By RAY KELLY
A graphic novel recalling Orson Welles’ Federal Theatre Project production of Macbeth – set in Haiti with an all-black cast – has been penned by the son of one of the cast members.
Writer-artist Norris Burroughs is the son of the late Eric Burroughs, who co-starred as the bullwhip-wielding witch Hecate in the groundbreaking 1936 Harlem production. A student of London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, the elder Burroughs delivered the line, “The charm’s wound up!,” which can be heard at the conclusion of the four-minute excerpt of ‘Voodoo’ Macbeth in the WPA documentary short subject film, We Work Again (See video below). Burroughs, who died in 1992 at the age of 81, was described as “the finest Negro actor in radio” by Norman Corwin.
Burroughs’ son, who worked for a year on the graphic novel, had not only historical records to consult, but the memories shared by his father.
“My father spoke a good deal throughout his life about the play’s production. I think it was certainly a defining moment in his life and career and left an indelible mark on his character,” Norris Burroughs said. “He often spoke of Welles with awe and respect for the sheer audacity of his accomplishment.”
The 20-year-old Welles retained the Shakespearean text, but used costumes and sets that alluded to 19th century Haiti.
“As far as my own feeling, I think that the production was one of the most significant in the history of theater. I would compare it to Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey’s breaking the color line in baseball,” Norris Burroughs said. “I’m very surprised and disappointed that history has not taken greater note of this moment in theatrical history. I believe that this would make an amazing film and that someone like (Peter) Bogdanovich, (Francis Ford) Coppola or Spike Lee should option my graphic novel or create their own script.”
The 1936 Harlem production put the young Welles on the map and nearly 50 years later, he still reveled in its success.
“By all odds my great success in my life was that play,” Welles told Leslie Meganey of the BBC in 1982. “Because the opening night there were five blocks in which all traffic was stopped. You couldn’t get near the theater in Harlem. Everybody who was anybody in the black or white world was there. And when the play ended there were so many curtain calls that finally they left the curtain open, and the audience came up on the stage to congratulate the actors. And that was, that was magical.”
Comics Nexus hailed the Engine Comics graphic novel, calling it “an unusual comic, with a pacing and style that owes more to classic Hollywood than modern comic books. And its all the better for it!”
“Throughout Voodoo Macbeth Burroughs’ writing is of a high standard. Taken as a whole what is especially impressive, is how he takes great pains to deliver a realistic portrayal of 1930s America. In particular the dialogue shows a real attempt to mimic the vocal patterns of the 1930s without lapsing into parody,” Comics Nexus wrote “He also manages to skilfully interject scenes from the play so that they always add something to the broader of narrative. The high quality of the writing is mirrored in the art, with his detailed, naturalistic linework being perfectly suited to the story.”
The Voodoo Macbeth graphic novel may be purchased online at norrisburroughs.com for $10, plus $4 shipping.
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