How old were you when you recall hearing the story of Brer Rabbit — a trickster character who lived by his wits, getting out of potentially life-ending scenarios by being crafty enough to out-think those willing to do him harm? And what were your thoughts behind the literary construct that was Uncle Remus, the character who told stories of Brer in an effort to pass on life lessons and wisdom?
Chicago poet Nate Marshall is updating the longtime folktale with “Bruh Rabbit & The Fantastic Telling of Remington Ellis, Esq.” As episode 2 of the first season of podcasts produced by Make Believe Association, a new Chicago-based storytelling company that produces audio dramas or “plays for your ears,” “Bruh Rabbit” takes the audience out of the antebellum South and places him in Chicago dealing with themes our city is known for — machine politics, redlining, the Great Migration, and Chicago’s current black population loss.
The audioplay, recorded…