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Nambi E Kelley

NAMBI E KELLEY

  
Nationality:    African American
facebook     email:    Click here to contact     Website:    Click here

Literary Agent:    The Gersh Agency  

Nambi has penned plays for Steppenwolf, Goodman Theatre, and Court Theatre/American Blues Theater in Chicago, Lincoln Center and the National Black Theatre in New York, and internationally internationally with LATT Children's Theatre/ Unibooks Publishing Company (South Korea) Teatri Sbagliati (Italy), and The Finger Players (Singapore) where she also performed in the co-adapted production in Singapore of The Book of Living and Dying. Most recently, Kelley was named playwright in residence at the National Black Theatre in New York, was a finalist for the Francesca Primus Award, The Kevin Spacey Foundation Award, and is working on an adaptation of Toni Morrison's Jazz to be produced by Center Stage in their 2016-17 season. Her adaptation of Native Son will be published by Sam French, 2016, and will have several productions across the country next season. The world premiere of Native Son was presented to critical acclaim at Court Theatre with American Blues Theatre (co-production) was recently nominated for 5 Jeff Awards including best adaptation and production of the year, and was the highest grossing production in Court Theatre's 60 year history. Native Son is also on the Kilroy's List 2015, in the top 7 % of new plays by female and trans* authors nominated by literary managers, directors, and other artists polled across the country. Kelley's Xtigone celebrated production in Chicago (Chicago Danz Theatre Ensemble) and San Francisco (African American Shakespeare Company directed by Rhodessa Jones) with several high school and college productions across the country, and was just published by YouthPlays Publishing. Other writing credits include: Shortlisted professional writing affiliations include: National Black Theatre Playwright in Residence, Goodman Theatre Playwrights Unit, Steppenwolf Theatre Company New Plays Lab Playwright-In-Residence, Goodman Theatre/Ellen Stone Belic Institute/ Fellowship Recipient, Goodman Theatre Lila Wallace Fellowship, La MaMa Playwrights Symposium Playwright-In-Residence, Spoleto, Italy under the tutelage of Pulitzer prize winner Lynn Nottage, Ragdale Foundation Artist in Residence, HealthWorks Theatre Colonel Stanley McNeil Playwright-In-Residence, Chicago Dramatists Playwright Emeritus, Danny Glover's Robey Theatre Co. Playwriting Lab (Formerly The Blacksmyths At The Mark Taper Forum), and MPAACT Playwright Emeritus, Chicago. Also an actress, Nambi has worked on stage and television in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and internationally, playing opposite such artists as Phylicia Rashad, Alfre Woodard, Blair Underwood, and Patrick Swayze. Ms. Kelley has a BFA from The Theatre School at De Paul University, formerly known as The Goodman School of Drama, and holds an MFA in interdisciplinary arts from Goddard College in Vermont. www.nambikelley.com

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below is a list of Nambi E Kelley's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

         Blue Shadow         Book of Living and Dying, The         Bus Boyz         Chris T         First Woman, The         Girl To Be Named Later         Hoochie Mama         HOPE VI         Jabari Dreams of Freedom         MILK         Native Son         Tale of Nambi and Kintu: How Kintu Becomes A Man, The         Translation Of Lies, The         Xtigone

Blue Shadow

Synopsis:
a young Native American discovers her heritage

Notes:
Music And lyrics by Joe Plummer; book by Nambi e Kelley And Xavier Kelley

1st Produced:
Lifeline Theatre, Chicago     14 Mar 2010

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Childrens musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Book of Living and Dying, The

Synopsis:
A daughter faces her transvestite father's impending death. However, her last lap with him does not come smooth, as she unearths his suppressed secret which wreaks emotional hell on the parent-and-child relationship. It is not the father's penchant to cross dress that drives a wedge between the two - that is open knowledge. It is something else. While the horrified daughter struggles with the emotions that run riot through her, her father, trying desperately to discern the meaning of life, is greeted by divine visions that connect him to the past. During these moments, he realises that the kinship with his daughter was wrought not when he adopted her - but at the genesis of the universe. they had spent numerous lifetimes together, not always as Father and daughter, before settling on the tumultuous one they have today. How many more hundreds, no, thousands of years more before the ties cease to exist?

Notes:
written by Nambi e Kelley, Chong Tze Chien, Oliver Chong, and Antonio Ianniello

1st Produced:
Singapore Arts Festival     01 Jun 2012

Organisations:
Finger Players at the Singapore Arts Festival

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
experimental

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  3            Other:  Puppeteers

Further Reference:
-

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Bus Boyz

Synopsis:
BUS BOYZ's Mary is "looking, but not desperate" to find Mr. Right. So she embarks on the journey of dating every man in her path in order to find the love of her life. One date, with a bus named Vernon, goes terribly wrong. Mary is then thrust into the realization that her failed relationship with her Father is the reason her love life is all askew. Mary then embarks on trying to repair the damage between she and her father, only to find that he is unwilling to have a conversation with her about it. When the secret of their estrangement is revealed, Mary suddenly understands her Father in a new light, and tries one last time to reconcile.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Mpaact Theatre Co. At Prop Thtr     01 May 2005

Organisations:
MPAACT Theatre Co.

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Comedic Drama

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Chris T

Synopsis:
CHRIS T. is a homeless, African-American hip hop artist, who begins to believe he is Jesus Christ after a nuclear explosion destroys the world. Charles, the right hand man of Maximillian the Great (an African-American, Jewish, gay, president of the United States), decides to use Chris' delusion to his advantage by staging his crucifixion, thereby stripping the people of their religious faith to gain control of this post-apocalyptic world and become its ruler. Using poetic hip hop verse, music, and movement, CHRIS T. is a meditation on how power leads to destruction, and how faith is the ultimate trump card in a world where greed appears to rule.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Mpaact Theatre Co. At Victory Gardens Studio Theatre     01 Dec 2000

Organisations:
MPAACT Theatre Co.

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Drama

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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First Woman, The

Synopsis:
the FIRST WOMAN is the journey of every man, woman, and child's search for inner and outer peace in a world where peace is the hardest of challenges. the piece focuses on Naki and Nana, a mother and daughter, and their struggles for peace. From monologues about the loss of God to poems about a woman who has sold her child in order to feed her family, this choreopoem is a collection of stories that tell of the African-American experience in America, but transcend that genre to speak to the larger community of the world.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Lincoln Center Theatre At Here     01 Jun 2002

Organisations:
Lincoln Center Theatre

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Choreopoem

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Girl To Be Named Later

Synopsis:
Ooh Child Peach is a member of the Henderson family. there is Jetta, Ooh Child's boy-hungry sister, Punchie, her brother and angry boxer, Bee, the bible thumping oldest sister, and Mamma Marilyn, the matriarch who also makes her living as a prostitute. One night Marilyn's pimp comes to collect his money from her, and a violent fight ensues. Ooh Child witnesses the fight that ends in Mamma Marilyn being murdered. Confused and shattered by watching her mother die, Ooh Child develops a multiple personality disorder which takes over her entire world. What happens to Ooh Child and the Henderson family after Mamma Marilyn's death? GIRL TO Be NAMeD LATeR is a story about one family's struggle to maintain its sanity as seen thru the eyes of it's youngest child, Ooh Child.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Mpaact Theatre Co. At Victory Gardens Studio Theatre     01 Jun 1996

Organisations:
MPAACT Theatre Co.

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Choreopoem

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Hoochie Mama

Synopsis:
HOOCHIe MAMA magnifies and further distorts every stereotype ever concocted about Black life: dread locked Jamaicans, steppin' fetchit characters, homeboys, buppies, pimps, hustlers, mammies, coons, and bucks. Set in the fictitious Glad-As-Night and the Pip es-tablish-ment, HOOCHIe MAMA centers on a confused main character named African-American who tries desperately to smother his "Blackness" as a result of such stereotypes invading his perception of who he is in the world. HOOCHIe MAMA utilizes rhythmic language and extravagantly drawn characters to elevate its themes. Using African music and poetry, the play asks, who do we think we are, and who are we trying to please in this life?

Notes:
Produced as a part of AFROSYNtheSIS with 2 other one act plays.

1st Produced:
Mpaact Theatre Co. At Victory Gardens Studio Theatre     Spring 1997

Organisations:
MPAACT Theatre Co.

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Comedic Drama

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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HOPE VI

Synopsis:
HOPe VI tells the story of Hope Graves, 6, a high spirited and funny young girl who has become strangely quiet since her mother beat her in the head with a steel toed boot. A scar covers the length of her face, but she escapes the pain of her dreary life into the world of t.v. where only real people like Whoopi Goldberg exist. Hope VI is the journey of her dream and her family's struggle to survive after the wrecking ball hits the Robert Taylor homes on Chicago's southside.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Chicago Dramatists     01 Jun 2010

Organisations:
Chicago Dramatists

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Drama

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Jabari Dreams of Freedom

Synopsis:
Jabari Dreams of Freedom, is a timely new production by award-winning playwright, Nambi E. Kelley. Jabari is a young boy who is scared and confused by the turbulent, sometimes unjust world around him. A gifted artist, Jabari escapes to the Civil Rights era through his colorful paintings where he interacts with children from the past-including a young Barack Obama. These poignant experiences empower him to live courageously in the face of fear. Jabari Dreams of Freedom contains powerful and uplifting themes and characters.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Chicago Children's Theatre     07 Apr 2017

Organisations:
Chicago Children's Theatre

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Children's play

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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MILK

Synopsis:
MiLK traces the story of three adolescent girls living in the shadow of a Chicago Housing project. We follow "Baby" and her spirit force, "Womaclown" as they tackle the difficult issues of coming of age in such a difficult environment. Using rhythmic language and childhood song and dance, MilK takes a painful journey of one little girls battle to reconcile the shattered self that is left behind after she is raped.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Mpaact Theatre Co. At Victory Gardens Studio Theatre     01 Jun 1995

Organisations:
MPAACT Theatre Co.

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Drama

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Native Son

Native Son
Chicago. The South Side. The 1930s. A world where opportunity is elusive for people like Bigger Thomas. After landing a job in the home of a wealthy family, Bigger unwittingly unleashes a series of events that violently and irrevocably seal his fate. Using W.E.B. DuBois' theory of double consciousness as a grounding point, this adaptation of Native Son focuses on the landscape inside the mind of Bigger Thomas, bringing the power of Richard Wright's novel to life for a whole new generation.

Notes:
Based on the book "Native Son" by Richard Wright

1st Produced:
Court Theatre & American Blues Theater, Chicago, IL     20 Sep 2014

Organisations:
-

1st Published:

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Adaptation, drama, period

Parts:
Male:  5            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Tale of Nambi and Kintu: How Kintu Becomes A Man, The

Synopsis:
It is Uganda. the beginning of Time. Kintu is wandering about the earth with his cow, lonely. At the same time, Nambi, a goddess and the daughter of the Kingdom of Heaven, is wandering about the earth with her Sister. When Nambi & Kintu meet, it is instant love. However, Nambi's father, Mugulu, has other plans. Kintu must past 3 significant tests in order to prove himself a man to win Nambi's hand in marriage. HOW KINTU BeCOMeS A MAN is a rites of passage play following the journey of Kintu in his quest to become a man and begin humanity on earth. the play uses rap, poetry, song, African dance, and humor to tell the story of the First Family on earth in Uganda, Africa.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
St. Louis Black Repertory Theatre     01 Sep 1999

Organisations:
St. Louis Black Repertory Theatre

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Children

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  4            Other:  African Drummers

Further Reference:
-

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Translation Of Lies, The

Synopsis:
Ms. Social Media. Too Much Information. Pet and Baby Pix. The Zealot. I'm Relevant. Ray of Light. Too Legit to Quit. And The Editing Cryptic. The Translation of Likes puts all of these characters in the same space, cyberspace, and beyond, and traces how their self-esteems are impacted by their explosive online interactions with each other, as well as traces how they reveal who they are intimately that culminates in a life or death situation. Will this community be able to save one of their own who none of them have ever met? What are the implications of cyberspace and how community is actually created in the modern era? This play playfully examines what does it mean to be part of a global community that expands beyond the globe?

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
adult

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Xtigone

Synopsis:
Chicago. Present Day. Xtigone's brothers have both been killed in drive-by shootings by each other's rival gangs. Xtigone's uncle, Marcellus da Man, calls a press conference on CNN to announce that the bodies should be buried instead of uncovering the truth of violence in the streets of the City. Will Xtigone go against her powerful uncle and risk death by uncovering her brother's bodies? Using hip hop poetry, dance, and slick language, this re-imagining of Sophocles' Antigone tells the story of the ill-fated Xtigone and her quest for her community's truth. Xtigone was developed at in Italy at LaMaMa's International Symposium for Playwrights under the auspices of Pulitzer Prize Winner Lynn Nottage, and was a finalist for the Kennedy Center College theatre Festival.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
African American Shakespeare Co And Cal State University-East Bay     01 Nov 2010

Organisations:
African American Shakespeare Co.

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Drama with music

Parts:
Male:  5            Female:  4            Other:  Dancer, rappers, spoken word artists

Further Reference:
-

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