Tarell Alvin McCraney: Theatre of Be Longing

Tarell Alvin McCraney, Oscar-winning playwright, chair of Yale’s playwriting program

What do the classics teach us about our humanity? What do we today have to teach the classics? The young people born today, those turning 15 yesterday, statistics say have never seen a live performance. Even fewer have seen a live performance in the theater or a play. And fewer have seen a play that reflected the life they currently live .

How do we create theatre as cultural belonging? How do we create a space where young audiences feel as though they can Be? And what is the type of theater we are Longing for?

This talk is from the 2017 Othering & Belonging Conference hosted by the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society at UC Berkeley. For more information, visit haasinstitute.berkeley.edu or otheringandbelonging.org