Join us for a reading of Dysphoria: An Apache Dance, a new play by Britney Frazier.

There is a myth that persists that "black folks don't get depressed, we get the blues," and as a result, too often, the opportunities to talk about mental illness and suicide in African diasporic communities are missed as our loved ones continue to take their own lives. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that suicide claims one African American every 4.5 hours. The top three factors that contribute to suicide in communities of African descent which go unaddressed are: untreated mental illness, homophobic bullying and religion.

Dysphoria is the confabulation of two drunks in a “dive bar” under the waves contemplating gender roles and the trials, tribulations, bonds and breaks of a mother-daughter narrative, and an inquiry into whether genetically inherited predispositions lead to depression, PTSD and suicide, or if ancestral memories passed from the "hanging rope" to the umbilical cord are the culprit.

‍The Lorraine Hansberry Theatre at MoAD is a collaboration that connects theater and the visual arts, bringing both audiences together, making each art form more accessible and relevant to both constituencies and providing context across art forms. Each presentation will be followed by an audience discussion.

‍Free for MoAD Members and LHT Subscribers General Admission $10 | Students & Seniors $5