Unless the story is specifically about a Black person or group, Broadway casting teams always relegate the bulk of Black talent to standbys, swings, and understudies of the complex, heartfelt, and usually white, principal roles. If they do get the chance to play the role full time. It is only until the second or third replacement. This is not to say those positions are not just as important, and even more challenging than the original principal, but it makes you wonder. 

Time and time again we have seen this happen. I think of this trending video of Saycon Sengbloh absolutely disintegrating our edges as Elphaba in Wicked. Isn’t insane that in a show literally about a woman of a color different than the rest of her peers being discriminated against, there has never been a full-time Black Elphaba on Broadway? The irony hurts.

There have been constant examples of this from Jordan Fisher’s heartbreaking performance as Evan in Dear Evan Hansen, Aisha Jackson’s exhilarating Anna in Frozen, Ashley De La Rosa’s seductive Regina George in Mean Girls, the list goes on and on and on. 

The most disappointing part about this, is the decisions cannot be based on talent, because we always tend to be just as good if not BETTER than the white original. Our experiences, our struggles, and our triumphs that we face as Black artists make our performances more precise, more emotional, just because we have been conditioned to think that we must be at the very top of our game at all times, just to get our foot in the door. Our Blackness not only informs the role, but it also improves it.

The most important thing is that WE see us. WE see the work and appreciate the choices. In all this talk that the Great WHITE Way has had about diversity and change, let’s hope we actually see some change, and more importantly, our people getting the things we deserve. 

We are #TeamBootleg over here so check out some of our favorite Broadway Black replacement/standby performances and reach out to let us know how YOU feel: 

https://youtu.be/VHsa1U2OXZc

https://youtu.be/ZZ808TJQL6U

https://youtu.be/DHSTF-KIybI

https://youtu.be/NZI5tqRrn5Y

The post Coming in Second: Broadway’s Game of Consistently Placing Black Talent Solely as Standbys and Replacements appeared first on Broadway Black.

Leading the cast of the main five Temptations will be Nik Walker as Otis Williams, James Harkness as Paul Williams, Jawan M. Jackson as Melvin Franklin, Matt Manuel as David Ruffin, and Jelani Remy as Eddie Hendrix, all of whom were in the cast prior to the shutdown last year. 

Rounding out the cast is Esther Antoine, Saint Aubyn, E. Clayton Cornelious, J. Daughtry, Tiffany Francés, Taylor Symone Jackson, Jahi Kearse, Darius Jordan Lee, Jarvis B. Manning Jr., Morgan McGhee, Joshua Morgan, Aaron Patterson, Christian Thompson, Sir Brock Warren, Correy West, Drew Wildman Foster, Curtis Wiley, and Candice Marie Woods.

With a book by Broadway Black fave Dominique Morrisseau, the show tells the story of the famous group’s start and rise to success. Tickets are on sale now HERE. Buy your tickets now!

The post Broadway’s Ain’t Too Proud Announce Full Cast Ahead of October Opening appeared first on Broadway Black.

 

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We cannot wait to be clapping and shouting in the audience again! You can get your tickets HERE.

The post Adrienne Warren Announces Return To Tina: The Tina Turner Musical! appeared first on Broadway Black.

First up, we start with The Tap Dance Kid running from February 2-6, 2022. Starring Dulé Hill, the Tony-nominated show tells the story of an upper-middle-class black family and a 10-year old’s dream of becoming a professional dancer despite his family’s fears as well as society. The production will be directed by Tony award-winning Broadway Black Legend Kenny Leon along with a new concert adaptation from acclaimed playwright Lydia R. Diamond. 

In March we move over to The Life, which tells the story of the complex lives in the post-disco era Of New York City! One of our faves, Billy Porter, will be adapting and directing the piece featuring performances from Chuck Cooper, Mykal Kilgore, Ledisi, and Ken Robinson! The piece will also be choreographed by our booked and busy Camille A Brown. The show runs from March 16th to the 20th.

Finishing out the season will be the iconic musical, Into The Woods. The Stephen Sondheim classic most are none other than our forever Leading Lady Heather Headley as the Witch, as well as performances from Sara Bareilles, Christian Borle, and Ashley Park! They may not be Broadway Black, but we stan them regardless. The show will run May 4-15, 2022. 

With casts and teams this big, we can only imagine how lit these shows are going to be. Make sure you get your tickets HERE and see these amazing shows as the city continues to open back up in the new year!

The post Encores! next season is very much Broadway and Black! appeared first on Broadway Black.

“Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It’s time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes and leap…”#WickedMovie @UniversalPics #StephenSchwartz #WinnieHolzman #MarcPlatt it’s time.
So… Twitterverse, who should we cast? pic.twitter.com/ZaAeAJTq9f

— Jon M. Chu (@jonmchu) February 2, 2021

Everyone who likes musicals went through their Wicked phase, and with Chu leading the team, I think they’re going to see a whole new batch of Wicked stans. No word on a cast or release date, but we will keep the Broadway Black readers updated with all the tea!

We have talked about Wicked a couple of times, mostly discussing the irony that in a show about a girl of another skin color being judged for what makes her different, there has been no full-time Black Elphaba in any North American company. In fact, there has never been a full-time Elphaba OR Glinda, just understudies, and standbys. In fact, Brittney Johnson only recently became the first Black woman to play Glinda on Broadway. Hopefully, we will see a little more color (and not just green) in the adaptation!

Check out our video on Brittney Johnson becoming Broadway’s first #BlackGlinda:

The post ‘Wicked’ Film Adaptation Finds Its Director in Jon M. Chu appeared first on Broadway Black.

Entertainment One has announced that they are producing and financing a staged taping of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical. Perfect for our current climate, the show tells the story of a small town that welcomes a large group of stranded passengers. They all take their differences and put them to the side, embracing each other as they grow to respect and understand one another. 

Stop the world- #ComeFromAway will be filmed live from the Schoenfeld Theatre! 💛💙 Learn more here: https://t.co/rfKeIpuKxS pic.twitter.com/YwDW3DQ4tN

— Come From Away (@wecomefromaway) February 2, 2021

Like the rest of Broadway, the show has been closed since March 2020 with the spread of Covid-19, but they hope to return to their New York house, the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, this May. The live filming will star cast members from the Broadway production and employ over 222 New York theatre industry workers. The company is currently aiming for a September 2021 release. 

The official cast has not been released, but when it is, we will let you know! In the meantime, check out their 2017 Tony Award performance: 

The post ‘Come From Away’, the next Broadway show to hit the screen! appeared first on Broadway Black.

Tonight (Thursday, January 28th, 2021), we lost a titan, a Broadway Black legend, an unstoppable force. Tonight, on January 28th, 2020, the countless award-winning actress Cicely Tyson has passed away at the age of 96.

From growing up with nothing, a childhood of poverty, constant scrutiny from the public, and the continuous challenges that the entertainment industry places on Black women, Ms. Tyson rose above it. She showed the world the strength and power of a Black woman determined to succeed. 

She was a woman of distinction. She was one of the 2016 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients, the nation’s highest civilian honor. President Barack Obama said: “Cicely’s convictions and grace have helped for us to see the dignity of every single beautiful memory of the American family.” She has also won an Academy Award, multiple Emmys, a Peabody, and was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame just last year.

Not only did she have an expansive and dignified film and television career, but she also had a beautiful Broadway resume that spanned from 1959 with Lonnie Coleman’s Jolly’s Progress, to her final show in 2015, Donald L. Coburn’s The Gin Game. 

And don’t think we won’t take a moment to reflect on her rightly deserved Tony award-winning performance as Miss Carrie Watts in Horton Foote’s The Trip to Bountiful. No one is given the title legend overnight. That title must be earned, and she earned it, time and time again. Every role she played, she played with heart, specificity, and skill.

Rest in Power, Ms. Cicely Tyson. Thank you for all the light you gave us. We will see to it that your legacy lives on.

Broadway Black favorites came from all over to both acknowledge and honor Ms. Tyson’s legacy on social media:

 

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Watch Broadway Black’s beloved leader, Drew Shade, interview Cicely and the rest of the star-studded cast during the opening night of our Queen’s final Broadway show, The Gin Game: 

The post Cicely Tyson, Broadway Black Legend and Trailblazer, has passed away at the age of 96 appeared first on Broadway Black.

We will never stop supporting Black women getting their things! This past year has been rough, but from the pain, institutions are slowly starting to promote tangible change. The Metropolitan Opera has made Marcia Sells the company’s first-ever Chief Diversity Officer. Among her responsibilities in the new position, Sells will be tasked with implementing a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) plan which will be at the core of the company’s hiring, artistic planning, and audience engagement activities. She will also be helping to identify the company’s systematic and structural inequities while working with the marketing and development departments on broadening the company’s base audience. 

Her Black art roots run deep. She got her start as a dancer at Dance Theater of Harlem, then went on to earn her law degree from Columbia University. She has worked for countless corporations from the NBA to Reuters. Right before accepting this position, she was the Dean of Students at Harvard Law School since 2015. 

“At a time when social justice rightly demands that we address the inequities of our art form, I’m pleased that we have chosen the ideal candidate in Marcia for implementing long overdue and necessary change,” said Peter Gelb, the Met’s General Manager. 

Congrats Marcia! We cannot wait to see what you do with this company!

The post Marcia Sells: The Metropolitan Opera’s first Chief Diversity Officer appeared first on Broadway Black.

Royal Family Productions started off the year right with their second annual Female+ Forward Festival! The first piece in the lineup was with See Her, a new cinematic theatrical piece written by Iman Schuk. 

The piece features principal dancer Gabrielle Spauve, along with Artist Kenita Miller. The creative team included director/choreographer Lorna Ventura, music by Miller and Justin Hicks, cinematography by Angelo Vasta, with editing by Jay Stern. 

The production premiered on Marting Luther King Jr. Day and will stream through the end of February. The festival starts with a Q&A with the collaborators before showing the 4.5 minute piece. The collaboration between Schuk and RFP recognized the voice of Black women as the true drivers of change. The event is free and can be seen on the Royal Family’s YouTube channel, which you can see below! 

https://youtu.be/IeihN97ePsI

The post Iman Schuk’s See Her, Now Streaming appeared first on Broadway Black.

1.Without You – Leslie Odom Jr.  

Now, we BEEN knew about Leslie since Venice (shoutout to the people who remember that gorgeous show.) We also already know this man is not only a phenomenal singer but an actor as well. I believe the Tony chilling at the crib answered that for anyone unsure. However, his solo work and concerts have shown where his true artistry lies. Rent is one of my favorite musicals of all time, as it is for many people, yet one song I never liked, is this one. I never understood it’s full weight until this cover. Leslie’s ability to take a song, digest it, and embody it is downright despicable. The man has so much control over his instrument. He manipulates his tone and air continuously to create the exact sound he wants, like a violinist adjusting their pressure or speed. I am in awe of his skill every time I watch a performance of his. 

2.I Won’t Complain – Amber Iman ft Cynthia Erivo 

You can find the gifted voices by looking at who other powerhouses love. This is a prime example of that. Cynthia Erivo brought out Amber Iman to sing I Won’t Complain for a performance back in 2016 and my GOD. The balance between the sultry, fresh jazz improv mixed with the top tier vocal training puts Amber in a league of her own. And that range!! I am always much more impressed with those deeper, rich low notes than the whistle tones. Both are impressive, but the people don’t respect the skill that those low notes take. Also, musicality. You cannot riff and run if you do not know where to run to. Let that sink in. You need to know how chords and scales work to figure out how to make all of the movement make SENSE. I’ll get off my soapbox and move on. EVEN THE MUSICIANS BEHIND HER WERE SHAKING THEIR HEADS IN DISBELIEF!

3. Take It Slow – Joshua Henry and Ciara Renée 

I love a quality duet and this is as quality as it comes. Now both of these performers are TRAINED and I do mean TRAINED. The evidence is in the blend and the placement. Crystal clear all around. The R&B style song truly shows a side of both of these artists that we don’t get from them on the Great “White” Way. However, their impeccable intonation isn’t even my favorite part of this piece. It’s chemistry. The storytelling is something to behold. Look at them still possess beats and an arc even in a stand-alone performance. I don’t know anything about this plot and yet I got a full story. This article is about vocals, but vocals mean nothing in this industry if you don’t have some acting skills to back it up. Period. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_Ve6p7TJho

4. She Used To Be Mine – Tiffany Mann

This song has a lot of covers that HIT, ok? However, this flips the song on its head. Tiffany Mann has always had the kind of voice that makes you have to get up and run a lap. Tiffany was actually in this show, and her knowledge of the text is incredibly evident. The gospel arrangement elevates the piece and the lines pack a punch I have never felt with this piece. Now, of course, there is soul all over this piece, but do you hear the placement? The dynamics? The range? I do! The end of the piece is taken up by SEVERAL steps and she is full voicing without strain. You cannot do that without training. Impossible. Being a true musician, she moves with the accompaniment and truly makes this a whole performance, not just someone doing a cover. We stan Ms. Tiffany Mann. 

5. Defying Gravity – Mykal Kilgore

If you need a mental reset. If you feel lost. Play this one. Play it in the house, in the car, in the gym. His range is a rubber band, stretching to wherever he sees fit. It feels like there is almost nothing his voice cannot do. He can give you soul, he can give you standard MT. He can give you a straight tone, and he can give you riffs and runs. He is unlimited, but just like the others, the vocal is not the only thing to gain from this piece. What starts as a gorgeous, vibrant cover turns into the inspirational speech you’ve been waiting for. Mykal’s attention to detail when it comes to music is mystifying. If you haven’t listened to his album, A Man Born Black, go now. This man cannot be torn down. His light, his skill, his vision, it’s unbreakable. His music makes me feel the same. 

The post 5 Times Our Broadway Black Faves Gave Us a Vocal Masterclass appeared first on Broadway Black.