Sit down for an informal and compelling chat with Winston-Salem-based NC Black Rep Artistic Director Jackie Alexander as the award-winning playwright-director talks about the history of the acclaimed company and the importance of sharing the black experience on the stage. A native of New Orleans, Jackie Alexander is an award-winning actor, writer, producer, director, former Artistic Director of The Billie Holiday Theatre in New York, and current Artistic Director of North Carolina Black Repertory Company, producers of The National Black Theatre Festival. His debut novel, Our Daily Bread, was published by Turner Publishing in the fall of 2012. His debut feature film Joy was awarded Best Feature Film by the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame, and also earned Best Actor and Best Screenplay honors for Jackie on the festival circuit. The OBIE and AUDELCO Award-winning Billie Holiday Theatre in New York devoted its entire 2010-2011 season to Jackie’s work; commissioning him to write three new plays and making him the only playwright in the storied history of the theatre to receive that honor. In 2018, the Black Theatre Network (BTN) honored Jackie with the Presidential Pathfinder Award at its yearly conference in Memphis, Tennessee. The award is presented to an artist or an institution that illuminates a path to innovations and new concepts in Black Theatre.

This special preview is scheduled in conjunction with the planned performance by the NC Black Repertory Company as part of the festival’s 2021 season.

To learn more about NC Black Rep: https://ncblackrep.org/

Available via YouTube, appsummer.org