Intersecting Visions

payne’s Awethu

original poem, by Belikos Gray

silence untold
beneath the weight of names,
of tongues, carved — oppressor’s
whispers, stirring libations
for this space: past bleeding future.

we, lineage unnamed, reclaim
silences, bodies, cornrows
of memory, desire, battles — all
already fought & yet to come
as testament, as resilience
etched into bone.
liminal here, love
defying strictures of flesh &
norm. we dance in shadows,
in choruses, defiances, &
hope-filled guidings of steps,
of treacherous becomings:
crucibles of powers, of tendernesses
known, of strengths, of vulnerabilities
embraced, of communities
envisioned, of worlds
unbounded, & freedom
self-discovered, self-named:
Rebellion.

architects building
sanctuaries in sacred ruins
of remembrance. legacies
of resistance called “footprints.”
this be our mirrors: acts of
witnessing the simultaneity of
being witnessed, forged, infinite,
& : free

A Julius Caesar Production

One could say that Mistress / Catherine was Julius Caesar, that awethu was Brutus, and that Antony was Antionette / Amandla. However, the characterizations are more complex than that, despite the power and corruption leading to similar ends.

Julius Caesar was criticized for not having ambition or greed, which is similar to Catherine. The similarities between the character names, the love between them as well as the separation highlights the conspirators need for the destruction of the old structures, while acknowledging the similar strifes between the Mistress/ Master, and the people.

There is no external need for Catherine to submit to the role of Mistress, but she does in order to hold onto the familiarity of a political system that won’t harm her as long as she has power– if that were something she could really have. Similarly, there is no need to convince Amandla of killing Catherine, because it was Antoinette that loved her. Ultimately, this play is initially queered before the casting and retelling even begins.

ANTONY

I doubt not of your wisdom.
Let each man render me his bloody hand.
First, Marcus Brutus, will I shake with you.—
Next, Caius Cassius, do I take your hand.—
Now, Decius Brutus, yours;—now yours,
Metellus;—
Yours, Cinna;—and, my valiant Casca, yours;—
Though last, not least in love, yours, good
Trebonius.—
Gentlemen all—alas, what shall I say?
My credit now stands on such slippery ground
That one of two bad ways you must conceit me,

Either a coward or a flatterer.—
That I did love thee, Caesar, O, ’tis true!
If then thy spirit look upon us now,
Shall it not grieve thee dearer than thy death
To see thy Antony making his peace,
Shaking the bloody fingers of thy foes—
Most noble!—in the presence of thy corpse?
Had I as many eyes as thou hast wounds,
Weeping as fast as they stream forth thy blood,
It would become me better than to close
In terms of friendship with thine enemies.
Pardon me, Julius! Here wast thou bayed, brave
hart,
Here didst thou fall, and here thy hunters stand
Signed in thy spoil and crimsoned in thy Lethe.
O world, thou wast the forest to this hart,
And this indeed, O world, the heart of thee.
How like a deer strucken by many princes
Dost thou here lie!

(Shakespeare 108-109)

Antoinette

i am moved to turn away
and to
my people

i am moved to release myself
rom the work of your protection!

(beat, and then perhaps a whisper)

all my life i have saved you
from a world of men

i am moved to save myself

have i loved you?
yes i have felt a thing akin to love…for you
but love i my self further
love i my mother further
love i awethu further

and that love driveth out
the thing akin to love for you
who are my mistress

(payne 99)

Understanding Resistance

Staging Resistance in love i awethu further

a.k. payne’s love i awethu further stands as a theatrical epitome of staging resistance. It articulates a narrative that resists historical silencing. In this landscape, resistance is palpably woven into the characters' quest for liberation, reminiscent of the way José Esteban Muñoz describes disidentification as a survival strategy, allowing marginalized communities to resist dominant ideologies through theatre, arts, and performance (Muñoz).

Pathways of Resistance through Intersectionality

The play maps pathways of resistance, with its characters’ intersectional identities contributing to a confluence of rebellion. Echoing Kimberlé Crenshaw's concept of intersectionality, the characters of payne's play navigate the compounding effects of race, gender, sexuality, and class, which compound the impact of resistance (Crenshaw).

Performative Acts of Rebellion

love i awethu further employs performative acts as rebellion, underscoring each character's gesture and word as a deliberate defiance against historical erasure. These performative elements become a platform for marginalized voices and perspectives, highlighting the constructedness of historical 'truths' and the artificiality often attributed to them.

Black Queer Identity and Community

The community of characters on the plantation can be seen as a reflection of the vibrant cultural resistance of the Harlem drag balls — as discussed in works that illuminate the creativity and resilience of the LGBTQ+ community during the Harlem Renaissance. These spaces, celebrated and criticized, showcase the complexities of black queer resistance and community building (Wilson, “That's the Kind of Gal I Am").

Political Engagements of Black Women Playwrights

Similar to the pioneering black women playwrights of the New Negro movement, payne stages the political through personal narratives, using art to catalyze change and to place black women at the forefront of discussions on racial violence (Lindsey, "Saturday Night at the S Street Salon").

Legacy and Representation in Black Queer Art

Isaac Julien's "Looking for Langston" resonates with payne's play, as both navigate black queer identity and legacy. Julien’s meditative approach to film mirrors payne’s exploration of black queer lives, inviting a reevaluation of cultural icons and a confrontation with the uncomfortable truths of marginalized identities (Julien, Isaac. "Looking for Langston").

"Love I Awethu Further" stages a revolt against the historical silence, resonating with the collective black queer memory and future declarations of presence. It echoes the strategies of resistance detailed by Muñoz, providing a vibrant example of disidentification in practice (Muñoz, José Esteban. "Disidentifications").

Theoretical Frameworks

The play's foundation in black feminist thought is evident in its focus on communal struggle, intersectionality, and the importance of naming and self-definition. The transformation of Antoinette to Amandla is a powerful act of reclaiming identity, reminiscent of bell hooks' emphasis on self-recovery as a site of resistance. This act also echoes Audre Lorde's assertion that "the master's tools will never dismantle the master's house," suggesting that true liberation requires a reimagining and rearticulation of identity outside the constructs imposed by the oppressor.

Through the lens of queer of color critique, the play interrogates the binaries and rigid structures that define traditional narratives of resistance and revolution. The fluidity of roles within the play, coupled with its emphasis on both individual and collective journeys toward freedom, challenges heteronormative and patriarchal narratives. This is particularly evident in the relationships between characters, where love and desire are depicted as complex and multifaceted, transcending simple binaries and embodying José Esteban Muñoz's notion of "queerness as horizon” and “disidentification.”

Subjects, Subjectivity & Resistance

Freedom and Liberation

Central to the play is the struggle for freedom, not just physically from the bonds of slavery, but also emotionally and psychologically from the constraints imposed by society's expectations and norms.

Love and Relationships

Love is depicted in its various forms, from romantic and sexual relationships to the profound bonds between family members and the community. The play explores how love can be a source of strength and a catalyst for change.

Identity and Self-Discovery

Characters grapple with their identities, reflected in their names, roles, and relationships. The journey towards self-discovery is critical, especially for characters like Antoinette/Amandla, who navigate the complexities of their desires, their past, and their aspirations for the future.

Revolution and Resistance

The narrative is imbued with a sense of revolution, both in the physical sense of rebelling against the oppressors and in the personal transformations that characters undergo. The planning and execution of a revolt against the "Mistress" symbolize a broader fight against systemic oppression.