HISTORY
The Billie Holiday Theatre was founded in 1972 by the Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation.
Franklin A. Thomas, the first Black President of the Ford Foundation, wanted to revitalize his hometown neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant through the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation. Thomas’ concept behind the theatre was “to expose the one of the largest black communities in America to the arts while providing an outlet for local talent.”
Standing on the shoulders of strong leaders that have led The Billie to this point from Herbert Scott-Gibson to Marjorie Moon to Dr. Indira Etwaroo.
For over 40 years, Marjorie served as the President and Executive Director of The Billie and produced more than 150 productions.
Some of the notable productions presented by The Billie early on include Young Gifted and Broke (1977) by legendary jazz musician Weldon Irvine which ran for a record seventy-seven sold-out performances; the award-winning play, What Would Jesus Do? in 2010 and, of course, Inacent Black in 1979.
In 1981, The Billie made history with Inacent Black when it transferred the hit play to Broadway with fifty percent of the financing being derived from the Black community; a first in the theatre world (as cited in The New York Times), and unheard of prior to Inacent Black.
The legendary William “Smokey” Robinson had his first musical, Raisin’ Hell, produced at BHT, while other notable authors whose debut plays were produced at BHT include: Samm Art Williams (long before his Tony Award nominated play, Home), legendary jazz musician Weldon Irvine (lyricist for the classic anthem “To Be Young, Gifted and Black”), and John Henry Redwood (The Old Settler).
Many of today’s successful actors, writers, designers, and musicians developed their craft at The Billie Holiday Theatre. Actors such as Samuel L. Jackson, Debbie Allen, Tichina Arnold, Bill Cobbs, Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis, Omari Hardwick, Wendell Pierce, Phyllis Yvonne Stickney, Carol Woods, Elaine Graham and Lynn Nottage to name but a few. The great political satirist/comic, Dick Gregory made his theatrical comeback after twenty years on the BHT stage, and audiences were also treated to the reunion of Good Times stars Ralph Carter and John Amos. Musicians Victor Willis and Alex Briley met and performed at BHT eight months prior to forming The Village People, and Grammy Award winning bassist and producer extraordinaire Marcus Miller performed in the BHT pit band.
2020 Black Lives Mural
- How the Community Reclaimed the Streets With Brooklyn BLM Mural
- Fulton Street gets block-long Black Lives Matter mural
Leading to its 50th anniversary under the guidance of Dr. Etwaroo and support of The Billie team, The Billie Holiday Theatre was awarded the National Medal for the Arts in 2021 (received in 2023) by President Joseph R. Biden. This acknowledgement of The Billie’s commitment to its community, social justice, and artistic excellence remains a proud moment for us.
The Billie went through a three year leadership gap, and in 2023, Shadawn Smith became the next Executive Director. Spearheading The Billie’s first full theatrical production in the theatre since 2019, there was a dual revival of the theatre itself and of FABULATION, or The Re-Education of Undine written by Lynn Nottage.The production presented a homecoming of sorts for Nottage celebrating the acclaimed playwright’s Brooklyn roots as well as her rich history with The Billie. She said that the very first theater she ever experienced was at the Billie Holiday Theatre. That production received three AUDELCO nominations and won one for Best Supporting Actress.
So much more is yet to come.