The African-American Shakespeare Company

African-American Shakespeare Company was established in 1994 by professional theater artists from the American Conservatory Theatre as an alternative answer to the “color-blind casting” initiative that began in the early 1990s. It operates on a  simple premise with a big goal: bring classic works of theater to diverse audiences by folding diversity into the plays, thereby dismantling preconceptions about theater, actors and viewers alike.  For more than 14 years, the company has produced more than 30 productions with the goal is to bring the classics to a diverse community in a way that would appeal to their aesthetic. The company’s distinctive productions have included a hip-hop version of Macbeth, a version of Othello  set in a law office with Iago as a Black woman, The Importance of Being Earnest  set in the Harlem Renaissance, and a Gospel version of Antigone.

San Francisco’s African-American Shakespeare Company opens its 15th season with an enchanting new production of CINDERELLA. This timeless tale is brought to whimsical, magical life just in time to celebrate the holiday season. Re-set on the bayous of Louisiana, this uplifting re-telling of the classic fairytale, directed by African-American Shakespeare Company Executive Director Sherri Young, features all of the pageantry, hilarity, and charm of the original, but with a soulful twist.

The Company closes its 15th anniversary season in March with a powerful modern-day interpretation of Shakespeare’s OTHELLO (March 12-28). Told simultaneously from three (Othello, Desdemona, and Iago) points of view, this compelling story re-sets one of The Bard’s greatest tragedies during a military tribunal in Iraq, where race and sexual politics become the driving force for jealousy and revenge. African-American Shakespeare Company Executive Director Sherri Young helms this modern take on love undone by jealousy

African-American Shakespeare Company
Address: 762 Fulton Street, Suite 306 San Francisco, CA 94102
Phone: (415) 762-2071
Website: african-americanshakes.org
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