Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) continues to deliver virtual theatre by announcing their “MTC Virtual Stage 2021” Programming.

This includes a variety of performances from choreography, new monologues, and works previously shown live on stage. The lineup includes Camille A. Brown, Charlayne Woodard, Octavia Chavez-Richmond, Ari Groover, Samantha Williams, Daryl Waters, Juel D. Lane, Richard Wesley, and Oz Scott.

In addition, MTC is currently accepting monologue submissions from high school students for the Student Monologue Challenge and selected monologue responses will air on Wednesdays beginning February 10.

Interested in learning more about the shows? We got you.

Ritual

Samantha Williams by Photographer Nathan Johnson

A spell for healing and transformation

Premiering February 1 through February 6

Ritual is a digital manifestation of magic and intention: starting on February 1, experience a five-day journey and guide to create your own personal spell for healing and transformation that culminates in a collective gathering and casting of energy at precisely 2:06p on 2/06.

Please Welcome Our Guest

A personality test / performance piece

Liza Birkenmeier, a playwright without a personality, gives you a personality assessment. With the help of a surprise guest star and an experimental survey, maybe she’ll guide you toward a better understanding of your unique self.

Camille A. Brown by Josefina Santos

Camille A. Brown

A glimpse behind the curtain

A rare and intimate look inside the mind and creative process of this superstar director and choreographer as she prepares for her re-envisioned production of the landmark musical Ain’t Misbehavin’ (an upcoming co-production between Barrington Stage Company and Westport Country Playhouse).

Untitled Vampire Cowboys Project

An original treat for pop culture nerds everywhere

Vampire Cowboys, New York’s favorite “geek theatre” company, takes you on an up close and personal rollicking ride through the life of the notorious Julie D’Aubigny: the queer, 17th-century, opera-singing adventurer from their hit show, Revenge Song.

Juel D. Lane by Matt Karas

The Past Is The Past

The scene is a pool hall, where a man in his mid-40s shoots a solitary game until a college student

he has never met challenges him to play. As their game goes on, it becomes clear that the men recognize each other and have a deep connection. While the truth emerges, so does the fact that the past must remain just that.

Three Days Of Rain

Set in New York, Three Days of Rain finds siblings Nan and Walker reconnecting with their childhood friend Pip when they come home to settle their father’s estate. The discovery of a diary brings us back in time to their parents’ lives in the 1960s and to the truth of the legacy that connects the generations.

Charlayne Woodard

Neat

Charlayne Woodard returns to MTC to perform her magical, compelling, and inspiring portrait of a young woman’s coming of age, and her realization that some of life’s most difficult times can also be the most fulfilling.

Beauty Of The Father

Pulitzer Prize winner Nilo Cruz’ passionate and lyrical love triangle explores the conflict between

Octavia Chavez-Richmond by Jessica Osber

love and sacrifice. Set in Andalusia, Spain, where the restless ghost of Federico Garcia Lorca still wanders through the streets, The Beauty of the Father is the story of a young American girl who travels abroad to meet her estranged father and risks their reconciliation when she becomes romantically entangled with his companion

“Student Monologue Challenge: Wave 3”

MTC Education continues the Student Monologue Challenge as a way to offer high school students a platform to express what was on their minds and have begun accepting a second round of submissions for a new prompt – “You have no idea…” Selected monologue responses to the new prompt will air on Wednesdays beginning February 10.

Access the Student Monologue Challenge to submit before March 31, 2021.

“The Show Goes On”

Once a month, MTC will continue revisiting some of its greatest hits and rare gems, with production footage alongside new stories and commentary from original members of the cast and creative team.

For additional information, check out Manhattan Theatre Club.

The post Theatre Thrives On MTC’s Virtual Stage appeared first on Broadway Black.

De Bois Band’s back on Friday 28 May

And… you can now book & Juliet tickets for 2022!

For more details and information about existing bookings and safety measures, visit https://t.co/50Ydvwdntt pic.twitter.com/JHqm36cYrA

— & Juliet (@julietmusical) January 5, 2021

In a statement released, they said, “We are thrilled to be able to let you know that we will be returning to the Shaftesbury Theatre on Friday 28 May – and we have extended bookings into 2022! This may be a little later than we had all hoped, but we would like to thank you for your ongoing patience and support and look forward to welcoming you back to theatreland in the spring.”

The show is a twist on the original star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet. However, it begs to question, “what if Juliet’s famous ending was really just her beginning? What if she decided to choose her own fate? This is Juliet’s story now. So don’t tell her how it ends…”

 

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A post shared by & Juliet (@julietmusical)

”And Juliet’s cast includes Miriam-Teak Lee, Arun Blair-Mangat , Melanie La Barrie, Jocasta Almgill, Ivan De Freitas, Danielle Fiamanya, Nathan Lorainey-Dineen, Antoine Murray-Straughan , Billy Nevers, and Kerri Norville.

Tickets may be purchased on the Shaftesbury Theatre’s website.

The post West End’s And Juliet Announces May 2021 Reopen Date appeared first on Broadway Black.

Courtesy of Vlad Alexandru Popa

Imagine setting a goal to perform on Broadway and hours before the curtain is set to rise, the entire production comes to a halt. This is crazy, right? Unless it’s Monday (mostly), Broadway is never dark.

So you can imagine the devastation of being hours away from your official debut, only to have it canceled. A month eventually turns into a year and the hope is that Broadway will open up again, but of course, there is always uncertainty.  All of the choreography, your lines, the moments in between, the inside jokes with your castmates you now have to struggle to remember.

… Feels like a dream, perhaps.

And then there is a vaccine. It may seem like a life jacket, but it comes with complications.

The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine has not been approved or licensed by the U.S. FDA but has been authorized for emergency use to prevent COVID-19 in individuals 16+. See conditions of use: https://t.co/OS1tgYopUj

— Pfizer Inc. (@pfizer) December 12, 2020

1. According to an article by The Associated Press, depending on the brand of vaccine you choose, it will take up to 6 weeks before you’re “fully protected.” Now you may be asking yourself, “why they put it in quotations like that?” This is why…
2. The Associated Press also reports (in the same article) that it’s possible that the vaccine could only prevent symptoms, but that infection and transmission of the virus could still be a possibility, even after the vaccine.

This is an issue for a multitude of reasons. Especially considering how many castmates passed on COVID before they knew what was happening. Entire casts caught the virus. In addition, if the rest of the world does not have confidence in this vaccine, but we are carrying on as if it’s the summer of 2019, it’s possible that other countries could place a travel ban on the US. According to BroadwayLeague.com, during the 2018-2019 season, 2.8 million Broadway patrons lived outside of the States.

Currently, the expected return date is set for Sunday, May 30, 2021. According to Playbill, Dr. Fauci anticipates that we may be “approaching close to normal as you get into the late summer and early fall.” Honestly, that is “if” this works.

What about the actors who want to return, but don’t want to take the vaccine? That’s an additional thought to consider. What if a producer makes it mandatory to rejoin the cast? If you think this isn’t possible, think again.

Thinking about a show I saw years ago that I hated, and how I’d give ANYTHING to see even that right now. #BroadwayShutdown #TheatreProblems

— Theatre Problems (@TheatreProblems) September 26, 2020

We are all ready for the lights to go back up on Broadway.

Full flights. Live studio audiences for TV shows. Stadiums full of fans for sports games – It’s not that they can’t figure out a way to get us back in the theatre. It’s that they don’t care. #SaveTheArts

— DeMarius R. Copes (@DeMariusR_Copes) October 19, 2020

So…will the Broadway community be eligible to get vaccinated before the NY sports teams since we bring in more money to NYC than they do, yet are still facing potential pay cuts when live theatre returns?

— Matthew Tiberi (@matthew_tiberi) December 22, 2020

My heart is broken once more… Broadway closed through next summer. . Check on your performer friends today. We are hurt. Over 97,000 out of work. This all could’ve been prevented.
•
Please VOTE! Wear a Mask and donate to @TheActorsFund #broadwayshutdown #stimulus #NewYork pic.twitter.com/lS5y4CGFuh

— NaTonia Monét (@NaToniaMonet) October 9, 2020

…but even with a vaccine, it won’t be as simple as we think.

The post Does a COVID Vaccine Mean It’s Time to Reopen Broadway? appeared first on Broadway Black.