Karamu House Begins 2026-27 Season with Ed Schmidt’s MR. RICKEY CALLS A MEETING

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The Cleveland-based production will present the powerful play about a pivotal moment in baseball history.

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Karamu House, the oldest Black producing theatre in the United States, opens its highly anticipated 2026–27 theatrical season with Ed Schmidt's play, Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting. Directed by Jimmie Woody, the production will run from September 24 through October 18, 2026.

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Set in a New York hotel room in the spring of 1947, Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting imagines a secret, high-stakes summit on the eve of breaking Major League Baseball 's color barrier. Brooklyn Dodgers owner Branch Rickey summons four iconic Black figures of the era—heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis, singer and political activist Paul Robeson , legendary dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, and a young Jackie Robinson—to solicit their public support before dropping a baseball bombshell.

What begins as a strategic talk quickly explodes into a fierce ideological battleground. The play masterfully confronts the complex cost of integration, weighing the imminent demise of the Negro Leagues and the risks of tokenism against the demand for absolute equality. It poses a question that remains intensely relevant today: If you want freedom of opportunity, do you play by the established rules, or do you demand that the rules be changed?

'I am humbled and deeply grateful to Tony F. Sias and Karamu House for entrusting me with the opportunity to direct Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting by Ed Schmidt as the opening production of this season.' says Jimmie Woody, Director.' I want you to feel as though you have entered that room and are witnessing five extraordinary men wrestling with questions that remain relevant today."

“Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting serves as the powerful prelude to a dynamic four-show season at Karamu, which will also feature Nate Jacobs ' A Motown Christmas, Phillip Hayes Dean 's Paul Robeson , and the musical revue Men of Soul by Daryl D. Brooks,” says Tony F. Sias, Artistic Director. 'History only stays relevant when you talk about it. By bringing stories like Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting to our stage, we ensure that the struggles and triumphs of our past continue to challenge, educate, and inspire us today.'

For the run of Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting, Karamu House is proud to partner with Cleveland's own Baseball Heritage Museum to feature an exclusive lobby exhibition celebrating the profound local and national legacy of Black baseball—with a special spotlight on the trailblazing life and career of Jackie Robinson.

Housed in the historic ticket house at League Park in Cleveland's Hough neighborhood, the Baseball Heritage Museum preserves the powerful stories, struggles, and triumphs of the Negro Leagues, Latin and Caribbean leagues, and the athletes who changed the game forever.

As audiences step into the Jelliffe Theatre to witness Ed Schmidt's gripping 1947 drama about the integration of Major League Baseball , the lobby display bridges art and local history. Alongside artifacts honoring Cleveland's own rich baseball legacy—including the Negro World Series champion Cleveland Buckeyes—the exhibit highlights Jackie Robinson's monumental journey from breaking the color barrier to his enduring impact on civil rights and American sports.

Ananias J. Dixon* (Joe Louis) is happy to return to the Karamu stage, where he has previously appeared in Detroit '67 (Lank), The Blacks: A Clown Show (Archibald), and Julius X (Brutus), under the direction of Justin Emeka and Terrance Spivey. A proud member of AEA and SAG-AFTRA, Ananias has built a career across theater, film, and television. His stage credits include leading roles in Sweat at Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Sunset Baby and An Octoroon at Dobama Theatre, and the title role in Fat Ham at Cleveland Playhouse. He has worked with acclaimed directors, Nathan Motta and Nathan Lilly . Ananias has appeared in HBO's Boardwalk Empire, CBS's NYC 22 and Blue Bloods, NBC's Law & Order: SVU, and Warner Brothers ' Person of Interest. His film work includes Denzel Washington 's Antwone Fisher and Sam Pollard's Slavery by Another Name, and he created and starred in the web series Figure it Out and Upstairs. Ananias is the co-founder and Executive Director of D.O.C Studios, where he works to create opportunities for storytelling that uplift and empower his community. A graduate of Cleveland School of the Arts and Cleveland State University's Theater program, he continues to merge his artistic passion with his commitment to building spaces for creative growth and mentorship.

Bryant Lyles (Bill “Bojangles” Robinson) has been newly bitten by the theatre bug and is now in his 3rd production. Making his Karamu Debut with Mr. Rickey Calls A Meeting. He previously appeared as Holloway in Two Trains Running and Turnbo in Jitney. Both August Wilson plays, both at The Beck Center, and both directed by Jimmy Woody. Making this the 3rd time he's worked with Mr. Woody, Bryant takes on the infamous Bojangles. This is a performance you don't want to miss.

Avery LaMar Pope (Clancy Hope) is a multi-hyphenate storyteller and arts educator from Cleveland, OH. Avery tells stories through theater, literature, and music. Acting credits include: Cleveland Play House, Playhouse Square, Great Lakes Theater, Karamu House, Dobama Theatre, Cleveland Public Theatre, Cain Park, Idaho Shakespeare Festival, and Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe. Playwriting credits: Horizon Theatre Company, Dobama Theatre, Ensemble Theatre. Directing credits: Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble, Cleveland Public Theatre, Ensemble Theatre. Selected poetry commissions: NAREB's 75th Annual Convention, Ohio Crisis TextLine Campaign, MetroHealth's Physician Suicide Awareness Week and Patient Experience Week, WKYC's 2024 Breaking Barriers. Recognitions: 2026 Cleveland Arts Prize Verge Fellow, 2024 Karamu House Room in the House Performing Arts Fellow, 2022 Nord Family Foundation Playwright Fellowship Finalist, 2021 New South Young Playwrights' Festival. Avery holds a BFA in Performance (Cum Laude) from Ohio University. God is good. Jesus is Lord. @averylamarpope on IG and TikTok

Drew Pope (Jackie Robinson) is a 2019 graduate of the B.F.A. Acting and Directing program from Baldwin Wallace University. He is a 2x winner (2023, 2024) of the 'Best Performer' award for 'Broadwayworld's Cleveland Region'. He taught Drama at Dike School of the Arts, and now teaches 5th Grade ELA at Breakthrough Midtown. He has performed at Karamu House, Ensemble Theatre, Dobama Theater, GLT, and CPT. He believes he's blessed to return to tell another story at Karamu House. He dedicates this show to his family and friends that consistently show support!

Corin B. Self ( Paul Robeson ) is an artist and a native of Cleveland, OH. After studying Theatre Arts at Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, he has been in such productions as Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act (Run of the Mill Theatre)(Convergence-Continuum), A Member of the Wedding (Beck Center for the Arts), Objectively/Reasonable: The Community's Response to the Shooting of Tamir Rice (Playwrights Local), Sister Act: The Musical (Karamu House), Requiem (Cleveland Public Theatre), Airness (Dobama Theatre), Macbeth (Cleveland Shakespeare Festival), The Hot Wing King (Dobama Theatre), Choir Boy (Karamu House).

Brad Southard (Branch Rickey) is excited to be making his Cleveland debut at the historic Karamu House. Hailing from American Fork, UT, he has performed in shows such as The Sound of Music with Hale Theater Orem and Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber of Fleet Street with SVYT Theater in South Valley. He's terrifically excited to dive into the role of Branch Rickey and hopes you get to experience these complex historical figures in a way that makes you feel the awe of what they were able to accomplish and what they lived through to get there. He thanks Jimmy Woody, this amazing ensemble of actors, and the creative team at Karamu House for this opportunity. He also thanks his beloved wife for her endless support and love through the run of this show.

Mr. Rickey Calls A Meeting performances will take place at Karamu House in the historic Cleveland Foundation Jelliffe Theatre, September 24 – October 18, 2026.

The full performance schedule is as follows:

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/cleveland/article/Karamu-House-to-Open-2026-27-Season-with-MR-RICKEY-CALLS-A-MEETING-20260928)._