Creating new points of access: how integrating Black acting methods strengthens the Western theatre canon.

Western acting techniques have historically disregarded the contributions and techniques of black and non-Western performance to the detriment of black actors. This disregard has created barriers for black actors when engaging in what has now become standard theatre training. This training is enforced by implementation of acting techniques in academia that favor codified techniques of Eurocentric acting. Despite black acting techniques being codified and taught within the black community and academia, outside of a few historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), predominately white academia has implemented valuable training methods that black/African American Acting techniques can offer. By looking at American theatre history, consumers and theatre practitioners can see that by incorporating black theatre methodologies and techniques, the theatre world has benefitted and evolved. By incorporating black acting methods into academia as a primary material, the theatre world strengthens the Western theatre canon and its artists.