Overturning 'Topsy's' Legacy: Black Theatre for Youth and the Black Arts Movement

This dissertation explores Theatre for Youth practices and the influence of the Black Aesthetic on the socio-political and cultural construction of Black children during the Black Arts Movement (BAM). It reveals an historical racial disconnect between white and Black Theatre for Youth in content, language and theatrical style. Five theatre companies, which produced works with and for Black children in New York City and Newark, NJ during the time period (1965-1982), serve as research case studies. These companies include the Harlem Children's Theatre Company, Billie Holiday Theater's Theater for Little Folk, AMAS Musical Theatre's Eubie Blake Children's Theatre, Spirit House Movers and Players, and the National Black Theatre. Although scholars have documented white Theatre for Youth of this era, and theatre aimed at adults during BAM, none have yet examined the theatrical arts for, and by, Black children written and produced during the era. The historical and political significance of the depictions of Black children during BAM to Black intellectuals, writers, and cultural workers make this study an essential addition to both the fields of Theatre for Youth and Black Theatre History. Theatre historiography, multi/interdisciplinarity, and childhood studies influence my approach in which data were gathered from sources including personal interviews, archives, and digitized historical newspapers. The study indicates that the inseparability of politics from art aligns Black Theatre for Youth more closely with historical Black theatre practices than with those of its white counterpart.