Donald McKayle (July 6, 1930 – April 6, 2018[2]) was an American modern dancer, choreographer, teacher, director and writer best known for creating socially conscious concert works during the 1950s and '60s that focus on expressing the human condition and, more specifically, the black experience in America.

In addition, McKayle was the first black man to both direct and choreograph major Broadway musicals, including the Tony Award-winners Raisin (1973) and Sophisticated Ladies (1981), and he worked extensively in television and film.

McKayle was born in New York City on July 6, 1930, and grew up in a racially mixed East Harlem community of African-American, Puerto Rican, and Jewish immigrants.

[8] Growing up in an integrated neighborhood shaped McKayle's understanding of the social issues and racial prejudices in America during a time when racism and segregation was commonplace.

His political beliefs were influenced by his high school English teacher Lewis Allen, also known as Abel Meeropol, author of the poem "Strange Fruit".

[11] McKayle was ambitious and eagerly took advantage of the company's formal training in modern, ballet, tap, Afro-Caribbean, Hindu, and Haitian dance forms.

McKayle's early works explores the universal human condition and reflect themes of unity and community through expressive and emotional movement.

This organization was composed of Harlem Renaissance, leaders including Langston Hughes, and up-and-coming African-American artists and performers such as Harry Belafonte.

Prisoners of a chain gang move powerfully across the stage creating an expressive narrative through abstract movements of physical labor.

Appearances by Donald McKayle; Della Reese (narrator); Harry Belafonte; José Limón Dance Company; San Jose and Cleveland Ballet.

He was the first to receive the Distinguished Faculty Lectureship Award for Research from the University of California, Irvine where he was an instructor and the artistic director of UCI's dance troupe.