The First Breeze of Summer


Book Description

This striking story of a middle class Black family in a small Northeastern city is told on two levels: events that transpire on one hot June weekend and flashbacks to the memories of the visiting grandmother as a young woman. She recalls the three men, two black and one white, who are the fathers of her three children. A resourceful woman, she feels some regrets, no shame and feels she has had a useful life. Lou, an oversensitive boy who is about to graduate from high school, worships the grandmother. The resolution of his problems and his acceptance of his sexuality and blackness form the backbone of the play.




Monologues for Actors of Color


Book Description

"This collection features 45 monologues excerpted from contemporary plays and specially geared for actors of color. Robert Uno has carefully selected the monologues so that there is a wide-range of ethnicities included: African American, Native American, Latino and Asian American. Each monologue comes with an introduction with notes on the characters and stage directions to set the scene for the actor."--Publisher.




Theatre World 2008-2009


Book Description

Scenes from the plays and portraits of leading actors accompany a statistical record of the current season




Historical Dictionary of African American Theater


Book Description

This second edition of Historical Dictionary of African American Theater reflects the rich history and representation of the black aesthetic and the significance of African American theater’s history, fleeting present, and promise to the future. It celebrates nearly 200 years of black theater in the United States and the thousands of black theater artists across the country—identifying representative black theaters, playwrights, plays, actors, directors, and designers and chronicling their contributions to the field from the birth of black theater in 1816 to the present. This second edition of Historical Dictionary of African American Theater, Second Edition contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 700 cross-referenced entries on actors, playwrights, plays, musicals, theatres, -directors, and designers. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know and more about African American Theater.




The First Rose of Summer


Book Description

At twenty-six, Paul Matthews has attained wealth, position, and popularity as a financial manager in one of New Yorks leading companies. His life of fast cars, expensive restaurants, and beautiful women is the envy of his peers and one he believes will keep him satisfieduntil Brooke comes into his life. Brookes beauty captures his attention the moment he sets eyes on her. Her intelligence, talent, and strong character cause him to consider what part she may play in his life. Her strong faith, however, reminds him of a past he has long tried to forget, one he rejected long ago and to which vowed never to return. When a series of high-risk financial decisions prove to be profitable for the company and their clients, Paul is promoted and given access to secrets within the companyillegal activity that could bring the company, its executives and stockholders to ruin. A wealthy and influential foreign business executive, Marcus Reed, befriends Paul and reveals to him the great power and success that can be his if he is willing to compromise his moral principles and accept these secrets as necessary business practices. Paul must decide whether he will continue his path of corruption in order to maintain his lavish lifestyle or listen to the voice within, the voice awakened by Brookes faith, urging him to make the honorable choicea choice that would cost him his wealth, position and perhaps even his life.




Summer Breeze


Book Description

New York Times bestselling author Catherine Anderson explores the history of the beloved Coulter Family with this timeless tale that will make you believe in the power of love… The year is 1889, and Rachel Hollister hasn’t set foot outside her house in five years. Ever since a savage attack left her family dead, she’s cordoned herself off from the outside world, afraid to let anyone into her home—or into her heart. But now trouble has appeared on her doorstep—and suddenly she has no choice but to let a handsome rancher invade her well-guarded existence... Confirmed bachelor Joseph Paxton grudgingly offers to take up temporary residence at the Hollister ranch—even though it’s obvious that Rachel doesn’t want his protection. But once he catches a glimpse of his beautiful young ward and her remarkable spirit, he’ll do anything to make her see the refuge he’s offering in his embrace—and the splendor that exists beyond her front door. Otherwise he’ll just have to build a safe haven big enough for the both of them.




The Great American Playwrights on the Screen


Book Description

"The profound expansion of television into American homes in the 1950s brought a flood of adapted plays to the small screen and resulted in the rebirth of the careers of many significant playwrights. The Great American Playwrights on the Screen provides fans with a video and DVD guide to the adapted works of the playwrights and shows which versions are available for home viewing and in what media (VHS and DVD). It resurrects the memory of television productions of plays at a critical time, when many of them - including Emmy winners and nominees - are deteriorating in vaults."--BOOK JACKET.




The Routledge Companion to African American Theatre and Performance


Book Description

The Routledge Companion to African American Theatre and Performance is an outstanding collection of specially written essays that charts the emergence, development, and diversity of African American Theatre and Performance—from the nineteenth-century African Grove Theatre to Afrofuturism. Alongside chapters from scholars are contributions from theatre makers, including producers, theatre managers, choreographers, directors, designers, and critics. This ambitious Companion includes: A "Timeline of African American theatre and performance." Part I "Seeing ourselves onstage" explores the important experience of Black theatrical self-representation. Analyses of diverse topics including historical dramas, Broadway musicals, and experimental theatre allow readers to discover expansive articulations of Blackness. Part II "Institution building" highlights institutions that have nurtured Black people both on stage and behind the scenes. Topics include Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), festivals, and black actor training. Part III "Theatre and social change" surveys key moments when Black people harnessed the power of theatre to affirm community realities and posit new representations for themselves and the nation as a whole. Topics include Du Bois and African Muslims, women of the Black Arts Movement, Afro-Latinx theatre, youth theatre, and operatic sustenance for an Afro future. Part IV "Expanding the traditional stage" examines Black performance traditions that privilege Black worldviews, sense-making, rituals, and innovation in everyday life. This section explores performances that prefer the space of the kitchen, classroom, club, or field. This book engages a wide audience of scholars, students, and theatre practitioners with its unprecedented breadth. More than anything, these invaluable insights not only offer a window onto the processes of producing work, but also the labour and economic issues that have shaped and enabled African American theatre. Chapter 20 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.




The A to Z of African American Theater


Book Description

African American Theater is a vibrant and unique entity enriched by ancient Egyptian rituals, West African folklore, and European theatrical practices. A continuum of African folk traditions, it combines storytelling, mythology, rituals, music, song, and dance with ancestor worship from ancient times to the present. It afforded black artists a cultural gold mine to celebrate what it was like to be an African American in The New World. The A to Z of African American Theater celebrates nearly 200 years of black theater in the United States, identifying representative African American theater-producing organizations and chronicling their contributions to the field from its birth in 1816 to the present. This is done through a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, and over 500 cross-referenced dictionary entries on actors, directors, playwrights, plays, theater producing organizations, themes, locations, and theater movements and awards.




Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors


Book Description

From live productions of the 1950s like Requiem for a Heavyweight to big budget mini-series like Band of Brothers, long-form television programs have been helmed by some of the most creative and accomplished names in directing. Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors brings attention to the directors of these productions, citing every director of stand alone long-form television programs: made for TV movies, movie-length pilots, mini-series, and feature-length anthology programs, as well as drama, comedy, and musical specials of more than 60 minutes. Each of the nearly 2,000 entries provides a brief career sketch of the director, his or her notable works, awards, and a filmography. Many entries also provide brief discussions of key shows, movies, and other productions. Appendixes include Emmy Awards, DGA Awards, and other accolades, as well as a list of anthology programs. A much-needed reference that celebrates these often-neglected artists, Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors is an indispensable resource for anyone interested in the history of the medium.