Paul Robeson

The life of Civil Rights Activists Paul Robeson is retold in this educational and inspiring performance. This musical sheds light on the life of this courageous, influential, and complex man whose message remains relevant for today’s audiences.

Who was Paul Robeson? Before Martin Luther King Jr. dreamed, before Thurgood Marshall petitioned and Sidney Poitier emoted, before the big breakthroughs in Hollywood and Washington, before the Jim Crow signs came down, and before the Civil Rights banners went up, before Spike Lee, before Denzel Washington, before Sam Jackson and Jesse Jackson, there was...Paul Robeson.

Robeson was a world-famous scholar, actor, singer, all-American athlete, lawyer, and civil rights activist from the 1930s to 1950s. His life is retold in this unique musical and spoken portrayal entitled Paul Robeson.

The performance stars Jason McKinney as Robeson, the African-American Renaissance man who rose to prominence in multiple arenas at a time when racism and segregation was rampant in the United States. Robeson used his fame as a performer to become a voice for people who were marginalized both at home and abroad.

Despite a hugely successful career on stage and in and international popularity, he was eventually silenced and his career effectively ended by prejudice and McCarthyism.

The musical sheds light on the life of this courageous, influential, and complex man whose message remains relevant for today’s audiences. Written by Phillip Hayes Dean and produced by United in Music Inc., the production attracted a degree of controversy when first presented on Broadway in 1979 with James Earl Jones in the lead role. However, it went on to have two highly successful runs on Broadway in 1988 and 1995 with Avery Brooks in the title role.