HS_NOVAFilmFestival_Playbill_SinglePages by Harlem Stage

Our mission matters... to ignite the artistic freedom of performing artists of the Global Majority (85% of the global population) who dare to create new artistic works, new ideas, and a new world in which ALL people can flourish.

Due to persistent and longstanding inequitable systems and structures, artists and institutions of the Global Majority remain the underinvested communities of the 21st century and yet...

Harlem Stage is forged in a crucible of a creative fire whose flames and embers may waver, still — undeterred by overwhelming odds — we will continue to be a conduit for freedom, a lens to focus the issues of our time, and a light to illuminate any darkness.

Dr. Indira Etwaroo | CEO & Artistic Director | Harlem Stage

Harlem Stage Presents The Nova Frontier Film Festival. This timely 3-day event celebrates filmmakers and stories from the African Diaspora, the Middle East, and Latin America with 13 powerful films that reflect the spirit of the regions represented and an overarching theme of Freedom.

Through deeply personal and often poetic storytelling, these films explore both individual and collective experiences, laying a resonant foundation for the diverse and impactful narratives that will unfold throughout the festival.

THU, JUN 5 | 7 PM

Everything Is the Fault of the Wind

Cura sana

Beutset

Freedom for All OPENING NIGHT RECEPTION with music by Malang Jobarteh

FRI, JUN 6 | 7 PM

Souleymane’s Story (L’Histoire de Souleymane)

8:30 PM | Post-screening discussion with Soraya Hosni and Nyasha Laing.

LIVE MUSIC by Imal Gnawa

SAT, JUN 7 | 1 PM

Lees Waxul

Almost Certainly False

Bitter Chocolate Branden

2 or 3 Things I Don’t Know About Her

SAT, JUN 6 | 4-6 PM

Boat People

First It Was My Dream SPOKEN WORD ARTIST Cito Blanko

Ming Smith and Dylan Golden present Ernest Cole: Lost And Found

SAT, JUN 6 | 7 PM | CLOSING FILM

Ernest Cole: Lost and Found CLOSING CEREMONY

For more information about the films and filmmakers visit: harlemstage.org/events/nova-frontier-film-festival/

BILLY GÉRARD FRANK

Co-Founder and Creative Director

Nova Frontier Film Festival & Lab

Billy Gérard Frank, born in Grenada, West Indies, is a Multi-Media Artist, Filmmaker,and Production Designer. His research-driven practices delve into personal issues related to race, exile, memory, global politics, and post-colonial and queer decoloniality.

Frank challenges conventional narratives and creates counter-histories through his work, which has been showcased in solo and group exhibitions at institutions such as the Brooklyn Museum (2020) and the Butler Institute of American Art. His art is also part of several private collections and institutions, such as the National Academy Museum of Fine Arts and Design, Farnsworth Art Museum, Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education, among others.

Frank represented Grenada at the 59th La Biennale di Venezia (2022) and was also part of the collective representing the island at the 58th La Biennale di Venezia (2019), and (2024) Smithsonian Design Triennial. He is a 2024 Creative Capital Awardee and has received numerous grants, including the Ford Foundation Grant for his 2022 La Biennale project.

As a co-founder and creative director of the Nova Frontier Film Festival & Lab, Frank has played a key role in promoting and nurturing the work of filmmakers and artists from the Global African Diaspora, the Middle East, and Latin America. He has also participated as a keynote speaker in global symposiums and lectured at institutions like Yale Drama School, New York University, and York University.

Frank moved to London as a teenager, where he began his artistic journey in painting, experimental video art, and installation. He later relocated to New York to further his studies in studio art at places like The Art Students League of New York and The National Academy of Fine Arts. He earned his MA in filmmaking and media arts from The New School for Social Research.

LYDIA DARLY

Co-Founder and Managing Director (CFO) Nova Frontier Film Festival & Lab

Lydia Darly, a French-American awardwinning powerhouse of talent, writer, and director, emerges from the vibrant Guadeloupe Islands. Her artistic journey ignited in Paris, where she joined experimental theater companies as a teenager, fueling her passion for the stage.

Venturing to Rome, Italy, Lydia showcased her acting prowess in “The Exorcist: The Beginning” alongside Stellan Skarsgard, leaving an indelible mark on various TV series. Driven by an insatiable love for American cinema, Lydia honed her craft in New York City at the prestigious Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute and the Susan Batson Studio.

Recently, Lydia’s star power shone as she portrayed Molly Bloom in “The Ulysses Project,” opposite Aiden Gillen and John Turturro, revealing her depth and versatility as an actress.

As a sought-after model, Lydia has collaborated with industry giants such as Timberland, Shopify, Optimum, Nokia, Kroll, and Workhuman, Heinz, infusing each project with her unique talent and creativity.

Beyond her acting and modeling career, Lydia is the co-founder of The NOVA Frontier Film Festival & Lab, passionately championing diverse voices and emerging talent. She commands the stage as an esteemed guest speaker, sharing her wisdom at NYWIFT, Agence Culturelle Africaine, and Filmshop, inspiring audiences worldwide.

In the fall of 2025, Harlem Stage will launch Freedom Riders: A Journey With No End in Sight. Activating our North Star — Harlem is our home. The world is our Stage. — this national tour will retrace the historic path of the Great Migration, honor the Freedom Riders of the Civil Rights Movement who risked their lives to challenge the status quo, and carry forward the voices of justice sparked by the Black Lives Matter Movement of 2020.

COMING FALL 2025

Land Acknowledgement

The Harlem Stage Gatehouse sits on land that was stewarded by the Lenape Tribes and was violently overtaken, leading to the death and displacement of countless original inhabitants and stewards of this land. The colonial initiative of the United States of America not only invaded the land stewarded by Indigenous tribes, it also enslaved and exploited millions of Africans stolen from their land to build a free labor force under barbaric conditions that included the separation of families, brutal beatings, rape, and lynching. Harlem Stage seeks to partner with all communities, artists, and institutions of the Global Majority in the struggle for true equity and freedom.

Harlem Stage encourages all people to see this acknowledgment as a call to action to join our efforts and our mission to ignite the artistic freedom of performing artists of the Global Majority who are poised to build new artistic works, new ideas, and a new world in which ALL people can flourish.

Our Commitment to the Planet

Harlem Stage’s values are rooted in ensuring a sustainable planet. Because we see climate change as one of the most pressing issues of our time—an issue that disproportionately impacts Black and Brown communities across the globe—we will continue to honor environmental initiatives both in our operations and programming. Our efforts in using less paper, transitioning to LEDs in our tech and operational spaces, and leaning into digital communications, we have reduced our carbon footprint by 2.5 tons this 2024 – 2025 season alone. Finally, we are proud to work with artists, such as Bebe Miller, who will explore the dynamic and thriving ecology of forests, as necessary to a sustainable planet, as part of our Spring 2025 E-Moves Festival.

HARLEM STAGE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Ronald K. Alexander

JoAnn K. Chase

Hugh Dancy and Claire Danes

Dr. Indira Etwaroo

Angela Glover Blackwell

Alisha Johnson Wilder and Todd Wilder

LaChanze

Courtney F. Lee Mitchell – President

Channing Martin

Larry McRae

Jamila Ponton Bragg

Rebecca Robertson

Mark Thomas – Vice President

Tamara Tunie

Heather Wagoner

Blair Washington

Michael Young – Secretary

HARLEM STAGE TEAM

Dr. Indira Etwaroo, CEO & Artistic Director

CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE

COMMUNICATIONS TEAM

Deirdre May, Chief Marketing Officer

Theodora Kuslan, Senior Director of Marketing

Katie Burk, Graphic Designer

Deniz Kofteci, Digital Media Manager

Hollis King, Photography

Nina Flowers, Public Relations

Squire Media & Management, Public Relations

Walker International Communications Group

PROGRAMMING & PRODUCTION TEAM

Miriam Sierra, Director of Programming & Production

Saúl Ulerio, Technical Director

Bethany Cintron, Community, Education, & Social Initiatives Manager

Devin Cameron, Light & Projections Designer

Denzel Fields, Programming & Administrative Associate

Zenzele Daniels, Institutional Volunteer

DEVELOPMENT TEAM

Karlvy Smith, Director of Institutional Development

Julianna Friedman, Associate Director of Institutional Development

Danielle Reydon, Development Associate

Margaret Hunt, Development Consultant

Dwight Johnson Design, Gala Consultant

OPERATIONS & FINANCE TEAM

Jelani Buckner, Innovations Business Management Director

Martha Samuel, Director of Finance

Acey Anderson, Facilities & Maintenance Manager

Lamont Askins, Operations Manager

Jordan Morales, Facilities & Maintenance Associate

Das, IT

Lutz & Carr/Chris Bellando, Accountants

Aon/Albert G. Ruben Company (NY)/Claudia Kaufman, Insurance

G&A Partners, Human Resources

Madison Consulting Group, Matt Lawrence

Ncheng, LLP

HARLEM STAGE FAMILY OF SUPPORTERS

Endowment

The Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation

The Leonard and Sophie Davis Fund

Rockefeller Brothers Fund

Public Support

New York State Council on the Arts—Chair, Katherine Nicholls

The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs— Mayor Eric Adams and Commissioner Laurie Cumbo

The New York City Council—Councilmember Shaun Abreu and Councilmember Yusef Salaam

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine

Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone

Foundations

Altman Foundation

Black Theatre United

Bloomberg Philanthropies

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS

Columbia Community Service

Doris Duke Foundation

The Diana King Memorial Fund Presented by the Charles and Lucille King Family

The Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation

Francena T. Harrison Foundation Trust

Ford Foundation

The Hearst Foundations

Howard Gilman Foundation

The Hyde and Watson Foundation

The Jerome Foundation

Jewish Communal Fund

Joseph and Joan Cullman Foundation for the Arts Foundation

Lambent Foundation/Tides Foundation

The Leonard and Robert Weintraub Family Foundation

The Leonard and Sophie Davis Fund

Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation, Inc.

Lucille Lortel Foundation

(Foundations

continued)

MacMillan Family Foundation

Mertz Gilmore Foundation

Metzger-Price Fund

Miranda Family Fund

The Pierre and Tana Matisse Charitable Foundation

Pilot House

Rockefeller Brothers Fund

Ruth Foundation for the Arts

The Scherman Foundation, Inc.

SHS Foundation

The Shubert Foundation

Stavros Niarchos Foundation

Theatre Development Fund

The Thompson Family Foundation

Corporations

Apple

JoAnn Chase Company

Consolidated Edison Company

The Interpublic Group of Companies

Manhattan Beer Distributors

SESAC

West Harlem Development Corporation

William Morris Endeavor

Ziffren Brittenham LLP

INDIVIDUAL SUPPORT

Randy Adams

Ashley Adjaye

Ronald Alexander*

Lisa Arrindell

Stephany and Simon Bergson

Angela Glover Blackwell*

Randy Bryant

Richard Buery

Giselle Byrd

Gayle Capozzalo

Geoffrey Canada

JoAnn Chase*

Christine Choi

Robyn Coles

Vicky Corman

Hugh Dancy* and Claire Danes*

Sally and John Draper

Indira Etwaroo, PhD*

Susan Frost

Lisa Garcia

Stuart and Karen Gelwarg

Thelma Golden

Jessica Golden and Scott Lippstreu

Laura Greer

Agnes Gund

Monique Hanson

Drew Hawkins

Kinshasha Holman Conwill

Russell Hornsby

Margaret Hunt

Lisa Jackson

Justice Debra James

Dwight Johnson

Terria Joseph

John Josephson and Carolina Zapf

Jenette Kahn

Michael Kenny

Steven Kirkpatrick

Brad Learmonth and Jon Gilman

Courtney F. Lee-Mitchell*

Kenny Leon

Channing Martin*

Frank H. McCourt, Jr.

Gay McDougall

Lawrence McRae*

Sherman and Chris Meloni

Lynn Nottage

Noreen O’Loughlin

Stan Ponte

Terri Prettyman Bowles

Toby Rappaport

LaTanya Richardson Jackson

Rebecca Robertson*

Rick Rosen

Calvin Royal III and Jacek Mysinksi

Mary Schmidt Campbell

Elizabeth Smith and Richard Cotton

Shadawn Smith

Mark Thomas*

Tamara Tunie*

Erwin Underwood

Courtney B. Vance

Reginald Van Lee

Laura Walker and Bert Wells

Donna Walker Kuhne

Blair Washington*

Carrie Mae Weems

Alisha Johnson Wilder*and Todd Wilder*

Greg Williamson

Carol Wood Moore

Michael Young*

Alfred and Patricia Zollar

*Board Members

The above list reflects gifts received between July 1, 2024 and May 29, 2025. Donations under $1,000 are greatly appreciated but not acknowledged publicly. If your name has been omitted or misprinted, please accept our apologies and contact Associate Director of Institutional Development, Julianna Friedman at jfriedman@harlemstage.org

VENDORS

Aon/Albert G. Ruben Company (NY)/Claudia Kaufman, Insurance

Das, IT Consultant

Dwight Johnson Design, Gala G&A Partners, Human Resources

Lutz & Carr/Chris Bellando, Accountants

Madison Consulting Group, Matt Lawrence

Manchester Benefits, Greg Martin

Marc Millman, Photography

Ncheng, LLP

Squire Media and Management for Public Relations

MAJOR GIFTS