5 Off-Broadway Shows Featuring People of Color Opening in February (Writing Sample)

Ready to learn more about the diverse selection of off-Broadway shows debuting in February? Check out these five moving, inspiring and witty plays that are bound to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Cambodian Rock Band

A survivor of Khmer Rouge (the brutal regime that ruled Cambodia) comes back to Cambodia for the first time in 30 years. His daughter, a prosecutor, is preparing a case against one of the most famous war criminals in the country. Pair these stories with a live band playing Cambodian classics and Dengue Fever favorites, and you have a thrilling rock show.

Lauren Yee, the playwright, has described Cambodian Rock Band as a family story. It was inspired by Cambodian musicians in 1970s who hid their identities as rock artists to survive the Khmer Rouge regime.

Director Chay Yew has previously worked on Cambodian Rock Band in San Diego. He is also known for directing the off-Broadway shows Mojada in 2019 and Oedipus El Rey in 2017.

Members of the cast include Francis Jue, Abraham Kim, Jane Lui, Joe Ngo, Courtney Reed and Moses Villarama. Previews begin on February 4 and opening night is February 24 at the Pershing Square Signature Center.

Where We Stand

Donnetta Lavinia Grays’ Where We Stand is about an exile that asks forgiveness from a town community, who must decide between mercy or justice. A storyteller guides us through the tale, revealing that this lonely soul was once “tempted by the devil’s kindness on a fateful trip to the crossroads.”

Grays, a Brooklyn based playwright, will star in the play. David Ryan Smith will alternate in performances after opening night. Other notable works of Grays include Last Night and the Night Before, which premiered in January 2019, and Laid to Rest, for which Grays was selected as a finalist in the 2018 Eugene O’Neill Theater Center National Playwrights Conference.

The production is directed by Tamilla Woodard, who is the associate director of Hadestown and the associate artistic director of WP Theater. Previews will begin on January 31 and the premiere is set for February 11 at the WP Theater.

Blues for an Alabama Sky

Blues for an Alabama Sky follows the lives of five “passionate and progressive friends” who live in the same apartment building on 126th street in Harlem. Set in the summer of 1930, this story explores the struggles of aspiring artists during the Great Depression and the conflict between progressive and conservative values.

Playwright Pearl Cleage is a writer from Atlanta, Georgia. She has received the NAACP Image Award for outstanding literary work in fiction, as well as the Theatre Legend Award at the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival.

Director LA Williams is an Old Globe Classical Directing Fellow. His previous works include Rated Black: an American Requiem. 

The cast will include Prema Cruz, Alfie Fuller, John-Andrew Morrision, Khiry Walker and Sheldon Woodley. Previews begin February 4 and the show will run from February 18 to March 14 at Theater Five at Theatre Row.

We’re Gonna Die

In this series of vignettes, playwright Young Jean Lee explores what keeps us moving and living. These comedic and heart-wrenching stories are spoken and sung, making it difficult to label this show as a musical, play or concert.

Lee is best known for Straight White Men, which became the first play written by an Asian woman to be produced on Broadway in 2018. Raja Feather Kelly, the director and choreographer, is well known as the artistic director of New Brooklyn Theatre.

Music and lyrics are by Lee and Tim Simmonds, with additional music by John-Michael Lyles. Janelle McDermoth will star in the show. Other cast members include Freddy Hall, Kevin Remessar, Ximone Rose, Debbie Christine Tjong and Marques Walls.

Previews will begin on February 4 and the show will open on February 25 at the Second Stage Theater/Tony Kiser Theater.

All the Natalie Portmans

Keyonna and her older brother Samuel are facing eviction. Struggling to fit in as a smart, gay and lonely sixteen-year-old, Keyonna escapes by studying everything Natalie Portman, from rom-coms to red carpets. That is, until all the Natalie Portmans start talking back to her. In this coming-of-age comedy, Keyonna must learn how to address her real-life issues while following her dreams.

Playwright C.A. Johnson has previously written The Climb, which debuted in the Cherry Lane Mentor Project in 2019, and Thirst, which debuted at the Contemporary American Theater Festival in 2017.

All the Natalie Portmans is directed by Kate Whoriskey, whose previous works include Dear Elizabeth by Sarah Ruhl and Sweat by Lynn Nottage. Joshua Boone, Montego Glover, Elise Kibler, Renika Williams, and Kara Young make up the cast. The first preview is February 6 and opening night is February 24 at the MCC Theater Space.