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Curated by: Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley (9 videos)
To a young thespian, the stage is where you feel most at home. Black entertainers on America stages did not always feel welcome. Many Black American artists left the U.S, and went specifically to Paris, France in response to the racism and discrimination they were facing in America. Through their stories we can see how discrimination affected Black artists and how finding a place where you belong can help you feel more at home. Monique Hightower-Gaskin is a highly skilled and experienced 12-year-old musical theater actress. Identified as gifted in theater as a Kindergartener in New Orleans, she speaks French and is a competitive swimmer. Monique has trained and starred in several plays at the Black Repertory Theater in Berkeley, the American Conservatory Theater, San Francisco, and French Woods Camp in Hancock, NY. Most recently she starred as Chloe at Theater Rhinoceros, “How Black Mothers Say I Love you” and young Betty in The San Francisco Bay Area Theater Company, “Sign my name to Freedom: the Unheard Songs of Betty Reid Soskin." This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx