Passing Ceremonies
by Steve Willis
June 17-19

Passing Ceremonies, set in the hereafter, tells the story of an imagined meeting between Harlem Renaissance Era poet, Bruce Nugent, and  ‘60’s AIDS activist poet, Essex Hemphill, who interviews Nugent for his book about older, gay black men.

STEVE WILLIS (Passing Ceremonies) holds a Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A) degree in Acting/Directing from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in English/Dramatic Arts & Speech from Averett University. Currently, he is Chair of the Dept. of Visual and Performing Arts at Bennett College for Women, a small historical Black college located in Greensboro, North Carolina, where Steve resides with his partner, Scott.

Steve’s plays have been produced internationally as well as throughout the United States. In 2005, his romantic comedy/drama Falling So Slowly premiered in Melbourne, Australia, produced by Fly-on-the-Wall Theatre at St. Martin’s Theatre. Other plays have been produced in South Africa (National Arts Festival in Grahamstown), New York City (Grove Street Playhouse, Bank Street Theatre), Chicago (Bailiwick Rep), and in various cities throughout the Carolinas. 

In 2008, Steve accepted a commission from San Diego’s Diversionary Theatre to write a holiday-themed play about Oscar Wilde, with a targeted production date of 2010. Steve’s other recent work includes adaptations of Arthur Schnitzler’s La Ronde and Ibsen’s Ghosts; and a one-woman play, Diana Sand, chronicling the life and career of the late African-American stage and film actress.

Steve has received numerous grants, prizes and awards for his playwriting including the 2004 and 2003 Carolina Contemporary Playwrights Competition (for Falling So Slowly and The Shadow of Eldorado); the North Carolina Theatre Conference’s 2003 New Play Award (for The Shadow of Eldorado); and a 2001-2002 Playwrights’ Fellowship from the North Carolina Arts Council (also for The Shadow of Eldorado).

An avid yoga practitioner since 2001, Steve completed Triad Yoga Institute’s 330-hour Teacher Training Program in 2005. Additionally, he has taken classes frequently at Om Yoga in New York City as well as attended workshops led by John Friend, Elise Browning Miller, Doug Keller, J.J. Gormley, and Baxter Bell. Steve currently "moonlights" by teaching yoga classes at Triad Yoga Institute, Sedgefield Country Club and The Club at Green Valley. As a yoga instructor, he encourages his students to listen to their bodies, discover energy in their postures, and find individual expression throughout their practice.

In 2006, Steve completed a Scholar in Residence appointment at New York University, and returns there again this summer.