Keith Antar Mason

Keith Antar Mason (born 1956) is an American writer, performance artist, and playwright. He is the founding artistic director of the Black theatrical company Hittite Empire. ^[1]

Biography

Mason was born on November 3, 1956, in St. Louis, Missouri. ^[1] He moved to Los Angeles, California in 1985 and founded Hittite Empire in 1987. ^[2]

Selected plays and performances

• Prometheus on a Black Landscape: The Core (1990) ^[3]
• 49 Blues Songs for a Jealous Vampire (1992) ^[4]
• Performance, in LAX: The Los Angeles Exhibition (December 5, 1992) ^[5]
• Busboy Blues, Atlanta & 4th St. Playhouse (1992) ^[5]
• In My Living Condition, San Francisco (1992) ^[5]
• Rachel Ain't Got No Brain, "Issue of Choice," LACE, Los Angeles (1992) ^[5]
• River, Highways, Santa Monica, California (1992) ^[5]
• Torn Language, Dialogue of Doubt (collaboration with Elia Arce and Jeff McMahon), Dance Theater Workshop, New York (1992) ^[5]
• Survival (1995) ^[6]

Selected publications

• For Black Boys Who Have Considered Homicide When the Streets Were Too Much (1986) ^[7]
• From Hip-Hop to Hittite and Other Poetic Healing Rituals for Young Black Men: A Retrospective (2005) ^[7]
• New Wine & Black Men’s Feet (2009) ^[7]
• Medusa's Children (2020) ^[8]

References

1. Breslauer, Jan (1992-11-08). "Performance Art : Emperor of Anger : Hittite Empire's Keith Antar Mason wonders if his newfound mainstream success is just another example of the New Tokenism". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
2. "BOMB Magazine | Keith Antar Mason". BOMB Magazine. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
3. Zimmer, Elizabeth (1990-02-18). "Taking 'Wilding' to the Stage : Keith Antar Mason combines Central Park incident with mythology". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-07-16.
4. Holden, Stephen (1992-07-21). "Review/Theater; Anger and Desperation of Black Men". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2024-07-16.
5. Gudis, Catherine, ed. (1992). LAX, the Los Angeles exhibition 92. Los Angeles: Directors of the Gallery at Barnsdall Art Park. p. 115.
6. "THEATER". New York Times. May 14, 1995. ProQuest   109476967 . Retrieved 2024-07-16.
7. Apple, Jacki (2021). "Redefining Democracy in America: Episodes in Black and White, Part 1" . PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art. 43 (1): 126–138. doi:10.1162/pajj_a_00554 – via Project MUSE.
8. "Medusa's Children". Goodreads. Retrieved 2024-07-16.