BLACK REPERTORY GROUP THEATER Zoe GodfreyGrinage LocationHistory BRG

BLACK REPERTORY GROUP THEATER Zoe Godfrey-Grinage

Location/History ◦ BRG is located in Berkeley California. ◦ 1957 – Vicksburg, Mississippi : As high school teachers, Birel L. and Nora B. Vaughn had a purpose and a mission to educate the people with knowledge about culture and history through the arts. This was an unheard notion in the southern town of Vicksburg, Mississippi riddled with Jim Crow. ◦ 1970 - 1973 Unbeknownst to Nora, Birel had been working on a surprise for her, he had found time to secretly acquire a small building for the acting group to call home. It was here at The South Berkeley Playhouse, located at 1719 Alcatraz that The Group changed its formal name to the Black Repertory Group. This location was an old storefront, which members of the group and community volunteers converted into a small theater. ◦ 1978 -1987 They set out to locate new how for the BRG. Nora found the perfect location a vacant lot filled with weeds sitting on a main corridor through the City of Berkeley. ◦ On October 11, 1987 the BRG erected the Cultural Arts Center that houses the Birel L. Vaughn Theater at 3201 Adeline Street in Berkeley; a few blocks from the original theater on Alcatraz Avenue. The Center boasts a charming 250 seat theater house, state of the art technical equipment, community room and dance studio. ◦ 2000 - Now: Our illustrious alumni have changed the world and filled the entertainment industry with trained workers of the craft. The BRG has elevated and produced over 150 playwrights, social activist, Politicians, Poets, Musical Composers, Film and Stage Producers, Comedians, Writers, Playwrights, Actors, Thespians, and Hollywood Icons and many more artists have used the BRG Stage to hone their skills.

BRG Mission ◦ The Black Repertory Group's commitment to the arts and the community is the cornerstone of our background and the basis for our beginning. There primary mission is: ◦ To perform and showcase the works of African-American playwrights ◦ To educate, develop, and raise levels of self-esteem in youth using dramatic arts ◦ To revitalize the individual person and hence revitalize the community ◦ To be the breeding ground for successful and talented artist in a variety of genres with respect to the arts. ◦ To serve as a beacon of light for those who thought they had no ability to achieve and contribute to their community in a positive way ◦ To re-invest the entertainment dollar back into our community

Programs/Events ◦ Summer Camp ◦ HETT ◦ SKAR ◦ TACE ◦ Mainstage Shows 2018/New Arts

Summer Camp ◦ The goals for the BRG Camp ◦ To utilize the stage and its related activities to develop and/or create higher levels of self-esteem in our youth. ◦ To support youth in an effort to foster greater self-pride by increasing their cultural awareness through instruction and presentation. ◦ To provide all youth, regardless of race, creed, or color, with a rich opportunity to discover America's eclectic black cultural heritage. ◦ 10 Week Showtime Camp, with approximately 42 Shows ◦ Paparazzi Weekend complete Stretch Limo & Red Carpet Gala Media Event

HETTS/SKAR ◦ Black Repertory Group's Health Education Through Theater Program (HETT) aims to present intriguing theatrical shows that increase health awareness within our culture. They utilize the stage to educate the community by producing thought provoking shows that focus on physical and mental health matters that have become a part of our culture's environment. ◦ HETT brings to the forefront a variety of key issues challenging our community including routine health screenings, HIV/AIDS Awareness, Human Trafficking, Substance Abuse, Violence Prevention, Mental Health Disorders, Economic Health. Despite recent healthcare reforms most problems will only get attention for critical or extreme conditions. BRG's outreach has provided proof that health awareness in our community must evolve and expand as the needs of the community dictates. ◦ BRG Street Kids At Risk Program (SKAR) offers kids of the Bay Area a safe haven from the harsh realities of life; while exposing them to theater and helping build their self-esteem. The majority of the youth involved in this program live close to the Cultural Arts Center and are over exposed to the stresses that can bring, far to soon. Some live in single parent homes; if they even have a place to call home. ◦ SKAR offers these alternatives through programming designed to recruit disadvantaged inner-city youth and nurture an appreciation for the art while providing job training opportunities. BRG acknowledge the challenges faced by SKAR participants; workshops and theater presentations on HIV Awareness, Violence Intervention, Teen Pregnancy and Drug Prevention are also a part of the program. ◦ SKAR is year- round outreach job skills program encompassing various theater related activities that teach participants responsibility, leadership skills, time management and teamwork. Many of the young people that have been with the program show marked improvement in their communication skills, and their level of self-esteem.

TACE ◦ The Tutorial and Cultural Empowerment Program (TACE) is a script -study, literacy development program during the school year that primarily serves students labeled as underachievers and having large academic deficiencies. Students are provided homework assistance from tutors and receive regular feedback on their progress from parents and teachers. ◦ TACE includes a theater component, whereby, the participants learn written and verbal skills in a creative environment that encourages selfexpression. Through this program, instructors in the role of mentors provide the nurturing and guidance needed for these young people to blossom. ◦ The observation of behavior improvement in the youth enrolled in the TACE program reveals that out youth exhibit newfound eagerness to get involved in reading circles and acting on stage.

Main Stage/ Events ◦ Feeling Good: A Nina Simon Story An Evening with The Dynamic Miss Faye Carol (November 2017 and June 2018) ◦ The Wiz (December 2017 and February 2018) ◦ Sweer & Spunk ( Janurary 2018) ◦ Horn to Strayhorn: A Lena Horn - Billy Strayhorn Story (May 2018) New Arts The Odd Couple (in Color) (October 2017) Unbought & Unbossed (February 2018) Port Chicago (February 2018)

Why BRG

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