The Evanston 2nd Act Players is honored to be partnering with award-winning Black Playwright Idris Goodwin this summer to stream Black Flag, a short play that is one of five in Goodwin’s Open Source Scripts for an Antiracist Tomorrow.
“TYA/USA [Theatre for Young Audiences USA], New York’s New Victory Theatre and I collaborated to provide a platform for five short plays to spark conversation and serve as a catalyst for action,” Goodwin writes on his website. “Each of these short works, written to be read across the multi-generational spectrum, offer different insights about disconnects in racial conversation and the Black experience in America.”
Black Flag finds two new dorm-mates excited to start their freshman year together, until one decides to decorate their room with a little piece of ‘Southern pride.’ The 2nd Act Players will be streaming a short film version of the play Sunday, July 18 at 3 p.m. central time.
“We were gripped by the power of Mr. Goodwin’s work when we saw it online in 2020,” says 2nd Act Players Cofounder John N. Frank. “We knew we wanted to show it via our online theater in 2021.”
Goodwin “has forged an impactful career as a multiple award-winning playwright, breakbeat poet, director, educator, and organizer,” his bio explains.
“Passionate about cultivating new audiences in the arts, Idris is the director of The Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College, the first Black man to hold the position in its 100-year history.
“Prior to this, Goodwin served two seasons as producing artistic director at StageOne Family Theatre in Louisville, Kentucky. He actively serves on both the advisory boards of Theatre for Young Audiences USA and Children’s Theatre Foundation Association.” To read more about Goodwin, go to his site: http://www.idrisgoodwin.com
The streaming event is “a continuation of the 2nd Act Players commitment to show works that look at social issues in America. In 2020, the 2nd Act Players worked with Chicago Black Playwright Andre Richardson Hogan II to produce two of his short plays, Raisin Puffs, which deals with a Black man beaten by the police, and Line of Duties, which looks at a family mourning the loss of one of its own to Covid-19.
Plans are to show Black Flag free of charge but ask viewers to make donations, 80% of which will go to the National Museum for Peace and Justice, at the request of Goodwin.
The presentation is part of the 2nd Act Players’ 2021 online season, sponsored by Elderwerks; Trulee Evanston, a fresh, contemporary senior living experience; Byline Bank; Summerville Partners; Andrew Erickson at Edward Jones, Winnetka office; Dave’s New Kitchen; and ALT Imagery.