Harlem Stage, the powerhouse institution known for setting untold stories free, is once again taking the lead in truth-telling theatre. This October, the acclaimed arts hub presents Freedom Riders: A Journey With No End in Sight. This bold theatrical concert reading confronts the unyielding cycle of racial injustice in America. Running October 7–18, 2025, the limited engagement unites an extraordinary cast and an electrifying live score under the visionary direction of Indira Etwaroo, Harlem Stage’s Artistic Director and CEO.
A Decade of Bearing Witness
Adapted from 12 Angry Men: True Stories of Being a Black Man in America Today, the 2012 anthology published by The New Press and first staged by The Billie Holiday Theatre in 2015, this production marks a decade of evolution. Now reimagined as Freedom Riders: A Journey With No End in Sight, the work expands beyond its origins to encompass the full spectrum of Black experience, including the urgent realities facing Black Trans lives, the trauma of police brutality, and the haunting persistence of systemic racism.
Etwaroo, who first brought the stories to life a decade ago, frames this iteration as both a memorial and a movement. “Those were moments of protest, prayer, and spiritual reckoning,” she said. “Now, a decade later, these stories must be set free at a time when truth is under assault and history is being erased.”
A Cast of Titans
The star-studded ensemble reads like a roll call of artistic excellence across stage and screen:
- Lisa Arrindell (Disappearing Acts, Saints & Sinners)
- Russell Hornsby (Fences, The Hate U Give, Grimm)
- Billy Eugene Jones (A Soldier’s Play, Purlie Victorious)
- Angelica Ross (Pose, American Horror Story)
- Stephen Tyrone Williams (A Master Builder, The Knick)
Together, they embody the living testimonies of survival, resistance, and faith that define the Black American experience. Their performances are underscored by a live trio of musical brilliance—Arden Altino on piano, Daniel Bernard Roumain on violin, and Divinity Roxx, the Grammy-nominated bassist and former Beyoncé musical director. The trio’s original score, commissioned through Harlem Stage’s WATERWORKS initiative, transforms the stage into a living soundscape of struggle and transcendence.
A Theatre as Sacred Ground
Each performance of Freedom Riders functions as more than a show—it’s a communal gathering. Set inside Harlem Stage’s historic Gatehouse theatre, the production invites audiences to sit within a space built from the bones of the Croton Aqueduct system. This structure once carried life-giving water through New York City. Now, it holds something even more vital: truth.
Previews begin October 7–8, with an invite-only opening night on October 9, followed by public performances and student matinees through October 18. In a powerful gesture of access, Harlem Stage has launched a Buy One, Give One ticket initiative: every ticket purchased helps sponsor a student’s attendance, ensuring that young people have the chance to witness this transformative experience.
The Legacy Continues
Founded in 1983, Harlem Stage has built a global reputation as a sanctuary for artists of the Global Majority. The institution’s mission to center radical artistic freedom, equity, and innovation has fostered generations of groundbreaking talent, including MacArthur “Genius” fellows Kyle Abraham, Bill T. Jones, Jason Moran, Vijay Iyer, and Cecil Taylor.
With Freedom Riders, Harlem Stage continues that lineage, proving once again that theatre isn’t just entertainment. It’s testimony. It’s survival. It’s legacy.
Broadway Black celebrates the legacy and future of Black theatre—on Broadway and beyond.
