November 12, 5:00 pm PST - Performance Video
Author, Natashia Deón | THE PERISHING
Actor, Imani Mitchell
Author NATASHIA DEON
ABOUT THE PERISHING
A Black immortal in 1930’s Los Angeles must recover the memory of her past in order to save the world in this extraordinarily affecting novel for readers of N. K. Jemisin and Octavia E. Butler. Lou, a young Black woman, wakes up in an alley in 1930s Los Angeles with no memory of how she got there or where she’s from. Taken in by a caring foster family, Lou dedicates herself to her education while trying to put her mysterious origins behind her. She’ll go on to become the first Black female journalist at the Los Angeles Times, but Lou’s extraordinary life is about to take an even more remarkable turn. When she befriends a firefighter at a downtown boxing gym, Lou is shocked to realize that though she has no memory of meeting him, she’s been drawing his face for years. Increasingly certain that their paths previously crossed—and beset by unexplainable flashes from different eras haunting her dreams—Lou begins to believe she may be an immortal sent here for a very important reason, one that only others like her can explain. Setting out to investigate the mystery of her existence, Lou must make sense of the jumble of lifetimes calling to her, just as new forces threaten the existence of those around her. Immersed in the rich historical tapestry of Los Angeles--Prohibition, the creation of Route 66, and the collapse of the St. Francis Dam--The Perishing is a stunning examination of love and justice through the eyes of one miraculous woman whose fate seems linked to the city she comes to call home. Imani Mitchell is a writer, director, actor, and filmmaker. Born and raised in Sacramento, CA, she developed her love for acting and storytelling at an early age. Imani received her Associate's degree in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Acting from Sacramento City College. From there, she went on to act for various theaters within the Northern California area, including Celebration Arts, Capital Stage, and B Street Theatre. Most recently, she directed a production of PIPELINE at Celebration Arts.
Outside of the theater, Imani is dedicated to the art of filmmaking and developing her craft as a writer and director. In 2019, she founded her film company IAM Studios and wrote her first film, WHIRLPOOL. The mission of IAM Studios is to employ and support talent of color and showcase stories that are authentic, nuanced, and impactful. Currently, her second film entitled I REMEMBER YESTERDAY is in post-production with a plan to be released in Winter 2021. Check out casting director Jessica Laskey's interview with Imani on the Stories on Stage blog. |
Natashia Deón is an NAACP Image Award Nominee, practicing criminal attorney, and college professor at UCLA and Antioch University. Author of the critically acclaimed novel, GRACE, which was named a Best Debut Fiction by The American Library Associations, Black Caucus and was named Best Book by the New York Times, Deón is a Los Angeles native, wife, mother of two, and her new novel, The Perishing, is due out November 2021.
Deón was a 2017 U.S. Delegate to Armenia as part of the U.S. Embassy’s reconciliation project between Turkey and Armenia in partnership with the University of Iowa and is a Pamela Krasney Moral Courage Fellow. In that role, she founded REDEEMED, a criminal record clearing and clemency project that pairs writers with those who have been convicted of crimes. A PEN America Fellow, Deón has also been awarded fellowships and residencies at Prague’s Creative Writing Program in the Czech Republic, Dickinson House in Belgium and the Virginia Center for Creative Arts. She has been featured in TIME Magazine, People Magazine, The Root, Red Book, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, American Short Fiction, Buzzfeed and other places. 
Actor Imani Mitchell
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THE PERISHING NAMED A "FALL 2021 MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK" by...
INDIE NEXT USA TODAY THE NEW YORK TIMES
ESSENCE SHONDALAND PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY
BOOK RIOT LIBRARY JOURNAL LITHUB
CRIME READS THE MILLIONS
“A bold and bracing novel steeped in LA history about love and power and justice.”
INDIE NEXT USA TODAY THE NEW YORK TIMES
ESSENCE SHONDALAND PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY
BOOK RIOT LIBRARY JOURNAL LITHUB
CRIME READS THE MILLIONS
“A bold and bracing novel steeped in LA history about love and power and justice.”
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“This isn’t a book. It’s a touchstone. It’s an oracle. It’s a mirror in which you will see your authentic self, reflected on the pages. The Perishing is one part lyrical mystery, one part history lesson you didn’t learn in school, one part time machine. It’s a lush, genre-smashing, philosophical experience of a novel that blew my mind even as it broke my heart.”
—Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet “Natashia Deón writes with her nerves, generating terrific suspense. And her style is so visual it plays tricks on the imagination — did I just watch that scene? Or did I read it? It’s Ms. Deón’s real and rare ability to make reading a felt, almost physical experience.” --Jennifer Senior, New York Times critic “The Perishing is a downright masterpiece.” —Shondaland.com |
“Reading The Perishing feels like falling through a shimmering kaleidoscope of stories that, when pieced together, tell the past, present, and future of an immortal soul. It makes me excited for the future of literature.”
—Caroline Barbee, Friendly City Books, Columbus, MS
“This marriage of period lit and science fiction will plug the Lovecraft Country sized hole in your heart.”
—Keyaira Boone, ESSENCE
“God, The Perishing. Where do I even begin? It’s riveting, my God.”
—Crime Reads
—Caroline Barbee, Friendly City Books, Columbus, MS
“This marriage of period lit and science fiction will plug the Lovecraft Country sized hole in your heart.”
—Keyaira Boone, ESSENCE
“God, The Perishing. Where do I even begin? It’s riveting, my God.”
—Crime Reads
WINTER COUNTS--A fascinating, moving performance and conversation with David Heska Wanbli Weiden and Elio Gutiérrez
In our October event, Elio Gutierrez read from David Heska Wanbli Weiden's #WinterCounts in an incredibly moving performance. Actor and author asked and answered each other's questions so meaningfully. This close to the end of our 2021 season, we were touched by the gift of their time and attention. If you weren't able to join us that night, you can still WATCH IT ON YOUTUBE..
Special Holiday Gift Bag! Sales support SOSS programming!
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We can help you avoid gift book supply chain problems. Beginning Wednesday, October 13, we'll have a perfect holiday gift package for the book-loving friends on your list!
In partnership with local shops, Allspicery, The Bee Box, and Capital Books, we're offering our anthology, TWENTY TWENTY: 43 stories from a year like no other, for $20, the regular price of the book, bundled with a custom-made Dandelion Tea, local honey straws, and a recipe for Dandelion Toddy. They will be all gussied-up for gifting, without the terrible supply-chain waits that many gifts will experience this season. Look for it on Capital Books' shelves, physical or virtual, starting Wednesday, October 13. Sales of the gift bundle support honoraria for SOSS performance actors and authors. When ordering from Capital Books on K, request the "gift bag" |
Stories on Stage Sacramento is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit - donations make it possible for us to pay authors and actors for their important work and to bring stories to word lovers | support the literary arts!
Our 2021 Season
We began the year with a special opening night partnership with 916 Ink and B Street Theater. Followed by performances of new work by authors Ellen Michaelson, Alia Volz, Nancy Johnson, Tod Goldberg, Elizabeth Gonzalez James, David Heska Wanbli Weiden, Natashia Deon, and Julie Metz.
Stories on Stage Sacramento just published its first anthology!
Twenty Twenty—43 stories from a year like no other
We began the year with a special opening night partnership with 916 Ink and B Street Theater. Followed by performances of new work by authors Ellen Michaelson, Alia Volz, Nancy Johnson, Tod Goldberg, Elizabeth Gonzalez James, David Heska Wanbli Weiden, Natashia Deon, and Julie Metz.
Stories on Stage Sacramento just published its first anthology!
Twenty Twenty—43 stories from a year like no other
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Find the books featured on Stories on Stage Sacramento at Capital Books on K, our local bookseller partner, and receive postcard-sized art of the bookstore and their neighbor, the Crest Theater. Free with your book(s). Heidi and Ross Rojek have been getting stories to readers in Sacramento and beyond much faster than the big guys during this crisis, so let's reward them for that! In addition to mail order and curbside pickup, the store is now open, so you can browse again (appropriately masked of course!) |
Capital Books & Crest Theater, by Kyle Thaw and his mother, Heidi Rojek. This beautiful artwork FREE with your book purchase!
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Visit and subscribe to the Stories on Stage Sacramento youtube channel for all performances. Sign up to receive our newsletter for announcements of upcoming performances, workshops and more! Visit our blog for the latest author/actor interviews.
Stories on Stage Sacramento In the News
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INSIGHT with Beth RuyakInsight host Beth Ruyak in conversation with Sue Staats and Jen Palmares Meadows
SACRAMENTO NEWS & REVIEW
By Maxfield Morris This article was published on 10.24.19 Sue Staats: "Outgoing coordinator for SOSS - A New Chapter" 
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