In Conversation: James Ijames and John Wilkins

Offsite: Shotgun Players at The Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Avenue, Berkeley

“I write about the America I see, and the America I want to see,” says James Ijames, a Philadelphia-based playwright and 2018 Headlands Artist in Residence known for bold works that explore the intersections of race, gender, and class. This summer, Berkeley theater company Shotgun Players presents his bitingly funny play White, which takes on the topic of cultural appropriation in the art world. In this pre-performance talk, Ijames discusses the scope and range of his playwriting, its thematic concerns and strategies, and his working process in a conversation with Bay Area theater critic John Wilkins.

Ijames’s work has been staged around the country and has received numerous accolades, including a 2017 Whiting Award.

Stay to see White at 8PM and get $5 off your ticket. Get the discount code when you RSVP for the talk.

Above: Production still from White by James Ijames at Shotgun Players; photo by Ben Krantz Studio, courtesy of Shotgun Players