Art of Wise

By Mark Clayton Southers
Directed by Monteze Freeland
April 11th – May 4th 2025
Madison Arts Center
World premiere!

Art of Wise uncovers centuries of revisionist history through the paint strokes of two families, one owned by the other yet sharing the same name. At the story’s core, two young women’s potential friendship takes a dramatic turn, with their remarkable artworks becoming a means for one family to attain freedom. This gripping drama opens wounds of the past yet uses art to soothe through music, dance, song, and masterful illustration.

Cast

Bendoo Wise	Sheldon Ingram
Oni Wise	Karla C. Payne
Amahle Wise	Adjoa Opoku-Dakwa
Albert Wise	Justus A. Payne
Campie Wise	David Minniefield
Jonathan Wise	Joseph McGranaghan*
Sarah Wise	Jenny Malarkey
Samantha Wise	Maddie Kocur
Drummer	Zosha Nowe
Violinist (some performances)	Em Kohut-Kegarise
Violinist (some performances)	Yanna Mavrogeorgis

*Member of Actors Equity Association

Setting

Wise Cotton Plantation, Mobile Alabama, 1822. The performance runs two hours 15 minutes including a 15 minute intermission.

Playwright’s Notes

Art of Wise started out as a tale of a young African-American girl who has a gift of painting beautiful flowers. It was my attempt to create a play that showed a somewhat softer side of life in the early eighteen-hundreds.

Working on period pieces, especially those that take place during the dark days of slavery, is always difficult. When I think about the resilience of my African and African-American ancestors, and presenting their lives onstage, I challenge myself to craft stories that are engaging but not overly traumatic.

There’s a certain balance that must take place when telling these stories and it extends well past the page.

For me the beauty of taking a play from page to stage is within the collaboration that is formed between the playwright and director.

A visionary director can take a play to higher heights. That is the case working with director Monteze Freeland.

Mr. Freeland operates much like a dramaturg as well; after all, who wouldn’t welcome a two-for-one deal? Over the years his vision for my work has been nothing short of amazing. His out-of-the-box approach has been refreshing to witness and the end results have made me a huge fan.

I hope you can enjoy and appreciate what we and the actors, designers and crew have put together.

Enjoy the show and thank you for being here.

Best,

Mark Clayton Southers
Playwright

The 19th Century Collection

This play is part of Mark Clayton Southers’ 19th Century Collection, which is planned to comprise ten plays, each set in a different decade of the 19th century.

Title	Set In	Premiered
*Igbo Landing*	1804	completed
*Black Whaler*	1811	in progress
Art of Wise	1822	2025, PPTCO
The Colored American	1836	completed
The Coffin Maker	1849	2024, Pittsburgh Public
Turkey Ridge	1855	in progress
Lincoln and Company	1863	completed
Savior Samuel	1877	2019, PPTCO
Miss Julie, Clarissa, and John	1888	2016, PPTCO
The Bluegrass Mile	1899	2023, PPTCO

Congratulations!

The Board of Directors of Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company expresses its sincere congratulations to Mark Clayton Southers on the debut of Art of Wise. We take great pride in supporting the playwrights of our city as they tell the stories that we need to see and hear. As our founder, Mark exemplifies our great belief that when we invest in great talent, we will see great art. We hope you enjoy the play as much as we do, and we will see you at the theater.

About the Cast

Sheldon Ingram (Bendoo Wise) started his journey into acting in January, 2021, by studying in three acting programs in New York and Los Angeles. His studies began with HB Studio in New York, before moving onto Andrew Wood Acting Studios in Los Angeles, and then the New York Academy for Performing Arts. During those studies, Sheldon took in the disciplines of film, television, scene study, character analysis, and movement. Later that year, Sheldon connected with his acting coach Tom Kibbie in Cork, Ireland where he studied the Sanford Meisner acting techniques. By May of 2022, Sheldon launched his acting career, and the following month, booked his first film roles with Academy Award-nominated director, Lee Daniels, for the film The Deliverance. Sheldon landed two roles: demon voice and gynecologist. A few months later, Sheldon landed a guest star role on Law & Order SVU. He continued to land additional roles for two Lifetime movies, A Rose for Her Grave and Gaslit by My Husband. Sheldon also starred in an independent horror film called House of Tears, shot in 2024. His acting talents cover multiple platforms, as a theater actor and voice actor. His first theater performance was in Norfolk, Virginia, as Lt. Davenport in the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Soldier’s Play. He is currently working on his third theater role in Pittsburgh, playing Bendoo Ojabe, in Art of Wise. He also played Rev. Reginald Mabry in Chicken & Biscuits, and William Johnson in Three Blind Mice.

Maddie Kocur (Samantha Wise) is thrilled to be telling such a powerful and heartbreaking story with this powerhouse cast! You may have recently seen her in Mountain Playhouse’s A Year with Frog and Toad as Woman 1 and the Pittsburgh CLO’s Gallery of Heroes school tour as the Female Swing. Earning her BFA in Musical Theater from Seton Hill University, her favorite college credits include Roxie Hart in Chicago and Joanne in Company. Other selected theater credits include Pittsburgh CLO’s A Musical Christmas Carol (Fan/Laundress), Mary Warren in The Crucible, Tabatha Mercer in Hide (Vigilance Theater Group), Claire/Justine in Frankenstein (Prime Stage), and Time/Girl in Everybody (12 Peers Theatre). Many thanks to Monteze, Mark, Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater Company, the cast and crew of Art of Wise, and all of my love to friends, coaches, and my family for your constant support! @maddiekocur

Em Kohut-Kegarise (violinist at some performances) is a violinist at Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts 6-12. In addition to playing the violin, they enjoy spending time with friends and family, being outdoors, and rock climbing. Em loves all kinds of music and instruments. They are very excited to be in the show!

Jenny Malarkey (Sarah Wise) is thrilled to be back with Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater Company, where she was last seen in In the Heat of the Night. A Pittsburgh native, she has performed with such companies as: The Pittsburgh Public Theater, Saint Vincent Summer Theater, New Horizons Theater, Bricolage Co., Little Lake Theatre, Pittsburgh Musical Theatre, Prime Stage, and Kinetic Theatre. When not on stage, Jenny works as the Education Manager at The Pittsburgh Public Theater where she loves sharing her passion for performance with students all across the city. She would like to give a huge thank you to this amazing cast, crew, and our fearless director, Monteze. Enjoy the show!

Yanna Mavrogeorgis (violinist at some performances) is a senior at Pittsburgh CAPA 6-12 majoring in instrumental. She plays an assortment of instruments including violin, harp, and guitar. Her favorite genre of music is folk and she has worked in multiple musicals with her favorite being Sweeney Todd! She is very excited to play a musical part in this production.

Joseph McGranaghan (Jonathan Wise) is grateful to be back at Pittsburgh Playwrights, having last appeared here in Shantytown: The Ballad of Fr. James Cox. Recent Pittsburgh credits include Trouble in Mind and The Importance of Being Earnest at the Pittsburgh Public and A Sherlock Carol and A Life in the Theatre with Kinetic Theatre. All love, gratitude and respect to Mark, Monteze, cast and crew.

David Minniefield (Campie Wise) is an actor, director and teaching artist for the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. Best plays of 1994: Job Under The Gavel, Post-Gazette. Director/actor, best plays of 2000: Zooman and the Sign, Post-Gazette. Director, best staged reading, Living East Liberty, 2001. Supporting actor nomination: The Black and White Festival of 2004, Tigger’s Tat. Director, Charlie Grey Award 2017, Best In-School Performing Arts Education Program, Pittsburgh Urban Christian School. Toured with CLO in Play to Win, the Jackie Robinson story, and ¡Arriba! ¡Arriba!, the Roberto Clemente story, as Luis. He created Ecclesiastes LIVE. He is honored to bring Campie to life.

Zosha Nowe (drummer) is a passionate drummer and a ninth-grade student at the Neighborhood Academy. He began drumming at a young age, learning from local teachers, particularly internationally renowned Fode “Lavia” Camara, who mentors him at the Legacy Arts Project, where Zosha is also a Youth Artist Apprentice. A committed student and performer, Zosha showcases his musical talents in dance classes and at events like Dance Africa Pittsburgh. He is eager to broaden his artistic journey, particularly in theater.

Adjoa Opoku-Dakwa (Amahle Wise) is thrilled to join the cast of Art of Wise. She is a 9th grade musical theater major at Pittsburgh CAPA. At her school she has most recently been part of CAPA’s Black History Month play, Filling Basins, and the all school musical Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. Outside of CAPA, Adjoa’s roles include being a dancer in Hill Dance Academy Theater’s Black Nativity, Pittsburgh Public Theater’s A Christmas Story, Prime Stage Theater’s The Miracle Worker and Pittsburgh Playwrights’ production of Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. In 2022 and 2023, Adjoa also won 1st place in the youth monologue and scene divisions, respectively, of the Pittsburgh Public’s Shakespeare competition. She loves cooking, singing, acting and dancing. Adjoa sends thanks to her amazing family, friends and teachers.

Karla C. Payne (Oni Wise) is an actor, voice-over artist, and poet who has appeared in countless productions for several theater companies, including The Barnstormers Theatre (New Hampshire), The City Theatre, New Horizon Theater, and Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater Company, where she most recently appeared as Sister Pauletta Denise Jones in the 2025 production of Sanctified, written and directed by Javon Johnson from The Oval. Karla also notably portrayed Beverly Jenkins in Chicken and Biscuits, produced by New Horizon Theater in spring 2023, and was featured in a film short entitled As I Please, scored by the Grammy Award-winning Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. In 2023, Karla launched her company, InnerVizions Coaching & Wellness LLC, providing performance and life coaching for actors. She has also written an ebook entitled The Zen Actor’s Guide: Unleashing Your Inner Confidence for Fearless Performances. Karla is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated and the Pittsburgh chapter of The Pierians, Incorporated.

Justus A. Payne (Albert Wise) is an 8th grade student at Schiller STEAM Academy. He most notably appeared as Young Harpo/Young Adam in Pittsburgh CLO’s 2024 musical production of The Color Purple. Justus is also a member of Alumni Theater Company, where he most recently performed in The Joint is Jumpin’ and Black Sheep. As a budding writer, Justus has authored two poetry eBooks and was thrilled to have his one-act play, Come Home Happy, featured in the 2024 Young Playwrights Festival at the City Theatre.

Creative Team & Staff

Playwright	Mark Clayton Southers
Director	Monteze Freeland
Production Stage Manager	Ashley Renee Southers
Scenic Designer	Tony Ferrieri
Props Master	Sarah “Gracie” Jackson
Costume, Make-Up & Hair Designer	Cheryl El Walker
Lighting Designer	Latrice Lovette
Lighting Electrician	Tony Clayton
Lighting Hanging Crew	Marcus Carl Southers & Matthew Southers
Sound Designer	Monteze Freeland
Audio Engineer	Wayne Gaines & Matthew Southers
Choreography	Mils James
Fight Choreography	Sam Muñoz
Head Carpenter	Amani Howze
Assistant Carpenter	Rickey Odell
Scenic Construction	Marcus Carl Southers, Jaymir Cansler, Kaleb Delouvpre
Artist, Original Paintings	Linda Wallen
Scenic Painters	Tim Englehardt & Heather Heitzenrater
Set Dresser	Austin Sills
Lighting Technician	Ashley Renee Southers
Sound Technician	Andre Joseph Clayton Southers
Graphic Artist	Eric Donaldson
Concessions	Neicy Readie Southers, Andre Joseph Clayton Southers
Box Office Manager	Neicy Readie Southers
Front of House	Neicy Readie Southers & James Howard
Crew	Calvin Jackson, Sarah “Gracie” Jackson, James Howard, Marcus Carl Southers
Greeter	Mama Cocoa

About the Creative Team

Mark Clayton Southers (Playwright, Producing Artistic Director) and his family reside in Pittsburgh’s historic Hill District. He is the founder and producing Artistic Director of the Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company.

His very first play When the Water Turns Clear was produced at Chicago’s ETA Theater. His second play Ashes to Africa was a finalist at the 2001 Dayton Playhouse Future Fest. His third play Ma Noah was the recipient of the 2004 Theodore Ward prize at Columbia College, Chicago.

He has written over 20 full-length and one-act plays including the poem play Angry Black Man Poetry aka End Angered Species which had a successful run at Teatr Śląski in Katowice, Poland in 2009 and Miss Julie, Clarissa and John which ran at the 2017 National Black Theatre Festival and also had a three-week run in 2017 at Scotland’s prestigious Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

He has a series of three plays which make up his Culture Clash Series. They include Hood Winked, James McBride and I Nipoti.

Inspired by his mentor August Wilson, Mark has also set out to complete his very own collection of ten plays each taking place in the 1800s. To date he’s completed eight full-length plays, including The Bluegrass Mile, which premiered in October 2023 with the Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company, and The Coffin Maker, which premiered in May of 2024 with the Pittsburgh Public Theater.

Mark is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America, and the former Artistic Director of both the August Wilson African-American Cultural Center in Pittsburgh PA and the Short North Stage August Wilson Festival in Columbus Ohio.

For more information please visit: www.markclaytonsouthers.com.

Monteze Freeland (Director & Sound Designer) is grateful to return home to PPTCO! Last season, Mr. Freeland’s play Fishy Woo Woo premiered on the Carter Redwood stage. Previous PPTCO credits include Savior Samuel, In the Heat of the Night, Miss Julie, Clarissa and John, Christmas Star, East Texas Hot Links, The Piano Lesson, King Hedley II, and Fences. Mr. Freeland currently serves as the Co-Artistic Director of City Theatre Company and was named the 2017 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Performer of the Year in addition to City Paper’s 2021 Person of the Year. In June, he will transition into the role of Artistic Director of Alumni Theater Company, a Black youth arts organization. Thank you to the Southers family for returning art to the Hill District. For Grandma Doris, who first showed me the beauty in a flower.

Cheryl El Walker (Costume, Make up & Hair Designer) is an award-winning costume designer and makeup artist who is also a veteran stage actor from Pittsburgh. She is the resident costume/makeup artist for the Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company. Her creative work in various venues has earned her several Onyx awards from the African American Council of the Arts (AACTA): Best Make-up Artist (2007); Best Costume for a Musical for Christmas Is Coming Uptown (2008); Best Leading Actress for Freeman (New Horizon Theatre, 2008); Best Costume Design for a Play (Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012) and the PPTCO 2012 Legacy Award. In 2013, Cheryl debuted another one of her skills and received PPTCO’s Theater Festival in Black and White Award for Best Director. Cheryl performed in and designed costumes, makeup and hair for both Dinah (2024) and Sanctified (2025). She designed costumes for Radio Golf (2024) and appeared in The Nacirema Society for New Horizon. Cheryl is an alumna of Point Park University and is pleased to announce that she has done costume, makeup and special effects for all ten August Wilson plays.

Tim Engelhardt (Scenic Painter), a Pittsburgh resident, has been working as a professional artist since 2014. Using his background as a graphic designer and illustrator combined with his passion for abstract art, Tim creates pieces that are dynamic and engaging, integrating a variety of mediums to create layers of transparency, fields of color, and bold marks. Tim maintains a studio practice at Radiant Hall in Homewood. In addition to his studio work, Tim designs and installs murals throughout the region and sometimes beyond. He has had work in group shows with the Pittsburgh Watercolor Society, Pittsburgh Society of Artists, and the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, as well as solo shows at Athiti Studios in 2022 and 2024, Borelli Cellars in 2023, and Moss Architects in 2024.

Tony Ferrieri (Scenic Designer) Art of Wise marks Tony’s sixth production with Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater Company. Awards and milestones include The Carol R. Brown Creative Achievement Award for Established Artist, New Works Festival Lifetime Achievement Award, “Designer of the Year” by Pittsburgh City Paper and Post-Gazette, The Frankel Award, Fred Kelly Award for Outstanding Achievement, Harry Schwalb Excellence in the Arts Award, features in Live Design and Stage Directions magazines, 43 years as Resident Scenic Designer at City Theatre, and over 580 scenic designs. Recent designs include: King James for Cleveland Playhouse and City Theatre, Crocodile Fever and The Skeleton Crew for barebones productions, The Bluegrass Mile for Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company, The Coffin Maker for Pittsburgh Public Theater, Southside Stories Revisited and Native Gardens for City Theatre Company, Hamlet and The Current War for Quantum Theatre, Anything Goes for Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, Book of Merman and Double Threat Trio for CLO Cabaret, Smart Blonde for 59E59 Theatre in New York, Feeding the Dragon for Hartford Stage and Primary Stages, Carousel and Clue for Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center, Uncle Tom’s Cabin and Thou Shalt Not for Pittsburgh Playhouse Conservatory. In addition Tony designed the Liberty Magic space for The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and an escape room in Enter the Imaginarium for Bricolage.

Heather Heitzenrater (Scenic Painter) has been living in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband and their two cats since 2015. Heather received her BFA in Painting and Drawing from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania that same year. Her work has been shown nationally including Erie Art Museum, Westmoreland Museum of American Art, and Baton Rouge Gallery. She has been published in Poets Artists magazine, The Lunar Codex, Create! and Beautiful Bizarre blog. Heather has won awards, given artist talks, and curated and juried local art shows. In addition, she is as an active member of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh. Along with showing her work, Heather instructs figurative workshops at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and is a scenic artist for local theaters and immersive attractions. Heather shares a studio space with her husband at the Radiant Hall Homewood location.

Mils “M. J.” James (Choreography) is an actor, singer, dancer, choreographer, director and teaching artist. A product of Point Park University and Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts high school, he is founding artistic director of Reflections Theatre CO-OP in NYC and has performed all over the world in such productions as Memphis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Once on this Island, and Do Lord Remember Me, and he has danced for the Jacob/Campbell company and Forces of Nature in New York. He has also worked alongside Sherman Hemsley, Reggie Kelley, Eileen J. Morris, Renn Woods, Walter Rutledge, Vivian Reed, and Tony award-winners Hinton Battle and Billy Porter to name a few. As an instructor he has taught in various program. As a director he has had the opportunity to bring vision to such productions as Ubuntu Holiday for Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Co., shows for Trilogy Opera Company and Luxe Creative Design, the sorority of AKA for The Annual Ivy Ball, and Let My People! The Miseducation of African American History, a touring show he created in 2017. He has most recently choreographed Javon Johnson’s Sanctified for PPTCO, and is so honored to be able to be the choreographer for Art of Wise.

Latrice Lovett (Lighting Designer) is a native of Washington, DC who currently resides in High Point, NC. She has done lighting in several different genres of the performing arts including dance, theatre, musical theatre, live concerts and opera. She completed her bachelor’s degree at North Carolina Central University in Technical Theatre. She has also received her MFA in Design & Technology from University of Missouri-Kansas City where she studied Lighting Design. She is currently creating lighting designs and working on other lighting projects under her company Lovett Lighting LLC.

Ashley Renee Southers (Production Stage Manager & Lighting Technician) has always had a passion to pursue the arts. She loves working alongside her family at Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater Company. She considers herself a D-I-A-P (Do-It-All-Person). She graduated from Point Park University in 2018, with a Bachelor’s Degree in English/Creative Writing. In her free time, she loves writing, watching movies, and hanging out with family, friends, and her dogs Cocoa and Bentley. She would like to thank her father Mark Southers for being an inspiration for her upbringing. She always enjoys challenging herself, and expanding her creativity through the arts.

Linda Wallen (Artist, original paintings) has made a living with her paint brushes for over 50 years. Originally from South Bend, Indiana, she ran away from graduate school to become a street artist in New Orleans in the 70s. She ended up in Pittsburgh in 1980 where she has been painting portraits and teaching at the Carnegie Museum, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and CMU. For many years Ms. Wallen took artists and students to France to paint, creating an art center in Le Pouldu in Brittany. Marrying an actor prompted Linda to study set design and prop-making.

PPTCO Staff and Board

See our staff and board members here.

Special Thanks

Fred & Ann Kenderson
Rob Pfaffman
Jon Iams
Momar Milliones
Zach Biden
Chuck Timbers
Ernest Bey
Gaylord Williams
Beverly Hunt Broughton
Linda Wallen
Angela Abadilla
Pittsburgh CAPA 6-12
Delores Southers
Matthew Southers
Steven Doerfler
KDC Printing
Neicy Readie Southers
Andre Joseph Clayton Southers
Thelma Lovette Morris
Michelle Belan
Rickia Davenport