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The historic Turnage Theatre will host the powerful and thought-provoking performance of The Green Book: A Play by Clavin Alexander Ramsey.

The stage play was inspired by Victor Green’s The Negro Motorist Green Book. Published between 1939 and 1952, the book served as a travel guide and a tool of resistance designed to confront the realities of racial discrimination in the South. It offered a list of safe havens for travel, dining, and accommodations.

“The performance of The Green Book is a very big deal for our community,” said Bronté Labbé, the visual arts and marketing director with the Beaufort County Arts Council. “My job is to make sure that the programs I bring to the Turnage are special and something that people in our community can connect with. I want people to think of the Turnage as a safe space for everyone. This stage play helps us to make strides towards achieving that goal.”

The two-act play also shares the story of a Jewish concentration camp survivor, which creates a moving narrative that intertwines histories and examines the human spirit in the face of adversity. “The actors are from the ECU School of Theatre and Dance,” said Labbé. “All characters are historically accurate, and an incredible job has been done to ensure everything is as close to the actual events as possible.”

There will be three performances of the play. On February 7 and 8 at 7 pm and a matinee on Sunday, February 9 at 3 pm. Ramsey will also be on hand for all three performances and will be available for Q and A following each. The cost of admission is $10 and is free to Beaufort County School students as well as students from ECU.

Labbé added this would not been possible without the collaborative efforts of the Beaufort County Arts Council, the ECU School of Theatre and Dance, the North Carolina Arts Council, Leesa Jones, the director of the Washington Waterfront Underground Railroad Museum, the Washington Tourism Development Authority, city leaders, and the Noon Rotary.

The traveling Green Book exhibit by the North Carolina African American Heritage Commission is now on display at the Turnage Theatre and will remain through February during African American History Month.

There are also tentative plans, weather permitting, for a historic walking tour led by Leesa Jones. The time and date have yet to be announced.