Lou Bellamy facts for kids

Lou Bellamy, born on March 10, 1944, is an American stage director, actor, and educator. He is famous for starting the Penumbra Theatre Company in St. Paul, Minnesota. He also taught at the University of Minnesota for many years.

Education and Early Life

Lou Bellamy was born in Chicago, Illinois. He graduated from Saint Paul Central High School in 1962. He then went to Minnesota State University, Mankato. There, he earned his degree in psychology and sociology in 1967. Later, he studied theater arts at the University of Minnesota. He received his master's degree in 1978.

Lou is married to Colleen Bellamy. They have two grown-up children, Sarah and Lucas.

Career in Theater

Lou Bellamy taught acting, directing, and communication at the University of Minnesota. He also taught special classes about Black theater.

In 1976, he started the Penumbra Theatre Company. This happened with help from a grant for cultural arts. At Penumbra, he directed many plays. He put on 23 world premieres, which means these plays were performed for the very first time there.

Bellamy worked closely with the famous playwright August Wilson. Penumbra Theatre produced more of Wilson's plays than any other theater. Lou Bellamy even won an Obie award for his directing work there. In 2014, his daughter, Sarah Bellamy, took over as the leader of Penumbra.

Lou Bellamy believes it is important to show the full stories of Black people on stage. He once said he wants to use his position to "put the lens on Black people." He wants to show them "in all their beauty, their facets and warts." He cares deeply about these stories.

Besides Penumbra, Bellamy has directed plays at many other theaters. These include the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and The Guthrie Theater. He also directed at The Kennedy Center.

Awards and Recognition

Lou Bellamy has received several important awards for his work:

• In 2005, he won the IVEY Lifetime Achievement Award. This award celebrates his long and successful career.
• In 2006, the McKnight Foundation named him a Distinguished Artist. This honor recognizes his artistic excellence.
• In 2007, he won an Obie Award. This was for directing a play called Two Trains Running in New York.
• In 2017, he received the Kay Sexton award. This award recognized his career as a teacher, mentor, and director. It also honored his work promoting African American literature.