The Harriet Holland Social Club Presents the 84th Annual Star-Burst Cotillion in the Grand Ballroom

The Harriet Holland Social Club Presents the 84th Annual Star-Burst Cotillion in the Grand Ballroom of the Renaissance Hotel (aka The Cotillion)

By Colette Robert
Music and lyrics by Dionne McClain-Freeney
Originally Produced at New Georges and The Movement Theatre Company, New York, NY
October 1-18, 2020


The Harriet Holland Social Club Presents the 84th Annual Star-Burst Cotillion in the Grand Ballroom of the Renaissance Hotel (aka The Cotillion), a play with music, is experienced as a black debutante ball in a large American city in real time. Guided by The Emcee and The Club's esteemed Madam President, as well as three singers and a trove of ingeniously stylish songs, we follow six well-to-do black girls on the night of their Coming Out: from getting ready backstage through the crowning of a bright-and-shiny new Miss Star-Burst. By re-creating a ball as an immersive theatrical event, it explores the history and language of "presenting" black female bodies.

Artistic Statement: The Cotillion explores a complex, often surprising subculture, expanding the range of Black experience presented in the theater. I love that Colette's show is both straight-up fun and powerfully affecting: she brings the audience right on in to her graceful event, then uses the built-in theatricality of a deb's presentation as a sly tool for dismantling the whole enterprise. And I'm absolutely thrilled to partner with The Movement Theatre Company -- there are so many values we share, along with a mutual desire to create new models for adventurous new work. - Susan Bernfield, Artistic Director/Producer

Joint Grant Statement: “A cast of 12! A three-piece band! Songs to learn, choreography to learn, immersive antics, breakaway ballgowns! The Cotillion, a play with music, toys with spectacle and -- for our two small theater companies -- will be no small feat,” said Susan Bernfield, artistic director and producer, New Georges. Deadria Harrington, of The Movement Theatre Company’s producing artistic leadership team, adds “By granting us funds for additional rehearsal weeks with the 25 members of The Cotillion's all-Black-woman cast and creative team, the Edgerton New Play Award will have immeasurable impact on fulfilling their capacious vision.”