Trouble in Mind

Subject: In Alice Childress' microcosmic play Trouble in Mind she has a director manage a play with a diverse group of characters. Al Manners is the director and he does everything he can to manipulate the actors so their real emotions are portrayed in the character roles that they play. In the play he comes off as an overpowering jerk that bosses people around and demands orders, but never collaborates with other suggestions. This is mostly seen with Wiletta’s and Manner’s consistent budding of heads. Wiletta does her best to follow Manners directions, but his style of consistent attack and overbearing demands reaches under Wiletta’s skin. This is more clearly seen when Manners demands that Wiletta pick up a piece of paper that he crumbled and threw on the ground. Here it’s hard to differentiate between the possibility that there might be a hint of racism in Manners, even though he says otherwise, or that he just wants her to pick up the paper to reveal some emotion. Whatever the intention Manners vision of how he sees the play does not coincide with the visions of the actors.