By Mary Mitzlaff, OMAHA, Neb. — BLUEBARN Theatre’s latest production, Appropriate, is starting conversations citywide. The play, which follows a white family confronting its past, includes relevant themes regarding America’s racial history and its lasting impact.
While set in the South, Appropriate resonates deeply with audiences in Omaha, a city with its own history of racial violence. According to dramaturg Beaufield Berry, that’s exactly why this play is so relevant.
“And we are just as complicit in a history of racism and racial violence as anywhere else,” Berry says. “It’s important for us to keep that history top of mind as we move forward, or we’re doomed to repeat it.”
Connecting the Past to the Present
Beyond the stage, Appropriate is also making its way into Omaha classrooms. Goodrich professor Todd Richardson saw the play as an opportunity to help students connect history with present-day realities.
“Very specifically, we talked in class about Will Brown and the lynching of Will Brown in Omaha,” Richardson explains. “A collection of Omahans murdered a Black man in an act of mob violence. That is an inescapable part of Omaha history, whether we want it to be or not.”
For many of Richardson’s students, this was shocking to learn.
“They weren’t aware of this. They didn’t know Omaha was the site of such racialized violence,” he says.
A Lasting Conversation
Whether in the theater or the classroom, the play is encouraging audiences to reflect on history—and how it still shapes our world today.
The hope is that these discussions don’t end when the final curtain falls.
Appropriate runs through March 2 at BLUEBARN Theatre and is recommended for audiences 18 and older. Tickets and showtimes are available here.
BLUEBARN Theater Seats (Photo by: Mary Mitzlaff).
Books at BLUEBARN Theater (Photo by: Mary Mitzlaff)
