No Prison Can Hold the Soul

When everything has been ripped away – family, autonomy, dignity – all that’s left is faith and free will. And if a chance arises to take those things back? No weapon would be off limits. Nat Turner’s life hangs in the balance, anchored on one side by his actions, and on the other, the atrocities committed against an entire race. There is much to be pondered in that space. About humanity and justice. About how to honor a life wrongfully taken. But who writes that story? And whose truth is ultimately put to paper? Join us for a lyrical meditation on the confluence of righteous violence, freedom and belief, shining light on a forgotten figure who was instrumental in the fight to end slavery in America. Helmed by the director who brought you last season's sensation The Royale. Runs October 17 - November 10.

Featuring: Gavin Lawrence, Jim DeVita

Contains adult themes & language. Please contact the Box Office at 608-588-2361, or email [email protected] for specifics.

Summary

In 1831, Nat Turner led a slave uprising that has been credited by some with accelerating the onset of the Civil War. While he was in prison awaiting his execution, Turner dictated his story to attorney Thomas Gray, and it was published as “The Confessions of Nat Turner, the leader of the late insurrection in Southampton, VA.” In Nathan Alan Davis’ 2016 play Nat Turner in Jerusalem, Turner's final night in jail is reimagined in a meditation on past deeds and future repercussions that The New York Times called “an earnest, gravely lyrical gloss on a document that will surely always evoke passionate and widely different responses.”