Elizabeth Eckford, one of the original Little Rock Nine, was on hand January 31 at Stuttgart, Arkansas’ Grand Prairie Center when Lula Washington Dance Theatre performed its dance suite about the nine high school students who integrated Central High School in 1957.

Afterwards, Ms. Eckford came up on stage and hugged Khilea Douglass, the dancer who portrayed Ms. Eckford’s historic solo walk through an angry mob of protesters who cursed her, spit at her, threatened her life, and urged her to go back to Africa instead of into Central High.

“Ms. Eckford came up to me afterwards and hugged me and told me how much she loved my performance. She said I understood what she went through that day. I was so moved,” said Douglass. “I was standing in the face of history.”

Elizabeth Eckford took photos with the dance company and told Lula that the performance was so moving that it brought back all the memories from 1957.

Khilea said dancing the Eckford role in Lula’s work was a difficult challenge.

“That dance had the fewest choreographed steps of any dance I have ever done, but, it was also the most intense dance I have ever done,” recalls Khilea. “I had to make the audience feel what Elizabeth must have felt that day, the fear, but also the courage to keep going. I had to make them see and feel the crowd and the risk she was taking. It is a powerful dance. Lula’s work gives me those kinds of challenges – which I love. And for Ms. Eckford to be there in person — it was amazing.”

Elizabeth Eckford was among a large group of people with deep roots in the civil rights movement who attended the dance company’s concert near Little Rock. The concert helped to raise money for a current-day cause in Little Rock – the renovation of the formerly segregated Holman Elementary School so that it can be reopened as the Holman Heritage Community Center — a place where local youth would gain exposure to a variety of services including training in the arts.

The effort is being led by local organizer Calvin Criner, of Little Rock. He was responsible for Ms. Eckford attending the concert. Others in the audience included leaders of the Little Rock Nine Museum in Little Rock; and the daughter of Minnie Jean Brown, another of the original nine.

The performance and tie in with the Holmon Center was the brainchild of Amanda Holstead, director of the Grand Prairie Center. She knew that Lula herself was born outside Little Rock in Englund, Arkansas and she knew that Guy Couch at the University of Arkansas at Conway, had commissioned Lula to create the Little Rock Nine work back in 2007 for the 50th anniversary of the Central High events.

She knew also that Lula was going to be in Memphis at the Orpheum Theater at the end of January. Since Memphis is only two hours from Stuttgart, she invited the dance company to extend its trip for the concert at the Grand Prairie Center.

This is an example of a presenter/theater director making something special happen in their community.

—-ERWIN WASHINGTON, Co-founder, Executive Director,
Lula Washington Dance Theatre