The Historic Hampton House is one of the country’s last remaining Green Book hotels, a travel guide distinction that identified businesses that were safe for African American travelers during the segregation era. Ergo, it is important that the former lodging facility’s story is told with grace — and Keith C. Wade’s musical, is doing just that.
“The play is a love letter to Miami,” said Wade, who has been in the industry professionally for about 35 years. Wade’s family worked at the Hampton House during the 1960s and ‘70s, when it served as a haven for all the great stars at the time, including Aretha Franklin, Jackie Robinson, Muhammad Ali and Martin Luther King Jr.
“The Last Sun of the Hampton House” premiered on Sept. 27 and will run Oct. 4-6. The musical is being displayed right where it takes place, at the Historic Hampton House in Brownsville.
Wade’s parents, Henry and Barbara, were the first and only manager and chief clerk of the hotel, meaning they got to know all the famous faces that came in and out the door.
“Rarely do you get the opportunity to actually witness history,” said former executive director of The Historic Hampton House, Jacqui Colyer.
Although she has admired the cultural center for many years, having snuck into the hotel to see the legendary Jackie Gleason when she was 14 years old, she noted that the insight gained by Wade's parents into the hotel and its legacy was unmatched.
“To have someone who lived through that period and could tell that story not from the eyes of Malcolm X or Sam Cooke, but from the real people who lived and worked in this building … we were lucky to meet Keith.”
Colyer said that after first reading Wade’s script, she felt mesmerized.
“It was something that I felt we had to do here at the Hampton House,” said Colyer.
The journey of putting on the play started out with a production of just the first scene as part of “The Greatest Weekend,” a festival to honor Muhammad Ali that took place in February. Although the reception was positive, it took Colyer persuading the board that the play was worth the Hampton House’s limited funds.
“When you get a chance to memorialize an event like everything that happened at the Hampton House, to me that was special, so I just wanted to really convince the board. But when they attended scene one, they got it,” Colyer said.
“The Last Sun of the Hampton House” is a charming play with moments of both comedy and drama. It is adorned with a display of true craftsmanship that comes in the form of accurate costuming and usage of the time period’s vernacular. It also at times encourages audience interaction.
One of the major themes of the piece is how the past is a story we tell ourselves, and that history is perspective based on who is telling it.
Many of Wade’s family members are portrayed in the musical, but especially prominent are his parents and cousin, Zack, whom Wade described as “the coolest dude I ever met in my life.”
“He was my role model in terms of what I thought about when I wanted to grow up and be a man,” Wade said.
Wade’s parents and Zack are now deceased.
“Barbara is very much a strong woman,” said actress Chantel Mendoza of her character, Wade’s mother. “She moves respectfully, but she’s not to be messed with.”
“The Last Sun of the Hampton House” is the first drama of this epoch that Mendoza has acted in. Through participating in the performance, she learned the mannerisms of the era, such as how the way women would cross their legs to signal to a man whether they were interested.
“There’s a lot of things that I have taken away from this show,” said Jeffrey “J. Case” Cason Jr., who portrays Henry Wade.
Cason grew up in the area and discovered his grandfather worked at the Hampton House as a part of preparing for this performance.
“When it comes to telling true facts and knowing about your history — that’s something no one can take away from you,” Cason said, touching upon a theme of the play, which reminds viewers that history is shaped by the perspective of its narrator.
Catchy songs were on display in “The Last Sun of the Hampton House,” ranging from upbeat melodies to somber ballads.
“I created songs that I wanted the audience to remember,” said musical director Danette Inyang. “We made the tunes catchy so they could take a little bit of the play home with them and maybe sing some of the songs on the way home.”
Two standout songs from the play are the theme song, “Hampton House/Rise Up” and an R&B-esque track called “WATCH THIS!” sung by Cason during a scene where Henry Wade interacts with his future wife.
“Music is a uniting force hands down. Sixties and ‘70s music are like none other genre ever, so I felt like it really helped bring us together,” said Inyang.
Intimate experiences are abundant in “The Last Sun of the Hampton House,” including an emotional scene where characters react to the announcement of Martin Luther King Jr.’s murder and another where Barbara confronts Henry about being unfaithful, an accusation he denied.
But the play is not all sad. Audience members will also be delighted by humorous moments, such as one where Zack shows off his talent to the great James Brown and another that takes place before Wade’s parents married, where Martin Luther King Jr. encourages Barbara to listen to what Henry has to say.
“I’m hoping that people see this and rekindle their love with the community, the time and this place,” said Wade. “I’m hoping that they remember the honor and the love that they had for when things seemed a little bit clearer, different from now where we deal with so many shades of gray.”
IF YOU GO:
Showings: Oct. 4 at 8 p.m., Oct. 5 at 8 p.m., Oct. 6 at 5 p.m.
Location: The Historic Hampton House, 4240 NW 27th Ave
Price: $55-65
This story was produced by The Miami Times, one of the oldest Black-owned newspapers in the country, as part of a content sharing partnership with the WLRN newsroom. Read more at .
