This production was a Gamut Theatre partnership with SANKOFA African American Theatre Company and The National Civil War Museum. It was an original one act play byt Philidelphia playwright Teresa Miller about Ephraim Slaughter, the last surviving Civil War soldier in Harrisburg, PA. The play is set in Ephraim's living room in the 1940's as he recounts his life story to his granddaughter, from being born into slavery to joining the United States Colored Infantry to settling down in Harrisburg and being a local hero. The show utilized a voiceover cast of Afrofuturistic voices and characters from Ephraim's past. My idea for the set was not only to create a homey 1940's living room, but to also create a sort of living museum of Ephraim and his accomplishments. The walls were adorned with photos and newspaper clippings, many of which were real photos of Ephraim and articles about him. I also incorporated red, white, and blue in subtle ways throughout the set, especially blue for the Union, to telegraph not only Ephraim's ties to the military, but also that his story is an American story, even though it is complex. The National Civil War Museum has a wax statue of Ephraim. The final scene of the show, Ephraim has a monologue addressed to the statue. To do this, projections were used with montaged photos of the statue.
The center wall and fireplace were built entirely from scratch and the wallpaper was handpainted using stencils and a scumble with various shades of blue, grey, and purple. The set was originally intented to be toured to school groups, so the fireplace was built to be sturdy and heavy enough so that it could support the wall on it's own and with the help of some pipe and drape, create a backstage space for the actors. However, all the school groups decided to watch the show in house at Gamut Theatre, so we never ended up needing to tour it.