Ntozake Shange was an Americ an playwright and poet. As a \;Black feminist\, she addressed issues r elating to \;race \;and \;Black power \;in much of her wor k. She is best known for her \;Obie Award-winning play\, "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf" (1975). She also penned novels\, including \;Sassafrass\, Cypress &\; Indigo&nb sp\;(1982)\, \;Liliane \;(1994)\, and \;Betsey Brown \;(19 85)\, about an African-American girl running away from home.
\nNina Angela Mercer\, PhD\, is a cultural worker and multidisciplinary artist residing in Washington\, D.C. Her nota ble plays include "Gutta Beautiful" (performed at The Warehouse Theatre\, The Woolly Mammoth for DC&rsquo\;s Fringe\, Abrons Arts Center\, and Littl e Carib Theatre)\; "Itagua Meji: A Road &\; A Prayer" (featured at Brec ht Forum\, Alternate Roots\, Rutgers University Newark and New Brunswick\, and The Nuyorican Poets Café\;)\; "Gypsy &\; The Bully Door" (st aged at The Warehouse Theatre and the former Dumbo Sky)\; "Elijaheen Becom es Wind" (presented at Anacostia Arts Center)\; "Charisma at the Crossroad s" (held at Dorothy Young Arts Center)\; "Sparrow" (performed at The Langs ton Hughes House)\; and "A Compulsion for Breathing" (featured at The Scho mburg Center and Target Margin Theater). Nina also collaborated with Urban Bush Women as a writer and performer during the development of "Haint Blu ."
\n
Derrick Weston Brown
holds an MFA in Creative Writing from American University and is
the founding Poet-In-Residence of Busboys and Poets. A graduate of the Ca
ve Canem and VONA summer workshops\, he is a participating author in the P
EN-Faulkner Foundation&rsquo\;s Writers-In-Schools-Program. His work has b
een published in print journals and online publications such as Racebaitr\
, Colorlines\, and Bayou Magazine. His debut poetry collection\, "Wisdom T
eeth\," was released in 2011 through PM Press\, and his second collection\
, a chapbook entitled "On All Fronts\," was released in March 2019 as part
of the Floodgates Vol. 5 series from Upper Rubber Boot Press. Currently r
esiding in PG County\, Maryland\, Derrick is a Creative Writing teacher at
The Duke Ellington School of the Arts.
Soyica Diggs Colbert\, PhD\, serves as the Vice
President for Interdisciplinary Initiatives and Idol Family Professor of A
frican American Studies and Performing Arts at Georgetown University.
\;A recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship\, Colbert is the author of seve
ral books\, including the award-winning "Radical Vision: A Biography of Lo
rraine Hansberry." Described as a "loving\, lavishly detailed" (New York T
imes) and captivating portrait of Lorraine Hansberry&rsquo\;s life\, art\,
and political activism&mdash\;listed as one of O Magazine's best books of
April 2021. According to Dave Itzkoff in The New York Times Book Review\,
"Radical Vision" is "A devoted and deeply felt account of the development
of an artist&rsquo\;s mind." In this acclaimed biography of Lorraine Hans
berry\, Colbert narrates a life at the intersection of art and politics\,
arguing that\, for Hansberry\, the theater served as a rehearsal room for
her political and intellectual work.
Remembering the Black Art s Movement is a multi-day symposium that presents panels\, readings\, and discussions centered on the writers\, work\, and impact of the Black Arts Movement. This movement\, named for a group of motivated Black poets\, art ists\, dramatists\, musicians\, and writers\, emerged in the wake of signi ficant civil rights activism and legislation. The event will shine a spotl ight on the work and impact of notable writers from the movement\, includi ng Nikki Giovanni\, Amiri Baraka\, Ntozake Shange\, Gil Scott-Heron\, Soni a Sanchez\, and Audre Lorde. Each day is designed to provide community mem bers with the opportunity to meet each other\, learn about the profound in fluence of the Black Arts Movement\, and connect with local artists\, scho lars\, and historians based in the DMV
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