Right in the Left Lane; Comedy Dealing with Race and Polarization in Southern Politics

New political dramedy webseries, Right in the Left Lane, is set to be released in November and offers a fresh – and funny! – take on racial issues in SC politics. This innovative and topical new series was created, written, and developed in South Carolina, and highlights local talent. Kevin Schumacher, a Columbia entrepreneur, and Darion McCloud, a leader in the Columbia acting community, are the first-time creators behind this series. Right in the Left Lane creatively harnesses the Zoom meeting format to reflect our current political and lived reality while also pioneering new creative filming methods, creating a high-definition series while prioritizing the health and safety of the cast and crew

Right in the Left Lane is a 5-part web series chronicling the ups and downs of life on a fictional political campaign in South Carolina. Darius Lane, a charismatic Black Democratic congressional candidate, agrees to bring on Bubba Lane, his former Citadel roommate, and Republican state chair, as his political strategist. Can this team come together or will their opposing philosophies pull them apart?

Kevin Schumacher and Darion McCloud are the co-creators of this web series and draw upon their own experiences of South Carolina culture and politics. Kevin Schumacher has had a varied career as an entrepreneur, community leader, and now as a film producer with his new business, The Smallest Deed Films. This project grew out of his own experiences as the father to an African-American son. Lead actor and co-creator Darion McCloud is the co-founder and creative director of The NiA Company, the former President of the Friends of African American Art and Culture affiliate with Columbia Museum of Art, and the winner of various awards for his work in theatre and as a community leader.

The eclectic writing team behind this project also includes SC writers Christina Xan, Perry Simpson, and Lou Clyde. Christina Xan is a published poet, playwright, Ph.D. candidate, and Adjunct Professor of English at the University of South Carolina, whose play “Glass” was turned into a short film that premiered and toured SC festivals in 2017. Perry Simpson is an actor, writer, and director based in South Carolina. Buffalo transplant Lou Clyde is an experienced writer whose full-length comedy Pouf! was recently selected for the 2020 SheNYC Summer Theatre festival.

Darion McCoud (Macbeth, Othello, cofounder and creative director of The NiA Company) stars as the lead character, Darius Lane. Right in the Left Lane features Tim Rerucha (Evil Lives Here), Adrienne Lovette (Gotham, Master of None), Kelsey Edwards (The Wolf of Snow Hollow), Renae Geerlings (Halloween II), Charles Milano (Extracted), Andrea Coleman (Stuck), Rytis Valiunas (Russian Yeti: The Killer Lives), and introducing A’Kheri McDaniel as Nala, the daughter of Darius Lane.

This series also features local SC actors, including Amy Beattie (Generation Axe), Merritt Vann (Curtain Call), Ellen Rodillo-Fowler (Mister Dissolute), Amy Mixon (Hell or High Water), George Dinsmore (Our Father Takes a Bride), Arischa Conner (Another Tango), Loretta Brown, and Trina Winde, among other local actors in minor roles.

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