Michael D. Dinwiddie (December 13, 1954 â July 4, 2025) was an American playwright, academic, composer and scholar of Black theater. In addition to his own work and contribution to Black literature and theatre, he led major efforts which led to New York University commemorating the African Grove Theater as part of a new building opening in 2023.
Born on December 13, 1954, in Muskogee, Oklahoma, as a self-described âÂÂOkie from Muskogee,â Dinwiddie was among the early graduates of New York UniversityâÂÂs experimental college of interdisciplinary studies, which would later become the Gallatin School of Individualized Study.
Dinwiddie returned to NYU to join the Gallatin faculty and is credited with playing a key role in the universityâÂÂs expansion into a global institution. He taught courses at NYUâÂÂs international campuses in Abu Dhabi, Accra, and Buenos Aires. In 2022, The New York Times recognized his leadership in memorializing the African Grove TheatreâÂÂthe first Black theatre in the United States, established in 1821âÂÂby helping to name a new theater at NYU in its honor.
Dinwiddie's works, often centered on historical Black cultural figures such as Langston Hughes and Eubie Blake, were produced at leading Black theatre companies across the United States. His accolades include:
Dinwiddie died following a brief illness in New York City, on July 4, 2025. Syncopated Stages, an exhibit at New York Public Library's Library for the Performing Arts which Dinwiddie was curating opened on September 17, 2025.
Dinwiddie was survived by his husband, Vincent Parnham and extended family.