📰🌍 Trend Magazine Online™
🎭 Travel Review Summer 2026
🌎 International
Black Theatre Festival 2024 🎬
📍 Winston-Salem, NC
🎟️ Travel Review 2026 ✨
#nbtf #ibtf #arethafranklin #winstonsalemnc

Item: [INSERT_REVIEWED_PLACE]
Rating: [1-5]
Author: Jay Whipple

By Jay Whipple

Trend Magazine Online™

Edutainment At It's Best!

Re-published from a previous edition.

Every two years, theatre lovers 🎭 from across the United States 🇺🇸 and abroad 🌍 descend upon Winston-Salem, North Carolina 📍 for what has long been one of the premier celebrations of Black theatre ✊🏾🎭. Coined "Marvtastic" ✨ by the late Larry Leon Hamlin 🕊️, founder of the National Black Theatre Festival (NBTF) 🎭, the event has become a tradition that I have looked forward to since attending my first festival in 2011 while living in Winston-Salem. Returning in 2024, I once again purchased my theatre tickets 🎟️ well in advance to avoid wasting precious time standing in ticket lines or risking sold-out performances. As has become my custom, I parked several blocks away, got in my daily steps 🚶🏾‍♂️ by walking to the Marriott 🏨 host hotel and Benton Convention Center, then made my first stop at the newly renamed Sylvia Y. Sprinkle-Hamlin Central Library 📚. It was heartwarming ❤️ to see the beautiful bronze memorial plaques honoring Ms. Sprinkle-Hamlin's decades of service to the Forsyth County Public Library 📖 system and the festival she helped nurture alongside her late husband. Knowing that I had the privilege of interviewing her years earlier for Trend Magazine Online™ 📰 made this visit especially meaningful.

From the Sylvia Y. Sprinkle-Hamlin Central Library 📚, I headed toward the Marriott 🏨 host hotel, which once again served as the heartbeat ❤️ of the festival 🎭. Although the number of shuttle routes 🚌 appeared somewhat reduced from previous years, complimentary transportation was still available between participating hotels and theatre venues for patrons needing assistance navigating downtown Winston-Salem 📍. I have only ridden the shuttle once over the years, but it remains one of my favorite festival memories because it allowed me to eavesdrop 👂🏾—strictly as a fly on the wall—on conversations among theatre enthusiasts 🎭 from around the country 🇺🇸 and even overseas 🌍. Some of the stories shared about past celebrity appearances ⭐, including the late Sherman Hemsley 🕊️ of The Jeffersons, remain etched in my memory to this day. Outside the hotel, professional Black Car 🚘 services once again stood ready to transport VIPs 👔, celebrities 🌟, and distinguished guests, adding an unmistakable touch of class ✨ befitting an international festival 🌍🎭.

Inside the Marriott 🏨 lobby, festival organizers 🎭 continued providing one of the most useful visitor resources—the centralized information area ℹ️. Here, guests 👥 could review shuttle schedules 🚌, ask questions 💬, and orient themselves 🧭 before heading to performances throughout the city 📍. I also appreciated the community brochure table 📚 where local organizations, attractions 🌆, and businesses 💼 could leave promotional literature for festival attendees. As always, I contributed information promoting several of my own business ventures 📰 because, after all, you never know who might pick up a brochure 📖, visit a website 🌐, or become a future customer 🤝. One welcome addition since my last visit was a large digital production board 📺 displaying the day's complete schedule of performances 🎭, venues 🏛️, and showtimes 🕒. This modern upgrade ✨ made navigating the festival considerably easier than relying solely on printed schedules 📄.

With my orientation complete ✅, I crossed over to the nearby Benton Convention Center 🏛️ to browse the ever-popular marketplace 🛍️ of Black-owned businesses ✊🏾💼. Wearing my "Baby Girl" (Thelma from Good Times) 👕 T-shirt that I had personally purchased from BernNadette Stanis 🌟 during the previous festival, I couldn't help but notice her absence this year. Hopefully she would appreciate me continuing to promote her brand ❤️ despite not attending. The vendor area still offered an impressive assortment of artwork 🎨, jewelry 💎, apparel 👕, books 📚, and handcrafted merchandise 🖐🏾 from entrepreneurs representing various parts of the country 🇺🇸. Most vendors were warm and welcoming 😊, although one gentleman sharply objected when I photographed 📸 his booth. Initially, I was taken aback 😲, but after giving the matter some thought 🤔, I realized there may have been another reason for his concern. I'll simply leave you with this hint 😉—he appeared to be selling someone else's artwork 🖼️. Got it? 😏

Having completed my Biennial walk-through 🚶🏾‍♂️ of the festival grounds 🎭, it was finally time to get down to business—the theatre itself 🎟️. My itinerary included a 2:00 p.m. matinee double feature 🕑 at the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts 🏛️ featuring From Birmingham to Broadway 🎤, chronicling the life of Nell Carter 🌟, followed by Float Like a Butterfly 🥊, a tribute to boxing legend Muhammad Ali 🥇. The theatre complex proved easy to locate 📍, and I appreciated the courteous ushers 👏 stationed near the entrance who efficiently directed patrons toward the correct performance spaces 🎭. Since multiple productions were taking place simultaneously throughout the building, their assistance 🤝 helped eliminate confusion and kept traffic flowing smoothly ✅.

While making my way toward the theatre 🚶🏾‍♂️🎭, I encountered one of the more amusing surprises of the afternoon—a vintage cigarette vending machine 🚬 that had been cleverly repurposed into a souvenir dispenser 🎁. Talk about a blast from the past! 😄 Naturally, I couldn't resist photographing it 📸 for posterity before continuing upstairs to my assigned balcony seat 🎟️. From this elevated vantage point 👀, I enjoyed an excellent bird's-eye view of both the audience 👥 and the stage 🎭 below. Over the years, I have found that observing audience reactions 😊😂😮 can sometimes be just as entertaining as watching the performers 🌟 themselves, especially during emotional ❤️ or humorous 😆 scenes.

The opening performance, From Birmingham to Broadway 🎭, featured an intentionally minimalist stage consisting of a makeup vanity 💄, wardrobe racks 👗, stools 🪑, a changing screen, and a single suitcase 🧳. Produced by Auntie Pat Productions of New York 🗽, directed by Nate Jacobs 🎬, and written and performed by Tarra Conner Jones 🌟, the production proved to be one of the festival's highlights 🏆. Prior to attending, I knew very little about the personal struggles endured by Nell Carter 🎤 beyond her unforgettable role on Gimme a Break! 📺. By the time the curtain fell 👏, however, I had gained a profound appreciation ❤️ for both her remarkable resilience and Jones' extraordinary performance. Ms. Jones didn't merely portray Nell Carter—she became Nell Carter ✨. Her commanding stage presence 🎭, impeccable timing ⏱️, and emotional authenticity 🥹 completely immersed the audience 👥 in Carter's journey from adversity to television stardom 🌟📺. Kudos 👏 to the entire production team for delivering such a memorable and inspiring performance! 🎉

Unfortunately 😕, my enthusiasm quickly faded during the second production, Float Like a Butterfly 🥊, which sought to capture the life and legacy of Muhammad Ali 🥇. While I respect 👏 the tremendous effort involved in staging any theatrical production 🎭, this particular performance simply missed the mark 🎯 for me. My criticism stems partly from personal experience. As a youngster growing up in Miami 🌴, I had the unforgettable privilege of meeting "The Greatest" 🥊 when he visited my elementary school, Lillie C. Evans 🏫. Later, I watched him train 💪 on Miami Beach 🏖️, witnessed his connection to the famed 5^th Street Gym 🥊, and remember when his Champ Burger 🍔 restaurant opened near Liberty City. Those experiences gave me a unique appreciation ❤️ for Ali's larger-than-life personality ✨, charisma 😎, humor 😄, and unmistakable movements—qualities that I felt were largely absent from this portrayal. More disappointing still 😞 was the complete omission of Miami's 🌴 significant role in Ali's career and personal history. Duh! 🤦🏾‍♂️ Overall, while the 2024 International Black Theatre Festival 🎭🌍 remained an enjoyable cultural experience 🎟️, I personally felt it fell short of the "Marvtastic" ✨ standard established by earlier festivals. Nevertheless, I look forward 👀 to returning for future festivals in hopes that the magic ✨, energy ⚡, and theatrical excellence 🎭 that first captured my admiration will once again take center stage. 👏