A School Trip to Yale Repertory Theater

Westminster students and faculty boarded eight buses Feb. 8 for a school visit to the Yale Repertory Theatre to see the Primary Stages production of “In the Continuum.” The one-act play was written and performed by two young women: Danai Gurira and Nikkole Salter, who developed it during their third year in New York University’s Graduate Acting Program.

    “In the Continuum” is the story of two young black women, one in South Central Los Angeles and the other in Harare, Zimbabwe, and their personal fights against HIV/AIDS. Currently, black women represent the highest rate of new HIV/AIDS infections both in the U.S. and Africa.

    After the production’s Off-Broadway success, it toured Washington, D.C., Los Angles and Harare, to much critical and popular acclaim. During its month long stay at Yale, it will be seen by as many as 2,000 middle and high school students.

    Danai and Nikkole each play a variety of characters in the production. “With this kind of minimalism, we can take you more places,” said Nikkole.  “You can imagine things and get to the heart of the matter.”

    At the conclusion of the play, faculty and students had a chance to meet with Danai and Nikkole and ask them questions about their work.  The discussion covered how the play was written, how it was received in Zimbabwe and how personal experiences influenced the script.

    The school trip was arranged by English department head Michael Cervas and was generously paid for by the Ford-Goldfarb English Department Fund. In past years, school trips have been taken to the Hartford Stage, the Museum of Natural History in New York City and to see the movie “Amistad.”