ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø

African-American theatre as a genre includes work written and created by African-American writers. Social and aesthetic movements such as the Harlem Renaissance and Black Arts Movement inspired new methods of creation and publication in the arts, as well as expanding the audience for the works. African-American theatre history and literature is complex and sometimes contradictory. This guide offers a general overview of the representation of African-American performers, stories, dramatic works, and audiences.

Key Dates, Events, & Genres

• 1821 - The African Grove Theatre is founded by William Alexander Brown
• 1853 - George L. Aiken’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin is presented at the National Theater in New York
• 1909 - the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is founded by W.E.B. Du Bois and other leaders
• c.1914-1939 - the Harlem Renaissance
• 1921 - Shuffle Along premieres on Broadway
• 1940 - The American Negro Theatre is founded in Harlem
• 1959 - Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun is the first play by an African-American woman to be produced on Broadway
• 1965 - Amiri Baraka (formerly Leroi Jones) founds the Black Arts Repertory Theatre/School (BARTS)
• 1974 - Joseph A. Walker is the first African-American playwright to win the Tony Award for Best Play, The River Niger
• 1975 - Charlie Smalls wins the Tony Award for Best Original Score for The Wiz; Geoffrey Holder wins for Best Musical Direction
• 1996 - Bring in ‘Da Noise, Bring in ‘Da Funk premieres
• 2012 - Suzan-Lori Parks is the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play Topdog/Underdog
• 2017 - Lynn Nottage becomes the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice: Ruined (2009) and Sweat (2017)
• 2016 - Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed premieres
• 2018 - Slave Play by Jeremy O. Harris debuts Off-Broadway before transferring to Broadway in 2019. Controversy over the play’s themes, especially the representation of Black women during slavery, prompted petitions calling for the production to be shut down.