Acclaimed Virginian Pilot Arts Critic, Mal Vincent, reviewed Line in the Sand.
He writes:
“Line in the Sand” is a play that takes place in Norfolk amid social upheaval and inherent moral crisis.
Written by Chris Hanna, the artistic director of the producing Virginia Stage Company, it is, according to his program notes, “an imagined drama based on historical events.” Most notably, and with relief, it is a play – not a documentary, not a bitter social tirade, not a whining wallow in the past, not a sermon.
It narrowly avoids all these pitfalls by playing the events before and during Norfolk’s infamous school closings of 1958-59 as if they were suspenseful twists in an ever-expanding thriller. The controversy long forecast for this play is largely missing. Hanna’s script plays it meticulously safe.
The line in the sand on the national issue of school integration was drawn here in Norfolk. Everyone from Life magazine to CBS’ Edward R. Murrow covered the drama here and, yes, it remains alarmingly dramatic even now, 50 years later…
For more on the review…please check out the Virginian Pilot online.
