Honoring and congratulating Champion of the Week, Zuhairah McGill, founder of the First World Theatre Ensemble in West Philadelphia, for representing Philadelphia at the National Black Theatre festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

WHEREAS, Zuhairah McGill will be performing her one-woman show, “Sojourner”, wherein she performs as the early 19th century Black abolitionist Sojourner Truth; and

WHEREAS, The National Black Theater Festival, founded in 1989 as a way for Black Theater companies and artists to come together, is a biennial event showcasing a carefully curated selection of Black Theater performances from across the country; and

WHEREAS, McGill’s “Sojourner” is a story and script written by Richard Lamonte Pierce in 2002 and has most recently been staged at the Quintessence company in 2021 but is constantly asked to perform in venues all across the country; and

WHEREAS, McGill feels that she spiritually connects to Sojourner to tell her story each night on stage and feels that performing this story at the NBTF will allow her to represent Philadelphia as the first Philadelphian to perform in 21 years; and

WHEREAS, Other special guest at the NBTF include Regina Taylor, Ben Vereen, Ted Lange, and Vivian Reed in addition to the 60,000 that usually attend; and

WHEREAS, First World Theatre ensemble has been asked to hold residency at the Arden Theater for two seasons in addition to working at Community Education Center in Powelton Village; and

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby honor and congratulate Zuhairah McGill, founder of the First World Theatre Ensemble in West Philadelphia, for representing Philadelphia at the National Black Theatre festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy be presented to Zuhairah McGill further evidencing the sincere admiration and respect of this legislative body.

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