CORONADO PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS
HARLEM DUET
Coronado Playhouse: A San Diego tradition for 75 years, is presenting Harlem Duet, the critically acclaimed play by Djanet Sears, streaming on-demand from March 19-April 18, 2021. Harlem Duet received Canada’s highest literary honor for dramatic writing, the Governor General’s Literary Award, in 1998. That year it also received the Floyd S. Chalmers Canadian Play Award. For tickets and more info, visit Coronado.
In what could be a prelude to Shakespeare’s Othello, the play recounts the story of Othello and his first wife, Billie (before Desdemona). Their history is told through the lives of three couples during eras of special significance in the Black American Experience. This is a weighty play that leaves the viewer with no easy answers. Set in contemporary Harlem at the corner of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X Boulevards, the tale tows the line of racial identity, sexual politics, and mental illness in the Black community. Sears’s script diffuses the action through three timelines: the 1860s, 1928 and the present.
To adhere to current COVID-19 protocols, this show will be recorded on stage and streamed to patrons on-demand during the run of the show. Rehearsals and filming are also adhering to current protocols and restrictions.
Please note, Harlem Duet contains adult language and themes.
About Coronado Playhouse
This is the second show in the CPH 2021 Season, which is the 75th anniversary for the Playhouse. The shows at the beginning of the year are smaller in scale but will have a big impact in terms of entertainment and significance. The shows later in the season, if permitted, will bring music and some of the larger scale productions patrons have come to expect from the historic institution. The new season includes six main shows, including a FREE classic production, and several concert and cabaret events.
Since 1946, the Playhouse has produced over 500 productions. Coronado Playhouse is the longest continuous running community theatre in San Diego County, and, according to the LA Times, is the longest continuous running playhouse on the West Coast. The Playhouse still features cabaret-style seating, which has been its trademark throughout its colorful history.
