Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer)

Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer)

By Cheryl L. West, Directed by Henry Godinez

A Goodman Co-Commission with Seattle Repertory Theatre

October 15 – November 14 in the Owen Theatre

Chicago’s own E. Faye Butler plays Fannie Lou Hamer, the 1960s civil rights activist whose courage, humor and grit reminds us that there’s courage in the face of fire, hope in tomorrow and that we all have a stake in our country. Replete with music and spirituality, this electric, immersive call to action defines what it means to be a true revolutionary. A Goodman commission, Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) appeared in the 2019 New Stages Festival, and in abridged form, Fannie Lou Hamer, Speak On It!, in Chicago parks in fall 2020.

Digital Press Kit

Dowload the Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) Digital Press Kit here.

Press Releases


October 25, 2021: *Fannie* Extended by Popular Demand (thru Nov. 21)

October 21, 2021: Visual Assets Now Available for *Fannie* 

October 6, 2021: *Fannie* Takes the Stage at the Goodman, Starting October 15

June 9, 2021: Announcing the 2021/2022 Homecoming Season

May 14, 2020: Goodman Theatre Postpones Remaining Productions in 2019/2020 Season

Video

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Henry Godinez, Director

Henry Godinez (Director) is the Resident Artistic Associate at Goodman Theatre. His Goodman directing credits include Sones de Mexico’s Zulema, Cheryl West’s Fannie Lou Hamer, Speak On It!, Charise Castro Smith’s Feathers and TeethThe Sins of Sor Juana and Mariela in the Desert by Karen Zacarías; José Rivera’s Boleros for the Disenchanted (and world premiere at Yale Repertory Theatre); Regina Taylor’s Millennium Mambo; Luis Alfaro’s Electricidad and Straight as a LineThe Cook by Eduardo Machado; Zoot Suit by Luis Valdez; the Goodman/Teatro Vista co-production of José Rivera’s Cloud Tectonics and the 1996–2001 productions of A Christmas Carol. He also served as director of the Goodman’s Latino Theatre Festival. As an actor, Godinez appeared most recently in Goodman’s The Winter’s Tale2666 and the Goodman/Teatro Buendía of Cuba world premiere of Pedro Páramo, and at Writers Theatre in the title role of Quixote: In the Conquest of Self. He has also appeared on television in Chicago PDAbove the LawThe BeastThe Chicago CodeBoss and Chicago Fire. Co-founder and former artistic director of Teatro Vista, Godinez is the recipient of the 1999 Theatre Communications Group Alan Schneider Director Award, the Distinguished Service Award from the Lawyers for the Creative Arts and was honored as the 2008 Latino Professional of the Year by the Chicago Latino Network. Born in Havana, Cuba, Godinez is a professor at Northwestern University and serves on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Arts Council and Albany Park Theater Project.

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Cheryl L. West, Playwright

CHERYL L. WEST (Playwright) returns to the Goodman where her play Pullman Porter Blues was produced in 2013. Her plays have also been seen at Minneapolis Children’s Theatre, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Seattle Rep, Indiana Rep, Arena Stage, Old Globe, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Bay Street Theatre Festival, Syracuse Stage, Cleveland Play House, South Coast Rep, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Manhattan Theatre Club, and Off?Broadway’s Second Stage. Plays include Last Stop on Market Street, Shout Sister Shout, Akeelah and the Bee, and Jar the Floor. She has written TV and film projects at Disney, Paramount, MTV Films, Showtime, TNT, HBO, CBS, BET and is the Webby-nominated writer for the original web series Diary of a Single Mom. The author wishes to thank Charles McLaurin and Victor McTeer who provided stories and valuable insights about Fannie Lou Hamer. 

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FanniePro_1

FanniePro_1E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

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FanniePro_2

FanniePro_2E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

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FanniePro_3

FanniePro_3E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

Download File

FanniePro_4

FanniePro_4E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

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FanniePro_5

FanniePro_5E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

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FanniePro_6

FanniePro_6E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

Download File

FanniePro_7

FanniePro_7E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

Download File

FanniePro_8

FanniePro_8E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

Download File

FanniePro_9

FanniePro_9E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

Download File

FanniePro_10

FanniePro_10E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos

Download File

FanniePro_11

FanniePro_11E. Faye Butler (Fannie Lou Hamer) in Fannie (The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer) by Cheryl L. West, directed by Henry Godinez at Goodman Theatre, October 15-November 14, 2021. Photo by Liz Lauren.

Author: Liz Lauren

Email: press@goodmantheatre.org

Category: Production Photos