Woodie King: On and Off the Stage

Woodie King's name is synonymous with theatre, both on and off Broadway. As the founder and producing director of the New Federal Theatre ("NFT") located at the Henry Street Settlement, he has presented over 175 productions under its banner. He has been associated with such productions as For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf, Checkmates, God's Trombones, A Raisin In The Sun, Good Black Don't Crack, Boseman and Lena, Black Girl, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, Do Lord Remember Me, Men of Gospel and Solutions to All The World's Problems which King directed at the 47th Street Playhouse. During his lengthy career he has done it all. He has produced, co-produced, directed, stage managed and performed. He has won several Audelco Awards, the NAACP Image Award, and is a recipient of an Obie Award.

Born in Alabama and raised in Detroit, Woodie King developed an interest in theatre during his teen-age years. After graduating high school, he went into engineering. However, once he saw Sidney Poitier in The Defiant Ones and Sammy Davis Jr's performance in Sportin Life in Porgy and Bess, he knew his true calling was the theatrical arts. "I started taking acting classes and won a scholarship," recalled King. "I did everything and went everywhere to hone my craft. I became obsessed. I would follow my passion wherever it led, even if that meant going out to the suburbs, working with white theatres and in Black venues. I would build sets, do lightening, stage manage, whatever it took. I even managed to get a few good roles. Blacks, during the late 50's and early 60's, didn't get lead roles. You would have to be the white guys buddy and of course you never played a scene with a white woman," chuckled Woodie.

During that period King became involved with a small, but unique theatre, known as The Concept East. The theatre gained popularity due to its ability to successfully reflect the events of that era, such as the Civil Rights Movement. It was an exciting period and the theatre was at its zenith. Several plays were presented, but two one act plays, "Boy" and another "Study in Color" captured the imagination of the audience and received wide acclaim. Woodie went on tour with this play and in 1964 brought it to New York.

"I have known Woodie King for three decades. He is a fixture in New York theatre," said Byron Lewis, CEO of Uniworld. "I think Black theatre is becoming an endangered species but I absolutely believe that it is the foundation for the openings that have been achieved for Black people and Black audiences in film and television. The trouble with the performing arts these days is that much of it has to be financed through philanthropy or federal grants and in this political climate that is not a priority. Woodie has managed to hang on despite these hardships. Woodie has done great work. In spite of financial hardships, Woodie manages to continue providing educational and drama workshops as well as offer employment to so many wonderful performers and playwrights."

Ossie Davis took a moment to say something about Mr. King; "Woodie is very much a part of the institution we know as New York theatre. Instead of dashing to be an actor and come down center stage, Woodie chose to be one of those people that make things happen. We are still short in our community of people that exercise authority and power. He is one of the pioneers in that direction. He proves that it can be done and can be done well. Best of all, even after all these years, the man is just getting started. I am grateful to Woodie for many things. One is, I have had the great fortune to be married to the same woman for 54 years. One wonders how I managed such a thing. One thing was required, as far as my spouse was concerned and that was to keep her in gainful employment. Problem was, employment wasn't always gainful. Woodie was willing to step behind the scene and become a role model to a lot of people, especially young people. Many actors in this town have Woodie to thank for keeping them employed." "Woodie is a special part of the theatre," commented Jennifer Holliday. "I may be a better singer than actor but I was appreciative of Woodie's help when I was struggling with the part of Bessie Smith."

While Woody may be a special part of the theatre it was not always easy for him to get that special part in the theatre. Often Black actors could not get lead roles unless they created their own. No one was more aware of this than Woodie. "I wanted to play leads so I build my own theatre. A bunch of friends and I got together and converted a bar. We would lug the seats to the theatre on the roof of our cars. I was always interested in our history and how we got where we are as Black people. I wanted to know about DuBois, Paul Robinson and Langston Hughes. When I came to New York around 1964, I met these people. I met James Baldwin. It was great to meet people who had been my heroes. I started to hang out in the Village. I became friends with Amiri Baraka, Lonnie Elder, Robert Hooks and Douglas Turner Ward. This was my beginnings in theatre," reminisced the producer. "New York was fertile and alive then. I lived in the Village and in Harlem. I lived in Harlem when Malcolm X was killed and on Riverside Drive when Martin was killed. After Kennedy was killed, I remember thinking I had better do whatever I planned to do now because anything could happen if they could kill the president."

King is the father of three, Michelle, Michael and Jeffery. None of his children followed him into the theatrical arts.

"As an actor I did several films. As a producer/director I only did about 4 or 5. The films I produced were primarily historical documentaries on the Black theatre in America. I did a feature film entitled, "The Long Night" with Dick Anthony Williams, Peggy Kirkpatricks and Sonny Jim Gaines. I did a documentary about the Harlem Six. Ruby Dee and Novella Nelson starred in that. It was really a unique and different film. I did "Death of a Prophet." This was based loosely on the life of Malcolm X and the day he died. Morgan Freeman played Malcolm X and Yolanda King played Betty Shabazz.

King's focus these days has primarily been on the finances and operation of the NFT. "It is always a struggle to put on plays because after the selection process you have to go out and get money to produce it. You then have to get someone from the press to come and review it and hopefully it is a positive review, so that you can attract an audience. Money is always a concern," explains King.

Small theatres are always in danger of extinction due to less and less governmental support thus many are forced to continue to raise money to survive so it is always wonderful when Black theatre goers support their own. Woodie has definitely been a brave knight in holding high the shining banner of black art and culture. Presently King is producing "Waiting to End Hell," a play written by William Parker. The play is currently running at The 47th Street Playhouse located at 304 West 47th Street (near 8th Ave) Interested parties can call (212) 239-6200 for further information. Woodie also has a new book entitled "Impact of Race," published by Applause Books which addresses how race impacts black theatre and black culture and is a book well worth the read. Those African Americans, who invest their time and money in keeping black cultural arts alive, understand that Black Art is one of our people's greatest tributes to the world.

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