On June 19, 1865, news of the Emancipation Proclamation freeing American slaves finally reached Galveston, Texas—a full two and a half years after it was signed. Accounts differ as to why it took so long for the slaves of Texas to be told of their freedom, but they didn’t hesitate to celebrate, dubbing the day Juneteenth. For decades, Juneteenth celebrations were common in Black communities, but the holiday gradually faded into obscurity as it was written out of history. Still, the annual celebrations never completely stopped, taking the form of barbecues, church services, and, this year in Chicago, a comedy show.
The members of Bosses in Bonnets first had the idea to do a Juneteenth show earlier this year—before there was even a threat of the city shutting down—and have been working on sketches for it ever since. Originally the show was going to be staged at Steppenwolf, but when the theater canceled its June programming, the group decided to pivot to putting on a virtual show so as to not waste the material they were already working on. At the same time Preach was thinking about putting on a Juneteenth show. That’s when Kayla Pulley, who is a part of both groups, brought them together to not only collaborate but lighten the load of work that goes into putting together a virtual show, something neither group has done.
Fri 6/19, midnight, streaming at @Bossesinbonnets and @Preachimprov on Instagram
