Read more
Kathryn Ervin and Ethel Pitts Walker have compiled a delicately balanced and impeccably coherent anthology of some of the best scenes from the past sixty years of African American theatre. Each scene subtly articulates African American culture in a Western frame and explores universal themes embedded in unique characters, stories, languages, and time periods. Theatrically appropriate for secondary students, African American Scenebook also provides unique opportunities for classroom discussion about the difficult issues relating to race in America.
List of contents
Part 1 Comedies; Chapter 1 The Church Fight, Ruth Gaines-Shelton; Chapter 2 On Striver's Row, Abram Hill; Chapter 3 Simply Heavenly, Langston Hughes, David Martin; Chapter 4 Purlie Victorious, Ossie Davis; Part 2 Dramas; Chapter 5 For Unborn Children, Myrtle Smith Livingston; Chapter 6 The Purple Flower, Marita Bonner; Chapter 7 A Medal for Willie, William Branch; Chapter 8 Take a Giant Step, Louis Peterson; Chapter 9 Strictly Matrimony, Errol Hill; Chapter 10 A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry; Chapter 11 The Amen Corner, James Baldwin; Chapter 12 Morning, Noon, and Night, Ted Shine; Chapter 13 The Tumult and the Shouting, Thomas D. PawleyIII; Chapter 14 Who's Got His Own, Ron Milner; Chapter 15 Paper Dolls, Elaine Jackson; Chapter 16 Brown Silk and Magenta Sunsets, P. J. Gibson; Part 3 Histories; Chapter 17 Don't You Want to Be Free?, Langston Hughes; Chapter 18 In Splendid Error, William Branch; Chapter 19 To Be Young, Gifted, and Black, Robert Nemiroff; Chapter 20 Roads of the Mountaintop, Ron Milner; Chapter 21 The Meeting, Jeff Stetson;
About the author
Kathryn M. Ervin is an Artist Educator in the Department of Theatre Arts at California State University, San Bernadino. A director and acting teacher, her special interest is in theatre for marginalized populations. She is a member and past president of the Black Theatre Network, a fellow of The California Arts Project and active in several national theatre organizations. EthelPitts Walker is Professor of Theatre Arts and teaches in the African American Studies Department at San Jose State University. She is a past president of the Black Theatre Network and the California Educational Theatre Association. Author of numerous articles, she is editor of New/Lost Plays by Ed Bullins and is working on a biography of Dr. Thomas D. Pawley, one of the deans of educational theatre.
Summary
This anthology presents plays which articulate African American culture in a Western frame and plays with universal themes embedded in unique characters, stories, language and time periods. Theatrically appropriate for secondary students, the plays create venues for discussion about issues.
