Pitt's Kuntu Repertory Theatre to Present The Buffalo Soldiers Plus One Jan. 29 - Feb. 14

PITTSBURGH—The University of Pittsburgh's Kuntu Repertory Theatre will present the world premiere of The Buffalo Soldiers Plus One, a musical drama based on the lives of the Black 9th and 10th Cavalry regiments during the Civil War, Jan. 29 through Feb. 14, in the Seventh-Floor Auditorium of Alumni Hall, 4227 Fifth Ave., Oakland.

Written and directed by Kuntu Founder and Artistic Director Vernell Lillie with music by Ernest McCarty, The Buffalo Soldiers Plus One continues Kuntu's theme for this season of exploring the West. The story focuses on the men in the cavalry and a woman, disguised as a man, who fought alongside them. Their regiments were credited with saving the lives of early Western settlers during the Civil War.

Lillie is a professor of Africana Studies at Pitt. Her directing credits include She'll Find Her Way Home, Ashes to Africa, Whispers Want to Holler, The Crawford Grill Presents Billie Holiday, and others.

McCarty has composed music for several plays, including Out Run the Rain, The Region, and Give Us Another Tune. Two of his plays, Diana Queen of the Blues and Recollection Rag, were produced off Broadway. A native of Chicago, McCarty performs with the Boilermakers Jazz Band.

For more information on special group rates or student matinees, or to purchase tickets, call 412-624-7298.

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12/22/03/tmw