Broadway’s Jacob Ming-Trent is turning his own survival story into theatre. Folger Theatre is closing its season with the world premiere of ‘How Shakespeare Saved My Life’, written and performed by Ming-Trent and directed by acclaimed theater maker Tony Taccone, running June 9 through July 5, 2026 at the Folger Shakespeare Library.
The 90-minute solo work traces Ming-Trent’s turbulent youth and artistic awakening, weaving Shakespeare together with the voices and influence of Jean-Michel Basquiat, The Notorious B.I.G., and Tupac Shakur. At its heart, the piece explores how art became a lifeline, helping a young performer find identity, purpose, and a way forward.
Ming-Trent is clear about why he made it. He said he wanted to tell his story with purpose, imagining a kid out there, a young actor, a young hip-hop artist, a young painter, anyone, who needed to hear it, believing his story could help save a life. That conviction gave the show its title.
He arrives with real momentum. Ming-Trent was named one of American Theatre’s “People to Watch” in January, and his recent turn as Falstaff in Shakespeare Theatre Company’s “Merry Wives” earned a Helen Hayes Award nomination for Best Ensemble. Folger audiences may remember him as Bottom in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at the National Building Museum in 2022. His Broadway credits include “Shrek the Musical,” “Hands on a Hardbody,” and the recent revival of “Gypsy,” with screen work spanning “Watchmen,” “Only Murders in the Building,” and “The Forty-Year-Old Version,” plus a Drama Desk nomination for Falstaff at The Public Theater.
The creative team is stacked. It includes Tiffany Rachelle Stewart on choreography, Takeshi Kata on scenic design, Danielle Preston on costumes, Alan C. Edwards on lighting, Jake Rodriguez as sound designer and composer, and Alexander V. Nichols on projection design. The work was co-commissioned by Folger Theatre and Red Bull Theater, and co-produced by Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Folger Theatre, and Red Bull Theater. After the Folger run, it makes its New York City premiere this fall in Red Bull Theater’s production at The Public Theater. Tickets start at $20 through the Folger Box Office and folger.edu/saved.