Theatre and Dance's "Trains" leaves the station

The Department of Theatre and Dance is starting their productions of the semester with a play written by a Troy professor.

Quinton Cockrell is a professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance. Last year, his play “Trains” was showcased at Virginia’s Barter Theatre as a part of their series “SHINE: Illuminating Black Stories.” Now, the department is adapting it for their first show of the semester.

“It is gratifying to have work I normally do for outside theatres performed here at Troy,” Cockrell said. “I am excited for students to see professional level production of a play that handles difficult and controversial topics.”

He won’t just be cited as a writer in the production, he’ll also be acting in it, meaning he’s been able to give his input at every point of the creative process.

“One of the benefits of having the playwright present in a rehearsal process is the opportunity for the director and the writer to talk extensively about the play,” Cockrell said. “The director, Tori Lee Averett, and I have spent a lot of time talking about the clarity of the play’s intention.”

Its intention is to draw attention to the struggles of the lives of Black people in America over the past hundred years, something Cockrell said is a part of history we cannot neglect.

“For many, college is the best time of our lives. It is often the last time we can experience life without having to fully deal with adult problems,” Cockrell said. “I think it should also be a time to try to gain an understanding of those from different backgrounds and develop an understanding of what might be motivating their outlook and behavior.”

Portraying those struggles is something one of the actors, Kelvin Gamble, has been taking very seriously. Not only does he see it important to reflect on the past, but he said it's a lesson that could help shape people’s futures.

“I am most nervous about being able to show the deep-down hurt Travis, my character, is going through,” Gamble said. “College is when young adults find themselves, and showing this struggle might make it seem like some issues are more superficial.”

Cockrell wrote the play with more than just the impact on the students in mind. “Trains” was written with a message for the whole world in mind. He said he’s tired of people trying to forget a history that still affects him and so many others to this day.

“In our country now, we are seeing efforts to gloss over or minimize what has been inflicted on minority groups since our founding,” Cockrell said. “I understand the tendency; it is difficult to admit mistakes, but acknowledgment of a problem is the first step toward finding a solution.

“Many issues that happen in communities of color are a direct result of the low self-esteem caused by historical mistreatment. You cannot tell people who are generationally traumatized to “get over it.”’