Berkeley Rep to Present the West Coast Premiere of JAJA'S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING

Direct from a twice-extended run on Broadway, Berkeley Rep will present the West Coast premiere of Jocelyn Bioh’s Tony Award-winning new comedy, JAJA’S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING (November 8–December 15, 2024).  Single tickets are available now online or by phone at 510-647-2949 (Tue–Sun, 12–7 p.m.). Ticket prices are subject to change without notice.
 
Step into the vibrant world of Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, a beloved Harlem hotspot where West African immigrant braiders work their magic on the locals' locks. Amidst the lively buzz of a scorching summer, love ignites, dreams soar, and secrets unravel. But beneath the surface lies a current of uncertainty, pushing this close-knit community to confront the challenges of being outsiders in their own neighborhood.
 
From the pen of acclaimed Tony Award-nominated Ghanaian American playwright Jocelyn Bioh (Goddess, School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play) and directed by Tony Award nominee and Obie Award winner Whitney White, JAJA’S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING is “a play that is equally affecting as it is hilarious,” hails Entertainment Weekly. Jaja’s African Hair Braiding is a co-production with Arena Stage and Chicago Shakespeare Theater, in association with Madison Wells Live & LaChanze.
 
“I am so proud to bring Jocelyn's beautiful play, in Whitney's glorious production, to the West Coast for the first time,” said Berkeley Rep Artistic Director Johanna Pfaelzer. “Jaja's African Hair Braiding is a celebration of community and culture that offers a vibrant and complex look into the lives of the women who make Harlem's hair braiding salons such vital spaces.  Part of Jocelyn's brilliance is her ability to take a particular setting, which may or may not be familiar to audiences, and allow us each the capacity to connect the stories of the women who inhabit this shop to our own narratives of identity and ongoing search for home.”
 
The cast of Jaja’s African Hair Braiding includes (in alphabetical order) Melanie Brezill, Victoire Charles, Yao Dogbe, Mia Ellis, Tiffany Renee Johnson, Colby N. Muhammad, Jordan Rice, Awa Sal Secka, Aisha Sougou, and Bisserat Tseggai.
 
The creative team for Jaja’s African Hair Braiding includes David Zinn (Scenic Design), Dede Ayite (Costume Design – Tony Award for Best Costume Design of a Play), Jiyoun Chang (Lighting Design), Justin Ellington (Original Music and Sound Design), Stefania Bulbarella (Video Designer), and Nikiya Mathis (Hair and Wig Design - Special Tony Award). 
  
Jaja’s African Hair Braiding was nominated for five 2023 Tony Awards, including Best Play and Best Direction of a Play, and winning for Best Costume Design (Play), plus a special award for Nikiya Mathis’s Hair and Wig design. In addition, the production was nominated for three 2023 Drama Desk Awards, including Outstanding Play, Outstanding Wig & Hair, and Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play.

Berkeley Rep recognizes the generous support of BART and Peet’s Coffee, Berkeley Rep’s official season sponsors. Berkeley Rep is also delighted to recognize the support at the season sponsor level from Stephen & Susan Chamberlin, Yogen & Peggy Dalal, Bruce Golden & Michelle Mercer, Frances Hellman & Warren Breslau, Wayne Jordan & Quinn Delaney, Jonathan Logan & John Piane, Gisele & Kenneth F. Miller, Jack & Betty Schafer, The Strauch Kulhanjian Family, Kelli & Steffan Tomlinson, and Gail & Arne Wagner.

Photo credit: T. Charles Erickson Photography

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