Atlanta Black Theatre Festival

Atlanta Black Theatre Festival The ABTF advances creative entrepreneurs through a vibrant platform for connections, skill-building, and the presentation of groundbreaking theatre.

We're taking back our narrative while building our community one play at a time.

06/16/2026

I cried out to God for direction.

He answered in four words: Atlanta Black Theatre Festival.

I was so certain it already existed. It didn't.

Fifteen years ago, I had lost everything to the 2008 recession. Six figures. Our savings. Even my children's college fund. I was a Howard graduate, an NYU graduate, a wife, a mother of four — and I had nothing to show for any of it.

Then in February 2012, Trayvon Martin was killed. And the festival God had named became a mandate: to tell our own stories. To shatter the myths killing our community. To heal what politics could not.

My sister Wanda and I pooled everything we had left. October 2012, the first ABTF opened at the 14th Street Playhouse. 2,500 people came.

Today, fifteen years later — 160 playwrights from 27 states and 5 countries, 3,200+ artists, debt-free.

The 15th anniversary festival is this Labor Day weekend. I'll be telling the rest of this story all month. Follow so you don't miss the chapters that come next.

To God, we give the glory.

06/14/2026

For 15 years, ABTF has been powered by the people who kept coming, kept giving, kept bringing somebody with them, and kept believing in the vision.

There is nothing we cannot build when we do it together.

Come see the work. Come feel the rhythms. Come home.🪘🎭🖤

Tickets are available now. Link in bio.

🎭 This is how we win — by showing up for the stories, the artists, the elders, the dreamers, and the culture that keeps ...
06/13/2026

🎭 This is how we win — by showing up for the stories, the artists, the elders, the dreamers, and the culture that keeps calling us forward and lifting us up.

Every award, every performance, every standing ovation is proof that our stories matter.

ABTF is more than a festival. It’s a gathering. A celebration. A reminder that when we fill the house, we lift the whole community.

Come see the work. Come feel the rhythms. Come home.

OUR GIFT OF THANKS. For 15 years, you have helped us reclaim joy, honor our stories, and keep Black theatre alive in th...
06/12/2026

OUR GIFT OF THANKS. For 15 years, you have helped us reclaim joy, honor our stories, and keep Black theatre alive in the house.

Every ticket purchased, every post shared, every artist supported, every seat filled, every word of encouragement. It all helped build the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival into what it is today.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for growing with us, believing in us, and standing with us.

Now let’s celebrate 15 years together.

Get your tickets today and come home to ABTF.

Come see the Work. Come gather with your people. Come home.

06/09/2026

There are some voices you still hear after they’re gone.

Dr. Shirlene Holmes was one of those voices for me.

She traveled with us to Ghana, shared her powerful work from Scotland to the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival stage, and helped me realign when I wanted to quit.

Now Georgia State University is honoring her legacy, and I’m honored to moderate this community conversation.

Join Toni Simmons Henson on Friday. Scan the QR code or DM me for the link.

06/07/2026

A masterclass!

At ABTF, we believe every story deserves a stage and every dreamer deserves room to rise.To the Class of 2026: take your...
06/07/2026

At ABTF, we believe every story deserves a stage and every dreamer deserves room to rise.

To the Class of 2026: take your bow. You have earned this moment. Now go forward boldly, carry your truth, honor your gifts, and keep creating the future we all need to see.

Dream bold. Rise higher. 🎓👩🏾‍🎓🧑🏾‍🎓

06/06/2026

Many aspiring writers have a powerful story, a first draft, or an idea they believe could become a play or film — but what happens next?

On this episode of Let’s Talk Theatre LIVE, hosts Toni Simmons Henson and Winston Wilson talk with Garland Thompson of the Frank Silvera Writers’ Workshop and playwright Erick Brooks, a participant in Partners in Play, the ABTF/FSWW script development initiative.

Together, they unpack what happens after the first draft — rewriting, feedback, staged readings, and the lessons writers don’t know they need until they enter the development process.

For aspiring playwrights, screenwriters, and storytellers ready to move from idea to finished script.

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355 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd
Macon, GA
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