Somewhere in Summerville (An Original Stage Play written by Anthony R Page)

"This is one of my most meaningful works to date...I'm very excited about this work. It's honest, it's beautiful, enlightening and there are quite a few ah-ha and awe sh#t moments.”"

~ Anthony R. Page

Somewhere in Summerville, is a comedic yet thought-provoking play that explores themes of family relationships, heritage, and identity in a fictional Southern town.

The story follows characters navigating personal and generational challenges, offering a rich narrative that connects deeply with African American experiences. By addressing complex societal issues such as racial tension, family legacy, and social justice, the play weaves humor and authentic dialogue with emotionally resonant scenes that highlight the dynamics of Black communities.

Writer/Director Anthony R. Page balances warmth and wit while examining the intricacies of Southern culture. His talent for creating relatable, character-driven stories brings the town of Summerville to life, leaving audiences both entertained and moved by its meaningful social commentary.

He has been praised for creating authentic dialogue and emotionally resonant scenes that spotlight African American culture and history, giving audiences a mix of thought-provoking drama and relatable humor.

Anthony's experiences doing local and regional theater throughout Georgia and South Carolina inspired the story and characters. As he states, “with a few of the productions, I have been a part of, there was often more drama behind the scenes than on the stage. So I began to write about some of those experiences and the end result is Somewhere in Summerville.”

"Somewhere in Summerville" marks Page’s third full-length stage play. His previous works include A Voice on the Winds of Change and Strugglin, both of which he wrote and directed. In addition to his full-length productions, Page has created a series of short plays that showcase his range and versatility in storytelling. Among these, Adira Dela Croix 6.0 received accolades, while My Father's Dream and The Campaign further solidified his reputation. His most successful short play, The Commitment, has particularly resonated with audiences, reflecting his skill in capturing complex emotions and personal conflicts through impactful narratives and dialogue.

Somewhere in Summerville is now in the final planning stages for a regional tour, with its premiere set for early 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia, followed by a secondary premiere in Augusta, Georgia. This production has been a long-term project for Page, who began developing the play in the summer of 2015. Since then, multiple preview performances have been staged, starting in the fall of that same year, allowing for creative adjustments and audience feedback as the play moved closer to its full debut.

Below is a list of those previews and their respective casts.

Special thanks to all of the actors who worked with

me during the development process.~ AP

Before the forthcoming world premiere of this play, Anthony and his team of collaborators at Blue Bistro Creative put together several previews in Georgia & South Carolina including:

DENMARK, SC - - NOVEMBER 6, 2015
Produced in Massachusetts Hall on the campus of Voorhees College with the following cast:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows.......................................OLAUNDRA GRACE
James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows...............................NATHAN ROTHWELL
LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning..........................................DANIELLE PARKS
Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning.....................................................JADE EALY
Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell............................................................SHATAREIA STOKES
Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell........................................................JALEN FRASHER
Jason “Jaye” Sloane.............................................................................LARAYBIA WALTERS

Here's a link for additional details about this production:

Whitney's Dinner Theater - - Press Release

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

AUGUSTA, GA - - FEBRUARY 5 – 7, 2016
Produced at 601 Broad Street in a black box theater setting with the following cast:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows........................................OLAUNDRA GRACE
James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows................................NATHAN ROTHWELL
LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning.........................................SHATAREIA STOKES
Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning.........................................................NATHAN IVEY
Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell.............................................................SUMMYR SHEPPARD
Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell............................................................JALEN FRASHER
Jason “Jaye” Sloane.................................................................................................JADE EALY

Here's a link for additional details about this production:

The Blue Series (Augusta) - - Press Release

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ATLANTA, GA - - JULY 9, 2016
Produced at 206 Auburn Avenue in a black box theater setting with the following cast:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows......................................OLAUNDRA GRACE
James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows.............................NATHAN ROTHWELL
LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning...............................................CRYSTAL WARE
Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning...................................................WILLIAM WOLF
Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell..................................................................KIARA HEFFNER
Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell.........................................................VICTOR CORLEY
Jason “Jaye” Sloane....................................................................................DEMETRIO FRAY

Throughout this year we have done a series of successful projects, particularly on the stage. One of our best performances was during a black box theater presentation of my original stage play Somewhere in Summerville. That show is in Atlanta's historic Auburn Avenue district and it just so happens to be the same weekend when the "Black Lives Matter" movement staged a big protest in the area. All around us, there was protesters walking by, as people were entering the building. There was

Here's a link for additional details about this production:

The Blue Series Atlanta - - Press Release

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

AUGUSTA, GA - - OCTOBER 15, 2016
Produced at Augusta University as part of a workshop on playwriting for the 52nd Annual Georgia Theatre Conference. The cast for this production included:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows...................................................OLAUNDRA GRACE
James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows..........................................NATHAN ROTHWELL
LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning.................................................................DEJA GREEN
Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning.............................................................WILL CUMMINGS
Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell...............................................................................KIARA HEFFNER
Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell......................................................................VICTOR CORLEY
Jason “Jaye” Sloane.................................................................................................DEMETRIO FRAY

Here's a link for additional details about this production:

Georgia Theatre Conference - - Press Release

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EVANS, GA - - NOVEMBER 19, 2016
Produced at Jabez Hardin Sanford Performing Arts Center as a part of a multi-genre arts experience titled: Urban Expressionism. The cast for this production included:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows...................................................OLAUNDRA GRACE
James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows..........................................NATHAN ROTHWELL
LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning.................................................................DEJA GREEN
Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning.............................................................WILL CUMMINGS
Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell...............................................................................KIARA HEFFNER
Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell......................................................................VICTOR CORLEY
Jason “Jaye” Sloane.................................................................................................DEMETRIO FRAY

Here's a link for additional details about this production:

Urban Expressionism - - Press Release

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ATLANTA, GA - - NOVEMBER 17 and 18, 2017

Produced at West End Performing Arts Center as a staged reading. The cast for this production included:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows....................................................OLAUNDRA GRACE

James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows..........................................NATHAN ROTHWELL

LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning...............................................................ASHLI O'NEAL

Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning.......................................DEVAUNTE SMITH-DEMPSEY

Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell..............................................................................KIARA HEFFNER

Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell.....................................................................VICTOR CORLEY

Jason “Jaye” Sloane..................................................................................................JASON LOUDER

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ATLANTA, GA - - OCTOBER 4, 2018

Produced for the 2018 Atlanta Black Theatre Festival at the Porter Sandford Performing Arts Center. The cast for this production included:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows..............................................ANGEL L. HENDERSON

James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows........................................................AL CHAUNCY

LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning..................................................SAMIAH ALEXANDER

Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning...............................................................PHILIP PEARSON

Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell........................................................CANDICE MARIE SINGLETON

Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell.........................................................TIMOTHY RICHARDSON

Jason “Jaye” Sloane....................................................................................................JASON LOUDER

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ATLANTA, GA - - OCTOBER 4, 2019

Working with Victor Love and his Evolve Acting Studio, we did a series of development sessions. The cast for this production included:

Dori'ah Foster & Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows..................................................RHONDA FERGUSON

James “Flex” Pierce & Bernard “Burn” Meadows........................................................VICTOR LOVE

LaVeda Larson & Sasha Meadows-Manning................................................ANGEL L. HENDERSON

Hakeem Muhammad & Morgan Manning...........................................................JOHNNY GREEN JR.

Zurni Lane & Surina Blackwell....................................................................SAMIYAH ALEXANDER

Chauncey Banks & Victor Blackwell.......................................................................PHILIP PEARSON

Jason “Jaye” Sloane................................................................................................BRIAN K. SAYLOR

(L-R) Victor Love, Brian Saylor, and Rhonda Carol Ferguson

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ATLANTA, GA - - FEBRUARY 22, 2020

This performance was part of an entertainment industry conference titled The Atlanta Creators. We performed an excerpt of the play as part of the presentations during the after-hours mixer. The cast for this production included:

Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows...................................................................AMINAH V. WILLIAMS

Bernard “Burn” Meadows................................................................................JESSE BINGHAM

We did the opening scene.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ATLANTA, GA - - MARCH 12, 2020

This performance was part of an entertainment industry networking event called THE TALENT presented by Kenyatta Johnson and Civil City Live. We performed an excerpt of the play as part of the evening's entertainment. The cast for this production included:

Carrie Ann “Cat” Meadows...........................................................................MEKI MAC

Bernard “Burn” Meadows...........................................................NATHAN ROTHWELL

Sasha Meadows-Manning.......................................................................AMBER REIGN

Morgan Manning.............................................................................MARC HOLLADAY

Surina Blackwell...............................................................................RAINA HOUSTON

Victor Blackwell...........................................SAMUEL UMOH / ASANTE WILLIAMS*

Samuel Umoh did the live performance at Venkmans, but when we did a follow up recording with this group, he had a scheduling conflict and we were fortunate enough to get Asante Williams to step in and play the role.