Firsts and Trailblazers: Black Pioneers In Stage Design

Info compiled from research by distinguished scholar, researcher, and Lighting Designer Kathy A. Perkins: Their Place in History: African Americans Behind the Scenes in the American Theatre, and Black Backstage Workers, 1900-1969. Thank you Kathy!

BREAKING BARRIERS

For much of the twentieth century, Black designers faced profound discrimination, often barred from working backstage even when Black performers were featured on stage. Union rules, limited access to training, and a persistent myth that Black artists could only design for “Black theatre” reinforced these exclusions. Yet through determination, talent, and collective effort, these trailblazers pushed beyond those constraints. Drawing on opportunities created by the Federal Theatre Project and gaining entry into leading institutions such as the Yale School of Drama, they broke into professional unions and brought their artistry to Broadway and beyond. Their accomplishments expanded what was possible, demonstrating unequivocally that Black designers could lead, innovate, and make history in American theatre.

Here are a few historic Black designers you should know.

PERRY WATKINS

THE FIRST BLACK DESIGNER OF UNITED SCENIC ARTISTS (1939)

Perry Watkins was a groundbreaking Black stage designer whose career was defined by several historic "firsts" that challenged the racial barriers of the American theatre industry. During this time, he had the opportunity to learn from experts like Abe Feder and Nat Karson.

Watkins is most notable for two major milestones achieved in 1939.

• He became the first Black person to design for a Broadway production with the show Mamba’s Daughters, which starred Ethel Waters.
• He became the first Black designer admitted into United Scenic Artists. Notably, he gained membership in all design categories for the theatre.

LOUISE EVANS

FIRST BLACK WOMAN DESIGNER OF UNITED SCENIC ARTISTS (1953)

Costume Sketch by Louise Evans for the New York Negro Ballet’s 1955 Production of Cinderella

Louise Evans became the first Black woman admitted into United Scenic Artists for Costume Design. Evans was able to take her talents in all areas of design to several Off-Broadway houses, although she states that during the 1940s and 1950s they were not considered Off-Broadway. She also designed in all categories for summer stock theatre, the American Negro Theatre, and the American Negro Ballet Company.

“I loved costuming because my dad had been a tailor and my mother was a seamstress and I had learned it from a child. It was this part of growing up, I learned the craft of tailoring and seamstress and materials ... I was taught by Jan Scott while at the Goodman [Art Institute of Chicago] and she pushed me to go to New York and join the union. My goal was to join the union.“ — Evans in an 1982 Interview

JOHN ROSS

FIRST BLACK DESIGNER TO ENTER THE YALE SCHOOL OF DRAMA (1931). FIRST BLACK PERSON TO RECEIVE MFA FROM YALE (1935)

Ross attended Yale starting in 1912, which was remarkable, as it was rare for a Black artist to study theatre decades before most institutions opened their doors more broadly. He was considered a rare "exception during this period" because many mainstream training programs and theatrical unions denied entrance to African Americans due to systemic racial discrimination. In 1931, Ross became the first Black person to enter the Yale School of Drama.While at Yale, he studied under the legendary lighting professor Stanley McCandless. Although he was deeply engaged in the technical area of theatre, he ultimately completed his MFA in Technical Theatre in 1935, making him the first Black person to have received an MFA from Yale.

Ross worked as a Designer, Technical Director, and trained young people for the Atlanta University Summer Theatre and the Summer Theatre Company at Lincoln University in Missouri. Both were semi-professional summer theaters for Black students, who were trained by Black theater artists educated primarily at the University of Iowa, which had one of the best technical theater programs in the country and competed with Yale.

GEORGE CORRIN

FIRST-KNOWN BLACK PERSON TO RECEIVE A MFA IN SET DESIGN IN THE UNITED STATES (1951)

Corrin attended Carnegie Mellon in the 1940s and later enrolled in the Yale School of Drama. While he designed for Off-Broadway, Corrin was most prominent as an innovative television designer, primarily at ABC. He was the designer for the 1966 ABC presidential election show, which he identified as the first election show the network produced in color.

FRANCES “DOLL” THOMAS

ONE OF THE FIRST BLACK PEOPLE TO JOIN IATSE (1918)

Local 224-A, organized in Washington, D.C. in 1918, was the first Black local organized in the country (and the last segregated local). Thomas was among its early members. IATSE established auxiliary or "A" locals to prevent Black people and White people from working together and receiving the same benefits. For years, the IATSE constitution and bylaws explicitly stated that the organization was for "White males only," effectively preventing Black designers from securing work in major houses.

WANT MORE?

This was only a small glimpse of the rich, often overlooked history of the Black pioneers who built the foundation of American theatre. Read the full articles from Kathy A. Perkins by clicking the links below to explore more complete research, including original sketches and firsthand interviews.

We would like to extend a special thank you to Kathy A. Perkins for her decades of dedicated research and for making these landmark articles—"Their Place in History" and "Black Backstage Workers, 1900-1969"—and allowing them to be publicly available on our site to ensure these stories are never forgotten.