Winston-Salem to Welcome More Than 100 Performances, International Artists, Star Collaborations, and More in an Electrifying Celebration of Black Theatre and Culture
The International Black Theatre Festival is proud to announce the Mainstage program for the 18th biennial festival, returning to Winston-Salem, North Carolina, July 27 through August 1, 2026.
The six-day festival continues its legacy as one of the largest gatherings dedicated to Black theatre in the world, transforming Winston-Salem into a global performing arts hub, with more than 100 performances, a star-studded gala, workshops, panel discussions, film screenings, special events, and theatrical late-night experiences across multiple venues and stages.
Reflecting on the spirit that has defined the festival for nearly four decades, 2026 Celebrity Co-Chair Peter Parros shared:
“It is essential to our culture to not only tell our old stories but to create new stories, and that’s what this space represents—that’s what makes it Holy Ground.”
Guests react to the the IBTF 2026 Program Reveal, June 1, 2026 at the Benton Convention Center. Photo by C. Stephen Hurst.
Timeless Stories, Bold New Voices
At the heart of the IBTF Mainstage are works steeped in history while pushing the boundaries of contemporary interpretation.
Three productions from August Wilson’s Century Cycle, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone presented by BNS Productions, Fences presented by NC Black Rep, and Jitney presented by Pure Life Theatre Co, anchor the dramatic slate, extending Wilson’s sweeping chronicle of Black life in America across the 20th century.
Extending that lineage into new creative terrain, Berta, Berta by Angelica Chéri, brings a contemporary lens to a poignant story of love, longing, and fate set in 1920s Mississippi. Chéri, this year’s August Wilson Playwright Award recipient, will make her Broadway debut in fall 2026 with her original new play, Wanted: The Musical.
The next generation of theatre artists takes center stage through the Fringe Collegiate Theatre Series, featuring rising student performers from Clark Atlanta University, North Carolina Central University, North Carolina A&T State University, and Norfolk State University. The series spans classical and contemporary works, including Antigone, Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Everybody by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, and Topdog/Underdog by Suzan-Lori Parks.
Global perspectives shape the Larry Leon Hamlin Solo Performance Series, featuring Kenyan artist Chadota Idda’s Running for My Life, inspired by the story of Olympian Agnes Tirop, alongside Quaz DeGraft’s dark comedy, In the Black, following an international appearance at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland.
Chelsea Gabrielle Rose performs at the IBTF 2026 Program Reveal, June 1, 2026. Photo by C. Stephen Hurst.
Music, Legacy, and Star Collaborations
Musical energy pulses throughout the festival, from orchestral storytelling to concert-style celebrations of Black musical traditions. Wynton Marsalis’ A Fiddler’s Tale features the celebrated voice of Phylicia Rashad alongside the Gateways Chamber Players in a genre-defying collaboration that fuses jazz stylings, orchestral music, and theatrical narrative.
The festival’s musical slate also features Allan Harris’ Cross That River, a theatrical exploration of Black American cowboys and the untold histories of the American West, alongside A Marvin Gaye Revue by Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, celebrating the enduring legacy of one of soul music’s most iconic voices.
Concert experiences continue with Hit City: The Temptations Edition, presented by Otis Williams, while Anatomy of An Opera, a free special event presented by Piedmont Opera, offers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative process with composer Nia Imani Franklin and soprano Sequina Dubose in an exploration of the art form through live performance and conversation.
Comedy, Cabaret, and Late-Night Experiences
Comedy and late-night programming feature veteran comedian Michael Colyar in a high-energy stand-up showcase that continues the festival’s tradition of late-night laughter, joined by The Birthright SESSION, a cabaret experience performed by powerhouse vocalist and songwriter Matelyn Alicia, rich with musical storytelling, soulful vocals, and intimate stagecraft.
A special late-night staged reading presented by New Federal Theatre honors the theatre legend, Woodie King Jr., through playwright Karani Marcia Leslie’s The Trial of One Short-Sighted Black Woman vs. Mammy Louise and Safreeta Mae. The play was performed by Woodie King Jr.’s New Federal Theatre to sold-out performances at the 1999 National Black Theatre Festival.
Documenting the Legacy
Among the festival’s most anticipated featured events is the world premiere of Holy Ground: The Legacy of the National Black Theatre Festival, a documentary more than 37 years in the making that traces the history, cultural impact, and enduring legacy of the National Black Theatre Festival.
The film presents a cinematic archive of the festival’s origins and evolution and the generations of Black theatre-makers and audiences shaped by its brilliance.
IBTF 2026 Program Reveal, June 1, 2026. Photography by C. Stephen Hurst.
A City Transformed By Theatre
From legacy-defining drama to bold new works, musical storytelling, and personal revelation, the festival transforms Winston-Salem into a global stage where past, present, and future of Black theatre meet on Holy Ground.
Speaking to the transformative role of theatre-making, 2026 Celebrity Co-Chair, Angela Robinson, shared:
“What we are doing is a holy act. The theater changes lives, and so when you say ‘Holy Ground!’, really understand that the work we’re doing is work that is vital. It’s important. It matters.”
Visit ncblackrep.org to view the 2026 Festival program, purchase tickets, and plan your festival experience.