Tarell Alvin McCraney’s ‘Choir Boy’ opens at Actor’s Express in Atlanta

Actor’s Express will present Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Tony Award-winning play “Choir Boy” from Aug. 6-30.

The coming-of-age play follows Pharus, a gifted Black student selected to lead the chorus at an all-boys prep school as he searches for acceptance and belonging. The staged work combines gospel music, humor and drama.

Located inside of King Plow Arts Center in west Midtown, Actor’s Express is staging “Choir Boy” as one of five productions in its 38th season.

Opening weekend performances are already sold out.

In the Actor’s Express’ production of “Choir Boy,” actor Brandon L. Smith portrays Pharus, who is the lead singer in a chorus at an all-boys prep school. (Courtesy of Casey Gardner Ford)

Director Amanda Washington said she hopes anyone navigating personal growth identifies with the play.

“It is moments of revelations found through song, friends, quiet moments and a reminder of how it felt to step into our own, find our voice and feel bold in those decisions,” Washington said.

Since its debut, the play has become one of McCraney’s most celebrated works for its exploration of Black masculinity, faith and identity.

This isn’t the first time Atlanta audiences have seen “Choir Boy.”

In 2013, the play came to Alliance Theatre, a year after debuting at Royal Court Theatre in London. The musical eventually made it to Broadway in 2018, where it earned two Tony Awards.

In 2017, McCraney won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for “Moonlight,” based on his unpublished play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue.” He later created OWN’s drama series “David Makes Man.”

Also chair of the playwriting department at Yale University School of Drama, McCraney was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2013.

In 2017, Tarell Alvin McCraney won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for “Moonlight,” based on his unpublished play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue.” (Philip Cheung/The New York Times 2024)

Actor Brandon L. Smith, who portrays Pharus, said the role has inspired him to embrace his humanity.

“There’s a boldness, sensitivity, vulnerability and unapologetic confidence (in Pharus) that I think I carry within myself but don’t always allow to take up as much space as he does. Playing him has challenged me to lean into those qualities rather than temper them,” he said.

Smith also said he hopes Actor’s Express’ production of McCraney’s play attracts people from diverse backgrounds.

“It’s a story that meets every audience member where they are with incredibly human characters and allows you to wrestle with them. At its heart, it’s about wanting to be loved, belong and wanting the freedom to be fully yourself, and there’s something incredibly powerful about giving an audience the space to see themselves in that,” he said.