Welcome Table

In the spring of 1963, acclaimed writer James Baldwin sent a searing telegram to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, blaming his brother’s administration for violence across the country amidst the battle for civil and human rights. To his credit, the Attorney General called Baldwin back and said, “We need to talk.” What followed was the infamous Baldwin-Kennedy meeting, which brought together a group of artists, thinkers, and activists, including Lorraine Hansberry, Harry Belafonte, Lena Horne, and Freedom Rider Jerome Smith, to engage in tough conversations about how to imagine a better country. Pulitzer Prize-winning dramatist James Ijames returns to The Public with a bold reimagining of that pivotal meeting, set in an afterlife where these iconic figures wrestle with their legacy. Directed by Tony Award winner Rachel Chavkin, WELCOME TABLE channels the fire of Baldwin’s call to action and reminds us that the struggle for justice continues to echo with striking urgency today.