Fresh Air

Playwright Anna Deavere Smith turns to her family’s history for inspiration

June 25, 2026·45 min·6-min readnarrativearts
Podzilla Summary (6 min)
TLDR
Anna Deavere Smith, a pioneer of documentary theater, returns to her roots with Basil Biggs, a new play about her great-great-grandfather, a free Black man who reburied Union dead at Gettysburg and helped prepare the ground for Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. The episode traces her artist

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Guest

A

Anna Deavere Smith

narrative on Fresh Air

Mentions

Books, people, and resources mentioned in this episode.

People

Anna Deavere SmithTonya MosleyHenry Louis Gates Jr.Basil BiggsDenise DodsonBrent WilliamsLeticia de SantiagoThomas JeffersonLarry DavidBarack Obama

Books

Workingby Studs Terkel

Companies

HBO

Topics

American HistoryBooksCivil Rights HistoryPop CultureRacial Justice

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