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'Division Street' highlights need for conversation and understanding around race

Ralph Meranto

A new play premiering in Rochester this weekend tackles the issue of race relations.

"I just think it's something we don't about in the world," said Ralph Meranto, artistic director at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Rochester. "We all have friends of all different races, and there's always this awkwardness when you get to that point of the conversation."

"Division Street" is the latest collaboration between Meranto and acclaimed playwright and Emmy-nominated television producer Jason O'Dell Williams. 

It uses humor and an interracial couple's struggle to maintain their Hollywood marriage to highlight racial identity, perception, and misunderstandings.

"Division Street" makes its world premiere on JCC's Center Stage from Nov. 2 through Nov. 17.

Click on the LISTEN link above to hear an interview with Ralph Meranto.

Beth Adams joined WXXI as host of Morning Edition in 2012 after a more than two-decade radio career. She was the longtime host of the WHAM Morning News in Rochester. Her career also took her from radio stations in Elmira, New York, to Miami, Florida.