THE BEST PART OF NIGHT IS BLACK By UGBA And Directed By Zhailon Levingston to Have Industry Reading

THE BEST PART OF NIGHT IS BLACK, a new "Black Queer Horror Love Story" written my multi-hyphenate artist and playwright UGBA and directed by award-winning director, deviser and arts advocate Zhailon Levingston (Broadway's "Chicken And Biscuits"), will host an invitation-only industry reading on Monday, October 30, 2023 at 8PM at Bed-Stuy Art House in Brooklyn, NY. Nic Ashe (TV's "Queen Sugar") and Broderick Clavery ("Quarter Rican") will star.

THE BEST PART OF NIGHT IS BLACK tells the story of Malachi and Kareem, a Black Queer couple wrestling with the aftermath of devastating news. When their one-bedroom apartment becomes haunted by something otherworldly, will their relationship get caught in the crossfire? THE BEST PART OF NIGHT IS BLACK is a tale about grief, loss, and the shit they don't tell us about falling in love.

The immersive staged reading will feature sound design by Christopher Darbassie; spiritual dramaturgy by Langston Kahn; vibe curation by Regi Angelou; and stage management by Sheree V. Campbell. THE BEST PART OF NIGHT IS BLACK is produced by Bryan Joseph Lee.

This project's development has been made possible with generous support from The MAP Foundation, The Shubert Organization's Artistic Circle, and with special thanks to our friends at Bed-Stuy Art House, Hi-ARTS, and Dixon Place.

Ungrateful Black Artist

(UGBA - 'oog ba') (pronoun inclusive) is a queer poet, rapper, playwright, actor, and activist based out of Brooklyn, NY. UGBA is the founder/host of CEREMONIES-a Brooklyn based monthly Black-Queer artist showcase held in honor of Essex Hemphill. UGBA is also the founder of "Dark-Skin Support Group," a virtual support network for dark-skin Black Americans in need of a space to discuss the realities of colorism. In 2020, UGBA was named a "Black LGBTQ+ playwright you need to know '' by Time Out NY. UGBA also served as script assistant for the Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Fat Ham" on Broadway. He is an alumnus of The Public Theater's #BARS program and The Public Theater's Emerging Writers Group 2020-2023 cohort. UGBA is the recipient of the Founder's Award from New York Stage and Film, a 2023 Artivism Fellow through Broadway Advocacy Coalition, a 2022 MAP Grant recipient, a 2020-2021 BAM Resident, and the current Artistic Director at NY Writers Coalition.

Zhailon Levingston

(he/him) is a Louisiana-raised storyteller, director, and activist. He is a Board Member for the Broadway Advocacy Coalition, where he co-created, and taught the Theatre of Change course at Columbia University, which is going into its third year. He is a Music Mentor Fellow and has done work with Idina Menzel's A Broader Way Foundation. His directing credits include: "Neptune" (Dixon Place, Brooklyn Museum), "The Years That Went Wrong" (Lark, MCC), "The Exonerated" (Columbia Law School), "Chariot Part 2" (Soho Rep., for The Movement Theatre Company), "Mother of Pearl" (LaGuardia Performing Arts Center). He is the associate director of "Primer for a Failed Superpower" with Tony Award-winner Rachel Chavkin, and "Runaways" at The Public Theater with Sam Pinkleton. Zhailon is the original resident director at "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" on Broadway and the associate director of "Hadestown'' in South Korea. Most recently, Zhailon directed "Patience" by Johnny G. Lloyd at 2nd Stage Uptown, and "Chicken and Biscuits" by Douglas Lyons which premiered on Broadway.

Bryan Joseph Lee

(he/any) is a producer, arts leader, and the founder of CNTR ARTS, a creative agency that centers artists, activists and communities of color through creative producing and strategic consulting initiatives. He is also the Founder and Co-Curator of theurbanX.org, an international arts residency program based in Mexico City, MX and New York, NY that connects Black and Brown creatives across the diaspora through the lens of urban culture.

Previously, Bryan served as Director of Public Forum at The Public Theater in New York City, where he investigated civic organizing and cultural change-making at one of the nation's leading off-Broadway theater companies. He has also independently produced several Black, BIPOC, Queer and Trans artists at venues like La Mama Theater Company, The Shed, Chelsea Factory, and Dixon Place in New York City.

In 2021, Bryan was named a Producer-In-Residence with The Shubert Organization on Broadway. In 2022, Bryan was the opening keynote speaker at TedXBroadway's 10th Anniversary Summit.

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