A History in Quilts

The women of Gee's Bend, Alabama, are now revered as folk artists of great magnitude because of their unique quilts. But for many years their art form was just another part of a woman's life, like preparing meals for husbands and raising children. America changed around them, even as they changed America. Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder's drama Gee's Bend follows the women of the Pettway family from 1939 through the Civil Rights movement. Quilts are sewn during the show, but it's not a play about quilting; it's about the effort it takes to make your own life, and to make life better for your children. Sometimes that means scrimping every bit of fabric available to make a quilt for another birth in the family, and sometimes that means freely sharing your experience and knowledge so that child will know where they came from -- and where they should be going. Mustard Seed Theatre presents Gee's Bend at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday (February 7 through 23) at the Fontbonne University Fine Arts Theatre (6800 Wydown Boulevard; 314-719-8060 or www.mustardseedtheatre.com). Tickets are $25 to $30.
Thursdays-Sundays. Starts: Feb. 7. Continues through Feb. 23, 2014