Review: Bella: An american Tall Tale at the Playwrights Perspectives
Dan O’Neil
Paul Bunyan wielded their great axe and you can cleaned of many a forest with a bit of assistance from their higher blue ox called Hottie; Johnny Appleseed went new prairie sprinkling seeds so you’re able to replant some of your woods you to definitely Bunyan got sliced down; John Henry, hammer in the tow, removed the fresh railroads singlehanded. And you may Bella Patterson defended a subway away from robbers because of the fighting them off along with her butt, and you will survived a jump on the swinging instruct by bouncing off an effective mountainside into thinking-exact same rear-end, generating their brand new label “Big Butt Tupelo Gal” across the frontier permanently forth.
Haven’t heard of one to history you to definitely? That’s most likely because the Kirsten Childs, whom authored the ebook, songs, and you will words so you’re able to Bella: An american Extreme Facts, has only merely designed they – or even a much better word is the fact that she distilled they regarding a mix between a 21st century pop community sensibility, this new oeuvre away from significant reports about west boundary, sufficient reason for a trace level of the fresh Sarah Baartman story (labeled as the fresh new Venus Hottentot).
Through to observation one reports away from folks of color did not exist within the the annals guides in that formative months throughout the Western Western you to offered rise some other tall tales and you can story book Western heroes, Childs have admirably attempt to proper the record, undertaking a new Western champion called Bella, also to give a narrative you to definitely (while the she places it when you look at the a job interview) would “flip the program, to manufacture a special myth honoring the benefit and you may beauty of the black feminine body, using the delight, fun, silliness and you may sorrow, heartbreak and victory of one’s black colored female’s connection with The usa.”
