"Then he began to dawdle again, chasing ghost-like words in his small mind. Soldier. German. American."
--Kurt Vonnegut, "D.P."
James McBride, "Mr. Woo," read by Michael Genét Kurt Vonnegut, "D.P.," read by Lawrence Clayton
This program is made up of two stories that were chosen by a SELECTED SHORTS “guest host”, the writer, saxophone player, and composer James McBride, who has been a staff writer at The Boston Globe, People Magazine and The Washington Post. He is the author of the novel Miracle at St. Anna and the memoir The Color of Water: A Black Man’s Tribute to His White Mother.
We persuaded James McBride not to be too shy to choose a story of his own. It’s called “Mr. Woo,” and is one of an evolving series of stories told from the point of view of a young African-American living in an urban neighborhood. Before the story, McBride talks a little about its origins. The reader, Michael Genet, is an actor and screenwriter who starred in his own play Hallelujah, a television drama, on American Playhouse. He was seen on screen in Spike Lee’s movie 25th Hour, and co-wrote Spike Lee’s latest film, She Hate Me.
James McBride also chose for his SHORTS evening at Symphony Space a touching Kurt Vonnegut story that he has loved for years, “D.P.”, about Black American GI’s and an orphan, both finding their identities in foreign lands. The reader is Lawrence Clayton, whose Broadway credits include Bells Are Ringing, It Ain’t Nothing But the Blues, The Civil War, Once Upon a Mattress, and Dreamgirls.
--Kurt Vonnegut, "D.P."
James McBride, "Mr. Woo," read by Michael Genét Kurt Vonnegut, "D.P.," read by Lawrence Clayton
This program is made up of two stories that were chosen by a SELECTED SHORTS “guest host”, the writer, saxophone player, and composer James McBride, who has been a staff writer at The Boston Globe, People Magazine and The Washington Post. He is the author of the novel Miracle at St. Anna and the memoir The Color of Water: A Black Man’s Tribute to His White Mother.
We persuaded James McBride not to be too shy to choose a story of his own. It’s called “Mr. Woo,” and is one of an evolving series of stories told from the point of view of a young African-American living in an urban neighborhood. Before the story, McBride talks a little about its origins. The reader, Michael Genet, is an actor and screenwriter who starred in his own play Hallelujah, a television drama, on American Playhouse. He was seen on screen in Spike Lee’s movie 25th Hour, and co-wrote Spike Lee’s latest film, She Hate Me.
James McBride also chose for his SHORTS evening at Symphony Space a touching Kurt Vonnegut story that he has loved for years, “D.P.”, about Black American GI’s and an orphan, both finding their identities in foreign lands. The reader is Lawrence Clayton, whose Broadway credits include Bells Are Ringing, It Ain’t Nothing But the Blues, The Civil War, Once Upon a Mattress, and Dreamgirls.
About Selected Shorts
Selected Shorts features some of the finest artists of the American theater reading contemporary and classic short fiction-the most distinguished works of the early masters such as Chekhov, Maupassant, Malamud and dozens of others.
To listen to this program, and other recent programs, subscribe to the Selected Shorts podcast
Hosted by Isaiah Sheffer
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