The program is billed as:

Some of Broadway’s top talents are joining forces on one of the most anticipated shows of the season, a star–studded revival of the 1921 musical “Shuffle Along,” with music and lyrics by the legendary Sissle and Blake, a new book by George C. Wolfe, , based on the original by F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles, and new choreography by Savion Glover. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to find out more when New York Times critic at large Wesley Morris talks with the show’s star, six–time Tony Award® winner Audra McDonald, and its writer/director, Tony Award winner George C. Wolfe.

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Stop / The madness / Freeze frame / Take a good look at this picture

Three-time Emmy Award-winning choreographer/director extraordinaire Debbie Allen wants those who witness her Freeze Frame production to consider where they fit into the picture on gun violence in America. Written, directed and choreographed by Allen, the U.S. premiere event is described as a live experience and call to action. Stories of the passion and pain of Los Angeles’ toughest streets are set amid a dance-driven musical along with cinema and theatre.

Public performances are Feb. 5-7, at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, California. The production run kicks off with a gala performance Feb. 4, presented by Allen and award-winning journalist Maria Shriver. Shriver’s Architects of Change initiative will ignite and reframe the conversation about America’a relationship with violence – a conversation that starts with self and ultimately one that can begin to change the country, according to Shriver.

According to Allen, the Freeze Frame project – which began as a film – was conceived when she was part of the film and television installments of Fame during the 1980s. She was upset about the violence in her community and wanted to use her art to do something about addressing the issue.

In a television news interview, Allen said the project’s title demands and asks: “Stop. Look at this picture. Where do you fit into this picture? How can you change what’s getting ready to happen?” The premise of the show pits an innocent young child against circumstance, as he is in danger of being shot by the police. Inspired by real-life narratives, Allen explained Freeze Frame provides a voice to young people, the police and pro- and anti-gun activists alike.

In January, The White House under President Obama’s Administration ordered executive actions to reduce gun violence and make communities safer. The Office of the Press Secretary released:

Over the past decade in America, more than 100,000 people have been killed as a result of gun violence – and millions more have been the victim of assaults, robberies, and other crimes involving a gun. Many of these crimes were committed by people who never should have been able to purchase a gun in the first place. Over the same period, hundreds of thousands of other people in our communities committed suicide with a gun and nearly half a million people suffered other gun injuries. Hundreds of law enforcement officers have been shot to death protecting their communities. And too many children are killed or injured by firearms every year, often by accident.

Allen considers Freeze Frame – which had its world premiere at the Brisbane Festival in Australia in 2013 – as one of her most important works. The founder of Debbie Allen Dance Academy and sister to Tony winner Phylicia Rashad has been an artist in residence at the Kennedy Center for more than 15 years. In addition to directing for Broadway (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof; Carrie), Allen has contributed her expertise to: Scandal, How To Get Away With Murder, Empire, A Different World, Everybody Hates Chris, That’s So Raven, Stompin’ At The Savoy, and The Fantasia Barrino Story.

Featuring artists from Allen’s dance academy alongside seasoned performers, proceeds will benefit the renowned academy. Shows are 8pm Friday and Saturday, with 3pm and 12 noon matinees on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. The production contains strong language. Purchase tickets HERE.

Join the conversation at #FreezeFrameLA.

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I’ve been given the opportunity by the August Wilson estate, he did 10 plays—I’m directing, producing and acting in one, and I’m executive producing the other nine. I made a deal with HBO. We’re going to do one a year for the next nine years.

Fences is the sixth play in Wilson’s provocative and avant garde ten play spread known as The Century Cycle, which explores African American life beginning in the 1900’s and ending in the 1990’s. This play is set in 1950’s Pittsburgh. It is the story of Troy Maxson, ‘a restless trash-collector and former baseball athlete struggling to provide for his family’. The film adaptation will be directed, produced by and will also star Washington along with Emmy and Tony award winning actress Viola Davis. Washington and Davis are reprising their roles from the 2010 Broadway revival of the play.  Fences was not a part of the HBO deal and is instead slated to be filmed by Paramount with producer Scott Rudin. In 1987, Paramount Pictures bought the rights to Fences, but the project floundered because Wilson had the absolute foresight to insist that the project should have a Black director. Understandably, Paramount did not move forward with the adaptation without Wilson’s approval.

Kushner has an impressive list of successes that include most notably the seven hour, 2 part play Angels in America that explored AIDS and homosexuality in 1980’s New York. The play was later adapted into a powerful mini series by HBO. Additionally, Kushner and Rudin have worked together previously on several other projects.

Certainly, it’s exciting that the adaptation of Fences seems to finally be moving forward but the question that is becoming less of a thought and more of a roar, is at what point will African Americans be granted the full opportunity to participate in the telling of their own stories? While I am not throwing shade at the accomplishments of Kushner, isn’t this a prime opportunity for an African American screenwriter to have the opportunity to participate at the very highest level of the creative process on a play that is truly beloved by many Black theatre aficionados? Surely there is no doubt that with the plethora of smoking hot Black playwrights who are turning Broadway and the silver screen  on its previously lily white ear, we could have found one, two an entire TEAM of writers who could fully embrace the magic of the venerable August Wilson?

Simply put, there must be more. And it begins by boldly throwing open the doors and saying welcome at every level of the production process. I will be happy to see Fences reach a broader audience. I am thrilled that Washington has been entrusted with this wonderful opportunity and that the amazing Viola Davis is again a part of the cast, but I can’t lie I just AIN’T satisfied and won’t be satisfied until I see our reflection peeking out from every aspect of Broadway and Hollywood; particularly when it comes to OUR stories. It’s progress, but still we must press on.

The post Tony Kushner Joins Denzel Washington For Fences Film Adaptation appeared first on Broadway Black.

Talent from way back! It’s always a pleasure to take a look at our Broadway Black stars BEFORE we knew they were going to be legends. But, before we say goodbye here is just one more throw back of White singing in  The Life as ‘Sonja’, a role which landed her Broadway’s coveted Prestigious Quadruple Crown; a People’s Choice Award, the Outer Critics Award for Best Actress in a Musical, a Drama Desk Award and a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical!

https://youtu.be/fDkko-fgfHU

We hope you enjoyed our throwback of Lillias White. She is surely Broadway Black Royalty!

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As a young girl, Wilhelmina Louise picketed her neighborhood supermarket when it refused to hire Black workers and participated in voter registration drives. Her parents – Mamie Wimbush Allen, a teacher, and William Allen, an actuary – surely integral in her fervor. During her 70s, she is quoted: ”The saying goes, if you want to date any of Ms. Allen’s daughters, first you have to picket something.”

The saying also could go: If you want brownie points with Ms. Allen, don’t even think about a retirement plan.

Allen had a non-stop career. One that started in 1943, when the 18-year-old star in the making arrived in New York ready to become immersed in the world of theatre. One that undoubtedly was propelled upon witnessing opera singer Marian Anderson perform in 1939 at the Lincoln Memorial. Allen recalled the Daughters of the American Revolution refused to allow Anderson to sing at Constitution Hall. Her protest came in the form of name calling, as the venue would forever be known to her as “Constipation Hall.” Allen had the opportunity to present a rose bouquet to Anderson when she received the NAACP Spingarn Medal in 1940, as well as watch her idol – or “secret queen” as she described her – become the first African-American performer at the Metropolitan Opera in 1955.

In an interview, Allen said of that moment: “We were so elated but most of all proud. Proud because I knew her. Proud because she knew me.” As a trailblazer in her own right, those who have been inspired by Allen voice the same sentiment. They, too, are proud to know her.

For his column piece in The New Yorker, theatre critic Hilton Als wrote:

“Billie was talented and beautiful during an era when the world wasn’t really looking out much for Black female performers… And as she persevered, her world opened up; she worked in Black theatres in Harlem when the place had yet to become a thing, all the while earning her bread and butter with artists ranging from Phil Silvers to James Baldwin and everyone in between.”

After graduating high school, Allen attended Hampton Institute (now Hampton University) and was mentored by namesake Billie Davis and inspired by Romare Bearden. Bound for New York, she was part of 1944’s On The Town a year after landing in the big city. She was offered a scholarship to study ballet and acting at Lee Strasberg Actors Studio and was soon dancing professionally and auditioning for roles. Her Broadway premiere came in 1947’s Caribbean Carnival. By 1949 she was featured in the film Souls of Sin with Jimmy Wright and William Greaves. During the early 1950s and 1960s, she performed in the Broadway plays Four Saints in Three Acts and My Darlin’ Aida (1952); Take A Giant Step (1953) with Lou Gossett Jr., Godfrey Cambridge and Lincoln Kilpatrick; and Ira Levin’s Critic’s Choice (1960) opposite Henry Fonda.

As one of the first African Americans on television and in commercials, Allen appeared on “The Phil Silvers Show” (from 1955 to 1959) and the soap opera “The Edge of Night” (during 1956). In 1964, Allen returned to the screen in Black Like Me portraying “Vertel.” That same year, she was cast in Adrienne Kennedy’s Funnyhouse of a Negro and directed its revival in 1990. She also appeared in Baldwin’s Blues for Mister Charlie. Allen’s final Broadway role was in 1969 with A Teaspoon Every Four Hours. Her Off-Broadway performance in 1976’s Every Night When the Sun Goes Down at American Place Theatre garnered her a Lucille Lortel nomination.

Also by the mid-70s, Allen’s directorial gifts have graced: Off-Broadway’s Home, with Samuel L. Jackson; Kathleen Collins’ The Brothers; Anna Deavere Smith’s Aye, Aye, Aye; Miss Ethel Waters; and Langston Hughes’ Little Ham, developed with her second husband the late composer Luther Henderson, and which featured Obba Babatundé.

In 2001, she directed Saint Lucy’s Eyes; the play starred longtime friend Ruby Dee, who she shared the stage with in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. Her other credits include: television shows “Route 66,” “Car 54, Where Are You?” and “Law and Order”; the TV movie “The Vernon Johns Story”; and films The Wiz, Winter Kills and Eddie Murphy Raw. Allen’s most recent film appearance was in Lynn Nottage‘s By the Way, Meet Vera Stark.

In an effort to nurture emerging playwrights, Allen founded Harlem’s Frank Silvera Writers’ Workshop in 1973 along with Morgan Freeman, Garland Lee Thompson and Clayton Riley. Allen also was a founding member and co-president of the League of Professional Theatre Women as well as a founding member of Women’s Project and Productions. She served on the boards of American Place Theatre, New Federal Theatre and AMAS Repertory. At the time of her death, she served on the advisory board of Cherry Lane Theatre – the oldest continuously running Off-Broadway theatre (it opened in 1924) and one of the first theatres Allen visited.

In September 2014, Cherry Lane’s founding artistic director Angelina Fiordellisi supported LPTW’s Oral History series interview of Allen. Tony-winning Phylicia Rashad (the first Black actress awarded for best leading actress in a play) fielded the questions for Lincoln Center event. The project’s interviews are with the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Allen herself interviewed the late Rosetta LeNoire and Dee for the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive.

Allen – active with the Tony Awards on its administrator committee, American Theatre Wing advisory committee and nominating board – received the 2002 Audelco Pioneer Award along with her musician husband (who died in 2003). She established a scholarship in honor of Henderson in 2006 at the Juilliard School of Music.

Als also wrote in his commemoration of Allen: “The map of America was on her beautiful face, and the grain of America in her beautiful hair. She was interested in stillness, in listening, but one didn’t get too far in the conversation without Billie’s hands going up in a little arabesque to illustrate a point, or her hips slightly swivelling to emphasize that something exciting had happened, or was about to happen.”

Allen died Dec. 29, at her home in Manhattan. She is survived by a daughter and son from her first marriage, Carolyn Grant and Duane Grant, Jr.; stepchildren; a brother; and a granddaughter.

Watch Billie Allen talk about her idol Marian Anderson…

The post Rest Well: Billie Allen Defied Barriers On Stage, Screen appeared first on Broadway Black.

This documentary reminds us of a time when artists used their platforms for more than endorsements, but spoke up about real issues that plagued their communities. When caring about your community was more important than appealing to the white gaze or worrying about how to be politically correct to maintain their “popularity” , Ruby Dee (A Raisin In The Sun) and Ossie Davis weren’t afraid to speak up and out.

Two years before Ruby passed in 2014, her grandson,  Muta’ Ali Muhammad announced a kickstarter campaign to help produce and release a documentary about his grandparents’ lives, activism, and love.

The press release describes the film;

For more than a half century, audiences have been mesmerized by the love story between Hollywood legends Ossie Davis & Ruby Dee. Now, their grandson Muta’Ali unearths the foundation of this unbreakable bond in the documentary “Life’s Essentials with Ruby Dee,” which premieres on Centric TV Sunday, January 17, 2016 at 3 pm. Through intimate conversations with the award-winning actress, playwright and activist, Muta’Ali not only discovers intimate details about his grandparents’ relationship, but also questions his ability to carry on the very dynasty that gave him life. In the film, the director breaks the wall between himself and his subject to ask heartfelt questions of his grandmother. “How do you stay faithful? And if I can’t see myself doing that, how can I honestly get married knowing that I could eventually break the heart of the woman I love?”

“I can’t say I didn’t do anything to make Ossie unhappy…” Ms. Dee states as she carefully reveals the core commitment made between her and Mr. Davis. Her answer only sparked more questions for Muta’Ali, provoking him to dig deeper into the family archives and the history that chronicles their remarkable journey as trailblazers in the arts community and activists in the Civil Rights Movement. Muta’Ali also shares exclusive video footage, family photos and memorabilia. In addition, a host of celebrity friends like Alan Alda, Angela Bassett, Harry Belafonte, Danny Glover, Hill Harper, Samuel Jackson, Spike Lee, S. Epatha Merkerson, Phylicia Rashad, Glynn Turman, Dr. Cornel West, Sonia Sanchez and Malik Yoba share eyewitness accounts of this American legacy.

Check out the trailer for the feature-length documentary below and be sure to check your local listings to catch Life’s Essentials with Ruby Dee this Sunday, January 17, at 3:00 p.m. EST on Centric!

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The convention – theatre’s answer to comic con – was conceived by Melissa Anelli, Stephanie Dornheim and Anthony Rapp, and is produced in partnership with Playbill. Rapp, an original performer in Rent, said of the first-ever event:

“I signed on to help create this event not only because it is the first convention for theatre fans, and not only because it is a singular opportunity to spend quality time with those who love Broadway most, but because this is the convention that this community deserves.”

A look at Broadway behind the scenes and its creative teams will be covered from taking a show from page to stage to adapting stage plays for the screen, from creating a cast recording to costumer tips and tricks. Attendees also will have the opportunity to learn why favorite shows close and how to launch a nonprofit theatre company.

The inaugural convention will feature Hamilton cast members Lin-Manuel Miranda, Leslie Odom, Jr., Phillipa Soo, René Elise Goldsberry, Daveed Diggs and Arianna DeBose; Billy Porter (Kinky Boots); James Monroe Iglehart (Aladdin); Tamika Lawrence (If/Then); Michael McElroy (Rent); Marisha Wallace (Something Rotten!).

Ultimately, the event – which will feature more than 100 happenings – is designed to give the attendee the most memorable experience possible. Unlike other conventions, autographs and photo opportunities will be free. “We are creating content that will inspire, excite and just plain entertain,” Rapp said. The schedule, times and guests will be finalized the closer to the event.

“Conceived and created by people who live and love theatre,” BroadwayCon will be Jan. 22-24, at the New York Hilton Midtown hotel. The initial ticket block offered Oct. 17 sold out in hours, according to the event website. The third and final batch of tickets is on sale now.

A portion of the proceeds will benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS in their work to help people who have been affected by HIV/AIDS.

We’ll be there! Make sure to get your tickets and check out the panel on diversity moderated by the Editorial Director and Founder of Broadway Black, Andrew Shade. Details below

The post First-Ever BroadwayCon Gives Theatre Fans Ultimate Experience appeared first on Broadway Black.

The University of Miami graduate got a little nostalgic with his social media followers as he took a literal walk down memory lane through the campus.  Boasting his Miami green “U” tank top and sandals (clearly enjoying the antithesis of New York winter weather), Henry stood proudly in front of the Jerry Herman Ring Theater, the student performance space that cultivated his budding creativity as well as that of several other notable students.

Never forget where you came from. Before I was ready for Broadway, I honed my performing chops here at the University of Miami’s #JerryHermanRingTheater. This is where the fire was fanned. Just visited today and felt all the feelings again! #AllAboutTheU #humblebeginnings

Inside the theater, it was almost as if Henry had stepped back in time and could see and feel all of the experiences he’d had in the space.  He vividly narrated the memory of his first acting class:

This is the black box theater at the University of Miami. Bruce Miller was the first person to give me an acting class in college.  Freshman year we all sat in a circle here and we said something about where we’re from and what we wanna accomplish in the next four years and there was just so much love here, but it just brings back the craziest memories.  Wow.

After graduating from the Coral Gables campus in 2006, Henry instantly landed a role in Godspell at Papermill Playhouse.  By 2007, the crooner was on Broadway with In the Heights.  Henry played “Tin Man” in The Wiz at City Center and a very sexy “Favorite Son” in American Idiot before earning a 2011 Tony Award nomination for his powerful depiction of Haywood Patterson in Scottsboro Boys.

VIDEO: Where did I learn how to act? University of Miami theater department! #DaU #HumbleBeginnings https://t.co/GEPn2c5O3N

— Joshua Henry (@joshuahenry20) January 5, 2016

I’m counting the days until we get to see many of our favorite Broadway Black stars in Shuffle Along, namely, my boo, Mr. Henry.  I’m also hoping that somewhere in Hamilton’s eternal run (because it’s obviously not going anywhere anytime soon) I will get to see a Joshua Henry portrayal of Aaron Burr. #FangirlFantasy.  Lin Manuel, are you listening??

The post Joshua Henry Goes Back to School…Kinda appeared first on Broadway Black.

In this divine union of Black Broadway brilliance, Shuffle Along, Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed is the reimagining of the classic 1921 musical.  The star-studded cast, including Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Billy Porter, chatted with “Sunday Morning” about the process and the progress.

“I actually threw some tap shoes on a few months back just to see what would happen, and my timing was very awful, you know,” joked Mitchell.  “But it came back after a while!”

Now, Shuffle Along is back, nearly 100 years after becoming one of the first hit musical comedies starring, written and directed by African Americans.  For all of the strides and successes it made in its time, its significance remained unearthed for decades following its closing.

“And then history stepped in and said, ‘Thank you — and maybe we’ll remember you, and maybe we won’t,” said Tony Award-winning director George C. Wolfe.

The all-star team is lead by Wolfe and his Jelly’s Last Jam protegé, famed choreographer Savion Glover. By all accounts, Glover’s unique tap style is less than old hat for the Broadway Vets.

“I learned how to tap traditionally… I can say this: I learned how to tap from the white folks!” Porter cackled.  “I was at a ballet bar. It was very technical. Now, it’s like learning a whole ‘nother language.”

Even the seemingly flawless Ms. McDonald is still trying to find her groove.

“Because Savion doesn’t necessarily say, ‘This step is a left flap-ball-change-shuffle.’ He goes, Ba-da-da ba-da-da … it’s just call-and-response with him. That’s how he teaches.”

But in true professional fashion, each of the players are up to the challenge.

“I’ll say, like, ‘Oh, I can simplify that for you.’ And they say, ‘No, give me the harder one. I wanna learn that,'” Glover said. “That makes me feel great!”

Glover and Wolfe have been successfully working together for 23 years, since Glover was a teenager.  Wolfe directed the piece in which Glover earned his first Tony award for choreography, Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da Funk.  

“In our early years of working together, I was there, I was present, but the need to want to learn more wasn’t there,” Glover said of his younger experiences. “Versus this time, I’m learning as we’re working.”

Now, the duo is working together to retell this backstage story about the making of one of the first all-Black Broadway musical hits.  The original production, which launched the careers of greats including Josephine Baker and Paul Robeson, made fans of then New York City shakers George Gershwin, Fanny Brice, Al Jolson, and Langston Hughes.

The large cast of 30, which also includes Brandon Victor Dixon, Joshua Henry, Felicia Boswell, Amber Iman and Adrienne Warren, begins official rehearsals in January and we’re not sure who’s more excited, them or us!

“It is such an honor and such a gift to be able to actually exist inside of your dreams,” Porter told DuBois. “This is actually the dream. I am living the dream. It’s extraordinary; it really is.”

The post Shuffle Along Gets Behind-the-Scenes Treatment on CBS appeared first on Broadway Black.

The announcement was made by Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Lorenzo Soria, who knew Washington was the perfect choice given his entire film career. “Washington’s long and storied career is earmarked by his countless roles in front and behind the camera,” he says.

The Cecil B. DeMille Award is given annually to a “talented individual for outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment.” The winner is chosen by the HFPA Board of Directors. Washington will be only the third Black recipient of The Cecil B. DeMille Award in its 63-year history, joining Sidney Poitier in 1982 and his Glory co-star, Morgan Freeman in 2012.

Washington holds the record for most Academy Award nominations for a Black actor with six nominations and two wins, one for Best Supporting Actor in Glory, and one for Best Actor in Training Day.  His win in 2001 for Training Day ended an unconscionable 38-year gap between Black actors winning in the Best Actor category.

In 2010, Washington won the Tony Award for Best Actor In A Play for his role in August Wilson’s Fences alongside Tony Award winner Viola Davis. He was last seen on Broadway in the 2014 revival of A Raisin In The Sun also starring LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Sophie Okonedo, and Anika Noni Rose.

More recently, Denzel has been putting a hand in the directing/producing field. As Broadway Black previously reported, Washington closed a deal with HBO where he will direct and produce film adaptations of the August Wilson cycle, one a year for the next nine years. The first will be Fences which he will star in alongside former co-star Viola Davis.

The 2016 Golden Globes airs live from the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Jan. 10 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.

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