Friedman-Abeles/New York Public Library

Today marks the 62nd anniversary of the Broadway debut of Lorraine Hansberry’s landmark play A Raisin In the Sun. It was on this date that history was made as Hansberry was the first African American woman to have her play produced and performed on Broadway; it was also the first Broadway play to be directed by a Black person (Lloyd Richards). It opened at the Ethel Barrymore Theater (and later moved to the Belasco Theater) on March 11, 1959, and played for a total of 530 performances before closing on June 25, 1960.

The play centers around the Youngers: a family of five that lives in a 2-bedroom apartment on the Southside of Chicago. Set to the backdrop of post-WWII, the family’s pursuit of success is driven by the idealization of the American dream; often thwarted by the consequential effects of racism, cultural appropriation and identity, and generational differences. Hansberry gives the reader, and oftentimes the performer, an eye-opening look into the Black experience in America with questions of freedom – educational and economic – ruling the conversation.

The play echoes many of the circumstances and accounts of the playwright’s family from the 1940 Supreme Court case of Hansberry v. Lee, which gave them a voice in the judicial system to fight against racial discrimination in the housing market.  Inspired by that, she wrote parts of her truth through the language of a family who only wanted their slice of the American pie; a slice that would feed their spirits in a world that starved them of their identity. 

A Raisin In the Sun has seen a long history on Broadway and around the world. After the original production was nominated in 1960 for four Tony Awards, the story became a universal tale of hope and success. The original production starred Hollywood leading man Sidney Poitier (later succeeded by Ossie Davis), Ruby Dee, Claudia McNeil, Diana Sands, Louis Gossett, Ivan Dixon, Lonne Elder III, John Fiedler, Glynn Turman, and Ed Hall. Multiple iterations of Hansberry’s classic have graced the stage and screen over the last 62 years: 

1961 film starring the original Broadway cast. 

Raisin (a musical based on A Raisin In the Sun) debuted on Broadway in 1973. The book was written by Hansberry’s former husband and starred Joe Morton, Debbie Allen, Virginia Capers (Tony winner for Lead Actress in a Musical), Ernestine Jackson, and Ralph Carter. It also won the Tony Award for Best Musical. 

1989 tv film starring Danny Glover and Esther Rolle.

2004 Broadway revival starring Sean Combs, Audra McDonald (Tony winner for Best Featured Actress in a Play), Sanaa Lathan, and Phylicia Rashad (Tony winner for Best Actress in a Play; also the first Black woman to win this award).

2008 tv movie event starring many of the leads of the 2004 Broadway revival. 

2014 Broadway revival at the Ethel Barrymore Theater (where it originally played in 1959) starring Denzel Washington, Sophie Okonedo (Tony winner for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play), Anika Noni Rose, and LaTanya Richardson Jackson. The production also won the Tonys for Best Revival of a Play and Best Direction for Kenny Leon (who also directed the 2008 tv movie). 

The title was inspired by the Langston Hughes poem “Harlem,” which starts out with “what happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?” It is the hope in the midst of suffering and the strength in the midst of pain that makes this classic theatre work a blessing to the arts community.

In honor of Women’s History Month, Broadway Black honors Lorraine Hansberry. Your dream is a gift to us all.

The post A Dream Realized: On This Day In Black Theatre History A Raisin In the Sun Debuts on Broadway appeared first on Broadway Black.

Created to celebrate and create space for the talent and range of Black Women on Broadway over the decades. From Eartha Kitt in Timbuktu, to Montego Glover in All the Natalie Portmans, the Instagram page acts as an archival tribute to the work and dedication to the black women that have come before and an inspiration for those whose names we don’t know yet. However, the founding women have so much more in store and hope to “blossom into an organization rooted in community, access & education, mentorship, and scholarship.”

Black women, specifically these three Black women, have showed up and out for this platform, Broadway Black, time and time again. Now, is the time to show up and out for them. All are welcome to attend this event! Register NOW!

The all-day virtual conference set to run from 12 pm-9:30 pm ET, consists of panels on producing, money, meditation and movement, and mastering the self-tape. This virtual conference is jam-packed with valuables, from one of Broadway’s only leading Black producers, Alia Jones-Harvey, to the main event, scheduled for 6:30-8 pm, with six-time Tony Award winner, Audra Mcdonald, and Tony always Award winner Lillias White.

In an interview with Playbill about the new platform, why they started it, and who influences them Black Women on Broadway co-founder Danielle Brooks had this to say:

“Danielle Brooks: I am beyond proud of the Black theatre community, from The Antonyo Awards to Black Theatre United. We are creating our own opportunities and are no longer waiting for someone to give us a seat at the table. We know our worth and are unafraid to demand and create what we deserve for ourselves. And to our future Black artists, continue to work hard, honor those who came before you, and don’t wait for anyone to bring your dreams to light. You ignite that flame. Align yourself with people that share your vision, and make it happen.”

Read the entire interview HERE but only after you register HERE

For more updates follow Black Women on Broadway here and make sure you are registered and tuned in from 12 pm-9:30 pm on Monday, June 29^th.

The post Amber Iman, Danielle Brooks, & Jocelyn Bioh are Black Women on Broadway! Register Now! appeared first on Broadway Black.

Later, McDonald sat down to talk about the highly-anticipated new musical Shuffle Along, and explained the historical significance of the show (it broke many barriers including being first to feature jazz in musicals, feature black actors, and even have black audience members in the orchestra seats). She also talked about what it’s like learning choreography from tap phenomenon  Savion Glover (she swears she’ll have it together by the first preview).

As a bonus, The Tonight Show blessed us with another clip where McDonald recalls some of her tales from backstage while doing Porgy and Bess and 110 In The Shade, which includes dog poop and ladybug tattoos.

Check out the videos below and if you haven’t already, get your Shuffle Along tickets here. Previews start at The Music Box on March 15th, and officially opens April 28th. Trust us, it’s a show you definitely don’t want to miss.

The post Audra McDonald Sings Yahoo! Answers On Jimmy Fallon + Talks Shuffle Along Broadway appeared first on Broadway Black.

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.

The post WATCH: Times Talks Shuffle Along with Audra McDonald & George C. Wolfe 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 six-time Tony winner will be absent from the production for three months starting Tuesday, June 21, 2016 through Sunday, September 25. It’s been announced that her absence is to fulfill a prior commitment. However, there have been no details released on what that commitment is or who will fulfill the role in her absence. McDonald is scheduled to return to the show on September 27.

Shuffle Along will present the landmark 1921 African-American musical revue Shuffle Along alongside the behind-the-scenes details that led the songwriting team of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake and librettists F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles to create this groundbreaking work. In what has been billed as a revival, McDonald will take on the role of “Lottie Gee” and Brian Stokes Mitchell will appear in the the role of “F.E. Miller.” Porter takes on the role of “Aubrey Lyles,” with Brandon Victor Dixon and Joshua Henry as “Blake” and “Sissle.”

Other cast members include Adrienne Warren from Bring It On: The Musical, Darius de Haas (Rent, Kiss of the Spider Woman), Felicia Boswell (Motown: The Musical, Memphis), and Christian Dante White, c0-creator of Broadway Legacy.

George C. Wolfe will write the book and direct and Savion Glover will choreograph the highly anticipated production. As previously announced, the rest of the creative team includes Orchestrator Daryl Waters (musical supervision, arrangements, and orchestrations), Santo Loquasto (scenic design), Ann Roth (costume design), Scott Lehrer (sound design), Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer (lighting design), and Shelton Becton (musical director).

In 2014, the extraordinarily talented McDonald made Broadway history with a record-setting sixth Tony Award, for her portrayal of Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill. She also has the distinction of being the first person to receive awards in all four actress acting categories. She has also won Tonys for Carousel, Master Class, Ragtime, A Raisin in the Sun, and Porgy and Bess.

Shuffle Along begins previews at the Music Box Theatre on March 14, 2016. For more information on tickets, click HERE.

The post Audra McDonald to Take Shuffle Along Hiatus appeared first on Broadway Black.

It was a time that was “roaring,” right? World War I and the depression following it was over, and an economic boom was in the works. The emancipation of slavery had 56 years under its belt. The Great White Way was abuzz with as many as 50 new musicals that would open in a single season. Enthusiastic patrons were willing to shell out top dollar for a seat.

Shuffle Along became an instantaneous hit as the first major production to be produced, written and performed entirely by African Americans since the George Walker–Bert Williams Bandanna Land (1908). Before that it was the 1902 In Dahomey, also featuring Walker and Williams. Shuffle Along, however, served as a hallmark to the Harlem Renaissance, contributed to the desegregation of theatres (with Black patrons allowed in orchestra seats rather than restricted to the balcony), and set the stage for nine more African-American musicals by 1924.

The Noble Sissle–Eubie Blake musical – so popular that police created a one-way thoroughfare to the 63rd Street Music Hall to ease the traffic jams – ran for an unprecedented 504 performances through July 1922. Poet Langston Hughes, whose first poem was the 1921 “A Negro Speaks of Rivers,” was among the many repeat attendees. He was so enthralled with the “honey of a show” that he wrote:

“The 1920s were the years of Manhattan’s Black Renaissance…. Certainly it was the musical revue, Shuffle Along, that gave a scintillating send-off to that Negro vogue in Manhattan…. People came back to see it innumerable times. It was always packed…. When I saw it, I was thrilled and delighted…. It gave just the proper push – a pre-Charleston kick – to that Negro vogue of the ‘20s, that spread to books, African sculpture, music and dancing.”

So, when the vintage graphics were revealed for the Shuffle Along website, liken my excitement to all the above for what will mark a 95th anniversary of the pioneering work.

To see the colorfully billed star-quality names – Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Billy Porter, Brandon Victor Dixon and Joshua Henry (in an alternating palette of lemon, orange, red and sea green) – my heart did a Charleston flutter reminiscent of when the actors were announced they would share the stage. I grinned looking at “Savion Glover” and “George C. Wolfe” next to the words “choreographed by” and “directed by,” respectively. The duo meet again for the first time since Bring in ‘da Noise/Bring in ‘da Funk.

Full Cast: Adrienne Warren, Darius de Haas, Felicia Boswell, Christian Dante White, Brooks Ashmanskas, Amber Iman, Phillip Attmore, C.K. Edwards, Afra Hines,Curtis Holland, Adrienne Howard, Kendrick Jones, Lisa LaTouche, Alicia Lundgren, J.C. Montgomery, Erin N. Moore, Janelle Neal, Brittany Parks,Arbender Robinson, Karissa Royster, Britton Smith, Zurin Villanueva, J.L. Williams, Pamela Yasutake, and Richard Riaz Yoder, as previously reported

The 2016 revival of Shuffle Along or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed isn’t set to showcase its “glamour” and “hotcha” until April at the Music Box Theatre. April 21 to be exact, with previews to begin March 14. But people are ready.

The Tony-winning Wolfe, who offers up a new book from the original vaudeville comedians F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles, has called Shuffle Along, “the real juice… the real spark, not Black performers performing White people’s vision of Black people.” However, the original show has been critiqued as relying on minstrel stereotypes (Miller and Lyles would even perform in burnt-cork blackface). In fact, a character’s line went something to the effect that the lighter the skin, the more desirable an African American woman.

The musical launched the careers of Josephine Baker, Florence Mills and Adelaide Louise Hall; it featured an impressive 16-woman chorus line; and obliterated taboos with a Black love story being front and center.

For 2015-2016, Broadway will have perhaps its most diverse season (Amazing Grace; Hamilton; The Gin Game; The Color Purple; and Children of a Lesser God) and chances to establish the ever-evasive but always needed renaissance. Whatever you must do to be part of it, don’t drag your feet.

Visit shufflealongbroadway.com to enter your email for news and updates. Tickets go on sale Sept. 12.

The post Shuffle Along Is Getting Ready To Go Into Full Swing! appeared first on Broadway Black.

Now, we have the full cast list and it includes even more great talent. Bring It On The Musical’s Adrienne Warren, Darius de Haas (Rent, Kiss of the Spider Woman), who shared the stage with Audra McDonald in Marie Christine. Also Felicia Boswell (Motown: The Musical, Memphis), who hosted our 2015 Tony Award nominee show On The List, & Christian Dante White, c0-creator of the amazing Broadway Legacy we rave about, are among that list.

The company, which has a total of 30 members, will also include Brooks Ashmanskas, Amber Iman, Phillip Attmore, C.K. Edwards, Afra Hines, Curtis Holland, Adrienne Howard, Kendrick Jones, Lisa LaTouche, Alicia Lundgren, J.C. Montgomery, Erin N. Moore, Janelle Neal, Brittany Parks, Arbender Robinson, Karissa Royster, Britton Smith, Zurin Villanueva, J.L. Williams, Pamela Yasutake, and Richard Riaz Yoder.

The creative team includes Daryl Waters (musical supervision, arrangements, and orchestrations), Santo Loquasto (scenic design), Ann Roth (costume design), Scott Lehrer (sound design), Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer (lighting design), and Shelton Becton (musical director).

The production, with a new book and direction by George C. Wolfe and choreography by Savion Glover, will present the landmark 1921 African-American musical revue Shuffle Along alongside the behind-the-scenes details that led the songwriting team of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake and librettists F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles to create this groundbreaking work. It is being billed as a revival by the producers

Brian Stokes Mitchell will take on the role of F.E. Miller and Porter takes on the role of Aubrey Lyles, with Brandon Victor Dixon and Joshua Henry as Blake and Sissle, and, as previously announced, McDonald as performer Lottie Gee.

For tickets to this amazing production, click HERE.

The post Darius de Haas, Adrienne Warren & More Join Audra McDonald in Shuffle Along – Full Cast Announced appeared first on Broadway Black.

Sonia Friedman Productions has acquired the rights to a full West End production of the musical and it is rumored that Casey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon, Aladdin) will direct. The musical’s planning is still in the early stages and no venue has been mentioned, but it’s believed that it will go to London towards the end of 2016 or beginning of 2017. A London premiere in 2016, would mark the 35^th Anniversary of the musical.

Casting also hasn’t been announced, but open singer auditions were held in May for “black and mixed race performers with strong soul/pop voices for the lead roles of Effie White, Deena Jones, Lorrell Robinson, Curtis Taylor Jr., Jimmy Early and C.C. White.”

The musical, which features music by Henry Krieger and a book and lyrics by Tom Eyen, tells the story of a singing trio of black divas, “The Dreams,” and their rise to stardom in the 60’s. The trio is eventually torn apart by another predictable trio of fame, fortune, and men. The original Broadway production opened on December 20, 1981 and closed on August 11, 1985, after 1,521 performances. The cast starred Sheryl Lee Ralph as “Deena Jones,” Jennifer Holliday as “Effie White,” Loretta Devine as “Lorrell Robinson,” Ben Harney as “Curtis Taylor, Jr.,” Cleavant Derricks as “James “Thunder” Early,” and Obba Babatundé as “C. C. White.”

In addition to Beyoncé as “Deena” and Hudson as “Effie,” the 2006 hit movie had plenty of star power with Jamie Fox as “Curtis,” Eddie Murphy as “Jimmie,” Anika Noni Rose as “Lorrell,” and Danny Glover as “Marty.” Original Dreamgirl, Loretta Devine also made a cameo appearance as a jazz singer.

Sonia Friedman Productions is a West End and Broadway production company responsible for some of the most successful theatre productions in London and on Broadway over the past few years. Since 1990, the company has developed, initiated, and produced over 135 new productions, including Much Ado About Nothing, Jerusalem, The Book of Mormon, Legally Blonde the Musical, Betrayal, Arcadia, The Mountaintop, The Children’s Hour and All My Sons.

The post Dreamgirls May Debut In The West End For 35th Anniversary appeared first on Broadway Black.

The production, with a new book and direction by George C. Wolfe and choreography by Savion Glover, will present the landmark 1921 African-American musical revue Shuffle Along alongside the behind-the-scenes details that led the songwriting team of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake and librettists F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles to create this groundbreaking work. We were previously unsure about what role Mitchell would be playing but now we know that he will take on the role of F.E. Miller and Porter takes on the role of Aubrey Lyles, with Dixon and Henry as Blake and Sissle, and, as previously announced, McDonald as performer Lottie Gee. This actually might be the first time Dixon & Henry are in the same show together and not actually replacing each other. Also, both actors played the role of Heywood Patterson in major mountings of John Kander and Fred Ebb’s musical The Scottsboro Boys.

Shuffle Along marks a reunion for several different cast members including Glover and Wolfe, both of whom won Tony Awards for the 1996 hit Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da Funk. It will also be the first time that McDonald and Mitchell have worked together since the original Broadway production of Ragtime.

JUST IN!!! @brandonvdixon @theebillyporter & @joshuahenry20 join @AudraEqualityMc & @BstokesMitchell in #ShuffleAlong

A photo posted by BroadwayBlack (@broadwayblack) on Aug 9, 2015 at 7:46am PDT

Previews for Shuffle Along, Or, The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed begin on March 14, 2016, at the Music Box Theatre, with official opening set for April 21.

The new production traces the path to unexpected success and the creative legacy of the 1921 all-Black revueShuffle Along, which was conceived by Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles and featured music by Eubie Blake and Noble Sissle, four celebrated vaudeville performers who met at a 1920 NAACP benefit. As one of the first all-Black Broadway musical hits that was also written by Blacks, Shuffle Along significantly altered the face of the Broadway musical as well as that of New York City. The show opened the door for Black performers and writers on the stage during the period in the 1920s known as the Harlem Renaissance.

Notwithstanding its success, Shuffle Along was not without its challenges. By contemporary standards, it remains problematic: some actors performed in blackface and the score included a song about how lighter-skinned Black women are more attractive than women with darker skin. Shuffle Along arrived in Depression-era New York mired in debt from a pre-Broadway tour, set to open at a remote Broadway house on West 63rd Street. And despite being celebrated vaudeville performers, Miller and Lyles and Sissle and Blake had never performed on Broadway, much less written a musical.

However, Shuffle Alongimmediately caught on with its jazzy score and exuberant song-and-dance styles. “It was a groundbreaking moment – they were creating these dances in the streets,” Mr. Glover said. “I’m hoping to reignite that sense of exuberance – that sense of joy through expression.” The plot involved two old friends who run against one another for the office of mayor of their town, each promising to hire the other if elected. Once in office, however, the two find themselves at odds. “I’m in love with these characters, and I’m in love with their bravery – brilliant, astonishing, extraordinary artists created a show that redefined rhythm and entertainment and vitality on Broadway,” Mr. Wolfe said.Shuffle Along ran for over 480 performances, helping to launch the careers of such artists as Josephine Baker, Adelaide Hall, Florence Mills, Fredi Washington and Paul Robeson.

Creative team includes Daryl Waters (musical supervision, arrangements, and orchestrations), Santo Loquasto (scenic design), Ann Roth (costume design), Scott Lehrer (sound design), Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer (lighting design), and Shelton Becton (musical director).

The post Billy Porter, Joshua Henry, & Brandon Victor Dixon Join Audra McDonald & Brian Stokes Mitchell For Shuffle Along appeared first on Broadway Black.