Pipeline at Vanguard Theater

PIPELINE
By Dominique Morisseau
Directed by Marshall Jones III

What happens when a parent does everything she believes will protect her child, and still cannot protect him from the way the world sees him?

Nya is a dedicated public high school teacher who has made a difficult choice for her only son, Omari. She sends him to a private school, hoping it will give him the future she wants for him. Then an encounter with a teacher at his school turns physical, and suddenly everything is at stake.

Fresh off its 10th anniversary, Vanguard Theater opens its next decade with this powerful, deeply human drama about race and class, public and private education, parenting, and the pressure placed on young Black men.

"You don't have to walk into Pipeline agreeing about education, discipline, parenting, race, or responsibility," says Janeece Freeman Clark, Founder and Producing Artistic Director. "I hope people walk out talking about those things. More importantly, I hope they walk out having really seen this family."

Cast
Doreen Oliver (Nya), Ja'Quan Spann (Omari), Keivana Wallace (Jasmine), Lazarus Simmons (Xavier), Rebecca Hart (Laurie), and Jamal Guye (Dun)

Creative Team
Rodrigo Escalante (Set Design), TJ Jenkins (Costume Design), David Heguy (Lighting Design), Zavier Taylor (Projection Design), Quinton Tramm (Projection Mapping), Craig Holcomb Jr. (Production Stage Manager)

Performance Info
October 8 through 25, 2026
Wednesday through Sunday, including weekend matinees
Run time: 90 minutes
Vanguard Theater, 180 Bloomfield Avenue, Montclair, NJ

Tickets: Start at $25 at VanguardTheaterCompany.org