African American trailblazer Wendell Scott depicted in ‘Faster than the Speed of Race’ by playwright Russell Nicholas

By David Winship  Steeped in lore and history reflective of the Southern United States in the 1950s -1970s, Wendell Scott raced into history as the first Black driver inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.  Using strong characters with unique characterization, Russell Nicholas tells Scott’s story through “Faster than the Speed of Race,” a play that was one of six dramatic works in development, chosen from nearly 300 submitted to the Barter Theatre’s Appalachian Festival of Plays and Playwrights located in Abingdon, Virginia. The festival featured works-in-progress from last Thursday through Sunday, ending with the 4th annual “Shine,” which showcased six winning monologues by Black writers, part of the Black Stories Black Voices initiative of Barter Theatre.    The story of Wendell Scott (played by Vince McGill*), a native of Danville, Virginia, who raced in the dirt-track circuit and during the early days of NASCAR, is a story that has been told in documentaries and movies before, but this is a first stage production. A display at the former Winston Cup Museum in Winston-Salem included a documentary of his life, along with the car that Scott drove during his NASCAR career. Richard Pryor portrayed Scott in the film “Greased Lightning,” released...