PORTALS OF KNOWING: An immersive theatre experience

Latecia Delores Wilson-Stone’s Transformative Arts Fund project, Portals of Knowing, is not merely a play—it is an invitation to step into a living, breathing family story. Rooted in the spirit of Black joy and resilience, this immersive theater experience unfolds within the walls of Cleveland’s historic East Tech High School, in the heart of the Central neighborhood—a community long shaped by redlining and disinvestment, yet still rich with legacy, love, and power.

With Portals of Knowing, the audience doesn’t just watch—they enter. As you step into the space, you are greeted as family. The first thing you see: family portraits lining the wall, anchoring the moment in memory and lineage. These images set the tone for what follows—an unfolding story that blurs the line between performer and audience, inviting you not just to witness, but to belong.

Through this deeply communal practice of immersive theater, Wilson-Stone and the Asé Theatre Project reframe Black identity not only as survival but as celebration—honoring the fullness of Black life: the good, the bad, and the beautifully unapologetic. Set on a hot summer day, the story begins as many moments of Black healing do—with a cleansing.

You're spending the day with the cousins when Auntie Renee gets home from work, and suddenly, you realize—something deeper needs to be cleaned. As each room of the house reveals itself, it calls you to remember: to sweep through the layers of memory, to laugh, cry, sing, and grieve. To feel the spirits and stories of those who came before. According to Wilson-Stone, Portals of Knowing reveals "the beauty of the resilience within the community.” It asks each of us to take part in that beauty—not just as observers, but as cousins, kinfolk, and keepers of the story. When you enter this portal, you’re not attending a performance. You’re coming home. Whether it’s a home you’ve never seen, long forgotten, or one you know like your own heartbeat—home will welcome you just the same.

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