Actor, playwright and poet Nathan James hopes that the themes of Black male masculinity, the peeling away of layers and dealing with depression discussed in his one-man show, “Growing Pains,” which will be presented at the August Wilson Center for African American Culture Dec. 8 and 9, will ultimately lead to dialogue and healing.
“I think it’s important as we’re in an era of discovering Black male emotions and depression,” explained the Beltzhoover native who currently resides in New York. “Dealing with staying away from the negative influences on the streets, losing people along the way and learning to deal with heartbreak, it’s all of these things that young men—especially young men growing up in Pittsburgh—can look to and realize that they are not alone in their experience.”
Through spoken-word poetry, monologues, movement and multi-media imagery; his one-man show, Growing Pains, illuminates the voice of the true authentic culture of the Hip-Hop generation. It takes a firsthand look at the births of the mentalities of urban African American males, as opposed to the constant highlighting of stereotypical behaviors found in music videos, social media, and nightly news.
Growing Pains explores how people end up where they are in life based on their personal experiences. It examines the influence of media and upbringing over the way people view politics, beauty, each other, and most importantly, themselves. It taps into the part of the human spirit that enables people to empathize with one another as individuals, even if they can’t always relate to each other’s life experiences.
“The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is committed to supporting and nurturing local artists, such as Nathan, who create works from diverse artistic points of view, and who are a part of our city’s communities and neighborhoods,” said Terri Bell, vice president of strategic partnerships and community engagement for the Trust. “These artists, and their work are often underrepresented, as they have the ability to inspire and transform our ideas and perspectives of the arts in Pittsburgh. Nathan’s work, while personal, tells the story of many people of color in Pittsburgh whose stories have not been told, yet its message of triumph and overcoming odds is universal and important to all of us.”
James realized his dream of becoming an actor after he performed a comedic role in his middle school play and received mad applause from the audience. The exhilaration he felt was chronic for the impressionable young boy.
“Writing and performing allowed me to get all the little thoughts and voices I had in my head on paper and put them on stage. Now to see them resonate with audiences, it makes me feel like I’m not alone in the world,” he said. “So when I’m up there—either if I’m spitting poetry or performing a character that I wrote and I’m hearing the audience’s reaction and I’m seeing people with me and people coming up to me afterwards—it validates the fact that I do have a voice and I do have something to say that people really like to hear and young Black men, Black men my age and older Black men responded really well to everything that I wrote, and everything I said. It made me feel like I had a purpose.”
He will be making his big screen debut in the role of Xavier in the upcoming feature film, “We Are Unsatisfied,” starring Billy Crystal, and Ben Schwartz late 2018. James began his acting career with Kuntu Repertory Theater. He received a bachelor’s degree in Africana Studies from the University of Pittsburgh, and an MFA in Acting from Penn State University. In the spring of 2014, he won first place at the legendary “Amateur Night at the Apollo” with an original poem, Death of Swag. Growing Pains has appeared most notably at the Billie Holiday Theater, The Cultural Conversations Festival at Penn State University, and The United Solo Theater Festival on Theatre Row in Times Square.
James’ unique perspective on tacking Black male issues is one reason why August Wilson Center President and CEO Janis Burley Wilson wanted to bring Growing Pains, which originally played at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater in 2007, back to Pittsburgh audiences.
“I’ve known Nathan since he was a young poet and actor in Pittsburgh. He was always a dynamic and fierce, genuine performer. I’ve followed his career since that time and impressed with his progress in the industry. It’s time to celebrate that here at home in Pittsburgh. ‘Growing Pains’ is a unique perspective that deconstructs the negative imagery around African American males, and is a story of survival through resistance and poetry,” Burley Wilson said.
Tickets for Growing pains are $20 and can be purchased by visiting www.trustarts.org.
Pittsburghers who saw Growing pains in 2007 shouldn’t shy away from seeing it this time around. The characters are richer, the poetry bolder.
“The show grows as I grow,” James said, proudly. “There are some new poems that they have not heard before, music they haven’t heard as well. People will see how the characters in my play have impacted my life as well. Even though they are fictitious characters, they are based on real people. I want people to walk away with a feeling of perseverance and I want young Black men to walk away not being afraid to express their feelings, afraid of being vulnerable and admit when their feeling depressed. I want to pull back the layers and get underneath this thing. We can really start to make change in men’s lives.”
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