Dr. Asabi is an Associate Professor of Theatre at NC Central University where she serves as Chair. She recently received the Pioneer Award in Theatre at The Day of Dunham Celebration. She has received numerous Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival directing awards and NCCU College of Liberal Arts Awards in Outstanding Teaching, Scholarship, and Playwriting. A graduate of North Carolina A&T State and Wake Forest University, Asabi earned her PhD at Regent University in Communication and Theatre. As a performer, director, playwright and stage manager, Asabi aspires to immerse herself in nearly every aspect of theatre. She has directed many shows, and authored God Spoke My Name: Maya Angelou; Reaching for God with Dirty Hands and Tainted Blood and Distorted Beauty. Among many stage credits, she has performed in Four Queens No Trumps and Intimate Apparel. She co-directed Soul Rhythm; Sistah’s Voices at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, South Africa and The Mis-Education of Hip Hop in Florence, Italy. She is a production manager at Evangel Fellowship Church and The NC Black Repertory Company. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Arthur M. Reese received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Virginia. He has set the mood for the past 23 years as Technical Director for the National Black Theater Festival. He has designed for, among others, Dr. Maya Angelou, John Amos, Samuel L. Jackson, and the Negro Ensemble Company. Reese has done technical work for many stars including Sidney Poitier, Debbie Allen, Oprah, Queen Latifah, Malcolm Jamal Warner and Denzel Washington. Reese won the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 African American Image Makers award for Best Lighting Design at ETA Theatre. Co-Author and director of By a Black Hand, he is currently the Technical Director for NCCU Department of Theatre and has recently completed a textbook, The African Diaspora of Theatre.

Dr. Nadia Bodie-Smith* (Prop Designer/Set Décor/Publicity) from Nassau, Bahamas, Dr. Smith is an Assistant Professor in Performance Studies. Last spring, she received a Departmental Award for Excellence in Teaching. Since she joined the department, she has directed Ain’t Misbehavin’, A Long Time Since Yesterday, Present Laughter and Dreamgirls. Her other professional pursuits include her work as editor of the ENCORE Journal for the National Association for Dramatic and Speech Arts (NADSA) and as Production Designer for Sweet Unknown South Studios. She earned her PhD from Texas Tech University with a concentration in Acting/Directing and Arts Administration, an MA in Theatre from Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio and a BA in Music from Florida Memorial University in Miami Florida. She works toward improving actor training with hopes that her instruction inspires collaborative, critical thinkers and artists who laugh a little too loud. Her work as a Production Designer is showcased in the 2022 action film, ‘A Day to Die’, starring Bruce Willis, available on streaming services.

Ms. Sainworla is an Adjunct Professor at NCCU, where she teaches Drama Appreciation. She earned an MA in Art Management from American University, a BFA in Theatre Technology from North Carolina A&T, and an AS in Film Production from Valencia Community College. She has worked on Universal Studio’s lot on movies and videos such as Director for a Razzy Bailey music video and Asst. Director for the Orlando Magic’s public service announcements. She has worked as an Asst. Stage Mgr. at Arena Stage in Washington, DC on Thunder Knocking on the Door which featuring Martha Hicks. She has worked the Spolato Festival in Charleston, SC and the National Black Theater Festival in Winston Salem, NC. She is also the owner of Royal Hair Gallery, Refour’s Boutique, and Royal Tax Gallery LLC, located in Phoenix Crossing, Durham, NC.

Hallel Jackson is from Smyrna, Georgia and is a Junior at North Carolina Central University majoring in Theatre with a concentration in Technical Theatre. She recently was the Stage Manager for The Ways of White Folk by Rowan University (2022), A Feminine Ending by Rowan University’s Student Lab Theatre (2023), Stage Manager for The Penny Executive: The Maggie Lena Walker Story (2023) and Assistant Stage Manager for Head Over Heels by Rowan University (2023). I would like to give Special Thanks to my family and everyone who welcomed me to NCCU’s Theatre Department with open arms!

Nyla Orr is from Suffolk, Virginia, and is a Senior at North Carolina Central University majoring in Theatre with a concentration in General Theatre. Her awards and recognitions include being the first student to win NCCU’s Entrepreneur On The Rise this past Spring. She would like to thank God, her family and friends, and professors for always pushing me to success.

Jodeya Brown, from Durham, NC, is a Junior Technical Design Concentration Major here at NCCU.. She recently costume designed her first production, Present Laughter, with Switchyard Theatre Company and has worked as a crew member for many department productions. She would like to thank her family and friends for supporting her.