History and Black excellence were both abound with the announcements of this year’s Pulitzer Prize recipients.
Black gay playwright Michael R. Jackson was honored with the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his acclaimed musical, A Strange Loop. Premiering at Playwrights Horizons in New York City, A Strange Loop revolves around Usher, an overweight Black gay writer who happens to be an usher for The Lion King. Aside from his job, the musical chronicles Usher’s struggle to navigate a white heteronormative world.
A Strange Loop was described by the Pulitzer committee as “a metafictional musical that tracks the creative process of an artist transforming issues of identity, race, and sexuality that once pushed him to the margins of the cultural mainstream into a meditation on universal human fears and insecurities.”
With this announcement, Jackson is the first Black writer to win the Pulitzer Prize for a musical theatre work.
Upon receive the news, he expressed elation at his historic feat on Twitter.
Never in my wildest dreams. NEVER. IN MY. WILDEST. DREAMS. Thank you to everyone who has supported me on my journey to such an incredible honor. I’m sure I’ll have more to say once I’ve caught my breath and looked at all these text messages and emails but for now, THANK YOU. https://t.co/P73Aonzy5t
— Michael R. Jackson (@TheLivingMJ) May 4, 2020
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Photo: Getty
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