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(Bluefield)—The Blue Chicory Players, a new theatre group at Bluefield State College, performed before audiences of more than 300 attendees during each night of its premiere production of “Driving Miss Daisy” at the College. The group is under the direction of Dr. Alma Bennett, a recent addition to the College’s faculty.
“I’m pleased by the public response to the play, and I am very proud of each member of the cast and crew,” Dr. Bennett noted. The cast included Mrs. Jean McGehee (an adjunct English faculty member) as Mrs. Daisy Worthen, Jonathan Pennington (a BSC Corrections major) as her son, Boolie Worthen, and Ronnell Thompson (a BSC English major) as Hoke Colburn, the chauffeur. “There were also two students handling tickets and ushers’ responsibilities and six people backstage,” Bennett added. “Without the contributions of each student, the play could not have been as successful as it was.”
The play took place in Atlanta, beginning in 1948 and spanning 25 years. As a result of a car accident, Daisy (McGehee), a sharp-tongued widow of 72, was forced by her son (Pennington) to rely on the services of a chauffeur (Thompson), an unemployed African-American man whom Daisy immediately treated with disdain. In a series of absorbing scenes, these two characters, despite their differences, grew ever closer to, and more dependent upon, each other. Slowly and steadily, the dignified, good-natured Hoke broke down the stern defenses of the ornery old lady. As the play ended, Hoke paid a final visit to Miss Daisy, now 97 and confined to a nursing home. It was movingly clear that both had come to realize they have more in common than they ever believed possible—and that times and circumstances would ever allow them to admit publicly.
November 15, 2004
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