Orin James’s Profile Student Toggle navigation

A study of African American dramatic literature to explore the complex ways in which the black experience is constructed and presented by playwrights. Students may have an opportunity to experience a theatrical production in New York City. More specifically, this course is divided into distinct sections. It includes a historical overview of early Black theatre throughout the diaspora. It considers how mid-twentieth century playwrights like Lorraine Hansberry, James Baldwin, Leroi Jones/Amiri Baraka, and Ntozake Shange shape the aesthetics and discourses within Black theatre, and in doing so, create trajectories for contemporary Black playwrights, who also explore the social, political and cultural experiences of Africana people.

A study of African American dramatic literature to explore the complex ways in which the black experience is constructed and presented by playwrights. Students may have an opportunity to experience a theatrical production in New York City. More specifically, this course is divided into distinct sections. It includes a historical overview of early Black theatre throughout the diaspora. It considers how mid-twentieth century playwrights like Lorraine Hansberry, James Baldwin, Leroi Jones/Amiri Baraka, and Ntozake Shange shape the aesthetics and discourses within Black theatre, and in doing so, create trajectories for contemporary Black playwrights, who also explore the social, political and cultural experiences of Africana people.