Grif Stockley

A Metaphysical Beast, which has its premiere at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1985, chronicles the agonizing decision of a man at the end of his life who asks his daughter to help him commit suicide.

Deke: If what happened at Central High in 1957 was wrong, what about slavery, rape, whipping, peonage, lynching, disenfranchisement, segregation, race massacres, racial cleansing, discrimination, harassment and humiliation? Wasn't all that evil, too? Central High was a piece of cake compared to the rest of our history.

The stories the historical re-enactors tell are simply amazing. This is awfully important material, whether encountered through print or stage. Whether or not “Truth! Reconciliation?” is the step toward racial reconciliation that Stockley hopes for, it certainly makes a contribution toward erasing ignorance of the past. That in itself is a notable achievement.
-- Arkansas Times Review, April 2009