Barbara Ann Teer and the National Black Theatre: Transformational Forces in Harlem

Lundeana Marie Thomas. Barbara Ann Teer and the National Black Theatre: Transformational Forces in Harlem. New York: Garland, 1997. 190 pp. $65.00.

Although nearly 112 experimental black and white theatres were founded in New York City during the late sixties, the National Black Theatre (NBT) is one of the few not only to survive into the nineties, but to prosper. Barbara Ann Teer, founder of NBT, chose 125th Street for a theatre to provide Harlem with more than entertainment. Her primary mission was to "raise the level of consciousness through liberating the spirits and strengthening the minds of its people." Professor Lundeana Thomas, the author of this important history, …