It's always loud in the balcony a life in black theater, from Harlem to Hollywood and back It is always loud in the balcony Wesley, Richard 1945- creator author. text biography History. Autobiographies. wiu 2019 2019 monographic eng print xxvi, 228 pages ; 23 cm "Richard Wesley was witness to a revolution. As both a celebrated participant and eager student of the Black Theater Movement in the late 1960s, he became part of a seismic force in American culture, breaking down barriers and helping to disrupt the cultural landscape. It's always loud in the balcony: a life in black theater, from Harlem to Hollywood and back is both history and memoir, tracing Wesley's roots from riot-torn Newark, New Jersey, across the rocky terrain of Harlem, and finally to Hollywood, where he became partners with Sidney Poitier, writing several successful films before returning to New York and the theater world -- a trip that Wesley has wryly characterized as 'black power to black establishment.' Wesley unfolds the history of black theater with love and precision, from the emergence of Amiri Baraka, and his own debut, the fiercely militant Black terror -- which landed him a deal with a legendary producer Joseph Papp -- through his moviemaking experience in Los Angeles, working with Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor, among others. Wesley lands on solid ground in the twenty-first century as an elder statesman, a happy witness to the great success of a new breed of black theater that includes the widespread success of Tyler Perry and Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton, which brought hip-hop to Broadway. It's always loud in the balcony if the passionate, firsthand account of a crucial American art movement whose effects will be felt for generations to come." -- Richard Wesley. Includes index. Wesley, Richard 1945- African American theater History 20th century African Americans in the performing arts History 20th century American drama African American authors African American dramatists Biography Wesley, Richard 1945- African American theater African Americans in the performing arts American drama African American authors 1900-1999 fast PN2270.A35 w47 2019 792.08996073 9781495072413 149507241X pda,print UKMGB 191030 20250318222103.5 in00004164274 eng