Garrett Turner
Florence, Alabama
Musician/Writer/Actor
A proud native of Florence, Alabama, Garrett Turner is an actor, singer, poet, and playwright. Turner writes at the intersection of moral courage and joy. As a Jesus-loving free Black man, he perceives both joy and righteous indignation as an asset, a weapon, and a treasure. He is currently writing a play about a young Black man stuck between monogamy and a hard place entitled An Elegy for Patriarchy. He is also writing a musical entitled Eleanor: A Church Story about a young Black girl from Tennessee who stages a mini revolution in her own church when they ban her from preaching because she’s a girl. He has worked as an actor in New York City and across the United States in venues such as the National Black Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, Papermill Playhouse, Syracuse Stage, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Miami New Drama, Flat Rock Playhouse, True Colors Theatre, Theatrical Outfit, Aurora Theatre, Theater Emory, and the Alliance Theatre. Upon receiving his Bachelors in Music and Creative Writing from Emory University, he spent a year of post-baccalaureate study at the University of St Andrews in Scotland on a Bobby Jones Scholarship. Subsequently he pursued graduate studies in London on a Marshall Scholarship.
This bio/description was originally published in 2020 and updated in 2020. For more current information, please refer to the award recipient's website (if provided).