Zahra Airall’s staging of For Colored Girls reminds us why Ntozake Shange’s 1976 choreopoem remains one of the most enduring, soul-shaking works in the canon of Black feminist theatre. Originally crafted as a tapestry of poetic monologues interwoven with movement and music, the work was Shange’s gift to the world: a rhythm, a lament, a celebration. It was, and still is, a defiantly intimate conversation with Black girlhood and womanhood, laid bare in all its vulnerability and fire: a confession, a celebration, and a survival song.
Shange’s characters, each named after a color of the rainbow, speak of longing, desire, fear, violence, sisterhood, betrayal, sensual awakening, and triumphant self-return. The stories pulse with the tension between yearning for love, reaching for pleasure, and fiercely defending dignity. They reveal the fragile, vital work of maintaining one’s selfhood in a world that repeatedly fractures Black women.
From its first staging back in the 1970s, For Colored Girls declared that Black women own the full spectrum of their emotions, the right to feel everything, in every shade. The stories ache with the tension between craving devotion, reaching for pleasure, and fiercely protecting one’s dignity. They reveal the delicate, necessary work of holding onto the self in a world that often seeks to fracture it. It pulses with life, humming the eternal, unbreakable song of the Black girl’s becoming.
Zahra Airall’s Vision: A Cohort with Purpose
When I caught up with Director Airall for a chat about the initial showing earlier this year, in May, she shared her long-held dream of mounting this production with a CAPE cohort. She explained: “I’ve always wanted to stage For Colored Girls with a CAPE Cohort. And this year’s cohort felt right. For Colored Girls is an iconic choreo-poem that unapologetically stormed Broadway in the 1970s. Through poetry, movement, and music, this piece shares the stories of seven women who are only named as colours. It reflects the diversity of women of colour, while giving a fluidity that reminds us that we could be any colour at any moment. In that fluidity also comes a sorority of strength that is a reminder that no woman is ever truly alone. And although this piece tackles heavy topics amongst women, sadly, our young people, especially our teenage girls, are already facing these hard realities of life.”
Her intention is evident in every gesture and breath of this staging. The seniors of Honey Bee Theatre do not simply recite the verses; they live them. Their performances are rich with emotional intelligence, international-level poise, and a fearless willingness to step directly into the heat of the material. They draw audiences from the safety of their seats and into the interior world of each colour, each wound, each triumph.
Returning to the stage this December 10th with the confidence of their first performance and the expanded possibilities of a larger venue, the cast is poised to deliver an even more refined and resonant production. Under Airall’s direction, their voices rise stronger, their movement flows surer, and their storytelling cuts deeper.
A Caribbean Adaptation Rooted in Us
Airall’s adaptation enriches Shange’s world by grounding it in Antiguan and Barbudan texture: recognisable names, familiar rhythms, local references, and contemporary realities. The effect is powerful: an international classic made intimate and immediate. What once unfolded on a New York stage now speaks directly to our schools, our homes, our communities, our daughters.
The piece becomes both global and undeniably Caribbean, reminding us that the journeys of Black women across continents, decades, and circumstances echo one another.
A Call to Community: Let’s Fill the House
After an unforgettable first showing on May 8 at AGHS, For Colored Girls returns to close the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence with profound relevance and urgency, December 10, 2025, at the Multipurpose Cultural Center
This is more than theatre. It is testimony! It is ritual! It is healing! It is witness!
And it is an opportunity for Antigua & Barbuda to show up for its young creatives: our writers, directors, actors, and storytellers shaping the future of our cultural industries.
Let’s make it a full house and uplift the next generation of thespians. Let’s champion courageous Antiguan theatre.