Final Curtain Call

Woodie King Jr. was an American film and theatre actor, producer and director. Renowned for his pioneering career, he dedicated himself to increasing the representation of African American voices in the performing arts. King is credited with producing and directing more than 400 performances across the United States. He has been hailed by theatre arts journalists as "the Renaissance Man of Black Theatre".

King is best known as the founding director of the New Federal Theatre in New York City, with a mission to amplify the voices of Black artists, women, other underrepresented identities. Numerous African-American artists who are highly prominent in the entertainment industry today performed at the New Federal Theatre in the early years of their careers, including Morgan Freeman, Denzel Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Lawrence Fishburne, Debbie Allen, Phylicia Rashad, Loretta Devine, Jackie Harry, Reginald Vel Johnson, Al Freemon Jr. and more.

He was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2012, received a Tony Honor for Excellence in Theater in 2020, and was named a legend of off-Broadway. He retired from his role as the producing director at the New Federal Theatre in 2021, but he remained on the board.
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Mr. King had a significant relationship with the Shubert Organization by producing influential Broadway productions such as For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf and Checkmates. The relationship was celebrated after his passing on January 29th, 2026, with a tribute at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on April 27th, 2026.