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Barbara Ann Teer and NBT
(Excerpted from Barbara Ann Teer and the National Black Theatre: Transformational Forces in Harlem (New York: Garland Publishing, 1997.)
In 1965, noted African-American poet and playwright Langston Hughes perceived "a very great need for a serious theatre in the Harlem Community…a theatre in which the drama and the folk arts of the Negro people might be presented before the very audiences out of whom this drama is born" (Hughes 163)....In 1968, one charismatic Black female accepted Hughes’ challenge. Broadway actress Barbara Ann Teer burst upon the scene advocating "the creation of a black theory of acting and liberating!” (Harris 285). Her proposal moved Hughes’ vision beyond just a “serious Harlem theatre" to a holistic training program from which would emerge new productions and performers, in a permanent home that would perpetuate an African-American theatre ideologically and financially separate from those of the White majority.
Both Hughes and Teer knew a kind of theatre based on traditions and standards known most recently as "Western"…or "Euro-centric"....The African-American theatre wanting to embrace African influence has had to struggle against traditions and standards well established by the dominant culture... (cont.)
A Beautiful Thirty Minutes With Barbara Ann Teer
On Saturday, July 19, 2008 around 4:00 pm, I was walking east on 137th Street, headed to the Schomberg Center. It was an unusually serene day. I heard a voice calling, “Cliff.” I turned around and it was Dr. Barbara Ann Teer, sitting on her stoop. As I approached her, I actually noticed a heavenly and radiant glow about her. We hugged and kissed. I have known Dr. Teer since 1965 when we both appeared in Day of Absence by Douglas Turner Ward at St. Marks Playhouse. It was an exciting production and the forerunner of the Negro Ensem- ble Company. As we talked I saw the glimpse of a very deep tranquility on her face. She spoke of obstacles that had been thrown in her path, especially re-garding her building. Early on the build-ing burned down, but with her determination, it was reborn. The Nubian Heri-tage store was recently providing a fi-nancial anchor for the building, but was unable to continue. Yet she persevered and won. Currently Applebees wants to rent space in the facility. Dr. Teer wanted to be cautious and protective of NBT... (cont.)
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Dr. Lundeana M. Thomas is an associate professor of Theatre and the Director of the African American Theatre Program at the University of Louisville. She is a past president of the Black Theatre Network and founder of the Black Theatre Association for the Theatre in Higher Education.
Cliff Frazier is a renaissance man: a very successful humanitarian, executive, educator, lecturer, writer, television and motion picture producer, director, actor, and a social activist on a local, national, and international level.
Mar/Apr 2009
This article was originally featured in Vol. 18, Issue. 5
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The horse-drawn carriage carrying Barbara Ann Teer’s casket during the funeral procession that was part of a two-day celebratory send-off for the extraordinary founder of NBT.
