BIPOC Tour de Force enters the conversation at Riverwalk Theatre

Seriocomedy ‘Fabulation’ comes to main stage starting Oct. 20th, 2022

Courtesy Photo-Riverwalk Theatre

LANSING, Mich., Oct. 13, 2022 — On the heels of the witchy workings of “Bell, Book and Candle,” Riverwalk Theatre brings another production centered on a powerful woman with “Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine” to its Rotary main stage.

Rose Jangmi Cooper is making her full directorial debut at Riverwalk, though she has several directing credits under her belt with Ixion Theatre Ensemble and smaller virtual and staged reading projects at Riverwalk. She appeared on Riverwalk’s stage as Cynthia in the 2019 production of “Sweat.”

Cooper said she found “Fabulation” as she was searching for a play to direct. “As soon as I realized it was a Lynn Nottage (author of “Sweat”) joint, I was all-in.”

“Fabulation” is a social satire about an ambitious and haughty African-American woman, Undine Barnes Calles (Vanessa Mazhangara), whose husband suddenly disappears after embezzling all of her money. Pregnant and on the brink of social and financial ruin, Undine retreats to her childhood home in Brooklyn’s Walt Whitman projects, only to discover that she must cope with a crude new reality. Undine faces the challenge of transforming her setbacks into small victories in a battle to reaffirm her right to be.

Cooper gushes with praise over Mazhangara, whom she calls “a hidden treasure.”

“As breathtakingly beautiful as she is deeply talented, I feel blessed to have been there at auditions to watch her begin her magic in this role,” Cooper said.

Among the 10 other cast members, all of whom play multiple roles, are Riverwalk veterans Ny’Kieria Blocker, Janell Hall and Julian Van Dyke; and newcomers Lorenzo Lopez and Norrlyn-Michael Allen, who came from Los Angeles to appear in the show.

“Fabulation” will run Oct. 20-23 and 27-30. Showtimes are 7 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays, masks required. It contains mature themes, depictions of drug

use and strong language. To learn more and purchase tickets, visit riverwalktheatre.com.

About Riverwalk Theatre/Community Circle Players

Riverwalk Theater/Community Circle Players is a nonprofit community theatre serving the Greater Lansing Area. For nearly 60 years, we have been presenting dramas, comedies, musicals and children’s shows to audiences and giving back to our community. For more information, visit www.riverwalktheatre.com or call our box office at 517-482-5700.