The River Niger is a play by American playwright, Joseph A. Walker

Joseph A. Walker (playwright)

Joseph Alexander Walker was an African American playwright and screenwriter, theater director, actor and professor. He is best known for writing the play The River Niger, a three-act play that was originally produced Off-Broadway in 1972 by the Negro Ensemble Company before being transferred to...

, first performed by New York City's Negro Ensemble Company

Negro Ensemble Company

The Negro Ensemble Company is a New York City-based theater company. Established in 1967 by playwright Douglas Turner Ward, producer/actor Robert Hooks, and theater manager Gerald S...

 off-Broadway

Off-Broadway

Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...

 in 1972. The production made its 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...

 debut with a transfer to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre

Brooks Atkinson Theatre

The Brooks Atkinson Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 256 West 47th Street in Manhattan.Designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, it was constructed as the Mansfield Theatre by the Chanin brothers in 1926. After 1933, the theatre fell into relative disuse until 1945, when Michael Myerberg...

 on 27 March 1973 for a run of 162 performances.

Characters

• Mattie Williams
• Johnny Williams
• Dr. Dudley Stanton
• Jeff Williams
• Ann Vanderguild
• Big Moe Hayes
• Al
• Chips
• Skeeter
• Gail
• Wilhelmina Brown

Adaptations

The play was adapted by Walker for film in 1976, directed by Krishna Shah starring Cicely Tyson

Cicely Tyson

Cicely Tyson is an American actress. A successful stage actress, Tyson is also known for her Oscar-nominated role in the film Sounder and the television movies The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman and Roots....

 and James Earl Jones

James Earl Jones

James Earl Jones is an American actor. He is well-known for his distinctive bass voice and for his portrayal of characters of substance, gravitas and leadership...

.

Awards and nominations

Awards

• 1973 Drama Desk Award for Most Promising Playwright - Joseph A. Walker
  Joseph A. Walker (playwright)
  Joseph Alexander Walker was an African American playwright and screenwriter, theater director, actor and professor. He is best known for writing the play The River Niger, a three-act play that was originally produced Off-Broadway in 1972 by the Negro Ensemble Company before being transferred to...
  
  
• 1973 Obie Award for Best American Play
• 1974 Tony Award for Best Play

Nominations

• 1974 Tony Award for Actor - Douglas Turner Ward
• 1974 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress - Roxie Roker