Showbill for "About Heaven and Earth": Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A black-and-white paper showbill printed by Playbill for “About Heaven and Earth”.

On the front of the playbill in large black type is [SHOWBILL ® / THEATRE FOUR] printed inside a blue block. Below it is the very large round Negro Ensemble Company logo inside a black print block.

On the inside of the playbill, a left page features an edge to edge color photographic ad of Benson & Hedges cigarettes depicting a Benson & Hedges 100s box and gold lighter resting atop a brown leather briefcase. The right page (11) announces the play “About Heaven and Earth”. From the top in black type is: [THEATRE FOUR / 424 West 55th Street / (Near Ninth Avenue) / 246-8545] and the Negro Ensemble Company circular logo. The page continues: [DOUGLASS TURNER WARD / Artistic Director / LEON B. DENMARK / Managing Director / presents / ABOUT HEAVEN AND EARTH / THREE ONE-ACT PLAYS / THE REDEEMER / by / Douglas Turner Ward / NIGHTLINE / by / Julie Jensen / TIGUS / by / Ali Wadud / with / L. SCOTT CALDWELL / EUGENE LEE / DAVID DAVIS / NAOMI RISEMAN / and DOUGLASS TURNER WARD / KATHLEEN FORBES / CURT WILLIAMS / Directed by DOUGLASS TURNER WARD / Production Stage Manager / FEMI SARAH HEGGIE]. A grayscale ad for Dubonnet Wine is featured below the play details.

On the back of the showbill is a color photographic ad for the Nissan Datsun 200-SX, depicted as having [PERFORMANCE / DOWN TO A SCIENCE].

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1982
• Published by: Playbill, American, founded 1884
• Subject of: Negro Ensemble Company, American, founded 1967
• Subject of: Julie Jenson, American, 1963 - 2016
• Subject of: Ali Wadud
• Subject of: L. Scott Caldwell, American, born 1950
• Subject of: Eugene Lee, American, born 1953
• Subject of: Curtis Williams
• Directed by: Leon B. Denmark, American
• Type: playbills
• Medium: ink on paper with metal
• Dimensions: H x W x D: 8 7/16 × 5 9/16 × 1/8 in. (21.4 × 14.1 × 0.3 cm)
• Place used: New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Drama (Theatre)
• Topic: Theatre
• Topic: Theatre companies
• Object number: 2014.196.5
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Dr. Sandra Austin
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Playbill Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.