BWW Interviews: MEMPHIS Star Zuri Washington on Race, Inequality and Broadway

Having seen Memphis twice on Broadway, I'm a big fan of the story and music. What I was struck by originally is just how timely the story is. And every day that passes, it seems there are echoes of what was happening in this country just a few decades ago.

Last night, I watched as thousands in Baltimore took to the streets because the systemic oppression they've faced for generations is finally too much for them to handle. When unarmed Black men and boys are killed regularly by power-hungry government representatives, it becomes clear why some communities no longer trust those who've ben charged to protect and defend them.

Zuri Washington is the young star of a musical which tackles many of the issues we're seeing play out on the streets around the nation today.

JM: Tell me a little bit about where you came from.

ZW: I was born and bred in NYC! The Bronx to be precise; not far from Yankee Stadium. That's my home and I'm proud and grateful to have been raised right in the middle of it the big, scary city. It's taught me a lot about life and the part I play in the world. I went to The Dalton School on Upper East Side Manhattan for 11 years.

JM: You refer to this role as a "dream role." What is it about playing Felicia that makes it a dream role?

ZW: Well, this show came to Broadway when I was a senior in high school and I remember watching the production thinking I would love to be that part and sing "Colored Woman" but I was scared of the role. I never dreamed someone would actually give me a chance to live this particular dream. It's such a difficult singing role and though I come from a singing family, the thought of tackling such a demanding role didn't seem like it could become a reality. I've been in callbacks for every production of this show and just never quite made it and I was extremely overwhelmed with joy to say that I FINALLY did at the ripe old age of 23!

JM: What are some of your other dream roles and why?

ZW: I would love to play Johanna in Sweeney Todd, Sarah in Ragtime or Nabalungi in Book of Mormon. Johanna and Sarah for similar reasons in that they are great soprano roles and despite my belting resume, I am a legit soprano and I'd love to tackle a role like that professionally to show my chops and prove my well-roundedness. Nabalungi because I have comedic chops to go with my belt and I'd love to show those off too! I was never a class clown but my 3rd grade class always said I'd be the one of us to die laughing (morbid for 8 years old, I know) and I always love a good chuckle whether it's at my expense or I'm in on the joke.

JM: What does Zuri have in common with Felicia?

ZW: I think we both are very ambitious and have something to prove. Being that I'm in my 20s in the 21st century and Felicia was my age in the 1950s, our experiences in achieving our goals are vastly different, but certain struggles are similar and still strike a chord with me. Black women are still seen as lesser than and undeserving. People like our physical attributes and personality traits from afar or would like to appropriate them for themselves, but we are more than that and deserve more than that blasé treatment. Because all people rock, but black girls need to hear it more so that we know that our dreams have a chance at life too.

JM: Memphis tells an important story - about a dark time in our country's history. How do you feel about the way this musical tackles the complicated issues we are still facing today?

ZW: As I mentioned above, there's the complicated issue of gender and race and how the world at large sees those two identities interconnected. The largest issue that the show tackles at the forefront of the storytelling is racial inequality. I think the show handles it with the fun of Hairspray with head-bopping tunes and moments of comedy and the seriousness of Dreamgirls. The subject matter is nothing to treat lightly, but even so, there are certain ways material must be handled in order to keep the rapt attention of a possibly divided audience whether that be by age, race, gender, etc. Race is STILL so incendiary, even nearly fifty years after the Civil Rights Movement. In post-racial America, it's seen as a non-issue but the turbulence in this country over the last year incited by police violence against black men and women is something seemingly from a black and white photograph of the generation before us. I hope our show holds a mirror up to society and makes people remember that we are NOT that far removed from our parents and grandparents; we've come far, but not nearly far enough.

JM: A romance is at the core of this musical. Two folks who some people think shouldn't be allowed to be together, wind up in love. At a time in our history where the same conversation is now being had around gays and lesbians being married, how do think the country has changed for the better or for the worse?

ZW: It's almost as if we've forgotten the struggles of the minority, not just in this country but across the world, and the struggles we still face. We seem so free by comparison that people think that we should be satisfied with what we have. Gays used to be killed, jailed, and penalized within an inch of the law. They may have most basic rights but they want what we all want. Equality. Equality according to the American constitution is afforded to all men and women. It took years for lawmakers to recognize that black people were the same as whites and seeing as we are still not fully accepted and told both through what we, as a nation, take for granted as societal norms and sometimes point blank racist dialogue and mistreatment, it will take years for gays to get what they deserve. Less than 50 years ago, the Supreme Court ruled against the anti miscegenation laws of Virginia at the time and overturned the convictions of Mildred and Richard Loving citing the Constitution saying that to convict them of breaking such a law promoted White Supremacy and they could find no grounds to allow the precedent to continue. The mountaintop is hard to climb and the peak may be far, but we are still climbing. We've come too far to go back to the bottom and give up.

JM: What can audiences take away from the story of Felicia and Huey? What are the lessons that might apply to our lives in 2015 as thousands take to the street under #BlackLivesMatter signs

ZW: They can remember the past so that we are not doomed to repeat it, live in the present, and hope/fight for a bettertomorrow. These are the most important things we can do as a society. All lives matter, but Black ones are treated as lesser than and it's time to realize the institutionalized racism we have grown comfortable living with and how we can better ourselves as a human race to overcome that complacency.

JM: Why are you an actor?

ZW: Because I want to change hearts and minds and not only entertain, but educate. Theatre is universal. I did my last tour (Bring It On) in Japan and people were just as touched, perhaps even more so and I love putting a smile on people's faces and soothing their souls, even if it's just for a few hours. People think we just get paid to dance around and sing and that there's no practical use for theatre, but I think when we're doing it right we're healing the world too.