Native Son

Fall 2012-Spring 2013 in development
by permission of Richard Wright Estate
Adapted by ABT Ensemble member Nambi E. Kelley

Throughout the 27th season, in a partnership with Chicago Housing Authority, will host a workshop, staged-reading, and other events culminating in the world premiere of a new adaptation by ABT Ensemble Member Nambi E. Kelley of “Native Son” to be produced in 2014. With the exclusive permission of the Richard Wright Estate, Native Son tells the story of a young black man caught in a downward spiral after he kills a young white woman in a brief moment of panic. The story, still relevant almost 75 years after it was originally published, is an unflinching portrait of what it means to be black in America and the poverty and feelings of hopelessness experienced by people in inner cities across the United States.

Nambi E. Kelley is an Ensemble member of American Blues Theater and an award winning and published playwright, including projects for Steppenwolf and Goodman Theatre in Chicago and Lincoln Center in New York. Recent awards/nominations include The Friends Fellowship (Ragdale Foundation), two 3 Arts Fellowship nominations, TCG Candidate for Playwriting; Goodman Theatre, The Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Conference nomination and honors at the Black Ensemble Theatre for playwriting.