Jahi Kearse returns to B Street For MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. AND THE SOUND OF FREEDOM

Fresh off a successful run of Ain't Too Proud at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Jahi Kearse returns to B Street to play Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the original production Martin Luther King Jr. & The Sound of Freedom as the first play of the 2019 Family Series. Kearse plays Motown founder and record executive Berry Gordy in Ain't Too Proud, a hit new musical about the life and times of The Temptations. Immediately following Sound of Freedom Kearse will join his Ain't Too Proud castmates in New York City for a Broadway run of the musical at the Imperial Theatre, reprising his role as Gordy.

For Sound of Freedom, Kearse is joined by a stellar professional cast who has graced the stage at Music Circus, Capitol Stage, Sacramento Theatre Company and The Sofia. Castmates include Shannon Mahoney (The Crucible, STC), Javen Crosby (Little Shop of Horrors, STC), Tiffannie Mack (The Wolves, Cap Stage), Darek Riley (Treasure Island, B Street Theatre), and Teyonna Johnson (B Street intern company 2018).

Martin Luther King Jr. & the Sound of Freedom by Jerry Montoya

Discover the unsung heroes of the Civil Rights Movement like Claudette Colvin, the Birmingham Children's Crusade, Fannie Lou Hamer, Reverend James Reeb, John Lewis, and others.

In this original production, Executive Director and playwright Jerry Montoya returns us to a time when the sign "whites only" was outside of bathrooms, outside of restaurants, designated in the front of buses, and even on public water fountains. With Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. as the narrator, Dr. King recounts the trials that needed to be overcome in order to end segregation during the 1960s.

The Family Series at the B Street Theatre

In 2018, B Street hosted 29,674 teachers, parents and students as part of its field trip programming in the Family Series. Before moving into The Sofia, B Street averaged 18,500 students yearly for field trips. The Sofia has been a game-changer in our mission to bring theater to children as we welcomed 426 school bookings across 105 performances. Students learned about the life and philosophies of Mahatma Gandhi in our original production of Gandhi!, were invited to use their imaginations with The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, sought adventure with Treasure Island, and got in the holiday spirit with A Christmas Carol. In 2019, B Street will once again lead with education in this original production about the unsung heroes of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. The season also includes E.B. White's Charlotte's Web adapted by Joseph Robinette, an original adaptation of Sword In The Stone by Dana Brooke, and an original adaptation of The Wizard of Oz by Lyndsay Burch.