Maya Washington facts for kids
Maya Washington is a talented American artist. She makes films, acts, writes plays, and teaches about art. She went to college at the University of Southern California and Hamline University. She has won many awards for her work. Maya's projects often focus on important ideas like diversity and including everyone. Her films have been shown all over the world, in places like Toronto, Berlin, and Rome.
Contents
Maya Washington's Film Work
Maya Washington has created several award-winning films. She often writes, directs, and stars in her own projects.
- White Space (2011): This short film was written and directed by Maya. It tells the story of a deaf performance poet. The film was shown at many film festivals and won several awards.
- Life Coach Chronicles (2013): Maya produced and acted in this web series. It's an award-winning show about the lives of friends and families.
- Clear (2018): Maya wrote, directed, and starred in this short film. It's about a person who is released from prison after being wrongly accused. The story shows her trying to reconnect with her daughter. This film also won awards.
Through the Banks of the Red Cedar
In 2018, Maya released her first full-length documentary film. It is called Through the Banks of the Red Cedar. The film premiered at the Detroit Free Press Freep Film Festival.
This documentary tells the story of Maya's father, Gene Washington. He was a wide-receiver for the Minnesota Vikings. The film follows his journey from the segregated South to Michigan State University. There, he and his teammates played on the first fully racially integrated college football teams. These teams were the 1965 and 1966 Spartans football teams. Their coach was Duffy Daugherty.
Maya Washington's Performance Career
As an actor, Maya Washington has performed in many plays across the United States.
She has acted at places like Trinity Repertory Company and Penumbra Theatre. At Penumbra Theatre, she created the role of August Jackson in a play called Grandchildren of the Buffalo Soldiers. This play toured nationally and was shown at places like The Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.
Maya also performed at The Guthrie Theater for two seasons in A Christmas Carol. She originated the role of Neecy in Snapshots Life in the City at History Theatre. She has also performed at the Children's Theatre Company, The Playwrights’ Center, and other venues.
Plays Written by Maya Washington
Maya Washington has also written plays.
- Colorful Women of Invention: This play was commissioned by Youth Performance Company in 2003. It was a touring production.
- South of Adams: This full-length play had a staged reading at Congo Square Theatre in Chicago in 2005. This was part of the August Wilson Playwriting Initiative.
