PEMBROKE — “Strike at the Wind!” is returning after a 10-year hiatus, this time to the stage at Givens Performing Arts Center on the campus of The University of North Carolina at Pembroke.

The play is scheduled to be performed on June 23 and June 24. The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina has partnered with UNCP to revive the drama that tells the story of the Lowrie War in 1865. The play ran from the 1976 until 2007 at the amphitheater at the Lumbee Tribal Cultural Center.

Auditions will be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday at the Pembroke Boys and Girls Club, located at 120 Youth Drive, behind the Lumbee Tribal Complex on N.C. 711.

All roles are open, including the lead roles of Henry Berry Lowrie and his wife, Rhoda Strong. Acting experience is not required, but preferred.

Rehearsals will begin May 15 at GPAC. Rehearsals will be held from 6 to 11 p.m. and continue for five weeks.

This summer’s performances will be directed by Jonathan Drahos, associate professor and director of Theatre at UNCP. Drahos has a bachelor’s, a master’s, and a doctorate in drama and theatre arts. He has been a professional actor, director and dramaturge for the past 25 years and has starred on Broadway, in television and in feature films.

Drahos, 49, has no history with “Strike at the Wind!” as an actor, producer, director or stage hand.

He learned the play has not been performed in a number of years, so he researched it to learn more about its history and importance to the community.

“I discovered the play was very important to the Lumbee tribe,” Drahos said.

Part of his mission and part of the mission of the UNCP Theater Department is to reach out to the community and speak for the community in a positive and progressive way, Drahos said. Staging “Strike at the Wind!” was a way to further that mission.

“It was my mission to pursue who has the rights and how to get the rights,” he said. “And it took me quite a long time to acquire the rights to produce the play.”

The university, in collaboration with the Lumbee tribe, acquired the right to produce and perform the play for three years, Drahos said. The contract can be renegotiated and extended.

But, Drahos doesn’t want to take control of the play.

“I don’t want to take the play away from the community,” Drahos said.

Originally, he didn’t want to direct the play, Drahos said. He wanted to produce it. But as the effort to bring the play back to the stage evolved the Lumbee tribe and the owners of the play’s rights indicated they liked his vision for the play, and Drahos was asked to direct.

“I take that responsibility very seriously,” Drahos said.

The play has about 20 speaking parts, but it could have more, he said. It could be staged with a cast of 30 to 40 people, including nonspeaking roles.

He wants to cast the play as soon as possible after auditions are held, but that will depend on how many people audition, Drahos said. Casting announcements probably will be made with telephone calls to the actors.

There will be support roles.

“We’re going to need all hands on deck,” he said.

Volunteers will be needed to help stage the play. He wants members of the community to come out to audition and to volunteer their time time and talents as stagehands.

“This is a true collaboration between the university and the community,” Drahos said.

For information about auditions, call 910-521-7861. People interested in volunteering can send an email to [email protected].

The husband and wife team of Corbin and Misha Eddings have played the roles of Henry Berry Lowrie and his wife, Rhoda, in “Strike at the Wind!” Auditions for the play, which will return after a 10-year-absence, will be held Saturday and Sunday.
https://www.robesonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/web1_SATW-two_2-1.jpgThe husband and wife team of Corbin and Misha Eddings have played the roles of Henry Berry Lowrie and his wife, Rhoda, in “Strike at the Wind!” Auditions for the play, which will return after a 10-year-absence, will be held Saturday and Sunday.

Jonathan Drahos
https://www.robesonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/web1_Jonathan-Drahos_3-1.jpgJonathan Drahos
Auditions being held this weekend

By T.C. Hunter

[email protected]

Reach T.C. Hunter at 910-816-1974.