Angela da Silva performing as “Lila”
(photo by Sylvia Sukop, 2023)
Angela da Silva has researched and given voice to historically-based, enslaved women characters, bringing forward stories that time and memory have forgotten. Ms. da Silva has performed for events large and small, regularly appearing in Missouri schools, libraries, and historic sites including the Historic Daniel Boone Home.
Lila’s story is a universal one. Hers was a life of pain and untold suffering that was shared by many enslaved women, but there were also moments of happiness and laughter. Lila was one of the millions of faceless, nameless Black women whose contributions to the wealth of the nation transcended not only her labor but her very soul. Yet she endured and thrived and lent her strength to the survival of a people.
Though Clara Brown was born enslaved in 1800, she achieved not only freedom but great wealth and influence during her lifetime. At 35 years of age, she was sold by her owner at auction and separated from her husband and children. Looking for her children, she headed West, becoming the first woman in the Rocky Mountains. She overcame many challenges, establishing her own small business in Denver and over time investing in real estate and mines. By the end of her life had given away over $2 million, and dedicated herself to helping newly freed slaves relocate to Colorado. Clara Brown’s incredible story is taught in Colorado schools today.
Born enslaved in the 1830s, after her emancipation Stagecoach Mary became the first Black female stagecoach driver in the West, carrying mail on a Star Route for the United States Post Office Department. Six feet tall, feisty and gruff, she carried guns, smoked and drank, and earned a reputation for both her fearlessness and her generosity. A larger than life character whose story educates while entertaining.
How the Slaves Celebrated Christmas
A longtime highlight of Candlelight Christmas at the Historic Daniel Boone Home in Defiance, MO, this beloved one-woman storytelling performance portrays the varied experiences of enslaved people during the Christmas season on homesteads and plantations, the hardships as well as unexpected moments of joy. New! Ask about my Enslaved Christmas Ghost Story.