_and_Forrest_McClendon(Ethereal)_in_the_original_Off-Broadway_production_of_James_Baldwin-_A_Soul_On_Fire-_New_Federal_Theatre,_New_York_circa_2000-_2013-10-03_16-37_(cropped).jpg)
James Baldwin: A Soul on Fire is an American stage play about author and activist James Baldwin. It was written by Howard Simon and first performed in 1999. Originally directed by Chuck Patterson, the first run starred Charles Reese as James Baldwin and Forrest McClendon as his counterpart, an ethereal force that takes multiple identities.
The play uses themes from throughout Baldwin's life and writing, while also portraying 1963 as a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. The setting is Baldwin's apartment on the morning of May 24, 1963, immediately before the Baldwin–Kennedy meeting with Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.