The Carpetbag Theatre, Inc.

CBT is seeking funding to re-establish our ensemble troupe despite the hindrance of COVID-19. Founded in Knoxville, TN in 1969, amidst the Black Arts Movement, CBT has always survived against adversity. Under new leadership, after the retirement of ED/AD, Linda Parris-Bailey, new ED/AD Jonathan Clark saw a need for deepening the connection to the stories of Black East TN. With a re-commitment to this community, which has recently seen its Black poverty rate soar higher than any city of its size in the South, Clark’s first priority is to revitalize CBT’s Ensemble in order to reveal and reclaim stories which hold the power to heal a hurting community, while paying the artists who call it home.