The Billie Holiday Theatre Launches Inaugural BLACK NARRATIVE A Theater Series

As a part of its 2024-25 Season, The Billie Holiday Theatre will launch the inaugural “Black Narrative” theater series.

Celebrating the power of Black storytelling with this new bi-annual series, The Billie will present three days of performances, readings and conversations that give voice to the African American experience. To be held on the theater's iconic stage, the series will begin on Friday, November 15 and run through Sunday, November 17. 

Intended to further The Billie's commitment to centering the exploration of the Black Theater canon and in the spirit of collaboration, each day of “Black Narrative” will spotlight different writers and will be presented in partnership with some of Black theater's most renowned companies and collectives. The weekend will kick off with award-winning actor, singer and writer Daniel Koa Beaty's critically acclaimed one-person show Love Warrior produced by the New Heritage Theatre Group (the oldest Black non-profit theater company in New York State). The performance highlights the power of the human spirit to triumph over immeasurable trauma. Through intimate stories, poetry, song, dance, and multi-character transformation, Beaty shares his journey including a life changing visit to the plantation where his great, great grandmother was enslaved, and his enstooling as a King in Ghana (November 15 @ 7:30PM).

For its Saturday presentation, The Billie collaborates with The Fire This Time Festival (TFTT) to present a special edition with a reading of six 10-minute plays focused on social and political issues impacting the Black community such as gentrification, Black Lives Matter, policing and the concept of  Black joy. Since the debut of the first ten-minute play program in 2010, TFTT has produced and developed the work of more than 100 playwrights whose works explore a range of themes and perspectives. Founded in 2009 by Kelly Girod, The Fire This Time Festival was created to provide a platform for playwrights of African and African-American descent to write and produce evocative material for diverse audiences. Directed by award-winning director and Artistic Director of The Fire This Time Festival Cezar Williams, the selected plays for this iteration include: 

Panopticon by Cyrus Aaron - Things are heating up outside, and two middle-aged men take a familiar spot in their neighborhood to shoot the breeze. They must face the fact that everything around them is changing drastically, but the one thing they intend to keep is their perspective.

Slow Gin Fits by Angelica Cheri - In a spirited game of gin rummy, Harold and Dinah discover  they are both in need of a little more than a card game and small talk to pass the time and kill the pain.  Wonder what a little liquid courage can do?

The Sporting Life of Icarus Jones by Marcus Gardley - The myth of Icarus re-told through the life of a young man discovering his sexuality. 

C.O.G.S. by Samantha Godfrey - A young Brooklynite attends a protest rally with her aunt, on a family visit to the “Peach State,” but she soon learns how bitter democracy can be in the sweet ole South. 

#LakeishaJefferson by Goldie E. Patrick - In the thick of the Black Lives Matter movement    young LaKeisha Jefferson has discovered what she wants to be when she grows up...a hashtag. 

The Weatherin' by Jonathan Payne - In 1905, a man recounts a chilling tale that took place decades earlier about the sacrifices that were made for a daring escape from slavery to freedom.

With Pradanya Subramanyan in the role of Stage Manager, the cast for this presentation includes: Candyce Adkins, Reginald L. Barnes, Alton Ray, Atiya Taylor and Wadiah Waliah (November 16 @ 7:30PM).

On Sunday, “Black Narrative” will culminate with a staged reading of works by celebrated playwrights Amiri Baraka and Aishah Rahman to be presented in partnership with CLASSIX - a group of five theater artists, founded in 2017 by director Awoye Timpo, who joined forces to explore the classical canon through an exploration of Black performance history and dramatic works by Black writers. Along with Timpo, the CLASSIX team includes Brittany Bradford, A.J. Muhammad, Dominique Rider, and Arminda Thomas. With Baraka and Rahman both known for using writing as a tool to reveal the violence that sits underneath the surface of Black American life, A Festival of Violence brings together Baraka's The Dutchman and Rahman response The Lady and The Tramp. The piece is directed by Brooklyn-based director and writer Dominique Rider. Baraka's Dutchman opened off-Broadway in 1964 to critical acclaim, winning that year's Obie Award for Best American Play. In 1965, after the assassination of Malcolm X, Baraka moved to Harlem and founded the Black Arts Repertory Theatre and School, an establishment generally considered the official launch of the Black Arts Movement. As a writer, Rahman was also active in the Black Arts Movement and was the author of numerous plays, including the dramas Unfinished Women Cry In No Man's Land While a Bird Dies in Gilded Cage, The Mojo And The Sayso and Only in America The performance will be followed by a panel discussion that will center on the themes of the plays and what it means to perform them together. With Rachel April* in the role of Stage Manager, cast members for this presentation includes: Amara James Aja*, Leslie Fray* and Starr Kirkland* (November 17 @ 4PM). *Denotes members of the Actors' Equity Association

The Billie's 2024-25 Season marks the iconic theater's first full season under the leadership of Executive Director Shadawn Smith. This year's programming will feature an exciting and expanded lineup to include a new music series, community focused events, dance presentations, special editions of core programs and, of course, theatrical productions uniquely curated to The Billie's standard of excellence. 

“I am so excited to share this upcoming season with our audiences - especially with the launch of the “Black Narrative” theater series! Collaboration was key in building the foundation of this series and we are so thrilled to partner with New Heritage Foundation, CLASSIX and The Fire This Time Festival on this. “Black Narrative” – which I consider to be a major highlight of our season – truly honors the rich legacy of this institution as a home and incubator for Black theater while looking at it through a contemporary lens,” said Smith. “We wanted to create a substantive theater experience that both celebrates and explores the breadth and excellence of the Black theater canon.

Over the course of one weekend, patrons can experience the amazing Daniel Koa Beaty and his much-buzzed about one-person show Love Warrior, the speed-play style of the Fire This Time Festival and the brilliance of Amiri Baraka and Aishah Rahman under the direction of the always dynamic Awoye Tempo. Our hope with this series is to create a new staple in theater for audiences that underscores The Billie's role as the place where Black theater lives and thrives!” 

Ticket Information: Love Warrior - $35, Groups of 10 or more $25; The Fire Next Time Six 10 Minute Plays - $20; CLASSIX Reading- $20; Early Bird Weekend Ticket Package (all 3 days) - $50 available through November 8. For more information, tickets and ticket packages, please visit TheBillieholiday.org.

 

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