Cuban Theater Digital Archive

The powerful musical Zora On My Mind, written by Anita Gonazlez, takes audiences on a journey about finding one's purpose through the use of storytelling and personal experiences. Anita Gonzalez discusses how she was influenced by the writings of Zora Neale Hurston, a folklorist and anthropologist, who shared and portrayed her life and perspective on being a black woman. Zora on My Mind challenges the usual ideas about race and gender and questions what music theater can be. In the performance, a character named KEY was created by two vibrant ladies, Draft and Sophie, one white and one black, who were inspired to create her by the works and experiences of Zora Hurston. They show her as a committed Black woman running two businesses: a boarding house she inherited and a little beauty shop with only one chair. Anita Gonzalez explains how she was motivated to create this story about her grandmother, who managed to balance life and try to survive by cleaning houses and operating her beauty salon. She emphasizes how "Key," the main character in her play, works long hours cleaning houses for white folks in Washington, D.C. Gonzalez speaks about how she wanted to share the stress African American women faced, who were always required to prove themselves and put in much work to show their worth. This play allows the audience to feel the emotional appeal of a hardworking African American woman and the contribution to the difficulties that Black women face in schools and jobs. This production connects to today's African American women and their historical roots, as well as the intersectionality of Black African American Women.