In the Echoes of Unity Special Edition, Penumbra Theatre explores how storytelling and racial healing help build Dr. King’s beloved community.
Penumbra Theatre
Posted inOpinion
Black artistry will persevere, as it always has
In September, visitors who walked through Lincoln Center’s new exhibition, “Syncopated Stages: Black Disruptions to the Great White Way,” encountered more than theatrical memorabilia; they witnessed proof of an unbroken artistic resistance spanning two centuries. From the African Grove Theater, founded in 1821 by William Alexander Brown in New York City, to today’s Broadway, Black […]
Posted inBlack History
Penumbra premieres ‘Paradise Blue’
Penumbra Theatre’s production of “Paradise Blue” brings a powerful story of Black experiences in the ’50s to the stage, exploring themes of identity, survival, and gentrification, and resonating with urban communities.
Posted inArts + Culture
‘In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat’ a tale of triumph and tragedy
Roger Guenveur Smith will be performing his one-man show honoring his old friend Jean-Michel Basquiat at Penumbra Theatre in October 2024, exploring the life of the groundbreaking artist beyond the tragedy of his early death.
Posted inTheater
Review: ‘What I Learned in Paris’ misses the mark
Without the playwright’s backstory, it is difficult to unravel the meaning of ‘What I Learned in Paris.’
Posted inArts + Culture, Theater
Penumbra, Children’s Theatre selected as part of five-theater, $1.5M grant partnership
As part of Generation Now, two Twin Cities-based theaters have been chosen as part of a five-theater partnership to produce inclusive and diverse plays.
Posted inArts + Culture
‘The White Card’ proves race is a complicated subject
While playwright Claudia Rankine meant well, the play appeared to try to cover too much ground and stumbled a bit in the end.
Posted inArts + Culture, Theater
Penumbra partners with Children’s Theater on ‘The Wiz’
Given the collaboration’s assembled talent, a hit seems likely The Wiz was never merely a remake of L. Frank Baum’s distinctly white-bread classic The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Still wholesome, family-friendly fare, it nonetheless over the decades underwent a telling, timeless transformation by which, reconceived, it celebrated and sustained the contemporary Black culture. No small feat. Indeed, […]