Reviews: 12
What happens when a Black Woman specifically entreats people of different races to ask her any question they want on the streets of Los Angeles? Shanara did this on her “Ask A Black Woman” YouTube and podcast series for the past two years. In this solo show, Shanara takes you on a ride, in response to these questions, via reenactments and spoken word. Be open to this raw account from a Black Woman’s perspective.
http://https://youtu.be/jYviVW54eos
It was a journey to get to this show. My boyfriend and I missed ticket sales for her first 3 showings, so we purchased tickets to the encore performance on the 13th. We actually were 5 minutes late to the show, due to being at the wrong location. Thankfully they held the start just enough for us to run to the entrance. THAT ALONE WAS BEAUTIFUL!
So the actual show was.... SPECTACULAR! As a black gay man with a name like DeAubrey, I strongly felt and resonated with the topics and themes of Shanara's show. I laughed, clapped, grunted, and sniffed back legit tears. It's in your face, and its assertive. There is no way to watch her performance and leave with any questions regarding what her intentions were, and what she was pointing out to all non-black women. SEE US. HEAR US. RESPECT US. LOVE US. GET TO KNOW US. BEFORE YOU JUDGE US.
Us = Black women.
Shanara Sanders is a divinely gifted storyteller who seamlessly weaves music, movement, monologue, song, spoken word, and soliloquy into an equally enchanting and challenging hour of personal and universal revelation.
Sanders’ story is so specifically tied to her own experience as a Black American woman, but she achieves a global reach as she simultaneously holds all of our feet to the fire and reminds us all of our common humanity.
Her performance technique is exquisite, with her clear-as-a-bell voice, atmosphere-altering presence, and eyes whose sparkle you could see for miles.
I especially found her execution of that oh-so-cringeworthy white girl voice not only spot-on and hilarious, but also filled with the subtle violence and repulsion that we all know lurks inside the ones who claim to be feminist but couldn’t tell you a thing about intersectionality.
Perhaps the most relevant and critical solo performance of the 2019 Fringe, Sanders is fighting for her life…and yours. With grace, brilliance, and sincerity, Sanders invites us with open arms to a seat at her table and serves us all a feast of “One Love” with slice of humble pie on the side.
To be sure, Sanders is not a victim. She is love, she is power, she is vulnerable, and she is freedom.
WOWWWW, A Must See!!!
Shanara grabbed us and kept us thoroughly engaged from the start. I could feel the depths of pain, humor and thoughtfulness of how the experiences affected Shanara. I remembered my own and saw audience members recalling theirs with mixed emotions, as we all experienced the show. Shanara’s transitions between scenarios gave us just enough time to ready for the next ride, without losing any momentum. Intense, funny, thought-provoking and more all balled up in this Beautiful, Chocolate-Brown Black Woman, who barred her soul to us. Shanara’s realness made me appreciate her stories even more. A Must See! Thank you for sharing.
A poetic, honest, and beautiful show with the talented writer and performer Shanara Sanders. I loved Shanara’s confidence, grace, humor, and poetry while sharing her personal story. She is captivating on stage, a real magical storyteller. So excited to see her and this show soar!
I loved that she is so strong, but allows her vulnerability to shine as well. I loved her poetry, and the way she used her words…there was a moment when we (the audience) was so with her, singing with her…it was truly beautiful.Is a strong and powerful commentary on life in America. As we live and strive in this ever changing world of technology, great advancements in science, and the very colorful world of cultural diversity, how are we as a society allowing this thing of disregard, insulting and marginalizing people of African decent in this country. It is profound. Shanara, tells a sceniro of a woman getting upset and calling her a very negative derogatory name, how is this even possible in this day and time that we are now living in, its all so quite disgusting. Her show is insightful, it is educational, and it is inspiring. With so many show in the festival, I am so happy I saw Ask A Black Woman.
This was just a superb show. Shanara Sanders delivers a stellar 60 minutes and really brings you into her world, a world far too familiar for people of color, and a world far too unfamiliar to white people. Shanara tells some heartbreaking stories but also works in some hilarious humor, highlighting some issues in our culture that need to be addressed. As far as solo shows go, this is about as good as they get. It never fell into the trap of self indulgence (as many unfortunately do) and instead hooked you the entire time because of Shanara’s gift for storytelling, her amazing poetry, and her focus on important relatable issues. This is a must see and if it gets an extension (if it doesn’t it’s a crime) you must check it out. It's a confronting, insightful, upsetting, educational, funny, and important show courtesy of a gifted storyteller with buckets of charisma, talent and charm.
Literally all of it. I loved the poetic elements and the singing. The slides saying “Ask a Black Woman At Work” made me feel like I was reading chapters in a book, which was a very cool and clever way of introducing the audience to the next story in her life. I liked the use of the staircase, I could picture the scene as it was happening because Shanara is so dedicated to her work. She goes all in without hesitance. There were so many moments where I pictured her just dropping a mic and walking off-stage. This show is that good!
Powerful. Just the overwhelming feeling that someone was voicing my emotions, but in a more eloquently raw, and witty way. There was a feeling of vindication – “she actually said that” – “someone had to say it” – as well as a call to action!
Powerful. Just the overwhelming feeling that someone was voicing my emotions, but in a more eloquently raw, and witty way. There was a feeling of vindication – “she actually said that” – “someone had to say it” – as well as a call to action!
I love the authenticity of Shanara's voice and the unapologetic way she tells her story. But the thing I loved the most is her spoken word poetry. She’s a wonderful writer and can slam with the best of them. A strong and powerful voice that shares one woman's truth based on her experience. It’s a perspective on American life that needs to be heard by men and women of all colors. You just keep speaking your truth, Shanara.
Shanara Sanders is an incredibly engaging performer. Whether she’s re-enacting scenes from her life in funny & sometimes cringe-worthy characterizations, singing in her gorgeous silky voice, or delivering powerful punches of riveting spoken word, you can’t take your eyes or your ears off her for a second.
Her power-walking scene is side-splittingly funny.
If you are Black, you should see this show. But if you are not, you should REALLY see this show. I was moved to tears a number of times, and always working to reign in my emotions – I didn’t want to be “that white woman” – you know the one – the one who has such a visceral emotional response that it starts to feel more about her than about the Black person who rightfully belongs in the spotlight. So I kept it together, but it wasn’t easy. Some of it is very hard to hear and slaps you in the face with “how far we still need to go”, but you will get those feel-good moments too, when you see how far so many have come, and overcome.
Such a wide range of emotions that occur on a daily basis helped display the incredible talent and great acting from Shanara. Definitely worthwhile and I highly recommend my family and friends to cop a ticket.
It was a journey to get to this show. My boyfriend and I missed ticket sales for her first 3 showings, so we purchased tickets to the encore performance on the 13th. We actually were 5 minutes late to the show, due to being at the wrong location. Thankfully they held the start just enough for us to run to the entrance. THAT ALONE WAS BEAUTIFUL!
So the actual show was.... SPECTACULAR! As a black gay man with a name like DeAubrey, I strongly felt and resonated with the topics and themes of Shanara's show. I laughed, clapped, grunted, and sniffed back legit tears. It's in your face, and its assertive. There is no way to watch her performance and leave with any questions regarding what her intentions were, and what she was pointing out to all non-black women. SEE US. HEAR US. RESPECT US. LOVE US. GET TO KNOW US. BEFORE YOU JUDGE US.
Us = Black women.
Shanara Sanders is a divinely gifted storyteller who seamlessly weaves music, movement, monologue, song, spoken word, and soliloquy into an equally enchanting and challenging hour of personal and universal revelation.
Sanders’ story is so specifically tied to her own experience as a Black American woman, but she achieves a global reach as she simultaneously holds all of our feet to the fire and reminds us all of our common humanity.
Her performance technique is exquisite, with her clear-as-a-bell voice, atmosphere-altering presence, and eyes whose sparkle you could see for miles.
I especially found her execution of that oh-so-cringeworthy white girl voice not only spot-on and hilarious, but also filled with the subtle violence and repulsion that we all know lurks inside the ones who claim to be feminist but couldn’t tell you a thing about intersectionality.
Perhaps the most relevant and critical solo performance of the 2019 Fringe, Sanders is fighting for her life…and yours. With grace, brilliance, and sincerity, Sanders invites us with open arms to a seat at her table and serves us all a feast of “One Love” with slice of humble pie on the side.
To be sure, Sanders is not a victim. She is love, she is power, she is vulnerable, and she is freedom.
WOWWWW, A Must See!!!
Shanara grabbed us and kept us thoroughly engaged from the start. I could feel the depths of pain, humor and thoughtfulness of how the experiences affected Shanara. I remembered my own and saw audience members recalling theirs with mixed emotions, as we all experienced the show. Shanara’s transitions between scenarios gave us just enough time to ready for the next ride, without losing any momentum. Intense, funny, thought-provoking and more all balled up in this Beautiful, Chocolate-Brown Black Woman, who barred her soul to us. Shanara’s realness made me appreciate her stories even more. A Must See! Thank you for sharing.
A poetic, honest, and beautiful show with the talented writer and performer Shanara Sanders. I loved Shanara’s confidence, grace, humor, and poetry while sharing her personal story. She is captivating on stage, a real magical storyteller. So excited to see her and this show soar!
I loved that she is so strong, but allows her vulnerability to shine as well. I loved her poetry, and the way she used her words…there was a moment when we (the audience) was so with her, singing with her…it was truly beautiful.Is a strong and powerful commentary on life in America. As we live and strive in this ever changing world of technology, great advancements in science, and the very colorful world of cultural diversity, how are we as a society allowing this thing of disregard, insulting and marginalizing people of African decent in this country. It is profound. Shanara, tells a sceniro of a woman getting upset and calling her a very negative derogatory name, how is this even possible in this day and time that we are now living in, its all so quite disgusting. Her show is insightful, it is educational, and it is inspiring. With so many show in the festival, I am so happy I saw Ask A Black Woman.
This was just a superb show. Shanara Sanders delivers a stellar 60 minutes and really brings you into her world, a world far too familiar for people of color, and a world far too unfamiliar to white people. Shanara tells some heartbreaking stories but also works in some hilarious humor, highlighting some issues in our culture that need to be addressed. As far as solo shows go, this is about as good as they get. It never fell into the trap of self indulgence (as many unfortunately do) and instead hooked you the entire time because of Shanara’s gift for storytelling, her amazing poetry, and her focus on important relatable issues. This is a must see and if it gets an extension (if it doesn’t it’s a crime) you must check it out. It's a confronting, insightful, upsetting, educational, funny, and important show courtesy of a gifted storyteller with buckets of charisma, talent and charm.
Literally all of it. I loved the poetic elements and the singing. The slides saying “Ask a Black Woman At Work” made me feel like I was reading chapters in a book, which was a very cool and clever way of introducing the audience to the next story in her life. I liked the use of the staircase, I could picture the scene as it was happening because Shanara is so dedicated to her work. She goes all in without hesitance. There were so many moments where I pictured her just dropping a mic and walking off-stage. This show is that good!
Powerful. Just the overwhelming feeling that someone was voicing my emotions, but in a more eloquently raw, and witty way. There was a feeling of vindication – “she actually said that” – “someone had to say it” – as well as a call to action!
Powerful. Just the overwhelming feeling that someone was voicing my emotions, but in a more eloquently raw, and witty way. There was a feeling of vindication – “she actually said that” – “someone had to say it” – as well as a call to action!
I love the authenticity of Shanara's voice and the unapologetic way she tells her story. But the thing I loved the most is her spoken word poetry. She’s a wonderful writer and can slam with the best of them. A strong and powerful voice that shares one woman's truth based on her experience. It’s a perspective on American life that needs to be heard by men and women of all colors. You just keep speaking your truth, Shanara.
Shanara Sanders is an incredibly engaging performer. Whether she’s re-enacting scenes from her life in funny & sometimes cringe-worthy characterizations, singing in her gorgeous silky voice, or delivering powerful punches of riveting spoken word, you can’t take your eyes or your ears off her for a second.
Her power-walking scene is side-splittingly funny.
If you are Black, you should see this show. But if you are not, you should REALLY see this show. I was moved to tears a number of times, and always working to reign in my emotions – I didn’t want to be “that white woman” – you know the one – the one who has such a visceral emotional response that it starts to feel more about her than about the Black person who rightfully belongs in the spotlight. So I kept it together, but it wasn’t easy. Some of it is very hard to hear and slaps you in the face with “how far we still need to go”, but you will get those feel-good moments too, when you see how far so many have come, and overcome.
Such a wide range of emotions that occur on a daily basis helped display the incredible talent and great acting from Shanara. Definitely worthwhile and I highly recommend my family and friends to cop a ticket.
