Acclaimed actor and playwright Mike Wiley has spent nearly two decades fulfilling his mission to bring educational theatre to young audiences and communities across the country. In the early days of his career, Wiley found few theatrical resources to shine a light on key events and figures in Black history. To bring these stories to life, he started his own production company.
Through his performances, Wiley has introduced countless students and communities to the legacies of Emmett Till, Henry “Box” Brown, Jackie Robinson, The Freedom Riders, and more. Wiley tours eight original one-person plays for student and adult audiences throughout North America, and his ensemble cast original plays (Leaving Eden, Down Range, and The Parchman Hour) are available for licensed productions by theatres worldwide.
Mike Wiley holds a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was the 2010 and 2014 Lehman Brady Visiting Joint Chair Professor in Documentary Studies and American Studies at Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Wiley received the University of North Carolina’s Distinguished Alumni Award in 2017.
In 2020, Mike Wiley received the Ann Atwater Award presented by Manbites Dog Theater Fund to recognize Triangle theater artists and companies whose body of work reflects and honors Durham activist Ann Atwater’s lifelong commitment to social justice. He is also recipient of the NC Theatre Conference Constance Welsh Award for Theatre for Youth. He has conducted numerous educational residencies funded through grant programs of the North Carolina Arts Council and his plays have been selected for spotlight showcases by arts industry conferences throughout North America.
In addition to his theatrical work, Wiley also serves as an Assistant Research Professor in the Program in the Kenan Institute for Ethics and the Program in Education at Duke University. He is the co-director of America’s Hallowed Ground – a project of the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University – which seeks to honor sites of past struggles that are significant to the American story, particularly its history of racial inequality. The work blends historical research with the Arts to amplify and keep alive the stories of these sites—many of which are not widely known.
Mike’s plays chronicle the lives of Emmett Till, Jackie Robinson, The Freedom Riders and more through one-man shows where he portrays 15-20 characters in a single performance.
In addition to his one man shows, Mike has written several plays for ensemble casts and also develops productions with other playwrights and musicians.
See Mike play every character in the story of Emmett Till and watch for a new film chronicling the brave and inspiring life of Henry “Box” Brown.
Not every story is long enough for a play, but many hold important lessons for us. The Parallel Lives podcasts tell the stories of William and Ellen Craft and Claudette Colvin as only Mike Wiley can.
