"A Raisin in the Sun" opens at Lionheart

Being the only child in an adult play is intimidating. Make the play about heavy issues like discrimination and family conflict, and it’s a big step into an adult world for a young actor.

But 10-year-old Christian Gamble is taking it all in stride on the Lionheart Theatre Stage in Norcross playing Travis Younger in Lorraine Hansberry's ground-breaking play, “A Raisin in the Sun.”

“At first I was a little scared because I was the only kid in the play, but now I feel comfortable with my cast mates,” said Gamble. “They make me feel a part of the cast family and they don’t leave me out.”

“A Raisin in the Sun” is set in the Chicago slums after World War II. Tensions between white and black America, wealth and poverty, and life-changing decisions run throughout the play as the family struggles to make the best use of a $10,000 inheritance.

Despite the heavy themes, Gamble is well prepared.

“Yes, Christian is a very smart boy and has been exposed to different outlets as far as Civil Rights issues, movies, important figures and museums,” said his mother, Porschea Gamble Benson. “So he has an understanding of what blacks went through during that time.”

Gamble is a fifth grader at the North Metro School of the Performing Arts in Norcross, where he takes acting classes and will appear in School House Rock Jr. in January.

“When we needed a young man who can handle the role, it was great to be able to call on our neighbors at the performing arts school,” said Lionheart’s Producing Artistic Director Tanya Caldwell. “I hope to continue building a relationship with the school.”

“A Raisin the Sun,” debuted on Broadway in 1959 and is based on the Langston Hughes poem “Harlem.”

Tickets are $15 or $12 for seniors and students. All tickets include Lionheart’s famous desserts. Tickets are available at www.lionhearttheatre.org and include dessert. For inquiries only, call 678-938-8518.

Photo: Crammed in a small apartment, Travis Younger (Christian Gamble) makes his bed on the couch. Photo by Sean Casey

Photo: With all the stress in the family, Lena Young, or “Mama” (Celeste Campbell) comforts grandson Travis Younger (Christian Gamble). Photo by Sean Casey