The Kennedy Center, in collaboration with the University of Maryland, presents In His Own Words: A Tribute to Walter Dean Myers

The Kennedy Center, in collaboration with the University of Maryland, presents a performance combining music, dance, and spoken word with text from Myers's books, including We Are America and Monster, and his memoir Bad Boy.

In a career spanning over 45 years, Walter Dean Myers wrote more than 100 books for children of all ages, including two Newbery Honor Books, three National Book Award Finalists, and six Coretta Scott King Award/Honor-winning books.  In 2012, he was appointed the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, serving a two-year term in the position. This theatrical tribute to Mr. Myers combines music, dance, and spoken word with the text from some of his most famous books, including excerpts from his picture book We Are America, his gritty teen  novel Monster, his memoir Bad Boy, and from Kennedy Center-commissioned adaptations of his work – Harlem and Blues Journey.  This one-night-only celebration of Walter Dean Myers will be a fitting tribute to a man who changed the face of young adult literature and touched so many with his eloquent and unflinching portrayal of young African-American lives.

Scot Reese directed Blues Journey years ago which became the first Kennedy Center show to tour to Hawaii.

The August 30th performance will include 4 professional actors plus students from UMD - Korinn Walfall, Rachel Barlaam, Tiziano D'Affuso and Tendo Nsubuga. The show will take place as the closing performance of the Page to Stage event that happens every year at this time at the Kennedy Center. Its a 3 camera shoot that is then played all over the world - and archived. Click here to visit Millenium Stage web page about the performance.

For more information on Page to Stage at the Kennedy Center, click here.

Top watch the video of the performance, click here.