Boston's Front Porch Arts Collective aims to spotlight Black artists in theater
BOSTON - From playwrights, to actors, to directors, The Front Porch Arts Collective in Boston is working to shine a spotlight on Black voices in the theater.
For the past seven years, the collective has been collaborating with other theater companies in the region to reach that goal. Co-founder Dawn M. Simmons told us the mission expands well beyond Black History Month.
"Black voices have been marginalized for so long. We go through periods of having a focus. My hope is that what the Front Porch is doing, is creating a space where it's not just a period of focus for a small period of time, where it has a lasting and sustained influence on our theater community," said Simmons.
Co-founder Maurice Emmanuel Parent said they work side by side with other theater companies in the area.
"They came to the table first and said, 'We believe in your mission. We believe in your company. We want to see it succeed and we want to put our money where our mouth is.'"
Catherine Carr Kelly, executive director of Central Square Theater in Cambridge, has supported Front Porch since the start.
"I think there's so much good theater, there's so many plays to be done. The idea of opening a space for Black and Brown artists to tell their stories from the stage to producing is critical. In many ways, the future of theater is dependent on organizations like the Front Porch," said Carr Kelly.
Parent said one goal is to highlight the diversity of greater Boston.
"Our job and the power of storytelling helps change narratives of areas. And that's what I'm hoping that we continue to do with our work."
The Front Porch Arts Collective's next production is Exception to the Rule at the Modern Theater. It opens on March 7 and runs through the 17. In May, the group is co-producing the Tony Award-winning A Strange Loop, at SpeakEasy Stage.