Belleville," which exposes the prejudices and stereotypes pervasive in theater. A seasoned black actress, Wiletta Mayer, navigates the challenges of a white-dominated industry alongside her fellow actors. With a narrative that mirrors their real-life experiences, the play delves into themes of race, identity, and the struggle for authenticity in art.
The Setting and Characters
Set on a Broadway stage, "Trouble in Mind" centers on a cast of actors rehearsing "Chaos in Belleville," a play rife with southern racial stereotypes penned by white creators. Wiletta Mayer, a veteran black actress, enters the scene with warm recognition from an elderly doorman recalling her past performances. She meets John Nevins, an eager young actor thrilled about this opportunity, and offers him advice drawn from her years in the industry.
Wiletta counsels John to downplay his formal training in drama, suggesting he claim experience in "Porgy and Bess" to fit into the expectations set by a predominantly white theater world. She emphasizes the importance of portraying subservience to avoid threatening the status quo. Despite her candid guidance, John's aspirations of stardom make him resistant to her advice.
A Cast of Conflicted Players
The cast gradually assembles on stage. Millie Davis, donned in a mink coat, expresses indifference towards her career, while Sheldon Forrester laments his recent illness and the consequential loss of work. Judy Sears, the enthusiastic yet inexperienced white actress fresh from Yale, joins them, eager to prove her openness by claiming "people are the same," a statement that inadvertently minimizes the unique struggles of her African American colleagues.
Al Manners, the play's director, enters with a history of working with some of the cast on a Civil War film. His interactions reveal underlying racist and sexist biases, as he orders breakfast for everyone but dismisses Sheldon's request for jelly doughnuts. His behavior towards Judy is overly familiar, and he takes umbrage when she resists his advances.
Power Dynamics and Tensions
Manners attempts to assert control over the rehearsal, praising John's training (which he hasn't mentioned) while dismissing Judy's prestigious academic background. When she makes a mistake, Manners publicly humiliates her, but when he orders Wiletta to pick up papers he's thrown in a fit, she refuses with a firm, "I ain’t the damn janitor!" The tension between them underscores the fraught power dynamics at play.
Within "Chaos in Belleville," Wiletta and Sheldon portray the sharecropper parents of John's character, Job, who faces lynching for daring to vote. Manners insists that Wiletta delve into her character Ruby's motivations, but Wiletta struggles with portraying a mother who would sacrifice her son to a mob. Her growing frustration leads to a confrontation with Manners, who is both taken aback and incensed by her passionate defiance.
Act Two: Confrontation and Resistance
In the second act, Bill O’Wray rehearses his role as Renard, the white landowner, delivering a speech on racial tolerance that rings hollow with clichéd platitudes. Meanwhile, Ruby and her husband wait for Job’s return, embodying helplessness through symbolic actions like singing and whittling.
Wiletta questions the plausibility of a mother consigning her son to death, challenging Manners on the authenticity and truthfulness of the narrative. Manners argues that the play’s purpose is to make the audience see violence as wrong, avoiding any antagonism. However, Sheldon shares a harrowing personal account of witnessing a lynching, sparking a revelation in Wiletta: the compromise she had advised John is no longer tenable.
The Struggle for Artistic Integrity
After a break, Manners accuses Wiletta of deliberately undermining the play with her...
(This entire section contains 832 words.)
Unlock this Study Guide Now
Start your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
anger. Refusing to follow the stage directions, Wiletta stands her ground, lifting John from his knees and questioning the narrative’s integrity: "I'm his mother and I’m sendin’ him to his death. This is a lie." Her challenge exposes the biased heroism attributed to the play's white characters.
Manners deflects with self-pity, claiming the American public isn’t ready for the truth Wiletta seeks. His suggestion that evoking sympathy for black characters is sufficient falls flat. When Wiletta presses him further, Manners erupts, "Don’t compare yourself to me!" before storming off in anger.
Standing Firm Amidst Chaos
Despite the tumultuous rehearsal, Wiletta finds solace in the kindness of the doorman. Aware that she may be dismissed, she vows to return the next day, ready to face any repercussions. She ends the day with the powerful recitation of Psalm 133, standing unyieldingly against the chaos that engulfed the stage.
Several variations of "Trouble in Mind" exist, including a published two-act version and a three-act manuscript considered definitive by the playwright Alice Childress. The latter version includes contemporary references to significant civil rights events, such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the integration of schools in Little Rock. It concludes with Manners inviting a prejudiced cast and a prejudiced author to seek "some splinter of truth," offering a moment of complexity and potential reconciliation amidst the prevailing tensions.
Historical Context
The mid-1950s in the United States marked a period of profound transformation and tension. As a global leader in technology and economics, the nation was simultaneously embroiled in the Cold War, a conflict with the Soviet Union that cast a long shadow over daily life. Amidst fears of nuclear catastrophe and suspicions of communist influence, society was also grappling with deep-seated racial segregation, which ignited pivotal civil rights movements.
Cold War Concerns
During this era, the United States was at the forefront of the Cold War, a geopolitical standoff with the Soviet Union and its allies. This conflict led to an arms race that instilled fear of atomic warfare among American citizens. The anxiety was so pervasive that many Americans went to the extent of constructing fallout shelters in their backyards. The fear of communism permeated society, fueled by figures like Senator Joseph McCarthy, who capitalized on paranoia by accusing individuals of being communist spies.
Economic Prosperity and Technological Advances
Despite the fears of war, the United States flourished economically, emerging as the world's economic powerhouse. Post-World War II, consumer demand surged, significantly bolstering the economy and encouraging the growth of labor unions. However, these unions were often suspected of harboring communist sympathies, casting a shadow over their public perception. The period also witnessed unprecedented investments in research and development, particularly in the burgeoning television industry. Television ownership soared from less than 20% of households in 1950 to 90% by 1960. This economic boom further fueled the expansion of suburbs, predominantly benefiting white families seeking safe and affordable housing.
Segregation and the Struggle for Civil Rights
Despite economic prosperity, racial segregation remained a harsh reality, especially in the southern United States. African Americans were largely excluded from the consumer boom due to discriminatory "Jim Crow" laws, which enforced racial separation in public spaces such as drinking fountains, restaurants, and public transportation. Attempts by African Americans to defy these laws often led to prosecution and imprisonment.
The mid-1950s saw the burgeoning of the modern civil rights movement, ignited by pivotal events such as Rosa Parks' defiance in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955. Her act of resistance and the subsequent bus boycott challenge to segregation laws became a catalyst for broader civil rights actions across the South. Public school desegregation became a highly controversial issue during this period, spurred by a series of lawsuits aimed at integrating educational institutions from the elementary to the university level.
Landmark Legal Challenges and Resistance
Among the most significant legal challenges was the landmark Supreme Court case, Brown v. The Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, in 1954. This ruling declared school segregation unconstitutional and ordered the integration of schools, setting a precedent for future civil rights advancements. However, implementing this decision proved contentious and faced considerable resistance, particularly in the South, often requiring intervention from the Supreme Court and other government entities to enforce change.
Racial discrimination was not confined to African Americans; in New York City, public schools were accused of discriminating against Italians and Puerto Ricans, highlighting the pervasive nature of racial issues across the country.
In summary, the mid-1950s was a period of contrast in the United States, characterized by technological and economic advancement juxtaposed with social upheaval. The era laid the groundwork for significant societal changes, driven by the tensions of the Cold War and the pressing need to address and rectify racial inequalities that had long been embedded in American life.
Style and Technique
Backdrop of New York Theater
Set against the vibrant and bustling backdrop of New York City in the fall of
1957, Trouble in Mind unfolds within the confines of a Broadway theater.
Conceived as a drama-comedy, the play explores the intricate dynamics of a
group of black actors rehearsing for a stage production titled Chaos in
Belleville. Amidst a clutter of props from past productions, the actors
navigate a landscape where the pressure to conform to the expectations of the
predominantly white theater world weighs heavily upon them. Sheldon, one of the
black actors, epitomizes this struggle as he performs not just the role
required of him on stage but also the unwritten role demanded by a
white-dominated society.
Layers of Performance: A Play Within a Play
At the heart of Trouble in Mind is the rehearsal process for Chaos in Belleville, a play set in the racially charged environment of the American South. The narrative centers around Job, a young man played by John, who faces the wrath of a lynch mob after trying to exercise his right to vote. His family, including his mother Ruby (portrayed by Wiletta) and father Sam (played by Sheldon), are depicted as sharecroppers entangled in a web of systemic racism and oppression. Ruby's misguided belief that compliance could shield her son from harm ultimately leads to tragedy. Meanwhile, the white characters, Renard and his daughter Carrie, enacted by Bill O’Wray and Judy respectively, are portrayed as paternalistic figures who purport to offer protection but instead perpetuate the cycle of subjugation.
Although Chaos is billed as an antilynching play, its deeply ingrained racist undertones stir discomfort and resentment among the black actors. The script’s demeaning language and actions are palpable, yet economic necessity forces them to endure this indignity until Wiletta bravely confronts the issue. In stark contrast, the white characters—including Judy and the director Manners—cling to the belief that Chaos has the potential to incite positive change in societal attitudes toward race. This tension highlights the chasm between the perceived intentions of the play and the lived experiences of those it purports to represent.
The Burden of Stereotypes
Trouble in Mind intricately weaves stereotypes into its narrative, exposing the pervasive nature of these reductive characterizations in the theater world. The black actors in Chaos in Belleville grapple with roles that are steeped in stereotype—naive, child-like figures clad in cheap clothing and speaking in clichéd tones. Sheldon’s Sam, for instance, is relegated to the sidelines, occupying scenes with the mindless act of whittling. Ruby’s deference to the white Renard and his daughter further underscores her character’s subjugation. Even Job, despite being a more complex figure, meets a tragic end that reinforces his powerlessness in the face of systemic violence.
White characters do not escape stereotyping either. Bill’s Renard embodies the trope of the well-meaning but ultimately harmful paternalistic figure, while Judy’s Carrie represents the idealistic Northern liberal who seeks to help but remains untouched by the consequences faced by her black counterparts. These characterizations serve to reinforce societal hierarchies, perpetuating a cycle of inequality.
Confronting Perceptions
The black actors within Trouble in Mind also engage in a dialogue about the stereotypes they are compelled to embody. Accusations of being "Uncle Toms" or "Jemimas" fly, as actors grapple with the duality of playing roles on stage and in life. Wiletta's early advice to John underscores this precarious balance; she urges him to maintain a façade of happiness in front of the white director, acknowledging the necessity of adopting a "yes man" persona for survival. This behavior, although deemed "Tommish", becomes a strategy for navigating the racial politics of the theater. Critics have noted that Childress’s portrayal of the white characters, such as Judy’s embodiment of a young, idealistic white liberal, also falls into the realm of stereotype, suggesting a mutual entrapment in these roles across racial lines.
In essence, Trouble in Mind not only offers a critical lens on the theater industry but also acts as a mirror reflecting broader societal dynamics. Through its clever interweaving of a play within a play and the exploration of stereotypes, the work encourages audiences to confront and question the roles assigned to individuals both on stage and in life. It invites a deeper understanding of the struggles faced by those who are marginalized and challenges the notion that art can be neatly separated from the societal forces that shape it.
Compare and Contrast
1955: Marian Anderson becomes the first black singer to perform with the Metropolitan Opera.
Today: Numerous black opera singers grace stages across America, with Jessye Norman being among the most renowned.
1955: The Harvard School of Divinity admits its first female student.
Today: The first woman graduates from the Citadel, one of the last institutions to end gender segregation.
1954: The Supreme Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education mandates the integration of public schools, leading many schools to implement bussing.
Today: There is a shift away from bussing, allowing students to attend local schools, which sometimes results in racial segregation once more.
1955: Rosa Parks refuses to surrender her bus seat to a white passenger, sparking the Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott and widespread controversy.
Today: Rosa Parks remains celebrated as a Civil Rights Movement icon. Her brave act is widely acknowledged as a significant catalyst for one of America's most pivotal social movements.
Bibliography and Further Reading
Sources
Abramson, Doris E. Negro Playwrights in the American Theatre, 1925-1959, Columbia University Press, 1969, pp. 188-205.
Austin, Gayle. ‘‘Alice Childress: Black Woman Playwright as Feminist Critic,’’ Southern Quarterly, Spring 1987, pp. 53-62.
Childress, Alice. ‘‘Trouble in Mind’’ in Black Theater: A 20th Century Collection of the Work of Its Best Playwrights, Dodd, Mead & Company, 1971, pp. 135-74.
Keyssar, Helen. ‘‘Foothills: Precursors of Feminist Drama,’’ in Feminist Theatre: An Introduction to Plays of Contemporary British and American Women, Macmillan, 1984, pp. 22-52.
Killens, John O. ‘‘The Literary Genius of Alice Childress,’’ in Black Women Writers (1950-80): A Critical Evaluation, Anchor Books, 1984, p. 128.
Messud, Claire. ‘‘Roles of Thunder,’’ Times Literary Supplement, October 23, 1992, p. 18.
Raymond, Harry. ‘‘Alice Childress Play at ’Mews’ Sparkling, Witty Social Satire,’’ Daily Worker, November 8, 1955, p. 7.
A review of Trouble in Mind in The New York Times, November 5, 1955, p. 23.
Sommer, Sally R. ‘‘Black Figures, White Shadows’’ in The Village Voice, January 15, 1979, p. 91.
Further Reading
Brown-Guillory, Elizabeth. ‘‘Alice Childress: A Pioneering Spirit’’ in Sage, Spring 1987, pp. 66-68. An interview with Childress that primarily explores biographical information and professional inspiration.
Brown-Guillory, Elizabeth. Their Place on the Stage: Black Women Playwrights in America, Greenwood Press, 1988, pp. 28-34. Discusses various playwrights, including Childress, with an analysis that includes Trouble in Mind.
Bryer, Jackson R., editor. ‘‘Alice Childress,’’ in The Playwright’s Art: Conversations with Contemporary American Dramatists, Rutgers University Press, 1995, p. 48. This interview, conducted about a year before Childress’s death, delves into her life and career.
Dugan, Olga. ‘‘Telling the Truth: Alice Childress as Theorist and Playwright,’’ The Journal of Negro History, Annual 1996, pp. 123-37. This essay examines Childress’s theories on drama and African Americans in her essays, along with some basic biographical details.
Jennings, La Vinia Delois. Alice Childress, Twayne, 1995. This book covers Childress’s entire literary career, including Trouble in Mind. It also includes some biographical information.
