The Cambridge Way: An intimate look at Black Theatre... by those who held up its walls

This book gives you an intimate look at Black Theatre by those who held up its walls.Edmond Cambridge loved theatre. He dedicated his life to it. He breathed theatre. He lived and moved and had his being in theatre. Ed grew up in Harlem during the 1920s and 30s. It was during this time that Harlem exploded in Black art - literature, music and dance. It was during this Harlem Renaissance that Ed was bitten with the “bug” to express his creativity. His first love was dancing, but he was later drawn to other art forms.Never to promote himself, Ed was a master drama teacher, a passionate stage director, and a stage manager par excellence. He wore many hats in the theatre. He was also a working actor, a respected producer and - at one time - a promising dancer.Ed Cambridge was in that group of pioneers who followed their passion and pursued their love of theatre. During the 1930s and 40s, theatre did not embrace the Black experience, nor did it embrace the Black performer. Among those pioneers were Ruby Dee, Juanita Moore, Gertrude Jeannette, Brock Peters, Isabel Sanford, Helen Martin, Clarice Taylor, and Vivian Toler. They pried open doors where there appeared to be no doors. They made a way where there appeared to be no way. In fact, they were the ones who built and held up the wall of Black Theatre.The Black artists in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s met with opposition at every turn, not to mention family members and friends urging them to leave show business and get that “good government job.” But it was these courageous and talented men and women who helped shape theatre for those who came along in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. The Lincoln Kilpatricks, Lynn Hamiltons, Dick Anthony Williams, Amentha Dymallys, Marla Gibbs, Judyann Elders, Barbara Montgomerys, Laurence Fishburnes and so many more came through those doors.Among the many theatre groups to have an impact on Black theatre was the Negro Ensemble Company. This New York City based theatre company was created in 1967 by playwright Douglas Turner Ward, producer-actor Robert Hooks, and theatre manager Gerald S. Krone, with funding by the Ford Foundation. The NEC produced original works with themes based on the Black experience. 1.Ted Lange, award-winning playwright, actor, director, says this about The Cambridge Way: This book drops you into the New York lifestyle and the Los Angeles lifestyle at a time when Black actors were doing their thing to become artisans in the difficult, tumultuous waters of show business.This book is a fun read. Ms. Forte’ has gotten the recollections of some of the pillars of Black Theatre. She has put together a book that informs us of a bygone era and pays homage to one of the finest Directors/Teachers to grace the American Theatre.If you want to know what it was like to be a Black actor in the fifties, this is the book. If you want to know what it was like to direct television as one of the few Black directors, this is the book. If you want to get some insight into the inner workings of some very famous plays that went on to become classics, this is the book for you.But don’t rush the book. Take your time. Savor the pages. There are some gems to be discovered. Read more