On Stage

Part of Locally Grown: Community Supported Art Festival

May 29 – June 30

by Jacqueline E. Lawton
World premiere commissioned by Theater J

Directed by Shirley Serotsky
Dramaturgy by Otis Cortez Ramsey-Zöe

Featuring Edward Christian, Sarah Douglas, Crashonda Edwards,
Lolita-Marie, Julian Elijah Martinez, Sasha Olinick, Colin Smith
and David Lamont Wilson

Emerging from Theater J's inaugural Locally Grown Festival, this breakthrough premiere explores the development of great African-American artists, John Biggers and Samella Lewis under the tutelage of Austrian Jewish refugee painter and educator, Viktor Lowenfeld. Focusing on the pivotal years at Hampton Institute, Virginia during WWII, this richly researched tapestry of African American luminaries like Elizabeth Catlett reveals the dreams and travails of young artists in a still segregated society while examining the impact of World War II on a Jewish immigrant and his wife finding shelter in the US and his controversial influence in shaping the careers of African American students.

 “[Lawton writes] like a stew, with tasty ingredients chopped and swirling in a bubbly cauldron” – DC Theatre Scene