Company: From Asheboro to the Fields of France

In the fall of 1918, word got back to Asheboro that Company K, the Randolph County unit of the State Militia called up for service in World War I France, had been wiped out. Entirely. You can imagine the shockwaves that rippled through the tight-knit community where almost everyone would have known someone who was serving. It wasn’t true, but the reality was horrifying enough: in the battle of Bellicourt on September 29, Company K sustained over 60 percent casualties, including 29 killed. With fellow soldiers of the 120th Infantry Regiment of the 30th “Old Hickory” Infantry Division, Company K was in the vanguard of an Allied attack that finally broke the German defensive position known as the Hindenburg Line and hastened the Armistice on November 11. The City of Asheboro will honor the sacrifice of the Randolph County soldiers on the battle’s 100th anniversary with Company K: From Asheboro to the Fields of France, a play by poet, playwright and Asheboro native Barbara Presnell, whose grandfather served in France with the unit. The presentation will be staged by RhinoLeap Productions, a non-profit theatre company based in Asheboro founded by Dr. Tom Osteen and his son Patrick, a graduate of UNC School of the Arts. RhinoLeap Artistic Director Jeremy Skidmore is developing the production with Barbara and directing the performance, which features professional actors. The raw material for the script —letters from Company K soldiers before and after the battle, other firsthand accounts and military documents —is provided by the Randolph Room and by Barbara, who has her grandfather’s letters. The performance also includes live music. Barbara reflected on the subject of war as it affected her family in her most recent book of poems, "Blue Star". A previous book, "Piece Work" , was about her father’s experience in the textile mills of Asheboro from the industry’s prosperous era until its recent decline. "Piece Work" was performed as a play by the Touring Theatre of North Carolina. So mark your calendars for 8 p.m. Saturday, September 29, and join us at the Sunset Theatre for this moving and meaningful event.