National Black Theatre and The Apollo to Host THE GATHERING: A JOURNEY TO GRACE Documentary Screening

On June 16, National Black Theatre [NBT] and The Apollo will host a special free Juneteenth screening of the NBT & ALL ARTS original documentary The Gathering: A Journey to Grace, co-directed by NBT’s Executive Artistic Director, Jonathan McCrory and Thomas Wirthensohn, followed by a short talkback.

This free event will take place on Tuesday, June 16, 2026 at The Apollo Stages at The Victoria. The documentary premiered on PBS on June 18th, 2025; this marks its first screening in a theatre.

The film tracks the journey, development, impact and creation of The Gathering: A Collective Sonic Ringshout, which saw its world premiere in 2022 at The Apollo before being mounted through a partnership forged through The Kennedy Center’s Conflux Partnership in 2024 in the Opera House.

Through live capture, interviews, and archival footage, viewers witness the partnership between the National Black Theatre and The Kennedy Center, The Apollo, American Composers Orchestra, NEWorks Voices of Inspiration and more for the project.

The film offers a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the event, featuring including Nona Hendryx, Toshi Reagon, Carlos Simon, Mahogany L. Browne, Abby Dobson, Courtney Bryan, Troy Anthony, and Joel Thompson.

The Gathering: A Collective Sonic Ring Shout’s creative concept and direction is by McCrory, featuring 80 members of the American Composers Orchestra conducted by Chelsea Tipton, II, and 50 members of a chorale fusing orchestral, choral, gospel, and soul music.