Vibe.com, January 7th, 2005
"She was this great woman [with] so much more to do [and] say," LisaGay recalls. "[Beah] began calling me and there was a connection between she and I. We shared a love for community and what it means to be an artist." Beaula Elizabeth Richards, better known as Beah, had a film career that spanned over 40 years. She was also a poet, playwright, dancer, teacher and activist. Beah Richards died in 2001 of Emphysema.
It was no coincidence that Beah was known for playing the role of the African-American mother. She was a leading figure in the Civil Rights Movement and a woman who had a profound effect on the artistic and political ideas of the 21st century. She was a powerful woman, as LisaGay Hamilton illustrates in this documentary. When she first sat down with Beah to listen to this phenomenal woman's story, LisaGay describes her experience as one that left her body "vibrating."
"Something was going on inside of me. I have always felt my connection to the ancestors," LisaGay says. "She wanted to engage in a dialogue with the community." Through this documentary, LisaGay Hamilton will allow Beah Richards, as she puts it, to "live on."
During her life, Beah made friends with historical figures such as Langston Hughes, Paul Robeson, and W.E.B. Du Bois. She takes credit for teaching finishing school classes to Diane Carol, notably one of the most graceful Black Hollywood actresses ever. She also founded civil rights organizations, taught inner-city youth, and spoke out against war. LisaGay Hamilton believes that we could all learn from the lessons shared in Beah: A Black Woman Speaks.
"It is the connection to our ancestry that forces me to listen and want to hear. It is innately within all of us [and] we are in desperate need of leaders. We need to identify ourselves as leaders and step up. We are on a dangerous path and we need to stop and rethink the journey. We cannot blame our children. They don't know who they are. It is us who are to blame. Knowing about your beginning will change your actions. Are you willing to die for a gold chain?"
Two of the 90 hours of compiled footage from these sessions between the two actors make up HBO's Beah: A Black Woman Speaks, which premiered on February 25, 2004 at 7:30 PM EST.
