Before select Saturday & Sunday performances, join us for scholarly conversations led by Martine Kei Green‑Rogers, Ph.D. and Deon Custard that examine the play & interpretive choices made by the director & creative team.
JAN 14 - FEB 2, 2025
Premiere Production Sponsors
Lead Production Sponsor
JAN 14 - FEB 2, 2025
Written by Jocelyn Bioh
Directed by Whitney White
The Yard
Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
Written by Jocelyn Bioh
Directed by Whitney White
The Yard
NYT Critics Pick: “Hot & hilarious. A buffet of delights”
“Chortles with joy and dares its nation to be better.”
Straight from a twice-extended Broadway run, making its Regional Premiere. Welcome into Jaja’s, a bustling Harlem hotspot where West African immigrant braiders work their magic on the locals’ locks. Amidst the lively buzz of a scorching summer day, pull up a chair with Marie, Bea, Miriam, Aminata, and Ndidi as love blossoms, dreams flourish, and secrets are revealed. But uncertainty simmers below the surface, and this tight-knit community must confront what it means to be an outsider on the edge of the place they call home. Written by Tony-nominated Ghanaian-American playwright Jocelyn Bioh (School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play) and directed by Chicago’s own award-winning director Whitney White, this laugh-out-loud comedic gem “is equally affecting as it is hilarious,” hails Entertainment Weekly.
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January 2025
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7:00 PM / Tuesday , Jan 14
7:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 15
7:00 PM / Thursday , Jan 16
7:00 PM / Friday , Jan 17
2:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 18
7:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 18
2:00 PM / Sunday , Jan 19
20
7:00 PM / Tuesday , Jan 21
1:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 22
Post-show Discussion
7:00 PM / Thursday , Jan 23
7:00 PM / Friday , Jan 24
2:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 25
Pre•Amble
7:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 25
2:00 PM / Sunday , Jan 26
Audio Described, Pre•Amble
27
28
1:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 29
Open Captioned, Post-show Discussion
7:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 29
Open Captioned
7:00 PM / Thursday , Jan 30
ASL Interpreted
7:00 PM / Friday , Jan 31
Tickets Available
Limited Availability
Multiple Performances
Sold Out
SUN, JAN 26
WED, JAN 29
THU, JAN 30
January 2025
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7:00 PM / Tuesday , Jan 14
7:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 15
7:00 PM / Thursday , Jan 16
7:00 PM / Friday , Jan 17
2:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 18
7:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 18
2:00 PM / Sunday , Jan 19
20
7:00 PM / Tuesday , Jan 21
1:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 22
Post-show Discussion
7:00 PM / Thursday , Jan 23
7:00 PM / Friday , Jan 24
2:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 25
Pre•Amble
7:00 PM / Saturday , Jan 25
2:00 PM / Sunday , Jan 26
Audio Described, Pre•Amble
27
28
1:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 29
Open Captioned, Post-show Discussion
7:00 PM / Wednesday , Jan 29
Open Captioned
7:00 PM / Thursday , Jan 30
ASL Interpreted
7:00 PM / Friday , Jan 31
Tickets Available
Limited Availability
Multiple Performances
Sold Out
SUN, JAN 26
WED, JAN 29
THU, JAN 30
SUN, JAN 26
WED, JAN 29
THU, JAN 30
“An overwhelmingly affectionate portrait of Black female joy.”
“Laugh-out-loud hilarious, authentic and engaging”
Artists
Leovina Charles
Vanessa, Sheila, Radia
Victoire Charles
Jaja
Yao Dogbe
James, Franklin, Olu, Eric
Mia Ellis
Jennifer
Tiffany Renee Johnson
Aminata
Jordan Rice
Marie
Awa Sal Secka
Bea
Aisha Sougou
Ndidi
Bisserat Tseggai
Miriam
Onye Eme-Akwari
Nollywood Dreams Actor
Morgan Scott
Nollywood Dreams Actor
Renea S. Brown
Understudy
Debora Crabbe
Understudy
Leovina Charles
Vanessa, Sheila, Radia
Victoire Charles
Jaja
Yao Dogbe
James, Franklin, Olu, Eric
Mia Ellis
Jennifer
Tiffany Renee Johnson
Aminata
Jordan Rice
Marie
Awa Sal Secka
Bea
Aisha Sougou
Ndidi
Bisserat Tseggai
Miriam
Onye Eme-Akwari
Nollywood Dreams Actor
Morgan Scott
Nollywood Dreams Actor
Renea S. Brown
Understudy
Debora Crabbe
Understudy
Jocelyn Bioh
Playwright
Whitney White
Director
David Zinn
Set Designer
Dede Ayite
Costume Designer
Jiyoun Chang
Lighting Designer
Justin Ellington
Original Music and Sound Designer
Stefania Bulbarella
Video Designer
Nikiya Mathis
Hair and Wig Designer
Spotlight
Premiere Production Sponsors
Lead Production Sponsor
