The African Tragedian

Ira Aldridge, America's earliest important Black actor, became one of the most celebrated Shakespearean actors of nineteenth century Europe. This dramatic montage traces the joyous moment that performance can bring and the hurtful reality of being Black during racial slavery.

This "Docudrama" was developed from actual letters, reviews, and photographs detailing the life and times of Ira Frederick Aldridge: aka "The African Tragedian."

In a style akin to episodic dream fragmentation--Robin Scott Peters has sculpted a layered reality of one actor paying homage to another.