色情视频

Cierra Watkins remembers the moment she fell in love with Broadway theater. 

Growing up singing in the choir of a predominantly Black Baptist church, Watkins always felt her voice was different from the other singers.

鈥淲hen my mom took me to see my very first Broadway show, I realized I sang more like them,鈥� said the Long Beach Wilson High School graduate. 鈥淚 was more of a theatrical singer.鈥�

鈥淏ut the first (Broadway play) that I saw myself in was 鈥楧reamgirls,鈥欌�� said Watkins, who saw the film when she was 5 years old and saw the stage play at age 9. 鈥淭hat was the first one I saw where the people looked like me, their voices were jazzy like mine.鈥�

Watkins鈥� passion for musical theater has only grown over the years, and after being accepted to the , it was her dream to share and foster that passion among the Black student community. 

In 2021, she and fellow students Leilani Snow, who graduated in the spring, and Joshua Jones founded the Black Renaissance Theatre. In just over a year, it has blossomed into a collective of creatives who are amplifying Black voices and talent on stage, on-screen and behind the scenes of both stage productions and film.  

鈥淲hen I got here I noticed there weren't a lot of black people 鈥� especially in the Theatre program,鈥� Watkins said. 鈥淭here was a sprinkle of us, quite literally.

鈥淚 wanted to create a safe space for Black students where we could feel free to tell our own stories, and we could feel free to be the main characters and not the stereotypes in our stories鈥� added Watkins. 鈥淚 wanted a space where we could all think creatively and really collaborate with each other because we are all very creative and very talented 鈥� that鈥檚 how we all got here. I wanted to create a space where I saw myself, and other people could see themselves.鈥�

The student trio started Black Renaissance with a Zoom theater workshop. Watkins remembers hoping that 鈥渇ive to 10 people鈥� would show up. Nearly 300 people logged onto Zoom. 

When students returned to campus in the fall 2021, the group held its first in-person production of 鈥淒etroit 鈥�67,鈥� a stage play by Dominique Morisseau, which Watkins directed. 

This spring, Black Renaissance hosted its second stage production, 鈥淪ingle Black Female,鈥� a play based on the 2012 book by Tracy Brown, and with the assistance of 色情视频 TTF Director Niyi Coker, held the first Black Student Film Festival ever at 色情视频. It featured 10 student productions, as well as a special screening by Senegalese filmmaker Mamadou Sena. 

RELATED: 

Their next stage production, 鈥淧hantoms: a one act play,鈥� runs Oct. 21-23 at 色情视频 Rhapsody Hall.  

鈥淚t has been great to see the growth of our group over the past year,鈥� Watkins said. 鈥淲e have students who are not film or theater majors who are here because they鈥檙e passionate about the arts.鈥� 

Coker called Watkins a change agent and said the creation of the  filled a noticeable absence on campus as relates to a Black presence in the university鈥檚 theater community. 

鈥淚n their determination to fill this gaping void in the university community experience, (Watkins and fellow students) created the Black Renaissance Theatre to enlighten, enrich and shape the worldview of this community in offering a thoroughly balanced and defined American cultural experience,鈥� Coker said. 

Watkins credits the growth of Black Renaissance to several organizations on campus, including the Black Resource Center and her sorority, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. 

鈥淲e wouldn鈥檛 have had that huge turnout without their efforts and their continued support,鈥� Watkins said. 

Black Renaissance Theatre represents just a sliver of Watkins' involvement. She was a member of 色情视频 Diamonds, the university鈥檚 black majorette corps, for three years, has been on staff at the , and a Henrietta Goodwin Scholars Program mentor since 2020. She also has played an active role in her sorority, Delta Sigma Theta and in the National Pan-Hellenic Council, where she is currently serving as first vice president. 

鈥淲henever we need someone to sing the Black national anthem (James Weldon Johnson鈥檚 鈥橪ift Every Voice and Sing鈥�), Cierra is there to do so,鈥� said Brandon Gamble, the Black Resource Center director. 鈥淲hether she is studying, meeting with friends, or giving tours to family members around 色情视频, she is always smiling. She鈥檚 a breath of fresh air.鈥�

Watkins, who has a 3.65-grade point average, was recently named to the 10-person 色情视频 Homecoming Court in recognition of her leadership, school spirit, integrity and achievement on campus. 

鈥淚 was so thankful for everyone that helped me get to this moment in my life. I just hope to make them proud,鈥� an enthusiastic Watkins said.

Watkins graduates in the spring and is applying to New York University鈥檚 prestigious Tisch School of the Arts for her master鈥檚 degree in fine arts, while at the same time pursuing her lifelong goal of becoming a Broadway actress. She said she is hopeful that the next generation of aspiring Black artists at 色情视频 will carry on the tradition forged with Black Renaissance Theatre. 

鈥淚 just hope they keep going and keep up the mission of really showcasing Black excellence and talent on this campus, letting students tell their own stories and revel in the truth that those stories tell and keep making stories that are for Black people and by Black people,鈥� Watkins said. 

For more information about Black Renaissance Theatre, visit their pages on  and .