Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer

Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer at Copaken Stage At Kansas City Repertory Theatre

A sharecropper's daughter who refused to stay quiet comes to the Copaken Stage at Kansas City Repertory Theatre in Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer. Cheryl L. West's play traces Fannie Lou Hamer's journey from Mississippi cotton fields to confronting the Democratic establishment at the 1964 national convention, a moment when one woman's testimony forced America to reckon with the violence protecting segregation.

Hamer didn't merely speak—she demanded to be heard. Her fight for voting rights and co-founding of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party put her in direct conflict with power that had no intention of yielding. The play follows her determination to claim space where none had been offered, and the risks that came with every stand she took.

Gospel music weaves through the production, carrying the conviction and faith that sustained Hamer when courage alone might not have been enough. These aren't decorative interludes; they're the pulse of a life lived with unyielding purpose. Director Morgana Wilborn brings this KCRep production to Kansas City, letting the music and the woman speak for themselves.

Come for the voice that refused to yield, and for gospel music carrying that determination into theater. Get tickets for Fannie at KCRep’s Copaken Stage.