Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe

The Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe of Florida, Inc. was founded in December 1999, by local actor, singer, director, and playwright Nate Jacobs. It is the only professional black theater company on Florida’s west coast and one of only two in the state.

Throughout the past decade, WBTT has produced many productions locally and around the state of Florida. The company has gained a reputation for high quality, thought-provoking, and entertaining performances.

Since its inception, WBTT has mentored and inspired many African-American youth through participation in the company’s productions. It has provided a platform for artistic individuals who might not otherwise have had an opportunity to cultivate their interests and talents. A number of the aspiring professional artists trained in the WBTT performing arts program have gone on to work with national and regional companies such as The Black Theatre Troupe, Phoenix Arizona; The Cumberland County Playhouse, Crossville, Tennessee; Florida Studio Theatre, Sarasota, Florida; The Asolo Rep, Sarasota, Florida; Stage Door Theatre, Coral Springs, Florida; and Mad River Theatre, West Liberty, Ohio.

In addition, the company has provided a springboard for national and international careers, such as: Teresa Stanley, a featured cast member of The Color Purple on Broadway and the national tour of Rock of Ages, and Apphia Campbell, a professional performer and teacher in Shanghai. In 2010, 13-year-old Troupe member Chris Eisenberg made it to the top 48, out of thousands of contestants, on the television show America’s Got Talent.


Founder/Artistic Director
Nate Jacobs is a driving force in Sarasota’s theater scene. A graduate of Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, he is the Founder and Artistic Director of the Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe. He serves as a consultant to the Westcoast School for Human Development and, for more than 25 years, has worked extensively in the community mentoring, training, and developing young aspiring performing artists.

A shining example of multiple talents, Nate is an actor, singer, comedian, playwright, composer, and director who has produced and appeared locally in many hit shows. As a playwright, Nate has created both original and adapted works such as Motown 60s Review, The Soul Crooners, Marvin Gaye, the Magnificent Music of the 40s, and Love Sung in the Key of Aretha.

Nate has traveled the U.S. and the Caribbean with popular recording artists and has been featured on several TV shows, including BET’s Bobby Jones Gospel Explosion, New York’s Showtime at the Apollo, Henry Porter and The Love Campaign, and Sony Records Showcase. His co-adaptation of Celebrating Greatness was featured on CBS's Street Stories with Ed Bradley. Nate’s original one-man comedy show, Aunt Rudele’s Family Reunion, which received rave reviews across the nation, was selected for the Zora Neale Hurston Festival in Eatonville, Florida, and the National Black Theater Festival, and was performed in New York at PS-NBC’s “new comedic talent” event. One of Nate’s largest fan bases is in Zurich, Switzerland, where he has performed for the past several years with his singing ensemble.

Executive Director/CEO
Richard M. Parison, Jr. has been working in professional regional theater for over 25 years and joins Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe during its very special 15th Anniversary Season. Before coming to Sarasota, Richard was Executive Director/CEO of Richmond CenterStage, central Virginia’s premiere Performing Arts Center. Richard is particularly proud of his work as the Assistant to the Producing Artistic Director at the internationally recognized Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, working with Bernard Havard. Richard also enjoyed tenures at the Prince Music Theater in Philadelphia as Associate Artistic Director and as the Producing Director/COO at the Barrington Stage Company in Western Massachusetts. A native of Northeast Ohio, Richard began his professional career at Great Lakes Theater Festival working for six years with Gerald Freedman, Artistic Director, and Victoria Bussert, Associate Director. .

As a director, he is a three-time Barrymore Award nominee for Outstanding Direction of a Musical for Dreamgirls and Ain’t Misbehavin’ at the Prince Music Theater and The Big Bang at Act II Playhouse. Representative regional directing credits include Fiddler on the Roof for Virginia Repertory (Richmond Critics Nomination for Best Direction), Collected Stories, The Lake and Children for the Walnut Street Theatre; The Interview for The Cleveland Play House and Eye of the Storm at the Asolo Theatre Company.

Richard is a fellow of the PEW Charitable Trusts Next Generation Leadership Program and served on several panels for Theatre Communications Group, the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, the City of Philadelphia Cultural Fund, City of Richmond Council for Travel and Tourism, Virginia Council for the Arts and the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia