Home / Arts and Entertainment / Pioneering Jamaican Actress and Theater Visionary Yvonne Brewster Dies at 87
Pioneering Jamaican Actress and Theater Visionary Yvonne Brewster Dies at 87
15 Nov
Summary
- Yvonne Brewster co-founded Talawa Theater Company, a leading British theater for Black and Caribbean artists
- Brewster helped start Jamaica's first professional theater company and directed acclaimed productions
- Brewster's work challenged racial barriers and expanded opportunities for minority actors in the UK
Yvonne Brewster, a renowned Jamaican actress and theater pioneer, passed away last month at the age of 87 in her home in Florence, Italy. Brewster, who received classical stage training in London in the 1950s, went on to carve an influential artistic space for herself in her native Jamaica and later co-founded one of Britain's leading theater companies for Black and Caribbean performers.
In 1986, Brewster co-established the Talawa Theater Company in London, which she led as artistic director for nearly two decades. Talawa provided a vital platform for minority actors, directors, and writers, staging contemporary and classical plays with all-Black casts, including productions of Shakespeare's works and plays by James Baldwin and Ntozake Shange.
