My New Black Magazine - NYU Black Renaissance Noire BRN-FALL-206 ISSUE RELEASE | Page 153

Gypsy & the
Bully Door

By

NINA ANGELA
MERCER
ORIGINAL COPYRIGHT
BY NINA ANGELA MERCER MAY 2011
RENEWED COPYRIGHT
BY NINA ANGELA MERCER SEPTEMBER
2012, OCTOBER 2013 AND APRIL 2014

Characters
sara josephine james — aka —
Destiny Rose: black woman, late
twenties to mid-thirties; a dancer.
roy peoples — aka — Blue: black
man, late twenties to mid-thirties.
khadija freeman — aka — Rachel:
black woman, mid-twenties.
nikki bledsoe: black woman, late
twenties to mid-thirties.
the mayor/Lead Talker in the
pocket roll call* — aka — John
Grossman, The Anchorman and Mr.
Littlejohn, The Property Manager,
and The Subway Conductor: black
man, late thirties to mid-forties; a
guitar/bass player; a woman could
play this character as well (playwright
encourages this consideration).
the woman in yellow/Vocals in
the pocket roll call** — aka —
ms. legendare: black woman, late
thirties to mid-forties; a dancer.
The Pocket Roll Call Band & Show:
All percussion — all available cast
members; between 1 actor (min) and 4
actors (max) with The Mayor as Lead
Talker and The Woman in Yellow —
aka — Ms. Legendare as lead accompanying vocalist.
The Dance: Full cast
the door

152

“Why do you stay in prison
when the door is so wide open?”
— Rumi

Music Note:
GoGo music is the sound and the
space in this play. GoGo is music that
can integrate any music form into its
body and move. So, in this play, each
song has a different texture. Each is
connected to some form of music
borne from the African Diaspora. It is
all Black Music in conversation with
itself at the GoGo, as a communion,
a communal transformation, a ritual
performance. It is rock or blues or
dance hall reggae. Sometimes it may
be dissonant. In this musically inspired
play, GoGo holds the center with its
percussive rhythms. Growing up, we
used to beat on tables with our hands
to make that home-grown rhythm.
In this play, the cast will become the
band. the mayor is our bassist, our
lead talker.
The GoGo is a space of ritual
transformation. So, the play begins
with a Ring Shout at the GoGo.
*The “lead talker” in the pocket roll
call sings the songs and often engages
cast or audience in conversation.
The lead talker’s reach is expansive. The
lead talker should break the fourth wall.

** “Vocals” in the pocket roll call
should be performed by the woman
in yellow — aka — ms. legendare.
Her reach is as expansive as the lead
talker — aka — the mayor. She
should break the fourth wall.
the pocket roll call
Percussion: Because we are relying on
cast members for percussion, actors
with skills like beat boxing, “Hand
Bone” or “Hand Jive,” as well as a
strong ability to perform/ co-create
polyrhythms with voice and body
are crucial to reaching the musicality
of the play. Very necessary: a music
director who plays GoGo in DC as a
percussionist from time to time. And,
if that’s not possible, you need a music
director who has played GoGo in DC.
Your music director will need to guide
the cast in playing rhythms on the
body as the pocket roll call.
See music references at end of play