Spotlight On: Shawntai McCall-Brown

Shawntai McCall-Brown (she/her/hers) is an accomplished playwright, poet, and educator. She works with Black LGBT+ Plays, Extra Mile Playwrights Theatre, and BRED Hip Hop Theatre Festival.

Shawntai McCall-Brown

How did you get started in the arts?

I’ve always enjoyed writing and trying to grow into what my big sister could do. If she could read, I should read. If she could write a teen chapter book, I should write a teen chapter book. If she could play an instrument, I should play one as well. If she could draw, I should ... I actually never became good at drawing. Big sister’s interests switched to visual art, and I stayed glued to writing - my own newly spacious lane. I enjoyed the quiet world of writing; meanwhile, my grandfather Otis was taking me to plays, musicals and ballets, showing me the wonderful world of performing arts I felt way too shy to do. In high school, with a little push from a counselor, I found my voice as a spoken word and slam and spoken word poet through CityWide Poets with InsideOut Literary Arts. Building off my new-found courage, I dipped my toe into theatre at Cass Tech, taking on small roles in school plays and writing and performing with Readers Theatre. In college, I brought all of my skills together and tried my hand at writing for the stage and instantly fell in love with the collaborative nature of playwriting.

If you could direct/produce one show, what would it be, and why?

Christina Anderson’s “the ripple, the wave that carried me home” is currently circulating in my spirit. I feel connected as a Black girl whose father and uncle were human sharks who insisted all us kids learn to swim - because in the water there is both freedom and resistance. I love the poetry in the play, the complication of relationships, the honesty of the historic (and present) stains of segregation, the healing of family through access to water.

If you could play one character in all of theatre or film, who would it be and why?

I don’t have the chest for it, but I would play Raven-Symone in a biopic or play. She is the Lucille Ball of my childhood, and full of so many stories - all nuanced and not as glittery or cheetah-printed as her Disney persona.

Name two artistic role models and why you look up to them.

My father is my first role model. Between shifts at the plant, he remodeled our home, transforming a 2 bedroom into a 7 bedroom house over the course of my childhood. He enlisted us kids as building assistants. We carved, hammered, insulated, and painted personality, intention and story into each space. I learned as an adult that my dad gained his construction skills from building sets for plays when he was a teen. Creating space continues to be his hobby. Transformation of space became a part of my core understanding of the world and continues to anchor my storytelling. Every space holds a story, every story recreates a space.

Naming a singular second role model feels cruel as there are so many people I look up to - including writers and community organizers (dead and alive) and the young artists I have taught. Currently, I am in awe of Madelyn Porter - actor, writer, storyteller, organizer, educator (I’m sure there is a word count, so I’ll stop the list here). I’ve had the pleasure of watching her inspire young artists within minutes of meeting them. The stereotype of “those who can’t teach” does not apply here. She is continuously invited to stages and uses her art to inform, affect and play. Madelyn’s energy is an artistic contagion that makes it worthwhile to unmask. Her ability to foster community and center the arts in her life over the decades of her career is a blueprint.

What did you want to be when you were a child? Are you fulfilling that dream?

As a child, I first wanted to be a veterinarian, and then I wanted to be Oprah. While I don't have the medical certification to open my own office, as a sapphic requirement, I have cared for a roster of furry friends - so, I'm vet adjacent. I never became Oprah as a career. However, I have hosted a Webshow with my wife, produced my own content, performed in a handful of roles, and even made some decent book recommendations. So, short of being a billionaire, I think I'm on the right track to fulfilling all of my childhood dreams.

What is your artistic guilty pleasure?

Digging in the trash for queer representation. You might find me sifting through trash television, smutty music, lackluster shorts, and barely watchable content to find Black queer women characters and storylines. I fear no judgment in this pursuit.

What role/show/experience on your resume is most memorable and why?

I will never forget the experience of my play series “eLLe: Kalamazoo” - an episodic dramedy following West Michigan sapphic women. That series fostered a community I desperately needed at the time - one that has lived within me through every subsequent project. A small team of us built that play series at Fire Historical and Cultural Arts Collaborative fueled by the need for mirrors reflecting our lived experiences, laughter to lighten our loads, and a bit of ridiculousness to make real life seem far more grounded. The lack of funding, creation of theatre in a nontraditional space, the writer’s table to inspire the early storylines of the series, and the collaboration of seasoned and novice theatremakers is what made eLLe:Kalamazoo a family-like experience.

What is your dream for the Michigan Arts Community?

You shouldn’t have to walk more than a few blocks to an artistic performance. When arts education and resources become highly accessible, when communities begin to own the buildings they pass by daily, when the basic needs of our neighbors have been exceeded, I believe the investment in arts for healing, joy, education and entertainment will thrive. We will walk down any Michigan street and be able to pop into a theatre, dance studio, hear an orchestra playing, and hit a gallery within a mile. While I would love to see thriving arts districts, each community should be an artistic hub.