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Vinnette Justine Carroll

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Vinnette Justine Carroll
Carroll in 1979
Born(1922-03-11)March 11, 1922
New York City, U.S.
DiedNovember 5, 2002(2002-11-05)(aged 80)
Lauderhill, Florida,U.S.
EducationWadleigh High School
Alma materLong Island University
New York University
Columbia University
Occupation(s)Playwright
actress
theatre director
Known forThe firstAfrican-Americanwoman to direct onBroadway

Vinnette Justine Carroll(March 11, 1922 – November 5, 2002) was an Americanplaywright,actress, andtheatre director.She was the firstAfrican-Americanwoman to direct onBroadway,with her 1972 production of the musicalDon't Bother Me, I Can't Cope.UntilLiesl Tommy's 2016 nomination forEclipsed,Carroll was the only African-American woman to have received aTony Awardnomination fordirection.[1]

Life and work[edit]

Carroll was born in New York City to Edgar Edgerton, adentist,and Florence (Morris) Carroll.[1]She moved toJamaicawith her family at the age of three, and spent much of her childhood there. Brought back to New York at the age of 10, she and her two sisters were the only black students at their New York public school.[2]Her mother was a strong presence who playedArturo Toscaniniin the home and disciplined her three daughters wisely.[3]Her father encouraged his daughters to becomephysicians.Carroll compromised by studyingpsychology.[2]

She left the field of psychology to studytheater,and in 1948 accepted a scholarship to attendErwin Piscator’sDramatic Workshopat theNew School for Social Research.There, she studied withLee Strasberg,Stella Adler,Margaret Barker, and Susan Steele.

Carroll later founded the Urban Arts Corps, anonprofit,interracialcommunity theaterwhere, asartistic director,she was able to provide a professional workshop for aspiring young actors in underserved communities.[4]She produced over 100 plays through the Urban Arts Corps from her loft theatre on West 20th Street in Manhattan.[5]The theater was a member of the Black Theater Alliance and the Off-Off Broadway Alliance, and was supported by theNew York State Council on the Arts,theNational Endowment of the Arts,theEdward NobleFoundation, andCBS.[6]Urban Arts Corps productions includedDon't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,Jean-Paul Sartre'sThe Flies,andWilliam Hanley'sSlow Dance on a Killing Ground,among many others.[7]The theater provided a space to "nurture emerging playwrights and showcase their works."[8]

In 1968, Carroll joined theNew York State Council on the Artsupon the request of executive directorJohn B. Hightower.She had previously been appointed director of the Ghetto Arts Program for the State of New York.[9]

Education[edit]

Carroll attendedWadleigh High School,an integrated high school inHarlem, Manhattan.She then received herBachelor of Artsdegree fromLong Island Universityin 1944. In 1946, she received herMaster of Artsdegree fromNew York University.She was aPh.D. candidateatColumbia University,but decided not to finish the psychology degree and instead to pursue a career in acting. Psychology, while not her chosen profession, was a tool she found invaluable in working with people.[10]She began studying theatre at theNew School for Social Researchin 1946, where she aspired to become an actress. She also studied in the fields ofclinicalandindustrialpsychology, and was awarded a scholarship to do postgraduate work at the New School for Social Research in 1948.[3]

Her philosophy of directing and her technique for creating herfolk playsreflect similar theories, ideas, and aesthetic principles to those ofBertolt Brecht.[11]She also promoted the principles ofErwin Piscator's "objective style of performance". After working with Piscator, she studied at Strasberg's studio between 1948 and 1950.[12]The juxtaposition of these opposing styles led to Carroll's own technique in creating her new style of folk drama.[11]

Acting career[edit]

Carroll's first stage appearance was at the New School for Social Research in 1948.[12]She performed in many of the school's productions, including roles asClytemnestrainAgamemnon,the Nurse inRomeo and Juliet,and the Duchess inAlice in Wonderland.Carroll made her professional stage debut as a Christian in a summer stock production ofGeorge Bernard Shaw'sAndrocles and the Lionat the Southold Playhouse onLong Island.[13]She played Addie inLillian Hellman'sThe Little Foxesand then, in 1949, Bella inArnaud d'UssaeuandJames Gow'sDeep Are the Roots.[14]

In 1955, Carroll joined the faculty of thePerforming Arts High SchoolinNew York City.[13]She taught theater arts and directed productions as a faculty member at the high school for 11 years. Later, due to a shortage of faculty positions, Carroll created aone-woman showand toured theUnited Statesand theWest Indiesuntil 1957.

She made herLondonstage debut at theRoyal Court Theatreon December 4, 1958, as Sophia Adams inMoon on a Rainbow Shawl.She then won anObie Awardfor her role inErrol John’sMoon on a Rainbow Shawl.In February 1963, she returned to London as the Narrator inBlack Nativityat thePiccadilly Theatre.[15]Carroll also worked infilmandtelevision.She appeared in the filmsUp the Down Staircase(1967),Alice's Restaurant(1969), and others. In 1976, she played a memorable role as Dr. Wynell Thatcher on the two-partAll in the Familyepisode "Archie's Operation."[16]She later appeared inThe Last Home Run,which was filmed in 1996 and released in 1998. In 1964, she received anEmmy AwardforBeyond the Blues,which dramatized the works of Black poets.[17]She later returned to London with her company and performed inPeter Wessel Zapffe'sThe Prodigal Son.[15]

As a playwright and director[edit]

During her era, Carroll was one of the few women directing in commercial theatre.[18]She worked to develop a new form of theater, "the gospel song-play", to capture the richness and variety of life through music, theater, and dance.[19]In 1957, she formed her first all-black cast to presentHoward Richardsonand William Berney'sDark of the Moonat theHarlem YMCA.[13]The second production ofDark of the Moonlaunched the careers of several young African-American actors, includingJames Earl Jones,Shauneille Perry,andHarold Scott.

In 1972, she became the firstAfrican-Americanwoman to direct onBroadwaywith her staging ofDon't Bother Me, I Can't Cope.The hitgospelrevuewas conceived by Carroll, with music and lyrics byMicki Grant.It was nominated for fourTony Awards.In 1976, she collaborated with Grant andAlex BradfordonYour Arms Too Short to Box with God,which garnered three Tony nominations.[20]This show was anadaptationof theGospel According to Matthew.[21]

Carroll did not dwell on her role as a female director because she felt it would be self-defeating.[22]Through her effort and talent, she provided communities with illustrations of unity through her productions. Her contributions as an artist and playwright are often overlooked. However, she is known for the reinvention of song-play, which was revitalized in many of her theater works. The expression of identity through gospel music in the African-American theater experience is clearly delineated in the development of song-play.[23]Her work was about the reaffirmation of life and people. Commonstereotypes of African Americansled Carroll "into creating and directing new works that positively and artistically presented people of color in theater and art."[13]Her primary interest was giving voice to African Americans and other minority communities that have been culturally and artistically silenced.[9] Carroll once said of her career: "They told me that I had one-third less chance because I was a woman; they told me I had one-third less chance again because I was black, but I tell you, I did one hell of a lot with that remaining one-third."[5]

Retirement and death[edit]

Carroll moved toFort Lauderdale, Florida,during the 1980s. There, she founded the Vinnette Carroll Repertory Company, where she remained as artistic director and producer until her failing health forced her to retire in 2001.[24]She died ofheart diseaseanddiabetesinLauderhill,Florida, on November 5, 2002, at the age of 80.[25]

Plays[edit]

Directing credits[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^abMcClinton, Calvin A.The Work of Vinnette Carroll, An African American Theatre Artist.Edwin Mellen Press,2000.
  2. ^abShirley, Don (November 7, 2002)."Vinnette Carroll, 80; Pioneering Theater Director".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedJanuary 8,2023.
  3. ^abSmith, Karen L. (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. 2.
  4. ^Smith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. vi.
  5. ^abJames V. Hatch, "From Hansberry to Shange", in Errol G. Hill and James V. Hatch (eds),A History of African American Theatre(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003), p. 401.
  6. ^Smith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,1975, pp. 54–55.
  7. ^Smith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. v.
  8. ^Nelson, Emmanuel S.(ed.) (2004),African American Dramatists: An A to Z Guide,Westport, Connecticut:Greenwood Press,p. 189.
  9. ^abConyers, James (2000).Black Lives: Essays in African American Biography.Vol. 23, No. 4, p. 22.
  10. ^Smith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. 3.
  11. ^abConyers (2000).Black Lives: Essays in African American Biography.Vol. 23, No. 4, p. 25.
  12. ^abSmith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. 4.
  13. ^abcdConyers (2000).Black Lives: Essays in African American Biography.Vol. 23, No. 4, p. 21.
  14. ^Smith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. 5.
  15. ^abSmith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. 6.
  16. ^"Archie's Operation: Part 1".IMDb.
  17. ^Hofler, Robert (November 6, 2002)."Vinnette Carroll".Variety.RetrievedJanuary 8,2023.
  18. ^Smith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. 10.
  19. ^Conyers (2000).Black Lives: Essays in African American Biography.Vol. 23, No. 4, p. x.
  20. ^Jones, Kenneth (November 6, 2002)."Vinnette Carroll, Tony-Nommed Creator ofYour Arms Too Short...,Dead at 80 ".Playbill.RetrievedJanuary 8,2023.
  21. ^"Vinnette Carroll, 80".Chicago Tribune.November 8, 2002.RetrievedJanuary 8,2023.
  22. ^Smith (1975),Vinnette Carroll: Portrait of an Artist in Motion,p. 52.
  23. ^Conyers (2000).Black Lives: Essays in African American Biography.Vol. 23, No. 4, p. 19.
  24. ^Nelson (ed.) (2004).African-American Dramatists: An A to Z Guide,p. 90.
  25. ^McKinley, Jesse (November 7, 2002)."Vinnette Carroll, Playwright And Director, Is Dead at 80".The New York Times.RetrievedJanuary 8,2023.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vinnette_Justine_Carroll&oldid=1225792004"