In the News: WHYY features Anna Deavere Smith and 'Basil Biggs'

WHYY's Peter Crimmins spoke with playwright, actor, and professor Anna Deavere Smith about her new work Basil Biggs, which premiered as part of What Now: 2026.

The play is centered on Smith’s ancestor Basil Biggs, who was hired in 1863 to bury thousands of dead soldiers after the Battle of Gettysburg and to prepare the grounds for President Abraham Lincoln’s visit when he delivered his most famous address...

Until recently, Smith had never heard of her ancestor, despite having had aunts, uncles and cousins named Biggs.

In 2014, she appeared on the PBS television show “Finding Your Roots” with host Henry Louis Gates Jr., who introduced Biggs as part of Smith’s comprehensive genealogical presentation. Sitting across from Gates, Smith’s first reaction to the revelation was, “That’s a play.”

Read the whole story HERE.

Image of Basil Biggs dress rehearsal, via REC Philly.