First visit to the Jubilee Theatre in Fort Worth. Totally loved it, the space and milieu. Last night, saw the final performance of Jubilee's production of Carlyle Brown's The African Company Presents Richard III (Dramatists Play Service, Inc., 1994; original copyright 1989).
Sly meditations on race, gender, culture and power, well performed. Set in or around 1821 in New York City, Brown's play focuses on the production of Richard III* by a black theatre group and the reactions from a bigger, white-owned theatre group manager. Slavery still existed in New York State at the time, though it was on its way out and there were many free blacks and newly arrived European immigrants living in the city. I found the play, based on a real historical situation and incidents, fascinating and quite relevant to today.
The Jubilee Theatre was formed in the early 1980s, in a different Fort Worth location. Now it's right in downtown Fort Worth, just off Sundance Square. Here's a link to the Jubilee website:
http://www.jubileetheatre.org/
From the Jubilee website:
"Mission Statement:
To create and present theatrical works which reflect the African-American experience.
Jubilee Theatre’s Core Principles:
- Create and present works that reflect the African-American experience.
- Promote and present new works, with a focus on both musicals and plays.
- Find and present the universal message in the works, so as to attract and affect a diverse and multicultural audience."
3 comments:
Sounds like a great venue and selection.
I remember spending some time around Fort Worth. Quite a few good cultural things happening there.
Thanks all for the comments -- much appreciated between hail storm, firestorms, tornadoes and brimstone! WM, at least there were some people fighting for the change in New York State and elsewhere. Of course they were considered a pain in the ass at the time, but that's only b/c they were ahead of it in their thinking.
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