When choreographer and artist Camille A. Brown read Kyra Gaunt’s book The Games Black Girls Play, the word “play” immediately shot out. She began thinking about her childhood and the many games she used to play, and how it was hard to find narratives within the media that showcased black girls being just that: girls. The message resonated and became personal. Who was she before the world defined her?
Springing from Brown’s long-held conviction that “It is important for us to talk about human stories on stage, and to tell stories we don’t see enough of,” BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play challenges its audiences to envision the world through a black girl’s lens, and celebrates the unspoken rhythm and language that black girls have through games both contemporary and ancestral. Through the work, Brown and company members emerge with their own thoughts on black girls of all ages and the rituals that unite them. On what it means to be fully present, in a body, and constantly evolving.
BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play showcases and elevates the power of sisterhood. It is remembering, conjuring, honoring, and healing. It’s a black girl’s story through her gaze.
"sneaker-stomping...so elastic, so intricate that the sense of cadence and rhythm is as visual an experience as it is an aural one."- The New York Times