National Black Theatre Announces UNBOUGHT & UNBOSSED: RECLAIMING OUR VOTE

On the heels of announcing its 52nd Season, NBT Beyond Walls: Building the Future Now! Dr. Barbara Ann Teer's National Black Theatre has announced more details for the first series of events, Unbought & Unbossed: Reclaiming Our Vote.

After its critically acclaimed partnership with Park Avenue Armory for 100 YEARS | 100 WOMEN, National Black Theatre continues to uplift and focus on voter rights and the 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment with a curated digital series called, Unbought & Unbossed: Reclaiming Our Vote. Grounded in the dynamic legacy of Shirley Chisholm, this digital series features micro-commissions from Ngozi Anyanwu, Hope Boykin, Mahogany L. Browne, Dane Figueroa Edidi, Candice Hoyes, Val Jeanty, and Dianne Smith. Their multidisciplinary works will generate community awareness around the national election on November 3, 2020, uplift the legacy of Shirley Chisholm and her peers, and support the current conversation around the power of the vote from the perspective of Black women.

"In this very divisive time where the national consciousness is actively trying to dismantle unjust systems, National Black Theatre is asking the question, what are we building? With the digital series Unbought & Unbossed: Reclaiming Our Vote, NBT is amplifying the complexities of our existence and declaring Black stories matter, Black communities matter, and most importantly, Black liberation matters!" said Sade Lythcott, CEO of National Black Theatre. "NBT has met this moment with an exciting partnership with When We All Vote to support our community in reclaiming our time and voice through the importance of our vote -- a right our ancestors gave their lives in order for us to be able to freely exercise."

This series is in partnership with Michelle Obama's When We All Vote, a non-profit, nonpartisan organization that is on a mission to increase participation in every election and close the race and age voting gap by changing the culture around voting, harnessing grassroots energy, and through strategic partnerships to reach every American. NBT is working with When We All Vote to help inform and empower our community with the accurate information to make a difference and combat voter suppression.

"When We All Vote is on a mission to change the culture around voting, so it is critical that we have authentic conversations around the importance of voting in the arts," said Crystal Carson, Vice President of Culture, Communications and Media Partnerships for When We All Vote. "We couldn't be prouder of the National Black Theatre for working at the intersection of civic engagement and culture to ensure that the voices of all Americans-specifically Black communities, and Black women-are heard in every single election."

The digital release launches on September 16 and continues each Wednesday from September 23 through October 28, 2020. The new commissions will premiere on National Black Theatre's Instagram account and website. In tandem with the digital releases, NBT will host a NBT @ HOME conversation series on Facebook Live with the commissioned artists as well as community leaders and historians, moderated by ChelseaDee. All programming for Unbought & Unbossed: Reclaiming Our Vote is free and open to the general public.

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