Harlem & Moscow

In the final episode of Harlem and Moscow: Red Flags we’re taking the conversation to the present day with the daughter of the 1932 trip organizer Louise Thompson Patterson. Playwright Alle Mims sits down for an enlightening and heartwarming conversation with MaryLouise Patterson. The pair discuss MaryLouise’s childhood as a “red-diaper baby” with parents in the Communist Party USA, famous family friends like Harry Belafonte, Beah Richards, and Paul Robeson, and a teenage trip to the USSR in the 1960s. Alle and MaryLousie also talk about McCarthyism, Louise’s FBI file, and the modern concerns of leftist organizers. Then, MaryLouise leaves us with a positive word about her love for Black  people and encourages us to get active in our own communities. 

CREDITS
Music Courtesy Of:
Transition
URSS Soviet Chorus

In this episode of Harlem and Moscow: Red Flags we get hot, heavy and a little messy. Host Sam Riddell talks to experts about the hook-ups and heartbreaks of the 1932 trip to the Soviet Union. We learn about what the dating landscape was like during the Harlem Renaissance, the culture around marriage, views towards interracial sex, polyamorous and open relationships within the New Negro Movement, lavender marriages, and respectability politics levied toward Queer Black folks. Plus we spill tea on a certain couple who became known for their wild parties and delve into the motivations behind Dorothy’s proposal. And we link our 1932 tripgoers to phenomena of today like the Passport Bros and Love Is Blind. Sam is joined by the playwright of “Harlem and Moscow” Alle Mims as well as Angela Tate, the Women’s History Curator at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. With a special guest appearance by historian, cultural critic, and author of  “Our Secret Society,” Tanisha C. Ford.

 

CREDITS
Music Courtesy Of:
Transition

In a desperate attempt to get to Langston Hughes, Dorothy West decides to propose marriage. Louise Thompson tries to talk her out of it and shares the reality of what it means to be in love with a man like Langston.  Louise also reveals a secret behind her own failed marriage.  As plans for life after Moscow remain unclear, Mildred Jones offers to stay with Dorothy in the Soviet Union for another season. But what type of relationship is Mildred looking for?  Dorothy shares her unconventional plans for the future.

Executive Producers:
Byron Allen
Carolyn Folks
Jennifer Lucas
Geraldine Moriba
Regina Griffin

Cast:
J Ivy As Langston Hughes
Evan Frazier As Dorothy West
Nancy Gilliam As Rachel West
Kyla Lacey As Helene Johnson
And Tarrey Torae As Sylvia Garner
Broderick Clavery as Henry Lee, James The Translator and The Meschrapbom Official. 
Breanna Cosette As Mildred Jones
Susaye Lawson As Louise Thompson
Basil Rodericks  As Countee Cullen 
Stephan Rumphorst as  Carl Junghans and Boris The Russian Sergeant 
Sidney Apolonio as The Volunteer Coordinator
Sam Riddell as The Train Conductor
Jon Kelly as The News Reporter

Written By Alle Mims
Directed By Ares Harper and Regina Griffin 
Producer and Sound Design Sam Riddell
Audio Engineers  Aaron Reppert and Carey Durham.
Technical Support Craig Ross and Sabua Samandu.
Booking Producer And Logistics Coordinator  Taji Senior
Audio Podcast Editor Justin Sloan
Dramaturg   Alexis Williams
Art Design By Trevor Irmler
Music By: Transitions And URSS Soviet Chorus 
Audio Recording Smash Studios
Videographer Templeton Wright 

Research for Harlem And Moscow was facilitated by The Schomburg Center,  Project Muse,  The Schlesinger  Library On The History Of Women In America At The Harvard Radcliffe Institute, Cherene Sherrard-Johnson’s Book “Dorothy West’s Paradise,”  as well as  Literary Sisters by  Verner D. Mitchell And Cynthia Davis. 

Sincere thanks go to The Dramatist  Guild,  The Dramatist Guild Foundation,  Dr. Jennifer Wilson,  Dr. Saidiya Hartman, Dr. Brent Hayes-Edwards, and Dr. Lauren Brik-Elmore.
And theGrio gives a special thanks to Gabrielle Holder,  Genia Nooks and the Gill Talent Group team.

The group of Harlem Renaissance actors and artists return to Moscow moving from the Grand Hotel to a small hostel.    Henry Lee Moon tells Langston Hughes that he thinks the film has been sabotaged by Americans. In a heartfelt moment, Louise Thompson speaks to Dorothy West and Mildred Jones about another woman on the trip who is heartbroken over a breakup and attempts to take her own life. The three women discuss the freedoms, or lack thereof, for women at this time, each coming to their own conclusion about what the future holds for them as single women.  Mildred entertains a Russian man while Langston is seen with Soviet Sweetheart, Sylvie Chen, leaving Dorothy feeling more alone and uncertain about her future than ever. 

 

Cast
J Ivy As Langston Hughes
Evan Frazier As Dorothy West
Kyla Lacey As Helen Johnson 
Nancy Gilliam As Rachel West
Susaye Lawson As Louise Thompson
Breanna Cosette As Mildred Jones
Broderick Clavery  As Henry Lee and James The Translator 

Harlem And Moscow   Written By Alle Mims
Directed By Ares Harper And Regina Griffin 
Producer And Sound Designer Sam Riddell
Audio Engineers Aaron Reppert And Carey Durham 
Music By Transitions

In this episode of Harlem and Moscow: Red Flags, host Michael Harriot is talking to experts about the conditions in America circa the 1930s that made the Soviet Union and Communism very appealing to Black folks in the states. We learn more about the African Blood Brotherhood, the CPUSA, and other communist movements led by Black Americans. The experts dispel myths about Black Americans’ relationship to communism and dive into the history of Black workers' movements in the South. Plus we learn about the real origins of the phrase “Stay Woke,” and much more! Michael is joined by historian and author of the book “Hammer and Hoe,” Dr. Robin D.G. Kelley as well as the playwright of “Harlem and Moscow” Alle Mims.

CREDITS
Music Courtesy Of:
Transition

“Город под подошвой”
Oxxxymiron
Scady, Max Kravtsov, Erik Gamans
Courtesy of Sonic Librarian

“Scottsboro Boys”
Lead Belly
The Smithsonian Folkways Collection