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As part ofLafayette’s celebration of Black History Month, Tony Award nominee Calvin Levels will perform his critically-acclaimed solo play James Baldwin- Down from the Mountaintop 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31 in the Williams Center for the Arts.
Sponsored by the Office of Intercultural Development, the Black History Month celebration, themed “The Souls of Black Folk: Unveiling Identity,” runs Jan. 31-Feb. 23 with Levels’ play kicking off the schedule of events. For more information on the month’s events, contact Peggy Bonner, secretary in the Office of Student Life, at (610) 330-5819, or visit Intercultural Development’s website.
The play depicts the rich and impassioned life of American novelist, playwright, essayist and civil rights activist James Baldwin. Levels’ spirited portrayal of Baldwin powerfully communicates Baldwin’s main messages of love, equality and social justice, and has garnered rave reviews throughout the United States.
In the play, Baldwin returns from the ethereal realm intent on providing an insecure actor with the insight necessary to portray him. He recounts various topics about his life, which include his early childhood growing up in Harlem as a prodigious reader; to his first sexual experiences and love affairs; to his relationships with his mentor and friend Beauford Delaney and his idol Richard Wright; leaving America and moving to Paris; publishing his works, including Go Tell It On The Mountain and Giovanni’s Room; friendships and rivalries with the likes of Marlon Brando, Lorraine Hansberry, Truman Capote, Norman Mailer, and Langston Hughes; and his association with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and the civil rights movement.
During his national tour, Levels has performed James Baldwin- Down from the Mountaintop at a number of theatres including The Actors Studio Sunset Millennium Theatre in Los Angles, Calif., directed by Charles Burnett. He has performed the play at many symposiums and conferences at colleges and universities such as Princeton University, Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, Syracuse University, University of Massachusetts, Kennesaw State University, and University of Vermont. He has also appeared in numerous film, television and theatrical productions.
His work has received a number of nominations including the Tony Award, New York Drama Desk Award, and New York Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Actor in a Play. He also received The Theatre World Award for Outstanding New Talent and an honor from the National James Baldwin Literary Society in recognition of his contribution to the legacy of James Baldwin.