The flowering of socio-political movements between the 1960s and 1990s in the United States and South Africa laid the firm foundations on which, with unprecedented force and impetus, the black theatre of these years was forged. Form and content emerged alongside the political and artistic commitment adopted by these artists against Western imperialism, colonialism and racism. For the first time in history, black theatre in the United States and South Africa analysed and valued black roots in order to illuminate the search for future freedom. However, the socio-political context and country-specific circumstances have also generated the distinctive features of Afro-American and black South African theatre (including gender differences) manifested in totally heterogeneous and unique artistic ramifications.

The flowering of socio-political movements between the 1960s and 1990s in the United States and South Africa laid the firm foundations on which, with unprecedented force and impetus, the black theatre of these years was forged. Form and content emerged alongside the political and artistic commitment adopted by these artists against Western imperialism, colonialism and racism. For the first time in history, black theatre in the United States and South Africa analysed and valued black roots in order to illuminate the search for future freedom. However, the socio-political context and country-specific circumstances have also generated the distinctive features of Afro-American and black South African theatre (including gender differences) manifested in totally heterogeneous and unique artistic ramifications.