A Handful of Berries

4m, 2+w
1m 45-60, 2m 35-55, 1m 18; 1w 45-55, 1+w 30-65

Maisie is all primed to vote in a county election, having recently gotten on the county voting rolls after a registration drive among Black women. As she and her friends prepare to head to town to vote, they face obstacles: the men and their vehicles have headed for jobs in the opposite direction, the bridge is closed, and the only alternate road is impassable. Will they make it, and will their votes make any difference at all?

The Black cast consists of Maisie, her husband, and one or more female friends who join her on the trek to the polling place. The white cast consists of a poll worker, a racist local shopkeeper, and his more open-minded young assistant. In the first act, scenes alternate between Maisie's home and the polling place, while in the second act we also see the Black women on the road between the two places.

Music plays an important part in the play, as the women sing to raise their spirits. Optimism and pessimism struggle concerning their ability to vote, with all obstacles eventually overcome. And if their votes may not matter much, there's always another election upcoming...