Osceola Adams (Archer)
Actor, Educator, Activist, Director, University Professor
1890-1983
Years:
Affiliations:
Fisk University, Howard University, Broadway, ANT
New York
Locations:
Connections:
Ossie Davis, Myra Lillian Davis Hemmings, Rose McClendon
Osceola Adams (Archer) was a director, actor, and educator. She directed, taught, and ran the studio Theatre School of Drama at ANT at the American Negro Theater (ANT) from 1940 to 1949. Her students included Harry Belafonte, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, and Sidney Poitier. She served as resident director of the Putnam County Playhouse for 10 years beginning in 1946. As an actress, Osceola performed in many plays for ANT, Putnam County Playhouse, Broadway and many more. She was one of the first Black actresses on Broadway, first appearing in BETWEEN TWO WORLDS in 1934, where she faced discrimination in a segregated acting environment during the early 20th century.
Born in Albany, Georgia in 1890, Osceola Macarthy was mixed with white-European, Native American, and Black African heritage. She attended schools in Albany, Georgia, including Albany Normal School, and then attended Fisk University's Preparatory School. Later, she attended Howard University, where she studied ancient Greek and philosophy. Adams attended Howard University and was a leader in Howard's Dramatic Club. On January 13, 1913, she was among the twenty-two women, all students at Howard University, who founded the Delta Sigma Theta sorority, a public-service organization.
Mrs. Adams was active in theatrical unions, working especially to end racial discrimination in the theater. She was a member of the ethnic minorities committee of Actors Equity and the Actors Equity Council, the union's governing body. Theatre Credits HERE.
(Bio source: https://aaregistry.org/story/osceola-macarthy-adams-born/)
