“Flies at the Well,” the new musical play based on the 1948 John Wallace murder trial, is slated to premiere in Newnan next spring, but local residents can get a “sneak peek” of a scene and one of the songs from the upcoming show, plus some insight into the development process, at a special event Wednesday, July 15, at 6:30 p.m. at the Newnan Historic Train Depot.
“We’ve worked on this show for a couple of years now, fine tuning it through rewrites and rehearsals and other development,” said Jeff Bishop, executive director of the Newnan-Coweta Historical Society and writer of the play, a project of the Newnan Theatre Company.
A series of invitation-only readings were held last year and this year, and an out of town staging was done in Michigan to gauge reactions from people who have no familiarity with the story at all.
“They loved it, so we knew we were getting close,” said Bishop.
The play is a re-telling of the events that inspired the Margaret Anne Barnes book and TV movie, “Murder in Coweta County.”
“But this is a new telling for a new era,” said Bishop. “We went back to the original court records, and we’re using that, plus the power of traditional music, to do something entirely new.”
Songs from the local gospel and Sacred Harp or “shape note” traditions are utilized, as well as what Bishop calls “hillbilly music.”
“That’s what my grandfather called it, anyway,” said Bishop. “He was one of those old-time country musicians. We’re trying to do something in that spirit.”
Many of the most prominent songwriters and arrangers from the Sacred Harp tradition lived in Newnan and Coweta County, said Bishop.
“That’s why, when you flip through the Sacred Harp song book, you’ll find songs called ‘Newnan’ and ‘Sharpsburg,’” said Bishop. “One of the writers, a Mr. Reese, was at one time a writer and editor for the Newnan Herald.”
These songs will be featured in the play, although sometimes in slightly modified form to better serve the story, which tells the story of the Wallace trial and the murder investigation.
“One thing we focus on is the fact that this was the first time that testimony from an African-American played such a crucial role in a trial like this, against a prominent, land-owning white man,” said Bishop.
At the Wednesday roundtable discussion and preview, questions from the audience will be welcomed. Bishop and Newnan Theatre Company board member Caroline Abbey will discuss the process to get the story to the stage. Dawn Campion will play the role of Mayhayley Lancaster, and testimony from the 1948 trial will be featured. Matthew Bailey and an accompanying choir will sing “You Better Run,” the emotional climax of the play.
The event is part of a summer / fall series funded through a grant from the Georgia Humanities Council. The next event in the series is Saturday, July 18, when Melissa Dickson Jackson will present a talk about the life of Mayhayley Lancaster. Free readings from local psychic Chrystal Lynn will also be available. Jackson has done extensive research on Lancaster and has written about her for Newnan-Coweta Magazine. Jackson is a professor at University of West Georgia, teaching creative writing. The Mayhayley Lancaster event, “Oracle of the Ages,” will begin at 1 p.m. with psychic readings, followed by a 2 p.m. lecture.
Both events are free and open to the public.
