American Negro Theater
Encyclopedia
The American Negro Theater (ANT) was formed in Harlem
on June 5, 1940 by writer Abram Hill and actor Frederick O'Neal
. It produced 19 plays before closing in 1949. Designed as a community theater group, performances were held in Harlem's Schomburg Library. In 1942, ANT began its Studio Theatre training program for beginning actors. Graduates include Sidney Poitier
and Harry Belafonte
.
Its most successful production, Anna Lucasta, fundamentally transformed the ANT. A white author, Phillip Yordan, wrote the play about a Polish family, but could not find a company to perform it. So he rewrote it to feature a black family. It was performed by the ANT in 1944. Five weeks later the play opened on Broadway
. The ANT received few royalties and the next three ANT plays to appear on Broadway were not successful. Despite this, following the success of Anna Lucasta the ANT became less community-centered. From then on, the ANT only featured plays from established white playwrights, and young actors viewed the ANT as a means to break into Broadway productions.
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
on June 5, 1940 by writer Abram Hill and actor Frederick O'Neal
Frederick O'Neal
Frederick O'Neal was an American actor, theater producer and television director. He founded the American Negro Theater and was the first African-American president of the Actors' Equity Association...
. It produced 19 plays before closing in 1949. Designed as a community theater group, performances were held in Harlem's Schomburg Library. In 1942, ANT began its Studio Theatre training program for beginning actors. Graduates include Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier
Sir Sidney Poitier, KBE is a Bahamian American actor, film director, author, and diplomat.In 1963, Poitier became the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field...
and Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte
Harold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
.
Its most successful production, Anna Lucasta, fundamentally transformed the ANT. A white author, Phillip Yordan, wrote the play about a Polish family, but could not find a company to perform it. So he rewrote it to feature a black family. It was performed by the ANT in 1944. Five weeks later the play opened on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. The ANT received few royalties and the next three ANT plays to appear on Broadway were not successful. Despite this, following the success of Anna Lucasta the ANT became less community-centered. From then on, the ANT only featured plays from established white playwrights, and young actors viewed the ANT as a means to break into Broadway productions.