*(Brooklyn, NY) – 651 ARTS, Brooklyn’s premier institution dedicated to the African Diasporic performing arts, continues its momentous 2025 Fall/Winter Season – the first full season in its permanent home in Downtown Brooklyn – with the workshop production of Little Black Book, the debut stage play by award-winning Brooklyn-based poet and playwright Najee Omar. Set for two performances on Friday, December 5 and Saturday, December 6, 2025, the production is a bold, genre-defying work rooted in the Black queer experience that fuses theater, poetry, music, and movement into a deeply personal and profoundly resonant meditation on identity, love, community, and the radical act of self-discovery.
Two Performances
Friday, December 5, 2025 – 7:30PM
Saturday, December 6, 2025 – 7:30PM
At the heart of Little Black Book is Omar himself and the complicated journey of coming into his queerness. The work follows a Brooklyn poet who has recently come out as he revisits the men who shaped him, ultimately learning that the truest form of love begins within. Through a seamless blend of poetry, movement, live DJ mixes, and storytelling, the performance unfolds as both an intimate diary entry and a unique theatrical experience. Drawing from interviews with Black queer men across generations, it builds an evolving collection of love stories, heartbreaks, and revelations – transforming memory into a living archive and preserving the myriad voices, rhythms, and emotions that define the Black queer experience. Little Black Book also offers a tender, revolutionary perspective of Black queer intimacy – and of representation beyond trauma – showcasing Black men in their full humanity. Through this multidisciplinary, hybrid approach, Omar has created a space that is as vulnerable as it is joyous, inviting audiences to witness not only the ache of longing but also the power of affirmation, healing, and transformation.
Honoring Brooklyn as part of that living cultural archive, Little Black Book’s rhythmic fusion of forms stands as a portrait of Brooklyn itself and the people, neighborhoods, and creative spaces that contribute to its cultural pulse. The piece echoes the legacies of Ntozake Shange’s for colored girls… and Essex Hemphill’s Ceremonies while carving its own bold place in the canon of contemporary Black performance. The premiere of Little Black Book also marks a powerful full-circle moment for the Brooklyn-based Omar, who returns to the community that shaped his artistry and spirit with this production.
Scroll to continue reading
“As a Black queer man who came out in my late twenties, I rarely saw myself reflected on stage in ways that felt whole. When we did appear, it was often through trauma. I created Little Black Book to reclaim our narratives and honor our wholeness. Too often, stories about Black queer men center on pain or performance, but I wanted to make something that celebrates our softness, our love, and our ability to heal out loud,” says Omar. “To bring this work home to Brooklyn, with 651 ARTS, means everything to me. This institution has long championed the kind of bold, vulnerable storytelling that has shaped me as an artist. Premiering Little Black Book here isn’t just a milestone in my artistic career, it’s a homecoming rooted in gratitude, community, and truth.”
This collaboration with 651 ARTS extends Omar’s relationship with the institution and reflects the organization’s ongoing commitment to nurturing the next generation of visionary Black creatives as well as celebrating the borough’s vibrant artistic lineage. In true 651 ARTS fashion, the presentation of the production connects art to community – amplifying the stories that reflect, uplift, and redefine what it means to call Brooklyn home.
“As 651 ARTS steps into its first full season in our new permanent home, we are intentional about honoring the artists who reflect Brooklyn’s creative heartbeat,” said Toya Lillard, Executive Director of 651 ARTS. “Najee Omar’s Little Black Book does exactly that. It’s tender, powerful, and deeply rooted in this community. To present his work here – where his story began – is not just a premiere, it’s a homecoming that reminds us why 651 exists: to uplift, to celebrate, and to create space for Black artistry in all its beauty and complexity.”
Directed by Kelly GreenLight Thomas, Little Black Book boasts a dynamic ensemble cast – Antonyio Artis, Colin Carswell, Jeroboam Bozeman, Jonathan Burke, Kevin Tate, and Puma Saint Omar. Each performance will be followed by a community talkback featuring Omar and members of the creative team, inviting audiences to engage in open dialogue.
Performances: Najee Omar’s Little Black Book
Friday, December 5 & Saturday, December 6, 2025
Doors: 7:00 PM | Showtime: 7:30 PM (Talkback to follow nightly)
Venue: 651 ARTS | 10 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn, NY
Tickets: $25
For additional information, please visit: www.651ARTS.org
For exclusive photos, updates, and more, follow us on social: @651ARTS
About Najee Omar
Najee Omar is a poet, playwright, and performance artist whose work lives at the crossroads of poetry, theater, and community. His writing—equal parts lyrical and raw—imagines a world where Black people see themselves fully, love themselves deeply, and dream themselves free. His debut stage play, Little Black Book, developed through residencies at SPACE on Ryder Farm and Hi-ARTS, has found its home at 651 ARTS. In Fall 2025, his one-act So I Can Love You premiered in the Learning to Love Fellowship, continuing his exploration of Black queer intimacy across generations. Najee also appeared as Stephon in Shaun Neblett’s Homage 5: Life After Death at BRIC.
His poetry appears in Poet Lore Magazine and the anthology That’s a Pretty Thing to Call It, and his storytelling projects have partnered with BAM, The Public Theater, Lincoln Center, and The Met. When he’s not creating, he’s riding his bike, getting lost in music, or catching up on Real Housewives. Najee lives and loves in Brooklyn.
About 651 ARTS
Since its founding in 1988, 651 ARTS has become a trusted convener of contemporary African Diasporic artistic expression, a champion and nurturer for emerging artists and their work and a vital cultural resource for its surrounding community. As it moves forward, part of 651 ARTS’ mission is to preserve the legacy of Black culture in Brooklyn, celebrate the eclecticism of Black performance and to pioneer new visions of African Diaspora artists. This year—the transition year—is integral for the institution as it continues to lay the framework that will further help to reinforce 651 ARTS’ role as a leader of African Diasporic culture while also establishing it an incubator for artistic innovation in the 21st century.
For additional information, please visit: www.651ARTS.org
651 ARTS’ programs are made possible by gifts from generous individuals and grants from the Altman Foundation, Booth Ferris Foundation, Con Edison, Fan Fox & Leslie R Samuels Foundation, Ford Foundation, Howard Gilman Foundation, Lambent Foundation, Mellon Foundation, Mertz Gilmore Foundation, New York Community Trust Mosaic Network & Fund, and Wallace Foundation. 651 ARTS is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, Council Member Crystal Hudson, and New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.
View this post on Instagram
(If You Like/Appreciate This EURweb Story, Please SHARE it!)
MORE NEWS ON EURWEB.COM: Trailer Released for ‘Moses the Black’ Starring Omar Epps, Wiz Khalifa, and Quavo
We Publish Breaking News 24/7. Don’t Miss Out! Sign up for our Free daily newsletter HERE
