ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses three volatile issues in nationalist philosophy—the assertion of black manhood, male-female relationships, and the morality of fratricide. Nationalist theatre flourished in most metropolitan areas with large concentrations of black people and in many smaller localities. Nationalist theatre is the form which more closely resembles true Negro theatre, since Negro theatre was once the cultural pillar of Harlem, a position to which nationalist theatre aspired. The face of nationalist theatre was further changed by the black theatre movement's having created an expanded audience for theatre and restored the theatre tradition which characterized Harlem during the era of Negro theatre. Theoretically, the emphasis on theatre for black people meant that nationalist theatre was indifferent to white audiences and therefore had no obligation or aspiration to satisfy white aesthetic or critical standards. Nationalist theatre written in the Western vein incorporates devices, but "ritual theatre" is a form rather than a point of departure for dramatic action.
