In Harlem of the 1920s a youngster was viewed as having achieved a respected status if he was called upon to climb through an apartment window for someone who had inadvertently locked himself out. The first time young Loften Mitchell accomplished this feat his father pointed out that Loften reached the window only by standing on his father's shoulders. This was a lesson that Mitchell never forgot; his contributions to the black American theater--his plays and his essays--show his recognition of the contributions of those who preceded him. He acknowledges throughout his work the belief that the black theater in America is the result of black artists' collective contributions of genius, talent, pioneering efforts, denials, sacrifices, sensitivity to black culture, race consciousness, and their view of theater as art. Mitchell sees his contribution and those of fellow artists as resulting from standing on the shoulders of others.

One...