KC Melting Pot Theatre (KCMPT), Kansas City’s premier Black theatre company, is beginning a new chapter with a bold leadership structure and a powerful upcoming season exploring Reckoning, Reflection & Resilience.
Founded in 2013 by Harvey Williams, KCMPT began as a platform for one of Williams’ original plays and quickly grew to champion underrepresented voices and showcase Kansas City’s rich pool of theatre talent. By late 2014, it became the sole anchor company at Just Off Broadway Theatre, and in 2017, it achieved nonprofit status under the leadership of Williams and Artistic Director Dr. Nicole Hodges Persley.
Dr. Hodges Persley, who led the company for nearly a decade, concluded her tenure at the end of the 2024–2025 season. She helped elevate KCMPT into a nationally recognized home for Black theatre, expanded programming to include historical Black plays, deepened community engagement, and launched the Black Women Directors Program. She has now turned her focus to The Black Performance Project, a multimedia arts incubator she first conceptualized at the University of Kansas in 2019.
With her departure, KCMPT has moved to a rare co-artistic directorship — one of the only Black regional theaters in the nation led by a team of Black women directors:
Melonnie Walker – Artistic Director, Operations
Ile Haggins – Artistic Director, Programming
Lynn King – Artistic Director, Education
All three are distinguished theatre artists and alumni of the Black Women Directors Program. Founders Harvey Williams and his wife, Linda Williams, remain with KCMPT as Executive Directors and continue to serve on the organization’s Board of Directors.
2025–2026 Season Highlights
The upcoming season blends classics and contemporary works that tackle urgent social themes:
Night, Mother – By Marsha Norman – Sept. 18–27, 2025
Pulitzer Prize-winning drama about mental health, family bonds, and the need to be heard.
Death of a Salesman – By Arthur Miller – Dec. 4–13, 2025
A reimagined staging of the American classic centering voices often excluded from the dream it depicts.
Long Time Since Yesterday – By P.J. Gibson – March 12–21, 2026
A reunion of friends unearths buried truths, love, and grief.
Like Six O’Clock – By Lewis Morrow – World Premiere, June 11–26, 2026
A powerful new play examining moral choices in the wake of violence.
“KC Melting Pot Theatre continues its commitment to amplifying stories that expose hard truths, celebrate resilience, and demand to be heard,” said the new artistic leadership team in a joint statement. “This season is a call to witness, to feel, and to reflect on the complexities of our shared human experiences.”
Season subscriptions and single tickets are now on sale. Visit www.kcmeltingpot.com or call (816) 226-8087 for more information.
