The play is the first production of a work from the True Colors-led Drinking Gourd initiative to commission new plays by Black playwrights
True Colors Theatre today announced the world premiere of Tank Stranger, a new play by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, James Ijames, Sept. 15 – Oct. 4, 2026, at the Southwest Arts Center in the City of South Fulton, Ga.
Tank Stranger is the first production of a work from the True Colors-led national Drinking Gourd initiative to commission new plays by Black playwrights.
“We are thrilled to bring to the stage the first Drinking Gourd-developed play,” said True Colors Artistic Director Jamil Jude. “And on top of that, we are excited to have the world premiere of a play by James Ijames, one of the country’s leading Black playwrights.”
Ijames, a Morehouse College graduate, wrote “Fat Ham” which won a 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Best Drama and was nominated for five Tony Awards.
A mystical play that delves into family dynamics and root work, Tank Stranger explores long-buried truths that begin to surface when generations of the Stranger family are drawn back together, blurring the line between ancestry, mythology, and destiny. As Tank searches for where he belongs, he discovers that understanding the future means confronting the past because every family tree has a story.
Tank Stranger is the second 2026 production from True Colors following its highly-successful presentation of Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella earlier this year.
Immediately following the production of Tank Stranger, True Colors will join several theatre companies in the United States in presenting a unique Italian language production of “Jitney,” written by noted Black American playwright, the late August Wilson. Featuring a cast of Black Italian actors, the play will be performed from Oct. 9 –11 at Southwest Arts Center.
For more information on Tank Stranger and to order tickets, please visit: HERE. For more information on Jitney and to order tickets, please visit HERE. For more information on True Colors, visit: https://truecolorstheatre.org.
True Colors Theatre Company is a nonprofit regional theater company based in Atlanta, GA. True Colors Theatre Company’s mission is to celebrate the rich tradition of Black storytelling while giving voice to bold artists from all cultures. We add dimension and relevance to our work on the stage through community events and education programming. The vision of Artistic Director Jamil Jude is for the company to “thrive at the intersection of artistic excellence and civic engagement.” For more information on True Colors, visit https://www.truecolorstheatre.org/.
About The Drinking Gourd
Launched in 2023 under True Colors’ leadership, Drinking Gourd is a consortium of Black theater companies around the country that focuses resources on the development of and work by Black playwrights. The initiative awards playwrights a commission of $10,000 to write a new play. Cohort members include the Ensemble Theatre in Houston, TX; the Hansberry Project in Seattle, WA; Hattiloo Theatre in Memphis, TN; Karamu House in Cleveland, OH; and National Black Theatre in New York, NY.
