Pipeline (English version)

Nya, a single mother, teaches at a public inner-city high school. Convinced of the importance of a good education, she is devoted to the success of her students, despite the sometimes difficult conditions, but also to the success of Omari, her teenage son, who is a boarder at a private school. When he is involved in a serious incident and is threatened with expulsion from his school, he becomes enraged. Nya must find a way to keep her son in school and, more importantly, to stay connected to him.

The title of the play refers to the phenomenon that American sociologists have termed the “school-to-prison pipeline,” whereby young people who are excluded from the school system often quickly find their way into the prison system. The author of Pipeline eloquently raises important questions about parenting, education, identity and how equality of opportunity depends on social class and ethnicity.

We are pleased to welcome Black Theatre Workshop to La Licorne for the first time. BTW is dedicated to the presentation of works from the Black community, and just celebrated its 50th anniversary last season! Pipeline, by the American author Dominique Morisseau, premiered at New York’s Lincoln Center Theatre in 2017. The performance is directed by ahdri zhina mandiela.