"Makin' Cake" Offers Thoughts on America's Past and its Future

Dasha Kelly Hamilton doesn’t bake. Not because she’s defying the expectations of the patriarchy, although she’s not opposed to that. Maybe it’s because she doesn’t like following precise directions. Maybe it’s because she has plenty of skilled bakers in her family who can create special sweet treats for her. But her aversion to working with sugar and flour in the kitchen did not hinder her thoughts on the subject of baking, as she developed her one-woman show, Makin’ Cake, which was presented by Four Seasons Theatre at Overture Center’s Playhouse on March 10 & 11. 

Clad in a flowing red dress and matching red spike heels, Hamilton mused on the topic of baking for 75 minutes, aided by music and slides projected on a large screen behind her – but this was no cooking show. She framed the evolution of cake with the history of American industry, advertising, gender politics, race relations, and the growing gap between the “haves” and “have-nots,” in this country. Through photos, maps, recipes, statistics, advertisements, legal precedents, and recent news coverage, Hamilton traced the cultural and economic chasms between modern day Americans back through the centuries, and examined who could have historically afforded sugar, who was doing the actual baking, and who benefitted by keeping women contained in the domestic sphere.  

Kelly is an accomplished speaker, writer, poet, and creative change agent, who has spent her career telling stories. A former Wisconsin poet laureate with a new novel and documentary film in the works, she also teaches writing in college classrooms and regularly hosts live Moth storytelling events in Milwaukee and Madison. This is all to say that Kelly obviously knows a lot about effectively reaching an audience, crafting an interesting narrative, and making what is essentially a long speech into a more theatrical event. Moving very little from her stool down center stage, her blocking and delivery are sharp. Her pauses are intentional and filled with meaning. The two male chefs installed at tables behind her are busy mixing up batter and frosting pre-prepared cakes during her speech, so there’s always something to look at that brings audiences back to the subject and theme of the evening.

Kelly’s entertaining documentary style is like chocolate cake with vitamins. Beautifully packaged and funny, it’s full of fascinating historical footnotes (who knew the invention of baking powder would be so interesting?) that connect a lot of dots, toward outlining the picture of how the U.S. has become so fractured, ideologically. Some of the connections will propel audiences back to their tenth grade American history classes on Reconstruction after the Civil War, but many will focus on things we weren’t taught in school. 

And just as we’re lulled into thinking that the issues being covered in Makin’ Cake will be confined to the kitchen and remain safely in the past, videos of police clashing with protesters at a Black Lives Matter march, in the wake of George Floyd’s murder flash across the screen. In truth, the entire presentation is designed to prompt audiences to examine what they actually know about our country’s history on racial, cultural, and gender issues; what they think they know; who told them those stories —and why.

Once the edu-tainment is over, it’s time to grab a cupcake in the lobby and then return to the theater for a guided conversation about the show and the issues it brings up. Hamilton, who is also a practiced facilitator, specializes in leading community discussions about race. As a result the conversation is surprisingly natural. The tasks she gives audience members are small ones. She begins with,  “Ask a person sitting next to you what kind of cake is their favorite.” She continued with having audiences members exchange thoughts about any part of the show that moved them. Eventually she asks what more we have to add to the literal and metaphorical recipes she’s been concocting through the show. There are no wrong answers. Responses are thoughtful and heartfelt. They are accepted with generosity and grace. 

Overall it was a sweet and affirming evening. No burned edges or soggy bottoms. Just building meaning layer upon layer, with some tasty results.