Arts Center partners with community theater Clark Nesbitt’s No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited

Award-winning musical “Crowns: A Gospel Musical” scheduled for Arts Center stage in fall

For Immediate Release

June 15, 2023

Simpsonville, S.C. — With a commitment to host performances that appeal to a diverse audience, the Simpsonville Arts Center is proud to announce a partnership with community theater Clark Nesbitt’s No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited, which plans to produce in the fall the award-winning musical “Crowns: A Gospel Musical."

Arts Center Manager Melissa Sturgis said she is honored to work with Clark Nesbitt’s community theater.

“I am so excited about No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited and working with Clark Nesbitt,” Sturgis said. “When he reached out to me about using our space for his productions, I knew it would be a great fit. Clark has such a passion for his craft and is dedicated to making theater accessible to all. I cannot wait for ‘Crown’ rehearsals to start.”  

Clark Nesbitt’s No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited uses theater to create and enhance an awareness and understanding of artistic, cultural and aesthetic differences utilizing existing and new works of Black, African, African American and People of Color Arts and Letters.

Nesbitt said the mission of his theater company is to offer opportunities for the Black community and expose the community at-large to various works by diverse groups of artists.

“My hope is to engage artists who are local and possibly even produce the works of local writers, and I’m hoping there’s someone out there writing something that they would like to see on stage and give us that opportunity,” said Nesbitt, who formed No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited in August 2022. “One of the things that I want to do is to make sure there is that availability for others to participate in community theater and not just to participate but also I want there to be an avenue in which they learn and strengthen their desires in what they want to do.”

Regina Bell's ward-winning “Crowns: A Gospel Musical” is a moving and celebratory musical in which hats are a springboard for an exploration of history and identity as seen through the eyes of Yolanda, a young African American woman who has been sent to the South to stay with her aunt after her brother is killed in a northern city.

Nesbitt said “Crowns” is a family show that will have audience members clapping and tapping their feet.

“Come and see ‘Crowns’ because it is a great show,” Nesbitt said. “There’s Gospel, a little bit of rap and a little bit of pop, but more importantly the musical gives a history of Black people in America from a church standpoint. Crowns are represented through church hats and hairstyles that are used as props to discuss history and take you on a journey.”

Simpsonville Community Relations Specialist Justin Campbell said the Arts Center is opening the auditorium to other community theaters like Clark Nesbitt’s No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited to achieve its mission to be the premier place for the visual and performing arts in the Upstate.

“Essential to developing a reputation as an arts center that serves all members of the public is inclusion of historically marginalized communities in theater,” Campbell said. “Clark Nesbitt’s No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited is a theater company that explores and spotlights the experiences of Black, African, African American and People of Color through subject matter and casting, making No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited a pioneering force in Upstate community theater and a perfect fit for the Simpsonville Arts Center stage.”

The partnership between the Arts Center and Clark Nesbitt’s No Dreams Deferred productions unlimited includes the production of “Crowns: The Gospel Musical” with the option for additional productions in 2024.

For more information, contact Simpsonville Arts Center Manager Melissa Sturgis at msturgis@simpsonville.com.