Exploring Black Narratives is an immersive theatre education program that exposes students to plays by acclaimed contemporary Black writers by offering opportunities for close reading, virtual performance viewing, scene-study, inanalysis, and first-person interviews with professional actors and directors who have brought such plays to life in productions around the United States.
Adia Alli, Katherine Lee Bourné, Ashley Crowe, Ciera Dawn, and Tiffany Renee Johnson in “School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play” by Jocelyn Bioh, directed by Lili-Anne Brown in 2020 at the Goodman Theatre. (Photo by Liz Lauren)
Co-directors Kendell Pinkney and Lonnie Firestone draw from their professional work in interviewing, writing, theater-making, and teaching to create an impactful, eye-opening experience for students. Read about the creation and development of Exploring Black Narratives in American Theatre Magazine. To learn more and to bring this program to your school, please send a message in Contact.
What People Are Saying
"I cannot thank Lonnie Firestone and Kendell Pinkney enough for bringing their remarkable project, 'Exploring Black Narratives,' to my classroom. They taught my students how to prepare thoughtful and in-depth interview questions, and gave them the opportunity to ask their questions to actors in the production. We had powerful discussions about race and privilege. I recommend this program to other educators."
— Na'amit Sturm Nagel, English teacher at Shalhevet high school in Los Angeles
"Thank you so much for bringing this program to our students! The students were very engaged and all participated on a high-level. I love the way you brought each student into the discussion. You brought out the best in them."
— Sarah Antine, Berman Academy, Director of Deborah Lerner Gross Jewish Cultural Arts Center
“Thanks so much for all the work you have done with our students. They have learned so much from you.”