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I’m still in awe of this experience and grateful for the history I’m fortunate to be a part of 🎻

I had several performances this weekend in an 18th-century American tavern, and I couldn’t stop thinking about my role as Cuffy, a farmhand, member of the Underground Railroad, a Union soldier, and an emancipated fiddler, in “Basil Biggs.”

It feels a little surreal to have gone from imagining what it would feel like to portray Cuffy to actually performing the role, and then finding myself on a historic property where an enslaved Black fiddler named Ishmael once lived and worked at Van Cortlandt Manor in the Hudson Valley (@inthevalley1).

That connection will stay with me.

Today is also August 10, a date that several sources identify as Basil Biggs’ birthday in 1819. Other historical sources identify only August 1819, while many simply list his birth year. So, for the purposes of this post, I’d like to think today really is his birthday.

I find myself remembering the incredible experience of closing Basil Biggs at @_artphilly and @thewilmatheater, then traveling to @gettysburghistory for a special presentation and visiting the Biggs family cemetery.

The warmth, humidity, breeze, the sound of the wind through the trees, and even soaking my feet in the creek on a hot day all became real. Witnessing historical artifacts and visiting locations believed to have connections to the Underground Railroad made this journey an unforgettable part of the experience.

As I share these images of some of our team visiting Gettysburg, it feels like the perfect time to simply say: Happy Birthday, Basil Biggs, and thank you for paving a way for someone like me. And, of course, thank you, Andrew Dalton & @gettysburghistory for having us, and most importantly, thank you so much, @annadeaveresmith, for trusting us with your words and your family’s history.

📸: @gettysburghistory
🎥: @backstagepasswithliachang / @liachangphotography

#BasilBiggs #AnnaDeavereSmith #theater #storytelling #USHistory

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July 4, 2026, “Basil Biggs” review by The @phillyinquirer!🙌🏾🤩

“Excavating history with ‘Basil Biggs’

There is something so powerful about seeing someone grapple with their personal experience of American history. As Semiquincentennial fanfare reached fever pitch in Philadelphia, this workshop of a developing play by actor/playwright @annadeaveresmith was a deeply moving performance about her great-great-grandfather, a conductor on the Underground Railroad. Smith learned of Biggs for the first time in an episode of Finding Your Roots; even then, she knew his story was worthy of a play, though she didn’t start writing until a decade later.

Biggs was a veterinarian and farmer in Gettysburg during the Civil War, a free Black man who helped fugitives escape slavery and buried the tens of thousands of soldiers who died in the war’s bloodiest battle. The Biggs family house in Gettysburg still stands today, and Smith visited the grounds, as well as the Adams County Historical Society, while she researched the time period. There was little preserved in the archive about her family, so this work is narrative speculation based on her archival research, much like groundbreaking scholar Saidiya Hartman’s critical fabulation: In the absence of preserved records about African Americans in history, visionaries use archival materials to imagine the lives of those largely erased from written memory.

Smith crafted a riveting world that showcased fierce resilience, disarming humor, and profound empathy during a painfully divided time, fueled by original music from actor/violinist Edward W. Hardy. It was an honor to experience one of the earliest presentations of this play, which will likely grow into a major production in the future. It’s the kind of honest work about this nation’s bloody, conflicted history that feels like essential viewing for anyone who calls themself a patriot.” - @phillyinquirer

@artphilly2026 | @thewilmatheater

https://www.inquirer.com/arts/best-philadelphia-art-low-cut-connie-woodmere-anna-deavere-smith-20260704.html

#basilbiggs #playwright #composer #actor #violinist

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Thank you @artphilly2026 and thank you Basil Biggs ✊🏾
May the story continue!
BASIL BIGGS PROJECT
Written by: @annadeaveresmith
Directed by: @leonard Fogila
Starring: A Family of Talent
#blackboyjoy #godsplan #blackactors #storyteller

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@annadeaveresmith and me!😆

I’m so excited to be a part of this powerful new work that brings a remarkable and often overlooked chapter of American history to life.

I serve as the composer, violinist, and portray Cuffy in “Basil Biggs,” written by Anna Deavere Smith and running for four performances at @thewilmatheater in Philadelphia, June 26–28, as part of @artphilly2026 What Now: 2026 Festival🙌🏾

The play traces the life of Smith’s great-great-grandfather, a farmer, veterinarian, and prominent Gettysburg figure who received a contract to disinter and rebury Union soldiers after the Civil War’s bloodiest battle. Drawing on archival materials, the play imagines how Biggs, his family, and their community navigated this pivotal period in American history.

I hope to see you at one of our performances this weekend in Philly!

📍 The Wilma Theater 📅 June 26–28

#BasilBiggs #theater #composer #actor #violinist

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From the stages of Broadway to the theaters of cinema and the studios of TV come see these exciting young actors performing “The Basil Biggs Project” live this weekend at the The Wilma Theater June 26th-28th get your tix at ArtPhilly.org

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one year ago, we opened the show that changed my life.
not a day goes by where I don’t miss it.
what a time. what a ride. what a group. what a cowboy.

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#OnThisDay: April 19, 2025 // Dead Outlaw // Longacre Theatre

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#OnThisDay: March 29, 2024 // Dead Outlaw // Minetta Lane Theatre

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2 years ago today was the first time I saw @deadoutlawmusical and I was totally hooked. I wish it was still running so many more people could experience it.

#atthisperformancepodcast #deadoutlawmusical #nyc #theatre

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One night only - come check out Ariel Woodiwiss in a reading of MARIAH, OR THE PASSAGEWAY, a new play from Rachel Bonds directed by Mike Donahue. Next Friday, February 6th at 6pm, followed by a free community dinner featuring live music. Limited tickets remaining at the link in bio! 💥🪐

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See the one and only Emmy-winning Ann Dowd during a dynamic reading of MARIAH, OR THE PASSAGEWAY by Rachel Bonds, directed by Mike Donahue - next Friday, Feb 6th at 6pm during THE BIG BANG BENEFIT. Tickets on sale now at the link in bio! 💥🪐

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what a year✨

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