(CAPE MAY, NJ) -- The reimagined East Lynne Theater Company opens its Season Forty-Six with the extraordinary, real-life story Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years by Emily Mann, running June 18 to July 19, 2026 at the Clemans Theater for the Arts at the Allen AME in Cape May.
Based on the book by Sarah L. Delany and A. Elizabeth Delany with Amy Hill Hearth, the play opens with the sisters, Sadie and Bessie, now 102 and 103 years young, recalling their exceptional lives with warmth, wit and clarity. The sisters guide audiences through the monumental events that shaped our country over the last century, such as the Jim Crow South, two World Wars, the Civil Rights Movement, among others.
Throughout their long lives the Delany sisters defied stereotypes: both received a college education, as well as advanced degrees from Columbia University. Bessie earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS), while Sadie held a Master's in Education, and both embarked on ground-breaking careers. Over the years the women considered notables like W.E.B. DuBois, Booker T. Washington, Eleanor Roosevelt, Cab Calloway, and Duke Ellington friends.
Their fascinating stories, as well as anecdotes drawn from their rich family history and careers as pioneering African-American professionals, however, unfold into something larger: personal reflections on the American story—its triumphs, its failures and the resilience required to endure both.
Performances take place Wednesdays to Saturdays evenings at 7:00pm and Sunday matinees at 2:00pm. Tickets are $40 general admission, $35 seniors, $25 students and military. Tickets to opening night ($45) include an after-party held at The Cricket Club. There will be a special 2:00pm showing on July 4, and a preview night on June 17 ($25). For tickets and information, go to EastLynneTheater.org. The Clemans Theater for the Arts is located at 717 Franklin St. in Cape May.
“As we mark our first full year at the Clemans Theater for the Arts, the former Allen African Methodist Episcopal Church, this story ties in beautifully to Cape May’s own history, as the Delany sisters and our theater building essentially grew up together and experienced many of the same historical events—in first-person for the sisters, while the other served as a gathering place for faith and community during our country’s toughest times,” says Mark David Boberick, executive director of East Lynne. “We specifically designed this show for this special theater because we’ve discovered that within this space history isn’t distant, it’s present all around us, and our entire company is extremely excited to bring this production to our community.”
Richarda Abrams, a five-time AUDELCO Award-winning actress, plays Sadie Delany, who became the first Black permitted to teach Domestic Science at the high school level in the New York City Public Schools. Abrams’ television and theater credits include One Life to Live, The Vagina Monologues and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? Veteran theater and television actress Sharon Hope reprises the role of Bessie Delany, a role she previously performed on tour, the sister who became the second Black woman to practice dentistry in New York State. Hope’s recent TV credits include Elsbeth and Dexter. The creative team also includes Director Mark Edward Lang (Ken Ludwig’s Dear Jack, Dear Louise), Costume Designer Sarah Constable, Production Designer Mark David Boberick and original music by Composer Chris Hajian, who has scored multiple feature films and documentaries.
“This a banner year not only for the country, as we near its 250th anniversary, but also for Cape May, which marks 175 years as a city and 50 years as a National Historic Landmark, a designation that includes our remarkable theater,” says Boberick. “Having Our Say is not merely a female or an African-American story, it is indeed an all-American story. To that end, East Lynne Theater Company is proud to kick off Season Forty-Six with Having Our Say.”
Founded in 1980, East Lynne Theater Company has been named by “The New York Times” as one of the Top 75 summer theaters in North America and recognized by the New Jersey Senate and General Assembly as “one of the state’s most important cultural treasures.” In 2023, understanding that the American Theater is itself a growing work of art, East Lynne expanded its mission to “present and preserve America’s theatrical heritage” by including plays about America today.
As of 2026, East Lynne continues to raise funds for its Capital Campaign to renovate its new home, the Clemans Theater for the Arts at Allen AME. As the company expands into the Clemans Theater, so does its calendar, which now offers year-round entertainment that includes plays and performances from worldwide writers, actors, musicians, and more.
