A Raisin In The Sun Script

Crossroad's festival weekend

A classic of South Asian theater, a drama about integration and a no-holes-barred laugh-fest are all on tap at Crossroads Theatre Company this weekend.

They constitute the “CommonGround: Festival of the People” that the New Brunswick theater presents annually.

“This festival allows Crossroads to further connect with various groups in the community and share their passions and stories with our Crossroads’ family,” says executive director Marshall Jones III.

Epic Actors’ Workshop, South Asian Theater Festival and Crossroads itself join to begin the festival by presenting “The Little Clay Cart.” The romantic comedy is an important work in Sanskrit theater, and was the basis of a Bollywood film. It involves a businessman who loves a woman who won’t have him — and is then framed for her murder. The English-language presentation takes place on Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are $25.

Crossroads will hardly be the only theater offering “Trouble in Mind” by Alice Childress. Sixteen other theaters in the nation will also read the play on Monday as part of Project1Voice, which plans to preserve the legacy of African-American theater and its playwrights.

The script takes us to 1957, when an integrated cast rehearses a racially charged play. Fittingly, the play will be directed by Petronia Paley, who recently played Lena Younger in Crossroads’ “A Raisin in the Sun.” She’s cast a few of her castmates in this staged reading that begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25.

The festival concludes with “Livin’ Fat” by Judi Ann Mason. It’s a collaboration between Crossroads and Daughters Wanted, a support group for women who grew up without fathers. The comedy tells about a family who happens to win a $100,000 lottery – in the ’70s, when that was still a lot of money. “Livin’ Fat” plays June 24 at 7 p.m. and June 25 at 3 and 8 p.m. Tickets are $30 in advance and $35 at the door.

Crossroads Theatre Company is at 7 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick. Call (732) 545-8100 or visit CrossroadsTheatreCompany.org .

Theatrical house-hunting

Two Jersey troupes renowned for their excellent productions of recent off-Broadway hits are looking for homes.

Laura Ekstrand, the artistic director of the Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre, has had difficulties with the space she’s been renting in the Baird Center on 5 Mead St. in South Orange. As a result, she’d like to move to a new location.

ASP SSR BLOG: A Raisin in the Sun- response

In the movie "A Raisin In The Sun" there weren't that many differences than the play. My character Bennie, in the movie, kept her hair the same through out the whole movie but in the play she let her hair go to fit the African culture. The play and the movie were very similar and gave me a very good visual of what the characters went through.

In the movie "A Raisin in The Sun" there some parts that they do not use in the play. For example When Mama gives Walter the $650,000 dollars they are at a cafe. The movie gave me more details about Walter and how he acts. Yes, I do think the film was good because of the use of details and I got to understand how my character feels about his dream.

The movie gave me a better understanding of how the family lived and the emotions they went threw. The differences from the play and the movie were minor there were only a couple axtra scenes in the movie that did not happen in the book. The ending was also different in the movie then the book because instead of Mama being the last one out it was Walter Lee.

The movie did a great job portraying the book. There were a few minor details that were either added or left out. When Asagi came over to help the family move, Bennie told him the first moment she knew she wanted to be a doctor. This scene was not shown in the movie. Other parts were added such as Walter meeting with Bobo and Willy in the bar. The book never described that it just said he went there. Other then that the movie followed the book very well and I was able to understand the emotion of the family better.

The movie "A Raisin in the Sun," or what I saw of it, I thought was very good. I liked all the visuals and emption it added to the play. I did notice a few difference twords the end, and saw some scenes that I did not read. I actually thought adding them into the movie was a good idea. They explained some of the tihngs that were a little bit confusing while reading, like who Ruth was always going to see.

The movie did a great job portraying the play. I feel like the bits they added to the movie were in there for the sole purpose of making the play easier to understand. I loved all of the emotion that the movie brought to the play, because that emotion was not expressed as much in class readings. The only big differences I noticed between the movie and the play, were the scene changes. In the play, everything took place in the apartment. However, in the movie, some scenes were located in different parts of the city. It made it easier to understand what exactly was going on, in places that we couldn't see in the play.

A raisin in the sun

Script Analysis for Actors, Directors, and Designers

Black feminist cultural criticism

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Classic Movies

Understanding A raisin in the sun, a student casebook to issues, sources, and historical documents