The Wash

Tweet

In its new home at the WP Theater, the New Federal Theatre production company has mounted the New York City premiere of Kelundra Smith’s play The Wash, a fictional story inspired by the real Atlanta Washerwomen’s Strike of 1881. Its six characters, named after important women in Smith’s life, consist of laundresses Anna (Eunice Woods), Charity (Alicia Pilgrim), Jeanie (Bianca Laverne Jones), Jewel (Kerry Warren), Mozelle (Rebecca Haden), and Thomasine (“Tommie,” Margaret Odette). These women, who have known slavery and its subsequent “freedom” on paper, receive low-to-no payment for their laundering services, and still experience diminishment and racism in the form of social disregard and violence. Anna urges them all, and some 3,000 other Atlanta women, to begin a strike, insisting on $1 per 12 lbs. of laundry or no wash.

Smith’s play strikes an important chord today, not only bringing this moment in history to light but also reminding us that racism, abuse, and the oppression of women persist.

The talented cast of six forms a powerful ensemble; each brings uniquely special qualities to their roles, roles which are carefully crafted by Smith to present the various challenges black and poor women experience in the post-Civil War South. Woods’ portrayal of Anna is quietly passionate, inspiring, and moving, and Pilgrim’s portrayal as Charity is earnest and innocent. Jones as Jeanie brings the most humor to the play; her comic timing is finely contrasted with some of the play’s most intimate moments, made even more poignant by her delivery. Warren gives us a bright and defiant Jewel, reminding the other women that love doesn’t always look the same for everyone. Haden’s part as Mozelle, the only white laundress in this story, is played with subtle humility and heartfelt sincerity. The role of Thomasine is compassionately delivered by Odette, who painfully suffers abuse at home while trying to save her four children from the despairing world she lives in; she still manages to keep a spark of hope alive in her spirit.

Smith’s script, which is heartily laden with day-to-day chatter and feels slightly long, still finds perfect opportunities to divulge important messages about friendship, love, empowerment, loyalty, dignity, and perseverance. The play’s conclusion is heartwarming, although there is a missed opportunity for rejoicing, when the ultimate success of the strike is written to occur between scenes. Director Awoye Timpo and dramaturg Arminda Thomas expertly weave the energy of the actors and their keenly intentional listening into a compelling tapestry. Though minimal, the opening choreography by Adesola Osakalumi and Jill M. Vallery is striking; this, and the few instances of singing spur the imagination with thoughts of what a great musical could be born from this material.

Costume design by Gail Cooper-Hecht is spot-on, reflecting the time, social standing, and personality of the characters. Jason Ardizzone-West’s scenic design is cleverly realized by projection panels backed by a well-constructed kitchen, which get flipped around at scene changes. Although the script invites anachronistic projections, the resulting modern fonts and morphing splashes of color seem distracting and illogical in comparison with the period-appropriate projections.

Thomasine: “All they see is black, they don’t see skin. They see coal, dirt, trash.”

Anna: “Black like soil that grow flowers. Black like the sky at night. Black like berries in the summertime. We got to know who we is even if they don’t.”

All told, The Wash is an historically significant, artistic success and should be seen and staged to maximum exposure.

The Wash (through June 29, 2025)

New Federal Theatre

WP Theater, 2162 Broadway @ 76th Street, in Manhattan

For tickets, visit http://www.tinyurl.com/3vsy6527

Running time: two hours and five minutes including one intermission