Obsidian Theatre Festival Reveals Lineup FOr 3rd Annual Obsidian Theatre Festival

The Obsidian Theatre Festival has announced the line-up for the 3rd Annual Obsidian Theatre Festival, taking place at 3 different locations in downtown Detroit. This collaboration between GhostLight Creative Productions & Nicely Theatre Group, now in its third year, features plays from four playwrights, a new musical, and a special opening night cabaret.

OTF received over 100 submissions after a six-week call for plays and musicals by Black playwrights, composers, and lyricists from December 2022 to mid January 2023. Submissions were read by the 2023 Submission Review Committee, which included: 2nd Year MT Showcase Lyricist and Book writer, Ann Eskridge and Inaugural year Playwright and 2nd year Actor, Edmund Alyn Jones. The Musical Theatre Submission Review Committee included: Kristina N. Miller and Jason Veasey (A Strange Loop, The Lion King, Only Murders In The Building). Artistic Consultant, and former Associate Artistic Director, Alexis Sims chaired both committees.

The 4 finalists selected from that group of 10 to be produced as part of this year's festival are: April Amara with "title pending", Cris Blak with "The Underground Color Wheel", kay kemp with "and god made man", and Melanie Payne with "Color Blind".

The Musical Theatre Showcase, gives a Black composer and lyricist team an opportunity to workshop a piece in development. Selected Playwright/Lyricist/Composer, Germono Toussaint with "The Last Gatekeeper" will have his musical produced as part of our showcase this year for 2 consecutive nights on Friday, June 23rd at 5:30pm and Saturday, June 24th at 4:30pm in the Chrysler Black Box at the Detroit Opera House on 1526 Broadway St.

The weekend begins with an Opening Night Cabaret, featuring an evening of musical theatre performances / cabaret for one night only at Cliff Bell's on 2030 Park Ave on Thursday, June 22nd at 9:00pm.

Each of the 4 plays will have two performances at The Boll Family YMCA, while the Musical Theatre Showcase will perform twice at The Chrysler Black Box inside the Detroit Opera House. Performances begin Thursday, June 22nd and end on Sunday, June 25th. General Admission tickets are free of charge and will be made available at the end of the month.

Festival Passes are now available. Each tier includes access to our streaming platform, which includes festival content from the 1st and 2nd seasons, priority seating, and access to special gifts and events. All passes and tickets are available via the website at www.obsidianfest.org.

In lieu of admission, and as in previous years, we ask all audience members to consider supporting partners /, The Detroit Public Schools Foundation, Black Theatre United, or making a donation to Obsidian [LINK: http://bit.ly/glaigive].

Due to the pandemic, the inaugural year of the festival was fully streamed at a time when in-person activities were limited, however this year's festival will add in-person offerings at 3 different locations in Downtown Detroit: Marlene Boll Theatre at Downtown YMCA at 1401 Broadway St, The Chrysler Black Box at The Detroit Opera House on 1526 Broadway St. and Cliff Bell's on 2030 Park Ave. In an effort to continue to be accessible to all, this year's festival will be available to stream in its entirety beginning in August of 2023.

After two successful years , Obsidian's live and virtual offerings are back, with an expanded team. "Words can't express how excited I am to grow this festival. We launched OTF in 2020, during a time when the world truly felt upside down. People were flooding the streets across the country in protest, while we all grappled with the effects of a global pandemic. We needed an outlet. We needed a way to speak, to shout, to stand emboldened by our truth -- by the sheer audacity of our existence. That's why The Obsidian Theatre Festival is important. Words can't express how excited I am to grow this festival. We give a voice to Black artists across the country. We center a city responsible for propelling a nation's economy. We use theatre as a catalyst for social change. This might just be our third season, but we've already been able to infuse hundreds of thousands of dollars into the Detroit economy, providing employment for over 200 individuals. And we've only just begun. We are proud of our accomplishments so far, and how inspired we are to build our future.", says John Sloan III, OTF Co-Executive Producer and Producing Artistic Director (The Lion King).

Last year's festival was made possible, in part, through the generous support of the Mellon Foundation. Over the past 2 seasons, The Obsidian Theatre Festival has produced over 100 individual segments including panels, interviews, behind the scenes videos, original music performances, and educational opportunities for students across the country, with viewership in 48 states and 28 countries.

"In addition to producing well-known musicals, Nicely Theatre Group wants to support the production of lesser known shows that can serve to educate people and foster thinking and conversation." Said Co-Executive Producer and Founder of Nicely Theatre Group, David Carroll. " In our country and in Detroit in particular, issues of race are at the forefront. We believe that storytelling through Theatre is an excellent way for people to learn and to provoke thought. There are many talented Black artists in the Detroit area who have much to say, and they deserve a platform from which to say it. Obsidian Theatre Festival provides this platform."

Similar to the 2nd year, the 6 remaining main stage semi-finalists will go on to have their work virtually supported by Blackboard Plays, a reading series founded by Obsidian's Senior Creative Producer and Detroit Native, Garlia Cornelia Jones in 2008. Blackboard Plays is devoted to Black Playwrights throughout the African Diaspora and has given first readings to Black playwrights over the last 15 years, including Jocelyn Bioh, Aurin Squire and Tony nominated, Jordan E. Cooper.

THE 3RD ANNUAL OBSIDIAN THEATRE FESTIVAL LINE-UP:

"The Underground Color Wheel" by Cris Blak, Directed by K Edmonds

In "The Underground Color Wheel", Cris Blak tells the story of the twenty year journey of painter Ivory Nichols. Despite coming from humble beginnings, Ivory doesn't dream of being a good artist, he dreams of being a great artist. As his success grows and he begins to see his biggest dreams coming true, he finds the support of his "Ebony Mona Lisa," Ashlyn, his best friend, Enzo, and his assistant, Lorelei. As time goes by and the pressures of success weigh heavier, the line between his art and his life begin to blur, putting everything on the line.

"Color Blind" by Melanie Payne, Directed by Billicia Hines

Melanie Payne's "Color Blind" tells the story of an interracial friendship between Angie and Leslie that hits a bump when Angie discovers that the two share an ancestor. While Angie is excited by the discovery, Leslie is disturbed by the fact that the ancestor fathered and owned her great-grandfather. It's not long before resentment overtakes the friendship. Can people of different races ever truly be friends or is the damage done by slavery and systemic racism too much to overcome?

"title pending" by April Amara, Directed by Asia Mark

In "title pending", April Amara tells the story of Alive! Theatre, a small, Black theatre company in Poughkeepsie, New York, that is deep in the rehearsal process for a historically lauded American Classic, "Only Two are Invited to Dinner". Suddenly, they receive word that the estate of the play's legendary playwright has revoked their rights to the script after witnessing what they believe to be "a misunderstanding of authorial intent" by having an all-black cast. To save the already flailing company, artistic director Tommy enlists the help of world-renowned famous playwright, Marcel Lamareaux, to premiere his new play at Alive!, launching the theatre (and its actors) into stardom.

"and god made man" by kay kemp, Directed by Dan Johnson

kay kemp's "and god made man" is an exploration of Black masculinity, and the harmful interaction which rigid gender performativity has not only on the men who subscribe to it, but those whose bodies are caught in the crossfire. In the play, Caesar and Antony find themselves married to the same woman. As a solution, they decide to take turns "being the husband" and exploring what it means to be a man. Along the way they elucidate their relationships with their "wife," the world, and each other.

MUSICAL THEATRE SHOWCASE

Germono Toussaint with "The Last Gatekeeper"

Playwright/Lyricist/ Composer Germono Toussaint tells the Afro-futurist story of Nandi, a second-generation West African mother, who suspects that her spiritually gifted, sensitive, and inquisitive son Soku, is SGL (same gender loving)/Queer. To maintain Soku's safety, Nandi tries to keep him from embracing his true nature, while his grandmother Adisa, a witch trained in the traditions of her people, counters this by teaching him the ways of the ancient Gatekeepers, connecting him to his ancestor spirits, and helping him develop his spiritual gifts.

Our Musical Theatre Showcase will be directed by Rueben Echoles. William Harrison returns as Music Director. They will have their performances in the Chrysler Black Box at the Detroit Opera House on 1526 Broadway St.

CABARET

This season's festival will kick off with an Opening Night Cabaret, featuring artists from across Detroit, as OTF highlights the contribution of African-American artists to Musical Theatre history.

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