Today we’d like to introduce you to Bryan-Keyth Wilson.
Hi Bryan, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I began my artistic journey as an inquisitive young boy in music class in elementary school. Teachers such as Maxine Wyche and the late great Ollie “Jewel Williams introduced me to the world of music, and from that moment, I was bitten by the bug. I sang in the choir in church and then started taking piano lessons from Michelle Haynes-Berry. I joined the band and started playing the clarinet because my big sister also played it. I was introduced to musical theatre through elementary and middle school, and my interests sparked even more. I grew up watching old movie musicals with my mama, and I loved watching performances such as The Nicholas Brothers, Lena Horne, and Cab Calloway, and my love for the art kept growing. My cousins graduated from the University of Michigan and were also huge influences. One pursued a degree in vocal performance, and my cousin Ephraim got his degree in musical theatre. It was in high school that my interest in theatre began to grow. I remember distinctly watching Jennifer Holliday perform at the Thanksgiving Day Parade during her run in DREAMGIRLS, and I knew then that I wanted to do this for the rest of my life.
I had a great high school theatre director, Mr. Rodney Sheffield, who introduced me to the writing of August Wilson. This was the first time I had read something like FENCES. Through my four years in high school )La Marque High School) I participated in the One-Act Play competition and was ready to study theatre in college. So I auditioned and finally followed my gut to Sam Houston State University. I needed to be immersed in the art day end and day out. I had great instructors there, such as Dr. Jim Miller, Penelope Hasekoester, Kris Hanssen, and Maureen McIntyre. During my first year, I wasn’t cast in any of the shows, and of course, this was a blow to my ego. I returned to my King Hall dorm room and wrote my first play titled NO WAYS TIRED. It was this moment that led me to be a playwright.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
As a black theatre artist, trying to fit into a system that was not meant for me has been problematic since college. I went to a PWI (Predominantly White Institution), and the opportunities weren’t always there for me as a chubby black boy who could sing, act and dance. I saw then in my first year that when the opportunity wasn’t afforded to me, I created my own by writing a play, and that play was later produced at Experimental Theatre Night hosted by Alpha Psi Omega. I didn’t know I was making space like that at that age, but God’s hand has been on me ever since. As a black playwright that tells stories from a black perspective, many opportunities weren’t afforded to me on the commercial level.
Broadway, or as we call it, the Great White Way, was built on minstrelsy, and to say that this was the play that I thought I was going to land as a playwright even today seems like a fallacy. But as a young boy, my dream was to be on Broadway, and I will never give up on a dream, but I understand that Broadway is not the only symbol of success in professional theatre.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a multi-hyphenate/award-winning playwright in the theatre and publishing industry. As a theatre artist/producer, diversity, equity and inclusion are at the forefront of every project I take on. I started producing theatre Off-Off-Broadway at The Variety Cafe at Rockefeller Center with shows such as PAMLET and THE SUBWAY SERIES. BKW studied Musical Theatre with a Dance emphasis at Sam Houston State University. I am the founding artistic director of The Creative Co-Lab TX|NYC.
I love to write tangible stories that turn the mirror back on nature. The theatre is my pulpit, and the audience is the congregation. I am a southern playwright, and many of my stories reflect the southern sensibility from a black point of view. I am most proud of my award-winning choreopoem FOR COLORED BOYZ on the verge of a nervous breakdown/freedom ain’t enuff. My voice as a writer who is not afraid to tackle the epicenter of issues within the human condition sets me apart from my peers.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
Tell the truth no matter what. I have learned that as an artist, I must look from within. God has given us all the tools that we need. I have also learned that I don’t need to wait for permission to be who God has called me to be as an artist.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.bryankeythwilson.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/literaryprince/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bryankeyth.wilson
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryan-keyth-wilson-b0b82563/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/forcoloredboyz?lang=en
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0cGb3ko34KqhU8QcKCujuA
Image Credits:
Bryan-Keyth Wilson, JP Haney, and Diamantina Browdy
