More Photos of Lee are found at end of this article

 

April 12, 2011

 

          For twenty-three years, Dwain W. Penn has been on the cutting edge of dramatic portrayals.  With a repertoire that spans Biblical figures, fictional characters and great men of history, perhaps his greatest work will culminate on Tuesday night, April 12, 2011, the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War.

          After trying his talent in 1996 to portray Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, Penn found his success tempered here in the Deep South.  In 2008, shortly after his 20th anniversary program at the Lee auditorium in Thomaston, Penn shaved his head and allowed his hair and beard to grow untouched for six months.  By late fall, he noticed, in the mirror, his remarkable resemblance to Robert E. Lee.  The rest, as they say, is history.

          Penn started planning Lee’s premiere for Saturday, November 14, 2009, at New Hebron Baptist Church.  He found a powder blue suit with a long coat (donated by Jeanette Torbert Brinkley of Barnesville) and proceeded to transform it to a confederate uniform.  The work was finished in time to hold a photo shoot at the Thomaston-Upson Archives on Friday, October 30.  (See photos below)

General Robert E. Lee was a legendary leader of Confederate forces during the Civil War.  He nobly led the South for four years during one of the most tragic periods of American history.

          On Tuesday, April 12, 2011, General Lee, portrayed by Dwain W. Penn, will share the vivid events of America’s Great War.  Two shows, 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. will be presented at the R.E. Lee Auditorium. 

          Come out and learn about Lee and his leadership during the war.  Lee’s father was Revolutionary War hero Harry “Light Horse” Harry Lee.  R.E. Lee married Mary Custis, the granddaughter of George and Martha Washington.  They lived in the Custis mansion, which today overlooks Arlington Cemetery.  These are only a few of the many facts that will be shared.  It will be a must see for history students.

 

Photos were taken October 30, 2009 at the Thomaston-Upson Archives

Photographer - Head Archivist Penny Cliff