Lois Toko Lecture with Omi Osun Joni L. Jones and Sharon Bridgforth

On April 22 at 4 p.m. in the Curtain Theater, the Department of Theater will present the Lois Toko Lecture by two leading scholars of the Theatrical Jazz genre, Omi Osun Joni L. Jones and Sharon Bridgforth.

Earlier this spring, UMass Theater presented *Unfinished Women Cry in No Man’s Land while a Bird dies in a Gilded Cage* by Aishah Rahman, a groundbreaking play in the genre. This talk, inspired by the production, will examine Theatrical Jazz and its place in Black Theater. Jones and Bridgforth are leading artist-scholars in the subject and co-edited the book *Experiments in a Jazz Aesthetic: Art, Activism, Academia, and the Austin Project* (with Lisa L. Moore) in 2010.  The lecture is free and open to everyone in the community.

Registration is encouraged but not required: https://forms.gle/quSwR3Np8WzcQ1iCA

Dr. Priscilla Maria Page, the organizer of a mini-residency for Jones and Bridgforth, described Theatrical Jazz as "a form that playwright Rahman helped to forge through her cutting-edge approach to Black theater-making." In addition to their talk, Sharon and Omi will lead a workshop on Theatrical Jazz as part of Professors Judyie Al-Bilali and Gilbert McCauley actor/director collaboration course on Monday, April 21 at 3 p.m. in the Curtain Theater. Al-Bilali and McCauley, respectively, directed and acted in our production of Unfinished Women last month, while Page was the lead dramaturg on the project. The workshop is also open to members of the department and the Five College community.

*The Toko Lecture and related events are made possible by: The Toko Lecture Fund, the Department of Theater, MOSAIC: Five College Multicultural Theater Committee, Office of Equity and Inclusion, Center for Teaching, 5 College African Studies Council, Commonwealth Honors College Dean’s Fund, Humanities and Fine Arts Faculty Research Fund, Massachusetts Society of Professors fund, and the WEB DuBois Department of Afro American Studies Special thanks to Professor Judyie Al-Bilali, Professor Yolanda Covington Ward, and Dean Mari Castaneda*