Contemporary Afro-American theatre is an exciting spectacle of an
emerging black identity during a period when blacks have come to
the forefront of political activity in the United States. Genevieve
Fabre brings us the vast and rich production of black drama since
1945, placing it in historical and cultural context as a platform
for political statement. Two strains emerge: the militant theatre
of protest, and the ethnic theatre of black experience.
Militant theatre breaks free from dominant white traditions and
seeks to mobilize members of the community into common action.
Masks and metaphors assume their fullest meaning: when the "white
masks" are torn off, "black skins" suddenly appear. At first a
shout of anger and of challenge, the militant theatre later becomes
an almost visionary world. The Pike of LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka
rise like clenched fists. Among the other dramatists of militant
theatre are Douglas Turner Ward, Ted Shine, Ben Caldwell, and Sonia
Sanchez. We see their plays that examine relations between blacks
and whites; stories of victims and rebels and traitors; and rituals
of vengeance.
In contrast to the didactic speech of the militant theatre, the
theatre of experience develops out of a dialogue in the language of
blacks about their own experience. It embraces the rituals of daily
life: the liturgy of the black church, traditional music, and
folklore. This theatre celebrates a vital culture existing outside
the boundaries of the dominant society. We hear the voice of the
blues and the rhetoric of religion, we see depictions of the family
and the street world of the ghetto, as well as the time-honored art
of the trickster. James Baldwin, Ed Bullins, MelvinVan Peebles, and
Edgar White are among the playwrights shown making extensive use of
black cultural traditions.
Fabre is the first to attempt such an ambitious assessment of
contemporary black theatre, one that evaluates its development as
well as individual authors, plays, and performances, and also
defines the growth of a distinctive and thriving theatrical
tradition.
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