Celebration Theatre

August 31 – September 24, 2023
7:00PM, 8:00PM

1125 N McCadden Pl,
Los Angeles, CA 90028

The Real Black Swann: Confessions of America’s First Black Drag Queen

Written & Performed by Les Kurkendaal-Barrett

Directed by Tom Trudgeon

Cultural Consultation by Brittney S. Wheeler

Co-Produced by Celebration Theatre & Los Angeles LGBT Center

While under anesthetic euphoria, a Black gay artist named Les is visited by the effervescent spirit of William Dorsey Swann, AKA “The Queen”. Surviving antebellum enslavement, Swann rises from the ashes of racial oppression to become the first Queen of Drag and queer activist on record. During their journey, Swann guides a complacent Les through time, popping his Glinda-esque pink bubble of self-preservation, and provokes him to challenge all too familiar modern-day monsters.

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