Statue of Broadway legend Lorraine Hansberry invites passersby to sit and think in Times Square
NEW YORK -- The legacy of Broadway icon Lorraine Hansberry is being honored in the middle of the Theater District.
As CBS2's Steve Overmyer says, her image will be on display to inspire the next generation.
"It's a little overwhelming in Times Square. It's crazy, but no, it's lovely and ... We're a little, a few years late to celebrate the anniversary, the 50th anniversary of 'A Raisin in the Sun,'" sculptor Alison Saar said.
Hansberry was the first Black female playwright to have her show on Broadway. "A Raisin in the Sun" was a landmark play which opened in 1959. It tells the story of a Chicago family growing up in the middle of segregation.
"Not only is she the first Black woman, specifically, to have a Broadway play produced, but she comes from a tradition of firsts, and so that reminder being a place at the center of our city for all to see is truly beautiful," Pace University professor Amen Igbinosun said.
It's an interactive statue with movable bronze chairs inviting all to sit a while and think.
"So much of public sculpture is hands off ... I wanted this to be a space where people could come and have a conversation and share thoughts and ideas," Saar said.
"We need more reminders of who we are, and this is not just Black theater history, this is American theater history. This is America," Igbinosun said.
The statue will only be in Times Square through the weekend before it begins its cross-country tour for all to enjoy.
"I hope they have a better understanding of who Lorraine Hansberry was. I mean, we know at a playwright, but she was also activist for LGBTQ community and African-American equity and women's rights," Saar said.
"We can sit down with this piece and think. Be present. Think, just for a moment, and that's powerful," Igbinosun said.
