On Holy Ground: The National Black Theatre Festival
Back in August after a pandemic hiatus, the biennial gathering of Black theatremakers reclaimed its status as both a reunion and a showcase for new work.
Back in August after a pandemic hiatus, the biennial gathering of Black theatremakers reclaimed its status as both a reunion and a showcase for new work.
Inspired by the Federal Theatre Project and the Black Arts Movement, the New Lafayette Theatre and New Federal Theatre were hubs of both art and activism.
One theatre staged shows on the front lines of the Civil Rights struggle in the South, while the other made a home for Black excellence in New York City.
Out of conversations and readings in an actor’s apartment, one of the great American theatre companies was born.