Karamu House, the nation’s oldest Black producing theatre, continues its 2023/24 mainstage season with the world premiere of The Breakfast at the Bookstore. Written by Cleveland playwright Lisa Langford and directed by Nina Domingue, The Breakfast at the Bookstore is a love letter to the spirit of revolution in Cleveland’s historic Glenville neighborhood.

In Lisa Langford’s The Breakfast at the Bookstore, it’s 1973 in Cleveland, Ohio, where encounters with spacemen intermingle with the Black liberation movement and a young woman’s journey of love and independence. At the center of this captivating drama is Dot, a spirited and fearless individual whose passion for activism propels her to open a revolutionary bookstore. As a fervent supporter of the Black liberation movement, Dot’s dreams are imbued with the hope of inspiring change, one page at a time. Yet, standing in stark contrast to Dot’s aspirations is Sharpe, her common-law husband, and a former Black nationalist. Sharpe, scarred by the memories of the uprising, finds solace in a life detached from the fervor of activism. The play is inspired by a podcast Langford heard about UFO close encounters.

The Breakfast at the Bookstore will be performed at Karamu’s Cleveland Foundation Jelliffe Theatre from January 26 through February 18, 2024.