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Black Theatre USA: Plays by African Americans – The Early Period 1847-1938
Traces the history of African American drama, gathers major plays by African American writers, and includes background information on each play and author
- GenresPlaysTheatreAnthologies
432 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 24, 2025
An appreciated tour through representative and notable black theater through the “early” period of 1847-1938.
The blurbs were appreciated, and succinct, the structure and organization made sense, and I think the selections were justifiably good choices to put in here.
However I also did not find many of the plays very good! Some I definitely think depend on a live performance to feel the impact, others were relics of their time.
Oh well, I tried.
The blurbs were appreciated, and succinct, the structure and organization made sense, and I think the selections were justifiably good choices to put in here.
However I also did not find many of the plays very good! Some I definitely think depend on a live performance to feel the impact, others were relics of their time.
Oh well, I tried.
December 5, 2019
The plays in this set cover a wide range of topics and styles and time periods. But they all provide vivid vignettes of the life of African American and the racism they experienced.
Don’t You Want to Be Free? *** -- This drama by Langston Hughes would be interesting to see, with the wide range of music and its broad view of the history of African Americans and the discrimination they’ve suffered. However, it has a rather didactic feel, like a church play or a history pageant held at a school. And I’m sure that was its primary purpose. It was not meant to be a traditional play with characters and plot.
Rachel*** – This is a moving drama about a young woman’s rejection of motherhood – refusing to bring any African American children in the world to suffer. It’s a simple, but moving play.
Mine Eyes Have Seen *** -- In this play a young man – and his neighbors – debate whether he should obey a draft order and go to war for a nation that mistreats him and his kind.
Unborn Children *** -- This is, unexpectedly to me, a play about avoiding mix-raced marriages. I wasn’t aware that was also the feeling of many African Americans.
The Church Fight *** -- A funny satire on a church congregation’s attempt to get rid of their preacher.
The Purple Flower *** -- This play by Marita Bonner is almost like a medieval mystery play – an allegorical story about racism. It speaks to the difficulty of liberation and equality, the uncertainty about what to do to achieve it. Although written as a play, it would be difficult if not impossible to perform as described. It is perhaps more of a philosophical dialogue.
The Purple Flower *** -- This play by Marita Bonner is almost like a medieval mystery play – an allegorical story about racism. It speaks to the difficulty of liberation and equality, the uncertainty about what to do to achieve it. Although written as a play, it would be difficult if not impossible to perform as described. It is perhaps more of a philosophical dialogue.
The Colored Museum *** -- This play satirizes many staples of African American life through a series of sketches based on museum displays. I especially liked the opening scenes, but as the play proceeded it moved away from the museum idea and lost a bit of focus. It was very funny in spots, though. (12/19)
Don’t You Want to Be Free? *** -- This drama by Langston Hughes would be interesting to see, with the wide range of music and its broad view of the history of African Americans and the discrimination they’ve suffered. However, it has a rather didactic feel, like a church play or a history pageant held at a school. And I’m sure that was its primary purpose. It was not meant to be a traditional play with characters and plot.
Rachel*** – This is a moving drama about a young woman’s rejection of motherhood – refusing to bring any African American children in the world to suffer. It’s a simple, but moving play.
Mine Eyes Have Seen *** -- In this play a young man – and his neighbors – debate whether he should obey a draft order and go to war for a nation that mistreats him and his kind.
Unborn Children *** -- This is, unexpectedly to me, a play about avoiding mix-raced marriages. I wasn’t aware that was also the feeling of many African Americans.
The Church Fight *** -- A funny satire on a church congregation’s attempt to get rid of their preacher.
The Purple Flower *** -- This play by Marita Bonner is almost like a medieval mystery play – an allegorical story about racism. It speaks to the difficulty of liberation and equality, the uncertainty about what to do to achieve it. Although written as a play, it would be difficult if not impossible to perform as described. It is perhaps more of a philosophical dialogue.
The Purple Flower *** -- This play by Marita Bonner is almost like a medieval mystery play – an allegorical story about racism. It speaks to the difficulty of liberation and equality, the uncertainty about what to do to achieve it. Although written as a play, it would be difficult if not impossible to perform as described. It is perhaps more of a philosophical dialogue.
The Colored Museum *** -- This play satirizes many staples of African American life through a series of sketches based on museum displays. I especially liked the opening scenes, but as the play proceeded it moved away from the museum idea and lost a bit of focus. It was very funny in spots, though. (12/19)
September 18, 2018
In this one I liked Big White Fog and A Soldier's Story.
I think it's fair to say that most of these are not as well known as the stories in the later volume and to be fair, I think the later plays have better quality.
But that is perfectly understandable considering the context.
A very interesting and important history, which is not very known to most contemporary readers though.
I think it's fair to say that most of these are not as well known as the stories in the later volume and to be fair, I think the later plays have better quality.
But that is perfectly understandable considering the context.
A very interesting and important history, which is not very known to most contemporary readers though.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews