It is the opening night of Elvis Presley, a black man named Joe at Black Ensamp in Uptown. The crowd is scattered but excited to show – and they will get one that breaks the usual style of musical plays that excite this stage.
This new show is written and directed by Jackie Taylor, founder and CEO of Black Ensample, who had strengths for the city's art scene. This time, Taylor added an evolution to the unique JukeBox style attributed to her theater. This story is the biography, and it depicts Taylor's childhood that grew up in the Kabrini-green homes in Chicago, where she and her young brother became the atmosphere of Elvis's fans for life.
“The only films they played are Elvis Presley,” Taylor remembered her at the theater office a few days before the opening. She said that the movie Theater in her neighborhood showed only Elvis and cartoon films. So she and a bonding atmosphere clearly formed, based on Elvis' souvenir, which was shown throughout her office.
Taylor is famous for organizing JUKEBOX musical plays that take the masses throughout the musical history. On the opening night of the Lalvis Presley, a black man named Joe, and the offer remains working in progress with dances and some whipped lines. Over time, actors will definitely acquire confidence, move the movements and easily process the lines.
But this gradual is an achievement in itself. Taylor, who founded the theater company in 1976 (refuses, in its traditional way, to reveal its age), and is preparing for the capital of the capital with millions of dollars to expand the Black campus by a division through North Clark Street.
The Black Ensmble Theater was founded in 1976, which was opened on North Clarak Street in 2011 after decades of work in the Hull House cellar.
Earlier this month, Black Ensample cleansed the last obstacle to the approval of the entire city council for development, which will sit directly from its current stage. Taylor is called free to develop the village, and when it is fully achieved, the 13,000 square feet of theatrical art education center will include, retail spaces at the Earth level, and 50 units of affluent housing for artists. Sweeted brand: $ 76 million.
“This has been a dream for Jackie for decades,” said Chris Nesbit, chief planning manager in Black Ensample. “To create is not just a theater as a permanent focus for creativity and eliminating racism, but an entire village can nourish people in terms of society, activity, housing, and the full type of things that someone needs, in a creative life.”
Nessit said Taylor has been talking about presenting the idea to the city council since the late first decade of the twentieth century. Over the years, the theater was gaining property and strengthening positive relationships with neighbors.
“For the moment, we are about to diving in the launch of the capital campaign,” Nesbitt said. (We) surpass our partnerships for a reasonable housing developer. This is a kind of approved wide brush, and now we classify nuts and actual nails to achieve this. “
The development of the new Taylor will include a 13,000 square feet of theatrical arts center, retail spaces at the ground level, and 50 units of affluent housing for artists.
Manuel Martinez/Manuel Martinez/Weibz
Nesbitt said the theater also creates a 150 smaller performance space within its current complex for the nursery of the new theatrical writers, host readings and workshops under progress.
Daril Brooks, the administrative director of Black Ensample, has worked in the theater 25 years ago. He watched the company's growth and worked closely with Taylor over the years.
“I have been with Jackie Taylor since we were at the theater of 150 seats on Bacon Street, and he is now Jackie Taylor Street,” said Brooks. “Its vision is transferred to being a millions of dollars in a theater, to work to invest at $ 100 million in times that we are now, very great.”
Brooks said that Taylor has exceeded the shows on stage. A pioneer in the Chicago Theater and a main player in the restart of the American arts coalition in the city (renamed as a black coalition of art and culture in Chicago in 2023), Taylor left her mark on a generation of designs in Chicago.
“You have people to sneak, like, famous. Bruks said:“ Yes, Miss Taylor taught me a day. ”Kick Palmer came to watch the story of Jackie Wilson.
The latest production of the Encemble Theatre Theater is Elvis Presley was a black man named Joe. JukeBox Musical Taylor's childhood, which grew up in the Green Caprini homes in Chicago, was depicted, where she and her little brother became the Joe of Elvis's fans for life.
For Taylor, the free village is a step towards the permanent sustainability of the company that started in the 1970s.
“What I want is that the theater be able to support himself outside ticket sales and collect donations,” Taylor said. “I felt the best way to do this is to get assets. So when I presented this idea to the city council, I presented the entire idea. I only presented the cultural center. I presented the village.”
Mike Davis is a theatrical correspondent that covers stages throughout Chicago.
