“I was always the only black in the movie theater, the only black in class, the only black in the library, the only black in the discotheque. I always felt observed and judged.” FeltBlackClassTheaterLibraryJudgedMovie Theater Author:Concha Buika
“Well, I couldn't play an instrument. I'd just stand up front and announce the numbers. They had me sing a little, but that was a horrible mistake. I can't carry a tune in a bucket. We played black theaters and nightclubs all over hell. One-nighters. Apollo Theater in Harlem and the Earle Theater in Philly - That was big time for blacks.” WellsLittlesI CanPlayBigsSportsBlackNumbersMistakeHellFrontsTheaterInstrumentsAthleteHorribleTunesApolloBucketsHarlemNightclubsHorrible Mistakes Author:Jesse Owens
“My first time performing was in the black box theater of my high school's basement as a member of 'Clownaz,' the school's improv team. We charged money for tickets, saying the proceeds went to our school's recycling program. Then, immediately after the show, we divided up all the money and kept it.” FirstsShowsSchoolBlackTeamMembersHigh SchoolFirst TimeProgramTheaterBoxesPerformingDividedTicketsBasementsRecyclingBlack Boxes Author:Joe Mande
“I always believed I was an ugly duckling in a family of swans, you know? I was such a black sheep, and it was the same way in high school... I was just kind of that awkward theater kid with a bunch of athletes... it was very Glee.” KnowsWayKindKidsSchoolBlackHigh SchoolTheaterAthleteUglyBunchSheepAwkwardAlways BelieveSwansGleeBlack SheepDucklingsUgly Duckling Author:Lindsay Pearce
“I was a kid who liked art and theater and dance and music, but if you lived in Harlem, high culture was somewhere else, and it wasn't black.” IfsArtKidsCultureBlackTheaterSomewhere ElseHarlem Author:Samuel R. Delany
“When you look at me you don't immediately imagine a very very glamorous icon, so it's only in the theater that I get to do these experiments. I've been an actor about 51 years now. I've played everything from an 8-year-old black boy to a 72-year-old French matriarch, and they hardly hire you to do that on TV.” YearsLooksActorsBlackBoysImagineTvsTheaterExperimentsLook At MeIconsGlamorousBlack BoyMatriarchs Author:Tyne Daly