Last summer, thanks to a grant from the Knight Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund, we spoke to award winning actor April Matthis about how she coped with the changes brought on by COVID-19 and what she thinks the future of theater in New York City looks like. Now, Nearly a year later, a lot has changed. For starters, April is back on the stage, currently starring in “Help” a The Shed. 

“Help” is a new play by author and poet Claudia Rankine. The work follows a Black woman who moves in spaces where she frequently encounters white people. April explains that the play turns the lens on race toward white people instead of pathologizing Blackness.

In this episode Epicenter’s S. Mitra Kalita talks to April about “Help”, what it’s like working in an all-white cast, and how she feels about performing in person while COVID restrictions across the city begin to lift.

April Matthis: https://www.broadway.com/buzz/stars/april-matthis/profile/

https://twitter.com/april_matthis?s=20

"Help" at The Shed: https://theshed.org/program/225-help-a-new-play-by-claudia-rankine

Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund announces support for URL Media: https://www.lenfestinstitute.org/diverse-growing-audiences/pursing-accountability-while-recognizing-humanity-knight-lenfest-local-news-transformation-fund-announces-support-for-url-media/

URL Media: https://url-media.com/

Epicenter-NYC membership: https://epicenter-nyc.com/the-case-for-epicenter-membership-one-auntie-to-another/

Our intro music: http://karavikamusic.com/