African American Theatre Quotes

I had studied at the NYU School of the Arts under Lloyd Richards, who also worked with the Negro Ensemble Company.

I was first introduced to August Wilson in the 80s when Charles Dutton did Ma Rainey and James Earl Jones and Courtney Vance did Fences. I've long considered August Wilson to be one of the five greatest playwrights in American history.

Atlanta was a welcoming presence for a lot of artists; they called it 'the Mecca of the South.' I got to see the Negro Ensemble Company, Cicely Tyson, Geraldine Page, Ruby Dee, all onstage.

I started at Howard in the drama department. At the same time, I was a fledgling member of the Black Repertory Company in Washington, D.C. When I graduated, I had the great fortune of being in the Los Angeles production of 'For Colored Girls'... And all these years since, I've done stage work.

Woodie King Jr., in 1970, had started a company called the New Federal Theatre, which was ensconced at the Henry Street Settlement. I did a number of plays there, and I auditioned each time. The plays were mostly new. New York was very fertile ground; there was a plethora of African-American plays being done.

Generally, the realm in which black playwrights have been allowed to achieve success has been social realism or musicals.

I knew from experience at the Negro Ensemble Company that it wasn't until there was a place controlled by black artists... that Pulitzer Prize-winning work like 'Ceremonies in Dark Old Men' and 'A Soldier's Play' came to fruition.

Myself, I believe that black theatre continues to evolve, and the success of writers like Bola Agbaje and Rachel De-lahay is proof that fresh voices continue to emerge.