How Harlem’s National Black Theatre Is Cementing Black Culture In the Future

There is a shift happening in the world of performance art. The loud echoes of federal divestment and the oligarchic consolidation of streaming services loom large, diluting what quality performance feels like. But on the ground, in the everyday experience of being a working performer, there’s a feverish expectation to change the method and medium of the work. Audiences crave something real, something that artificial intelligence can never create: human connection. Sade Lythcott, CEO of the National Black Theater in Harlem, is up for the challenge.

On Monday, Lythcott received the Marian MacDowell Arts Advocacy Award in recognition of her leadership at an institution that has championed Black artists for decades. The MacDowell Foundation runs one of the country’s premier fellowship programs, whose alumni include Leonard Bernstein, James Baldwin, and Alice Walker. The award honors people who provide “profound, unique support for the arts.” Lythcott’s longtime friend, renowned artist Amy Sherald, presented it to her.

“Sade’s legacy is one where Black artists never have to question whether their stories deserve to be told,” Sherald tells Bazaar. “She’s building something that goes beyond representation. It’s about ownership, creative freedom, and making sure the next generation has the resources to tell their stories on their own terms.”

During the pandemic, Lythcott learned that her audience is online and international, which set the perfect stage for “NBT 24/7,” a digital platform for virtual panels, online performances, short films, and community conversations. “The digital component is very big in addition to what it is that we’re building on in the new space,” Lythcott tells me about the next phase of the work. “We call our campaign the ‘Theater of the Future’,” referring to the $100 million new home of NBT on 125th and 5th Avenue in Harlem.

The massive project will hold theaters, offices, classrooms, and artist housing. It’s intended to be the premier destination for Black theater in the country.

“This corridor that is so symbolic to Black culture and American culture, and has shaped the zeitgeist of what America is, will have permanent homes for Black culture across the genres of arts and culture,” Lythcotts says. “That feels really exciting and it means that there’s permanence — regardless of what the neighborhood looks like.”

No one can predict the evolving demographics of Harlem, but having a stake on its most bustling corridor is insurance. NBT plans to have immersive storytelling, collaborating with Black artists like Nona Hendryx and Carrie Mae Weems to be in the driver’s seat of this new wave.

When Lythcott took the helm of the NBT in 2008, upon the passing of her mother Dr. Barbara Ann Teer — who founded the pioneering institution in 1968 — she knew there would be challenges ahead but could have never anticipated a global pandemic, the rise of right-wing politics, or the AI boom.

Historically, arts organizations in BIPOC-majority neighborhoods received far less funding than those in majority-white neighborhoods — albeit for a huge uptick following the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement — the support has since dropped to pre-pandemic levels. On top of the fiscal challenges, NBT is located in Harlem, which by Census data, has dropped in African American residents from 77 percent in 2000 to 43 percent in 2021. This has made running an organization dedicated to the ownership, production and amplification of Black stories demanding.

But the challenges have created opportunities for a greater emphasis on legacy holding and permanence. Lythcott sees the glass half full. “It’s not lost on me that all of these incredible cultural institutions are having a Renaissance during the centennial of the Harlem Renaissance,” Lythcott says. “Harlem institutions like Studio Museum, Dance Theater of Harlem, even the Apollo, along 125th Street are all run by women right now. Which is why I think we’re thriving so much, and that we represent the full spectrum of performing arts in a time where you can see Black culture under attack and the performing arts under attack.

Sherald agrees, “People are still creating, still imagining, and still finding ways to come together. Even in difficult times, artists continue to make work that challenges us and reminds us of our humanity. I think our ability to imagine something different is one of the most powerful things we have.”