Meshach Taylor and Joe Mantegna in Criminal Minds – Photo: Screen Grab/CBS © 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Emmy Award-Nominated Actor Meshach Taylor guest stars on episode 13 of CRIMINAL MINDS, “The Road Home” on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.  While the BAU looks for a vigilante killer on the loose in Cleveland, Rossi is concerned when his former Marine sergeant (Taylor returns as Rossi’s Former Marine Sergeant, Harrison Scott), goes missing and heads to Los Angeles to find him. Series star Joe Mantegna directs his first episode of the series.

Keliher Walsh and Meshach Taylor in Year of the Rabbit. Photo by Betsy Newman

Taylor last appeared onstage at Ensemble STudio Theater-LA in Keliher Walsh’s Year of the Rabbit, playing Vietnam vet JC Bridges, who upon returning from his first tour in Vietnam in 1967, experienced hatred and racism in the turbulent States. The play examines wartime experiences from Vietnam and Afghanistan. Click here to read more about the play.

Meshach Taylor and Debby Ryan in JESSIE – “The Whining” which aired on the Disney Channel in October, 2012. (DISNEY CHANNEL/ADAM LARKEY)

Meshach Taylor (Lia Chang)

Taylor’s first professional gig was in a National tour of Hair. He honed his craft in repertory theater as a member of Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, and the Organic Theater Company alongside Mantegna, André De Shields, Dennis Franz, Keith Szarabajka, Jack Wallace, and director Stuart Gordon. While in Chicago, he received the Joseph Jefferson Award for Sizwe Banzi Is Dead, and an Emmy Award for his role as Jim in the WTTV production of “Huckleberry Finn.” In 1998, Taylor made his Broadway debut as Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast, starring alongside Toni Braxton.

In 1979, Taylor moved to Los Angeles, where he has crafted a gallery of memorable characters in film and on television, including his Emmy nominated turn in the long-running CBS hit sitcom “Designing Women” as Anthony Bouvier, the assistant at the fictitious Sugarbaker interior design firm in Atlanta, Georgia, starring Dixie Carter, Delta Burke, Annie Potts and Jean Smart. He was a series regular on “Dave’s World” (CBS), and has had recurring guest starring appearances on Nickelodeon’s “Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide” and “Buffalo Bill” (NBC) with Dabney Coleman. He has appeared on “The Unit” (CBS), “Jessie” (Disney Channel),”“Hannah Montana” (Disney Channel), “The Drew Carey Show” (ABC), “Static Shock” (Kids WB!), “Caroline in the City” (NBC), “Aaahh!!! Real Monsters” (Nickelodeon), “Women of the House” (CBS), “In the Heat of the Night” (NBC), “Punky Brewster” (NBC), “What’s Happening Now!”, “Hill Street Blues” (NBC), “ALF” (NBC), “Melba” (CBS), “The Golden Girls” (NBC), “Cagney & Lacey” (CBS), “Barney Miller” (ABC), “M*A*S*H” (CBS), “Lou Grant” (CBS), “The White Shadow” (CBS), “The Incredible Hulk” (CBS), and “Barnaby Jones”(CBS). His made-for-TV movies include The Right Connections with MC Hammer, Sidney Sheldon’s Nothing Lasts Forever with Brooke Shields, Virtual Seduction, Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child and Double, Double, Toil and Trouble with the Olsen Twins. Taylor also hosted his own series on HGTV, The Urban Gardener with Meshach Taylor and was a regular panelist on the 2000 revival of the television game show To Tell the Truth. He co-hosted Living Live! with Florence Henderson on Retirement Living TV; in 2008, the program was revamped as The Florence Henderson Show.

Taylor has appeared in the feature films Wigger, Damien: Omen II, The Howling, Jacks or Better, Kid ‘N Play’s Class Act, How to Murder a Millionaire, David Mamet’s House of Games, The Allnighter, The Last Innocent Man with Ed Harris, Explorers, Friends and Family, The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue, One More Saturday Night, Warning Sign, and Inside Out with Tom Hanks and Jackie Gleason.

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Asian CineVision Auction Items Feature Producer Janet Yang, Kung Fu Playwright David Henry Hwang or a 4 Hour Photography Session with Lia Chang
Emmy Award-Nominated Actor Meshach Taylor (“Designing Women”) Guest Stars on Criminal Minds as Rossi’s Former Marine Sergeant, Harrison Scott on November 14, 2012
Meshach Taylor talks Wigger on Wendy Williams Show
André De Shields to receive 2014 Making Waves Award; will perform “Frederick Douglass: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” at Florida Atlantic University
Jan. 31: Spend an Evening with Pauletta Pearson Washington at Joe’s Pub
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Jan. 9 – Feb. 9: Jarlath Conroy, Rebecca Brooksher, Eric Martin Brown, Ryan Garbayo, Rocco Sisto, Nick Westrate Set for Red Bull’s Off-Broadway Revival of Loot
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
Jan. 9 – Feb. 9: Thom Sesma and Michele Ragusa to Star in Greg Edwards and CRAVING FOR TRAVEL at Peter J. Sharp Theater
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Phoebe Strole, Jon Rua, Join Cole Horibe and More for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. She recently appeared in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival opposite Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

The closing night curtain call of Ishmael Reed’s The Final Version at the Nuyorican Poets Café in New York on January 19, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

I attended the standing room only closing night performance of the World Premiere of acclaimed writer Ishmael Reed’s The Final Version, directed by and starring Rome Neal, at the Nuyorican Poets Café in the East Village of Manhattan, which began preview performances on December 12, 2013 and played its final show on Sunday, January 19, 2014, during its 40th anniversary season.

Rome Neal. Photo by Lia Chang

Rome Neal portrays Lee Ransom, an African-American writer sponsored by the American Communist Party, who struggles with tensions between Communist ideology and commercial success from the 1930s through the 1960s. When the Party founders in the late 1930s, Ransom compromises his ideological stance by cutting radical Communist characters from the manuscript of his novel, a move that wins him a publishing contract and material success. In 1965, a publisher asks to release the original novel. Ransom fights with his conscience and with the two excised characters about whether to accept the new publishing deal. The Final Version explores the complex intersections between racial identity and liberal ideology, and examines how New York City’s leftist culture has changed since the 1930s.

Melissa Harlow-Cissell, Connie Stewart, Rome Neal, Robert Turner, Sam Chico and Stephen Powell. Photo by Lia Chang

The cast also featured Lynae De Priest (Bess), Melissa Harlow (Editor), Dawn Murphy (Veronica Ransom), Molly Elizabeth Parker (Mabel), Stephen Powell (WASP), Connie Stewart (Ruth Ransom), Temesgen Tocruray (Ernest Perkins) and Robert Turner (Hank).

Ishmael Reed. Photo by Lia Chang

Ishmael Reed’s poetry, prose and plays have been honored with fellowships from the MacArthur and Guggenheim Foundations and the National Endowment for the Arts; his work has also been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Awards.

Basir Mchawi, Phil Young, Roscoe Orman, Ron Bobb Semple, Rome Neal, Amy Olatunji, Imani Parker, George Miles, Linda Armstrong, Harold Valle and Hank Smith. Photo by Lia Chang

After the curtain call, Rome gave shoutouts to many of the audience members and invited them to the stage, including my Power Play castmember Roscoe Orman and his wife Kimberley LaMarque Orman, jazz drummer Phil Young, Basir Mchawi, actor Ron Bobb Semple, Amy Olatunji, Imani Parker, George Miles, New York Amsterdam News scribe Linda Armstrong, Harold Valle, Hank Smith. The evening was also a family affair with his son Rome Kyn Neal and daughter-in-law Ziggy Neal in the house.

Rome Kyn Neal, Ziggy Neal and Rome Neal. Photo by Lia Chang

The Final Version opened Thursday, December 12 and played 23 performances through January 19, 2014 at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.

Roscoe Orman, Amy Olatunji, Kimberley LaMarque Orman and Rome Neal. Photo by Lia Chang

Rome Neal. Photo by Lia Chang

ROME NEAL (Actor/Director/Producer/Jazz Vocalist) is the Artistic Theatre Director of the Nuyorican Poets Café theatre program. Rome received an Obie Grant with Café founder Miguel Algarin for excellence in theatre. He is the recipient of five Audelco Awards – two for directing – Pepe Carril’s SHANGO de IMA and Samuel Harp’s DON”T EXPLAIN; two for acting – Lead Actor in Gabrielle N. Lane’s SIGNS, and one for Solo Performance in his critically acclaimed MONK, by Laurence Holder. He also received the National Black Theatre Festival’s coveted Lloyd Richards Director’s Award.

His fifth Audelco Award was a technical award for his lighting design of SHANGO de IMA. Mr. Neal received a Triumph Award for his acting in Alex Mc Donald’s PRISM and a Monarch Merit Award for his outstanding contributions in New York Theatre. His directorial credits includes his adaptation of William Shakespeare’s JULIUS CAESAR SET IN AFRICA, Sekou Sundiata’s THE CIRCLE UNBROKEN IS A HARD BOP Amiri Baraka’s MEETING LILLIE, SHANGO de IMA, PRISM, Ishmael Reed’s THE C ABOVE C ABOVE HIGH C and Amiri Baraka’s PRIMITIVE WORLD: AN ANTI- NUCLEAR JAZZ MUSICAL, all performed at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Rome directed Wesley Brown’s LIFE DURING WARTIME at the Cafe and The National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta Georgia. His production of Alex McDonald’s PRISM was performed at the Ex-Ponto Festival in Slovenia, Eastern Europe.

His acting credits include Dan Owen’s FOREVER MY DARLIN’, directed by Daune Jones at the Richard Allen Center, and later by John Amos, and Judi Ann Mason’s A STAR AIN’T NOTHIN BUT A HOLE IN HEAVEN directed by Mikel Pickney.

Rome’s film acting credits include Michael Almereyda’s HAMLET, Spike Lee’s SUMMER OF SAM and Leon Ichaso’s PINERO.

As a Jazz Vocalist, Rome has performed at Town Hall on Broadway, The Metropolitan Room, The Museum of the City of New York, Lenox Lounge, Joe’s Pub, Saint Nick’s Pub, Minton’s Playhouse, Showman’s, 966Jazz, Baker’s Keyboard Lounge in Detroit, The Nuyorican Poets Cafe, The Jazz Spot, and has performed around town as the lead vocalist for the Bill Lee Mo’ Better Quintet (Spike’s father). Mr. Neal has a CD entitled: “A Brighter Crooner”, and now his live concert “All in The Puddin’” recently released on DVD along with his “Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Jam… A Night To Remember”.

Rome Neal and Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. She recently starred in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival opposite Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar.

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Ishmael Reed’s THE FINAL VERSION Stars Rome Neal at Nuyorican Poets Cafe through January 19, 2014
Rome Neal Leads the Cast of the World Premiere of Ishmael Reed’s THE FINAL VERSION at Nuyorican Poets Cafe, 12/12/13-1/19/14
2013 National Black Theatre Festival Photos: Gala, Power Play and Knock Me A Kiss
Asian CineVision Auction Items Feature Producer Janet Yang, Kung Fu Playwright David Henry Hwang or a 4 Hour Photography Session with Lia Chang
Jan. 22: Emmy Award-Nominated Actor Meshach Taylor (“Designing Women”) Returns to Guest Star on Criminal Minds as Rossi’s Former Marine Sergeant, Harrison Scott
André De Shields to receive 2014 Making Waves Award; will perform “Frederick Douglass: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” at Florida Atlantic University
Jan. 31: Spend an Evening with Pauletta Pearson Washington at Joe’s Pub
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Phoebe Strole, Jon Rua, Join Cole Horibe and More for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Peter Scolari, C.J. Wilson, Francois Battiste, Chris Henry Coffey and More Begin Previews in Eric Simonson’s The Bronx Bombers at Circle in the Square Theatre on January 10, 2014
Jan. 9 – Feb. 9: Jarlath Conroy, Rebecca Brooksher, Eric Martin Brown, Ryan Garbayo, Rocco Sisto, Nick Westrate Set for Red Bull’s Off-Broadway Revival of Loot
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
Jan. 9 – Feb. 9: Thom Sesma and Michele Ragusa to Star in Greg Edwards and CRAVING FOR TRAVEL at Peter J. Sharp Theater
Dec. 16: Award Winning Playwrights Rajiv Joseph and Tarell Alvin McCraney, the focus of PBS Film, Playwright: From Page to Stage
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Roscoe Orman, Phynjuar, Horace Vincent Rogers and More Set for Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz: “A Jazzy Thespians Night” at Nuyorican Poets Café
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz presents Motown… Ain’t Nothin’ But A Party 2 at Nuyorican Poets Cafe
Rome Neal in Laurence Holder’s MONK at the NUYORICAN POETS CAFÉ in New York
Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington
Photos: LAByrinth’s Opening Night of Dominique Morisseau’s Sunset Baby with John Earl Jelks, DeWanda Wise, Harvey Gardner Moore, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Tracie Thoms, Alano Miller and More
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Cheryl Lynn Bruce, André De Shields, Sandra Marquez, Dennis Zacek and More Celebrate Opening Night of Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Victory Gardens
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Akash Chopra, Richard M. Sherman, Kevin Carolan, Larry Yando, Nehal Joshi and More Celebrate The Jungle Book Opening Night at Huntington Theatre in Boston
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

For the first time in The Fire This Time Festival history, Season Five includes a fully realized production of a full-length play, Lords Resistance, by Season Two playwright Camille Darby, directed by Christopher Burris, which opened on Wednesday, January 22, 2014 at The Kraine Theater in New York.

Carmen LoBue, Leland Durond, Matthew Murumba, Tracey Conyer Lee. Photo by Lia Chang

Carmen LoBue, Leland Durond, Matthew Murumba, Tracey Conyer Lee. Photo by Lia Chang

The cast features Tracey Conyer Lee as Pauline (Off-Broadway hit Sistas), Lelund Durond as Harvey (Anthem at Baryshnikov Arts Center), Matthew Murumba as Okello (Death in Mozambique at Cherry Lane Theatre), and Carmen LoBue as Michelle (Say you Love Satan at Duplex Cabaret Theatre).

Life is good for the Whitakers until their adopted son–a former child soldier–arrives from Uganda to his new home in the suburbs of Chicago. As the two worlds collide, he is yet again a victim and perpetrator of a war just as damaging as the one he escaped.

The Fire This Time Festival’s Angelica Cheri and Kelley Nicole Girod. Photo by Lia Chang

The production team includes assistant director Barbara Matovu, stage manager Rebecca Bickley (lighting design), Carl Riehl (sound design), Jaimie Nicole Larson (production design and photography) and stage manager Jules Chaveco.

Christopher Burris, Matthew Murumba, Camille Darby, Carmen LoBue, Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond and Barbara Matovu. Photo by Lia Chang

Performances for the limited run of Lords Resistance at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Avenue and Bowery) at 8:00 pm are on Thursday, January 23rd, Friday, January 24th, Wednesday, January 29th, Thursday, January 30th and Friday, January 31st. Tickets ($15) are available online a www.horseTRADE.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444.

Camille Darby. Photo by Lia Chang

Camille Darby (Playwright) was born in Jamaica, West Indies, but migrated to New York City with her family at 6 years old. Her constant attempts at adjusting to American culture—she soon discovered—were best manifested through her writing. It was her first play Mother, May I? written as a high school student during the Theatre Development Fund’s Residency Arts Program that drew the attention of acclaimed playwright, Wendy Wasserstein. With Wasserstein as her mentor, the budding playwright continued to study theatre, literature and film at Sarah Lawrence College where she received her B.A. in 2005. As the Horse Trade Theatre Group’s Fire This Time Festival celebrates it’s fifth season providing a platform for playwrights of African-American and African descent to present new work, Darby is thrilled to be a part of the festival for the third consecutive season. Her play, Exodus was produced in the sold-out 2011 Festival showcase. Darby is the recipient of the Bronx Recognizes Its Own (BRIO, 2008) playwriting prize from the Bronx Council on the Arts for her full-length play Lords Resistance. The play was part of the 2012 Fire This Time Festival reading series, and was presented at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Darby is a 2011 finalist for the Van Lier Fellowship program at The Lark Play Development Center, and a 2012 Women’s Project Lab finalist. She holds an M.F.A (2007) in Dramatic Writing from New York University’s, Tisch School of the Arts.

Christopher Burris and Camille Darby. Photo by Lia Chang

Christopher Burris (Director) New York directing credits 2013 Bring a Weasel and a Pint of Your Own Blood Festival (co-directed with Benjamin Kamine), The Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage (Geese by Samuel D. Hunter), TBTB-The Clurman Theatre (Supernova in Reseda starring Tonya Pinkins, and Geese), Union Seminary (The Anointed starring André De Shields), JACK (Outcry), FringeNYC (A Raisin in the Salad: Black Plays for White People), Samuel French Off-Off Broadway Short Play Festival *Winner* (The Mud is Thicker in Mississippi by Dennis A. ALLEN II) and *Finalist* (The Red Blood of War by Celeste Walker, Dixon Place (The Dr. O Show), Horsetrade (Outcry, Legendary: A Mantasia), The Fire This Time Festival (Within Untainted Wombs, Crisis of the Negro Intellectual, Exodus, By the Banks of the Nile), Sticky at Bowery Poetry Club (The Dr. O Show, It’s Goodbye, Falling Out with Gregarian Tunks, Life’s Terms, A Shadow with No Form, …In Which Bishop Eddie Long Loses a Battle with his Demons…, Gaga of the Dead). In addition to private coaching, Christopher has taught for such organizations as The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Ars Nova, and NYFA. Assistant director for Tyson vs. Ali at 3LD. Twitter:@misterburris

Carmen LoBue and Tracey Conyer Lee in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Lelund Durond and Tracey Conyer Lee in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Tracey Conyer Lee in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Tracey Conyer Lee and Matthew Murumba in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Matthew Murumba and Tracey Conyer Lee in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Carmen LoBue and Matthew Murumba in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Lelund Durond and Tracey Conyer Lee in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Tracey Conyer Lee. Photo by Lia Chang

Carmen LoBue, Matthew Murumba, Tracey Conyer Lee and Lelund Durond in Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance at the Kraine Theater through January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Playwrights Camille Darby and Dominique Morisseau. Photo by Lia Chang

Camille Darby and Lia Chang. Photo by Christopher Burris

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. She recently starred in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival opposite Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar.

broadwayworld.com: Fire This Time Festival to Present Camille Darby’s Lord’s Resistance

Other articles on Camille Darby:
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
Jan. 22- 31, 2014: Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
Camille Darby’s The White Peacock in The Classical Theatre of Harlem’s inaugural Future Classics Festival at The Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Center on June 27, 2012
Photos: Tonya Pinkins, Billy Eugene Jones, Matthew Murumba and Toccarra Cash in Reading of Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance
Reading of Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance Stars Tonya Pinkins, Billy Eugene Jones, Tocarra Cash and Matthew Murumba at The Red Room on January 18
Camille Darby’s Lord’s Resistance

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Asian CineVision Auction Items Feature Producer Janet Yang, Kung Fu Playwright David Henry Hwang or a 4 Hour Photography Session with Lia Chang
Feb. 11 – Mar. 23, 2014: Anthony Chisholm, Dariush Kashani, Tony Plana, Armando Riesco, Elizabeth Rodriguez and Annapurna Sriram Set for The Happiest Song Plays Last at Second Stage Theatre
Video: Award Winning Playwrights Rajiv Joseph and Tarell Alvin McCraney, the focus of PBS Film, Playwright: From Page to Stage
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Cheryl Lynn Bruce, André De Shields, Sandra Marquez, Dennis Zacek and More Celebrate Opening Night of Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Victory Gardens
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Akash Chopra, Richard M. Sherman, Kevin Carolan, Larry Yando, Nehal Joshi and More Celebrate The Jungle Book Opening Night at Huntington Theatre in Boston
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

On Chinese New Year, I met up with playwright David Henry Hwang at The Pershing Square Signature Center in New York, where day 4 of tech rehearsal of the world premiere of his new play Kung Fu was in full swing on The Irene Diamond Stage.

Kung Fu playwright David Henry Hwang in front of the Kung Fu display at The Pershing Square Signature Center in New York on January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

The Kung Fu creative team in tech at The Pershing Square Signature Center/Irene Diamond Stage in New York on January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Kung Fu playwright David Henry Hwang at The Pershing Square Signature Center/Irene Diamond Stage in New York on January 31, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

During a ten minute break, David and I popped in on his cultural consultants for Kung Fu - Joanna C. Lee and her husband Ken Smith -who were busy making dumplings  in the Signature Theatre Company’s kitchen for the cast, crew and Signature staff to have during their dinner break to usher in the Year of the Horse.

David Henry Hwang visits his cultural consultants, husband and wife team Ken Smith and Joanna C. Lee, in the Signature Theatre kitchen where they were making dumplings to celebrate the Year of the Horse. Photo by Lia Chang

Good luck dumplings to celebrate the Year of the Horse. Photo by Lia Chang

Good luck dumplings to celebrate the Year of the Horse. Photo by Lia Chang

On the way back to the tech rehearsal, David caught up with director Liesl Tommy, Appropriate playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and dramaturg Christie Evangelisto.

Appropriate director Liesl Tommy, Kung Fu playwright David Henry Hwang, Appropriate playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, and dramaturg Christie Evangelisto. Photo by Lia Chang

Kung Fu playwright David Henry Hwang and Appropriate playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. Photo by Lia Chang

Phoebe Strole and Cole Horibe as Linda and Bruce Lee in David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu. Photo by Lia Chang

The world premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu, directed by Leigh Silverman and featuring choreography by Sonya Tayeh, stars Cole Horibe (“So You Think You Can Dance”) as Bruce Lee, Phoebe Strole (Spring Awakening, “Glee”) as Lee’s wife Linda, and features Jon Rua (Hands on a Hard Body, In the Heights), Francis Jue (M. Butterfly, Thoroughly Modern Millie), Emmanuel Brown, Clifton Duncan, Bradley Fong, Peter Kim, Ari Loeb, Reed Luplau, Kristen Faith Oei and Christopher Vo.

The production begins previews on February 4, and has been extended through March 30, 2014, in The Irene Diamond Stage at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues). Opening night is February 24, 2014. Click here to purchase tickets.

An  exhilarating portrait of international icon Bruce Lee’s journey from troubled Hong Kong youth to martial arts legend, Kung Fu blends dance, Chinese opera, martial arts and drama into a bold new theatrical form. This World Premiere production follows Lee in America as he struggles to prove himself as a fighter, a husband, a father, and a man.

Jon Rua, Cole Horibe and Clifton Duncan in David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu. Photo by Lia Chang

The creative team also includes Dou Dou Huang (Specialty Choreography), David Zinn (Scenic Design), Anita Yavich (Costume Design), Ben Stanton (Lighting Design), Darron L West (Sound Design), Darrel Maloney (Projection Design), Du Yun (Composer), Deborah Hecht (Vocal and Dialect Coach), and Joanna C. Lee and Ken Smith (Cultural Consultants). Alan Muraoka is the Assistant Dirctor and David H. Lurie is the Production Stage Manager. Casting by Telsey + Company.

Kung Fu director Leigh Silverman and Cole Horibe. Photo by Lia Chang

Kung Fu choreographer Sonya Tayeh, playwright David Henry Hwang and Leigh Silverman. Photo by Lia Chang

Kung Fu director playwright, director Leigh Silverman and assistant director Alan Muraoka. Photo by Lia Chang

Kung Fu composer Du Yun and playwright David Henry Hwang. Photo by Lia Chang

Tickets to the initial runs of all Signature Productions at The Pershing Square Signature Center are $25, part of the groundbreaking Signature Ticket Initiative: A Generation of Access, a program that guarantees affordable and accessible tickets to every Signature production through 2031. Serving as a model for theatres and performing arts organizations across the country, the Initiative was founded in 2005 and is made possible by lead partner The Pershing Square Foundation. Additional support provided by Founding Sponsor Time Warner Inc., Margot Adams, the Ford Foundation, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Emmanuel Brown, Jon Rua, Peter Kim, Francis Jue, Phoebe Strole, Alan Muraoka and Christopher Vo. Photo by Lia Chang

David Henry Hwang. Photo by Lia Chang

David Henry Hwang is a Tony Award winner and three-time nominee, a three-time Obie Award winner and a two-time Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Hwang’s plays include Bondage, The Dance and the Railroad (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), Family Devotions (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), FOB (1981 Obie Award), Golden Child (1997 Obie Award, 1998 Tony Award nomination), M. Butterfly (1988 Tony Award, 1989 Pulitzer Prize finalist) and Yellow Face (2008 Obie Award, 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalist). Hwang also wrote the libretti for three Broadway musicals: Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida (co-author), Disney’s Tarzan, and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song (revival, 2002 Tony Award nomination). As America’s most-produced living opera librettist, In opera, his works include four pieces with composer Philip Glass – 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, Icarus at the Edge of Time, Sound and Beauty, and The Voyage – as well as Howard Shore’s The Fly, Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar (two 2007 Grammy Awards), and Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland (Opernwelt 2007 World Premiere of the Year). Hwang penned the feature films Golden Gate, M. Butterfly, and Possession (co-author), and co-wrote the song “Solo” with Prince. Mr. Hwang has been honored with the 2011 PEN/Laura Pels Award for a Master American Dramatist, the 2012 William Inge Award for Distinguished Achievement in the American Theatre, the 2012 Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award, the 2012 China Institute Blue Cloud Award and the 2012 Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award. From 1994-2001, Mr. Hwang served by appointment of President Clinton on the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. He currently sits on the boards of the Dramatists Guild, the American Theatre Wing, the Lark Play Development Center, and recently became President of Young Playwrights Inc.

The script for David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu. Photo by Lia Chang

Cole Horibe, Bradley Fong and David Henry Hwang backstage at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater at Lincoln Center in New York for the 6th Annual Steinberg “Mimi” Playwright Awards on November 18, 2013. Photo by Lia Chang

Click here for David Henry Hwang’s youoffendmeyouoffendmyfamily.com blog posts, and below for EW.com‘s exclusive video footage.

EW.com: Kung Fu dancers get a kick in rehearsal from ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ choreographer Sonya Tayeh — VIDEO

Francis Jue, Lia Chang and Alan Muraoka. Photo by Sonya Tayeh

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Feb. 5: Labyrinth Theater Company hosts Community Prayer and Candlelight Vigil to honor Philip Seymour Hoffman at Bank Street Theater
March 21 – May 4: Arena Stage Presents World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David Starring Tony Award winner Ron Rifkin and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas
Feb. 7-22: Maggie Alexander and Ciarán Sheehan Star in Michael Weller’s Fifty Words at The Gene Frankel Theatre
Where to Celebrate the Lunar New Year -Year of the Horse in New York
Photos: A Suckling Pig and a Lion Dance to Usher in the Year of the Horse at Asia Roma
Asian CineVision Auction Items Feature Producer Janet Yang, Kung Fu Playwright David Henry Hwang or a 4 Hour Photography Session with Lia Chang
Jan. 31: Spend an Evening with Pauletta Pearson Washington at Joe’s Pub
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camile Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
Jan. 9 – Feb. 9: Thom Sesma and Michele Ragusa to Star in CRAVING FOR TRAVEL at Peter J. Sharp Theater
Jan. 9 – Feb. 9: Jarlath Conroy, Rebecca Brooksher, Eric Martin Brown, Ryan Garbayo, Rocco Sisto, Nick Westrate Set for Red Bull’s Off-Broadway Revival of Loot
Peter Scolari, C.J. Wilson, Francois Battiste, Chris Henry Coffey and More in Eric Simonson’s The Bronx Bombers at Circle in the Square Theatre
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Cheryl Lynn Bruce, André De Shields, Sandra Marquez, Dennis Zacek and More Celebrate Opening Night of Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Victory Gardens
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful
Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Meet the authors of the Pocket Chinese Almanac, Joanna C. Lee and Ken Smith, Museworks, Ltd.
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

David Henry Hwang Articles:
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Phoebe Strole, Jon Rua, Join Cole Horibe and More for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Cole Horibe, Francis Jue, Peter Kim and More Set for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Signature Theatre’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu Stars SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE’s Cole Horibe as Bruce Lee
David Henry Hwang to Receive the 2012 Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award at the 5th Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards on October 29, 2012
Signature Theatre’s Revival of David Henry Hwang’s The Dance and The Railroad Set for Wuzhen Theatre Festival in Wuzhen, China, May 9-12, 2013
Photos: David Henry Hwang’s The Dance and The Railroad Opening Night at Signature Theatre Photos: Partying with the Cast of David Henry Hwang’s Golden Child; Extended Run Ends December 16, 2012
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Oskar Eustis, BD Wong, Brian d’Arcy James, Francis Jue, Jennifer Lim and Leigh Silverman at WNYC’s The Greene Space
Filmmaker Justin Lin Acquires Film Rights to David Henry Hwang’s Critically Acclaimed Broadway Comedy Chinglish
David Henry Hwang Set as Signature Theatre’s Residency One Playwright for the 2012-2013 Season David Henry Hwang to Receive 2012 William Inge Distinguished Achievement in the American Theatre Award
Broadwayworld.com Photo Flash: Library of Congress’ IN REHEARSAL Exhibit
Nothing is Sacred in David Henry Hwang’s Comedy of Mistaken Racial Identity
Francis Jue, At Home on the Stage
The Making of the Flower Drum Song Cast Album Flower Drum Song, An American Story
The Literary Legacy of C.Y. Lee Click here for more articles on David Henry Hwang.

Lia Chang and Kung Fu playwright David Henry Hwang.

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

“Breaking Bad”‘s Bryan Cranston makes Broadway debut portraying Lyndon B. Johnson in All the Way, the new play by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan (The Kentucky Cycle), which began previews Monday, February 10, 2014, at The Neil Simon Theatre (250 West 52nd Street) in New York, with opening night set for Thursday, March 6, 2014.

The cast also features Eric Lenox Abrams (Bob Moses), Betsy Aidem (Lady Bird Johnson), J. Bernard Calloway (Ralph Abernathy), Rob Campbell (Governor George Wallace), Brandon J. Dirden (Martin Luther King, Jr.), James Eckhouse (Robert McNamara), Peter Jay Fernandez (Roy Wilkins), Christopher Gurr (Senator Strom Thurmond), William Jackson Harper (Stokely Carmichael), Michael McKean (J. Edgar Hoover), John McMartin (Senator Richard Russell), Christopher Liam Moore (Walter Jenkins), Robert Petkoff (Senator Hubert Humphrey), Ethan Phillips (Stanley Levison), Richard Poe (Senator Everett Dirksen), Roslyn Ruff (Coretta Scott King), Susannah Schulman (Lurleen Wallace), Bill Timoney (Senator Karl Mundt) and Steve Vinovich (Rep. Emanuel Celler). The play is directed by Bill Rauch, Artistic Director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, where All the Way began its theatrical life.

All the Way takes audiences behind the doors of the Oval Office and inside the first year of Lyndon B. Johnson’s presidency, his fight to pass a landmark civil rights bill and his relationship with key political figures, including Martin Luther King Jr., J. Edgar Hoover and Senator Richard Russell.

Tickets are available at at The Neil Simon Theatre Box office (250 West 52nd Street) in New York and are on sale at Ticketmaster.com or by calling (800) 745-3000.

Performance Schedule:
Week of February 10:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday at 8pm
Saturday at 2pm and 8pm
Sunday at 2pm and 7:30pm
Beginning February 18:
Tuesday through Saturday at 8pm
Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm
Sunday at 3pm
Beginning March 11:
Tuesday and Thursday at 7pm
Wednesday and Friday at 8pm
Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm
Sunday at 3pm

All the Way was commissioned by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle and premiered at OSF in 2012. It then went on to play a sold-out and critically acclaimed run at the A.R.T. from September 13-October 12, 2013 starring Cranston. The play was awarded the 2013 inaugural Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History, established through Columbia University in honor of the late Senator Kennedy, honoring new plays or musicals exploring US history and issues of the day.

All the Way is produced by Jeffrey Richards, Louise Gund, Jerry Frankel, Stephanie P. McClelland, Double Gemini Productions, Rebecca Gold, Scott M. Delman, Barbara H. Freitag, Harvey Weinstein, Gene Korf, William Berlind, Luigi Caiola, Gutterman Chernoff, JAM Theatricals, Gabrielle Palitz, Cheryl Wiesenfeld and Will Trice.

Set design is by Christopher Acebo, costume design by Deborah M. Dryden, lighting design by Jane Cox, composition and sound design by Paul James Prendergast, video projections by Shawn Sagady, the projection design consultant is Wendall K. Harrington, hair & wig design is by Paul Huntley, and the sound consultant is Peter Fitzgerald. The Dramaturge is Tom Bryant and casting is by Telsey + Company William Cantler, CSA.

Bryan Cranston won the 2014 Golden Globe® and three consecutive Emmy® Awards for “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series” for his portrayal of Walter White on AMC’s “Breaking Bad”. Cranston holds the honor of being the first actor in a cable series, and the second lead actor in the history of the Emmy® Awards to receive three consecutive wins. His performance has also earned him a fourth Emmy® nomination this year, a Television Critics Association award, three Golden Globe nominations and a Screen Actors Guild award. Cranston will make his Broadway debut playing President Lyndon Johnson in All the Way, by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Robert Schenkkan. Cranston received rave reviews for his performance, which just finished a sold out run at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts. On the big screen, Cranston won a second Screen Actors Guild award this year for his co-starring role in the 2012 Oscar-winning Best Picture, Argo, essaying the role of CIA operative Jack O’Donnell opposite star-director Ben Affleck. He will next star in Legendary Pictures remake of Godzilla opposite Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen, which will be released by Warner Bros. on May 16, 2014. He will also voice a character in DreamWorks Kung Fu Panda 3. He will then begin production on Jay Roach’s Trumbo playing the title role of Dalton Trumbo, who was one of Hollywood’s most successful screenwriters whose career came to an end when he was blacklisted in the 1940’s for being a communist.

About the Creative Team:
Robert Schenkkan is the Pulitzer Prize winning author of eleven plays, two musicals and a collection of short plays. The Kentucky Cycle (Pulitzer Prize, LA Drama Critics Award and Penn Award) was produced on Broadway where it was nominated for the Tony, Drama Desk, and the Outer Critics’ Circle Awards. His other plays include, A Single Shard, By the Waters of Babylon, Handler, Lewis and Clark Reach the Euphrates, The Marriage of Miss Hollywood and King Neptune, The Devil and Daniel Webster, Heaven on Earth, Tachinoki, Final Passages, and The Dream Thief. He is the co-author of the film, The Quiet American. His film, Hacksaw Ridge, is currently in pre-production to be directed by Randall Wallace later this year. For television he wrote on the HBO miniseries The Pacific, produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, and was nominated for two Emmys and won a WGA Award. He also wrote the miniseries: The Andromeda Strain, Crazy Horse, and Spartacus. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, Ensemble Studio Theater and an alumnus of New Dramatists.

Bill Rauch is the Artistic Director of Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Having spent eleven seasons as director, he has directed three world premieres: Mr. Schenkkan’s All the Way and By the Waters of Babylon, and Bill Cain’s Equivocation; and thirteen other plays including Medea/Macbeth/Cinderella, Measure for Measure, The Pirates of Penzance, Hamlet, The Merchant of Venice, The Music Man, Romeo and Juliet, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Comedy of Errors, Hedda Gabler, and Handler. Among his initiatives at OSF, Mr. Rauch committed to commissioning up to 37 new plays to dramatize moments of change in American history. American Revolutions: the U.S. History Cycle is now in its fourth year of productions. Mr. Rauch is also cofounder of Cornerstone Theater Company, where he directed more than 40 productions and served as its artistic director from 1986 to 2006. He has directed a number of world premieres, including The Clean House at Yale Repertory Theatre; Living Out and For Here or To Go? at the Mark Taper Forum; and My Wandering Boy and The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler at South Coast Repertory. He also directed the New York premiere of The Clean House at the Lincoln Center. Work elsewhere includes productions at South Coast Repertory, Guthrie Theater, Arena Stage, Long Wharf Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, Great Lakes Theater Festival and En Garde Arts. He is the recipient of numerous awards, and is a graduate of Harvard College.

The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University is dedicated to expanding the boundaries of theater. Winner of the 2012 and 2013 Tony Awards for Best Musical Revival for its productions of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess and Pippin, the A.R.T. is a leading force in the American theater, producing groundbreaking work in Cambridge and beyond. The A.R.T. was founded in 1980 by Robert Brustein, who served as Artistic Director until 2002, when he was succeeded by Robert Woodruff. In 2008, Diane Paulus became the A.R.T.’s Artistic Director. The A.R.T. is the recipient of numerous other awards including the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theater, the Pulitzer Prize, and many Elliot Norton and I.R.N.E. Awards. Its recent premiere production of Death and The Powers: The Robots’ Opera was a 2012 Pulitzer Prize finalist. During its 33-year history, the A.R.T. has welcomed many major American and international theater artists, presenting a diverse repertoire that includes premieres of American plays, bold reinterpretations of classical texts and provocative new music theater productions. The A.R.T. has performed throughout the U.S. and worldwide in 21 cities in 16 countries on four continents. In association with the renowned Moscow Art Theatre School, the A.R.T. is also a training ground for young artists. The Theater’s artistic staff teaches undergraduate classes in acting, directing, dramatic literature, dramaturgy, voice, and design at Harvard University, providing world-class professional training. Since becoming Artistic Director, Tony Award-winning director Diane Paulus has enhanced the A.R.T.’s core mission to expand the boundaries of theater by continuing to transform the ways in which work is developed, programmed, produced and contextualized, always including the audience as a partner. Productions such as Pippin, The Glass Menagerie, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Sleep No More, The Donkey Show, Gatz, The Blue Flower, and Prometheus Bound have engaged audiences in unique theatrical experiences. The A.R.T.’s club theater, OBERON, which Paulus calls a second stage for the 21st century, has become an incubator for local and emerging artists, and has also attracted national attention for its innovative programming model.

Established in 1935, the Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival is among the oldest and largest professional regional theatres in the country. Located in Ashland, Oregon, OSF is a cultural and recreational destination for more than 120,000 visitors per year, has a company that numbers more than 550 (including over 100 actors) and an attendance of more than 400,000. As many as nine plays are performed concurrently on three stages. OSF offers a wide-ranging playbill, including Shakespeare, American classics, musicals, contemporary works and world premieres. Plays originating at OSF have gone on to be produced by theatres across the country, including Arena Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Center Theatre Group, Denver Center Theatre Company, Guthrie Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Seattle Repertory Theatre and Yale Repertory Theatre. ALL THE WAY was commissioned through OSF’s American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle, initiated in 2008 to look at moments of change in America’s past. The sequel, THE GREAT SOCIETY, commissioned by and co-produced with Seattle Repertory Theatre, will premiere at OSF in 2014. More information about OSF can be obtained at www.osfashland.org.

http://www.AllTheWayBroadway.com
Facebook.com/AllTheWayBroadway
Twitter.com/AllTheWayBroadway (@AllTheWayBway)

Lia Chang. Photo by Thom Sesma

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia recently starred as Carole Barbara in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar.

Other Articles about Peter Jay Fernandez:
Sept. 13 – Oct. 12: Bryan Cranston, Brandon J. Dirden, Michael McKean, Reed Birney, Peter Jay Fernandez, Crystal Dickinson and More Set for Robert Schenkkan’s All The Way at A.R.T.
Peter Jay Fernandez, Francois Battiste, Charles Brice, J. Bernard Calloway, Bryan Terrell Clarke, Patrick Cummings, Devin E. Haqq, Billy Eugene Jones, Stanley Wayne Mathis, Cedric Turner, Stephen Tyrone Williams Set for PROJECT1VOICE’s Benefit Staged Reading of A Soldier’s Story at Kumble Theatre on June 17, 2013
James Wallert, Peter Jay Fernandez, Melissa Friedman, Godfrey L. Simmons and More Set for Epic Theatre’s RICHARD III: Born with Teeth at the Pershing Square Signature Center, April 16 – May 4, 2013
Peter Jay Fernandez Set for World Premiere of Catherine Filloux’s LUZ at La MaMa’s First Floor Theatre, September 28-October 14, 2012
Photos: Larry Bryggman, Denise Burse, Peter Jay Fernandez, Tim Hopper, Arliss Howard, Kobi Libii, Mary McCann, Neil Pepe, David Pittu, Steve Rosen, Sheila Tapia, Debra Winger at Atlantic Theatre’s Opening Night of Gabe McKinley’s CQ/CX
Larry Bryggman, Peter Jay Fernandez, Arliss Howard and David Pittu Set for Atlantic Theater Company’s CQ/CX, January 25-March 4, 2012
Denise Burse & Peter Jay Fernandez Featured in INTAR Reading of Andrew Dolan’s The Many Mistresses of Martin Luther King
Multimedia: Zooman and The Sign Opening Night Party
Peter Jay Fernandez and Laura Heisler Star in Too Much Memory

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Photos: Celebrating the Year of the Horse with David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu at Signature, Previews begin February 4, 2014
March 21 – May 4: Arena Stage Presents World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David Starring Tony Award winner Ron Rifkin and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas
Feb. 7-22: Maggie Alexander and Ciarán Sheehan Star in Michael Weller’s Fifty Words at The Gene Frankel Theatre
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Phoebe Strole, Jon Rua, Join Cole Horibe and More for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Peter Scolari, C.J. Wilson, Francois Battiste, Chris Henry Coffey and More in Eric Simonson’s The Bronx Bombers at Circle in the Square Theatre
Where to Celebrate the Lunar New Year -Year of the Horse in New York
Photos: A Suckling Pig and a Lion Dance to Usher in the Year of the Horse at Asia Roma
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Asian CineVision Auction Items Feature Producer Janet Yang, Kung Fu Playwright David Henry Hwang or a 4 Hour Photography Session with Lia Chang
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camile Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington 
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Cheryl Lynn Bruce, André De Shields, Sandra Marquez, Dennis Zacek and More Celebrate Opening Night of Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Victory Gardens
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful
Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
Photos: Playwright Lonnie Carter Talks TRIM, The Tiger Woods What If Story, The Romance of Magno Rubio and The Lost Boys of Sudan
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Photos: All-Access Pass to Disney’s Aladdin at The Muny with Thom Sesma, Francis Jue, Robin De Jesus, John Tartaglia, Jason Graae, Curtis Holbrook, Eddie Korbich, Samantha Massell and Ken Page
Performing Arts Images from the Asian American Pacific Islander Collection on Display at the Library of Congress to Celebrate APA Heritage Month

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Cole Horibe as Bruce Lee. Photo by Joan Marcus

Cole Horibe as Bruce Lee and Phoebe Strole as his wife Linda. Photo by Joan Marcus

The world premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu, directed by Leigh Silverman and featuring choreography by Sonya Tayeh, stars Cole Horibe (“So You Think You Can Dance”) as Bruce Lee, Phoebe Strole (Spring Awakening, “Glee”) as Lee’s wife Linda, and features Francis Jue (M. Butterfly, Thoroughly Modern Millie), Jon Rua (Hands on a Hard Body, In the Heights), Emmanuel Brown (Spiderman Turn Off the Dark), Clifton Duncan (Good Person of Szechwan), Bradley Fong (Deadly She-Wolf Assassin at Armageddon), Peter Kim (Thoroughly Modern Millie), Ari Loeb (Spiderman Turn Off the Dark), Reed Luplau, Kristen Faith Oei (Spiderman Turn Off the Dark) and Christopher Vo.

Cole Horibe as Bruce Lee and the cast of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu. Photo by Joan Marcus

The production began previews on February 4, and has been extended through March 30, 2014, in The Irene Diamond Stage at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues). Opening night is February 24, 2014. Click here to purchase tickets. Check out the production photos by Joan Marcus.

Francis Jue as Lee’s father, Hoi-Chuen. Photo by Joan Marcus

An  exhilarating portrait of international icon Bruce Lee’s journey from troubled Hong Kong youth to martial arts legend, Kung Fu blends dance, Chinese opera, martial arts and drama into a bold new theatrical form. This World Premiere production follows Lee in America as he struggles to prove himself as a fighter, a husband, a father, and a man.

Ari Loeb and Cole Horibe. Photo by Joan Marcus

The creative team also includes Jaime Guan (Chinese Opera Movement Specialist), David Zinn (Scenic Design), Anita Yavich (Costume Design), Ben Stanton (Lighting Design), Darron L West (Sound Design), Darrel Maloney (Projection Design), Du Yun (Composer), Deborah Hecht (Vocal and Dialect Coach), and Joanna C. Lee and Ken Smith (Cultural Consultants). Alan Muraoka is the Assistant Director and David H. Lurie is the Production Stage Manager. Casting by Telsey + Company.

Bradley Fong and Cole Horibe as Brandon Lee and his father Bruce. Photo by Joan Marcus

Tickets to the initial runs of all Signature Productions at The Pershing Square Signature Center are $25, part of the groundbreaking Signature Ticket Initiative: A Generation of Access, a program that guarantees affordable and accessible tickets to every Signature production through 2031. Serving as a model for theatres and performing arts organizations across the country, the Initiative was founded in 2005 and is made possible by lead partner The Pershing Square Foundation. Additional support provided by Founding Sponsor Time Warner Inc., Margot Adams, the Ford Foundation, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Francis Jue and Cole Horibe. Photo by Joan Marcus

Francis Jue and Cole Horibe. Photo by Joan Marcus

Francis Jue and Cole Horibe. Photo by Joan Marcus

Reed Luplau and Cole Horibe. Photo by Joan Marcus

The cast of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu. Photo by Joan Marcus

Cole Horibe as Bruce Lee. Photo by Joan Marcus

David Henry Hwang. Photo by Lia Chang

David Henry Hwang is a Tony Award winner and three-time nominee, a three-time Obie Award winner and a two-time Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Hwang’s plays include Bondage, The Dance and the Railroad (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), Family Devotions (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), FOB (1981 Obie Award), Golden Child (1997 Obie Award, 1998 Tony Award nomination), M. Butterfly (1988 Tony Award, 1989 Pulitzer Prize finalist) and Yellow Face (2008 Obie Award, 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalist). Hwang also wrote the libretti for three Broadway musicals: Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida (co-author), Disney’s Tarzan, and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song (revival, 2002 Tony Award nomination). As America’s most-produced living opera librettist, In opera, his works include four pieces with composer Philip Glass – 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, Icarus at the Edge of Time, Sound and Beauty, and The Voyage – as well as Howard Shore’s The Fly, Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar (two 2007 Grammy Awards), and Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland (Opernwelt 2007 World Premiere of the Year). Hwang penned the feature films Golden Gate, M. Butterfly, and Possession (co-author), and co-wrote the song “Solo” with Prince. Mr. Hwang has been honored with the 2011 PEN/Laura Pels Award for a Master American Dramatist, the 2012 William Inge Award for Distinguished Achievement in the American Theatre, the 2012 Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award, the 2012 China Institute Blue Cloud Award and the 2012 Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award. From 1994-2001, Mr. Hwang served by appointment of President Clinton on the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. He currently sits on the boards of the Dramatists Guild, the American Theatre Wing, the Lark Play Development Center, and recently became President of Young Playwrights Inc.

Francis Jue, David Henry Hwang, Leigh Silverman, Cole Horibe and Alan Muraoka. Photo by Lia Chang

Click here for David Henry Hwang’s youoffendmeyouoffendmyfamily.com blog posts, and below for EW.com‘s exclusive video footage.

EW.com: Kung Fu dancers get a kick in rehearsal from ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ choreographer Sonya Tayeh — VIDEO

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Feb. 22: Lincoln Center Presents Cinderella’s Ann Harada in the American Songbook Series in the Allen Room at Frederick P. Rose Hall
Bryan Cranston Makes Broadway Debut in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre, Opens March 6, 2014
Mar. 1: Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
March 21 – May 4: Arena Stage Presents World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David Starring Tony Award winner Ron Rifkin and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas
Feb. 7-22: Maggie Alexander and Ciarán Sheehan Star in Michael Weller’s Fifty Words at The Gene Frankel Theatre
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Peter Scolari, C.J. Wilson, Francois Battiste, Chris Henry Coffey and More in Eric Simonson’s The Bronx Bombers at Circle in the Square Theatre
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Cheryl Lynn Bruce, André De Shields, Sandra Marquez, Dennis Zacek and More Celebrate Opening Night of Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Victory Gardens
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful
Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Meet the authors of the Pocket Chinese Almanac, Joanna C. Lee and Ken Smith, Museworks, Ltd.
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

David Henry Hwang Articles:
Celebrating the Year of the Horse with David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu at Signature Theatre; Previews begin February 4, 2014
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Phoebe Strole, Jon Rua, Join Cole Horibe and More for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Cole Horibe, Francis Jue, Peter Kim and More Set for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Signature Theatre’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu Stars SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE’s Cole Horibe as Bruce Lee
David Henry Hwang to Receive the 2012 Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award at the 5th Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards on October 29, 2012
Signature Theatre’s Revival of David Henry Hwang’s The Dance and The Railroad Set for Wuzhen Theatre Festival in Wuzhen, China, May 9-12, 2013
Photos: David Henry Hwang’s The Dance and The Railroad Opening Night at Signature Theatre Photos: Partying with the Cast of David Henry Hwang’s Golden Child; Extended Run Ends December 16, 2012
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Oskar Eustis, BD Wong, Brian d’Arcy James, Francis Jue, Jennifer Lim and Leigh Silverman at WNYC’s The Greene Space
Filmmaker Justin Lin Acquires Film Rights to David Henry Hwang’s Critically Acclaimed Broadway Comedy Chinglish
David Henry Hwang Set as Signature Theatre’s Residency One Playwright for the 2012-2013 Season David Henry Hwang to Receive 2012 William Inge Distinguished Achievement in the American Theatre Award
Broadwayworld.com Photo Flash: Library of Congress’ IN REHEARSAL Exhibit
Nothing is Sacred in David Henry Hwang’s Comedy of Mistaken Racial Identity
Francis Jue, At Home on the Stage
The Making of the Flower Drum Song Cast Album Flower Drum Song, An American Story
The Literary Legacy of C.Y. Lee Click here for more articles on David Henry Hwang.

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia will make her jazz vocalist debut on March 1, 2014, in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

LaTanya Richardson Jackson

LaTanya Richardson Jackson returns to the Great White Way as Lena Younger opposite Denzel Washington in the upcoming Broadway production of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, directed by Kenny Leon. Miss Jackson assumes the role from Diahann Carroll who has withdrawn from the production.

The production will also star Academy Award®-nominee Sophie Okonedo (Hotel Rwanda) making her Broadway debut as Ruth Younger, Tony Award-winner Anika Noni Rose (Caroline, or Change) as Beneatha Younger, Stephen Tyrone Williams (Lucky Guy) as Joseph Asagai, Jason Dirden (Fences) as George Murchison, and Tony Award®-nominee Stephen McKinley Henderson (Fences) as Bobo. The cast also features David Cromer, who directed and starred in the Obie Award-winning production of Our Town and has also directed acclaimed productions of Tribes, The House of Blue Leaves and The Adding Machine, as Karl Lindner, and 13-year-old Bryce Clyde Jenkins, (The To-Do List, Easy A), who will make his Broadway debut as Travis Younger.

A Raisin in the Sun begins performances on Saturday, March 8, 2014, at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre (247 West 47 Street). Opening night is Thursday, April 3. The 14-week limited engagement run is scheduled through Sunday, June 15.

LaTanya Richardson Jackson made her Broadway debut in the revival of August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. Her off-Broadway credits include Love, Loss and What I Wore, Casanova, For Colored Girls…, Spell #7, Unfinished Woman (NYSF); Elliot Loves (Promenade); The Talented Tenth (MTC); From the Mississippi Delta (Negro Ensemble Co.); Boogie Woogie and Booker T., Perdido, Nonsectarian Conversations…, Dr. Beck (Henry Street). She has appeared in the films Mothers and Daughters, Bolden!, Blackout,Freedomland, The Fighting Temptations, U.S. Marshalls, Lone Star, Losing Isaiah, When A Man Loves a Woman, Sleepless in Seattle, Lorenzo’s Oil, Fried Green Tomatoes, Malcolm X. Her TV credits include “100 Centre Street” (A&E), “Introducing Dorothy Dandridge,” “Unchained Memories: Slave Narratives” (HBO), “Jazz,” “Baseball,” “The Civil War” (PBS), “My Super Sweet 16” (MTV), “The Water is Wide” (Hallmark), “Law & Order,” “Boston Public,” “NYPD Blue,” “Judging Amy,” “Chicago Hope,” “Sesame Street,” “Ally McBeal,” “One Life to Live,” “Nightman.”

Originally produced in 1959, Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin In The Sun was the first play written by an African American woman to be produced on Broadway, where it won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play. The Washington Post has called it “one of a handful of great American dramas. A Raisin in the Sun belongs in the inner circle, along with Death of a Salesman and Long Day’s Journey into Night.” The New York Times has hailed it as “the play that changed American theatre forever”.

Set on Chicago’s South Side, A Raisin In The Sun revolves around the divergent dreams and conflicts within three generations of the Younger family: son Walter Lee (Denzel Washington), his wife Ruth (Sophie Okonedo), his sister Beneatha (Anika Noni Rose), his son Travis (Bryce Clyde Jenkins) and matriarch Lena, called Mama (LaTanya Richardson Jackson). When her deceased husband’s money comes through, Mama dreams of moving to a new home and a better neighborhood in Chicago. Walter Lee, a chauffeur, has other plans: buying a liquor store and being his own man. Beneatha dreams of medical school.The tensions and prejudice they face form this seminal American drama.

Scenic design is by Mark Thompson. Costume design is by Ann Roth. Lighting design is by Brian MacDevitt.
A Raisin In The Sun will be produced by Scott Rudin.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Mar. 1: Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran

Photos: Denise Burse, Lizan Mitchell, Novella Nelson, Arthur French at Regina Taylor’s stop. reset. with LaTanya Richardson Jackson at Signature
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
A Letter from LaTanya and Samuel L. Jackson – Go See Red Tails on Opening Weekend
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Jennifer Lim, Leigh Silverman, Samuel L. Jackson, Kenny Leon, David Ives, Douglas Carter Beane and More at The Drama Desk & Fordham University Theatre Program’s “Anatomy of a Breakout” Panel
Bryan Cranston Makes Broadway Debut in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre, Opens March 6, 2014
Photos: Celebrating the Year of the Horse with David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu at Signature, Previews begin February 4, 2014
March 21 – May 4: Arena Stage Presents World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David Starring Tony Award winner Ron Rifkin and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas
Feb. 7-22: Maggie Alexander and Ciarán Sheehan Star in Michael Weller’s Fifty Words at The Gene Frankel Theatre
Feb. 4 – Mar. 16: Phoebe Strole, Jon Rua, Join Cole Horibe and More for Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Peter Scolari, C.J. Wilson, Francois Battiste, Chris Henry Coffey and More in Eric Simonson’s The Bronx Bombers at Circle in the Square Theatre
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camile Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Cheryl Lynn Bruce, André De Shields, Sandra Marquez, Dennis Zacek and More Celebrate Opening Night of Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Victory Gardens
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful
Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party

Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia will make her jazz vocalist debut on March 1, 2014, in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

André De Shields. Photo by Lia Chang

Dallas Theater Center’s world premiere new musical The Fortress of Solitude, a co-production with The Public Theater in New York City, begins previews on March 7 and runs through April 6. Opening night is Friday, March 14 at 8:00 p.m. The Fortress of Solitude is based on the nationally best-selling novel of the same name by 2005 MacArthur Fellow Jonathan Lethem. The musical is conceived and directed by Daniel Aukin, with a book by Itamar Moses, and music and lyrics by Michael Friedman. Tickets to The Fortress of Solitude, are on sale at www.DallasTheaterCenter.org and by phone at (214) 880-0202.

Aukin has previously directed critically acclaimed productions at New York’s Roundabout Theatre Company, Lincoln Center and Manhattan Theatre Club.

“The notion of adapting this gorgeous novel into a musical was terrifying and thrilling and, finally, inescapable,” says Aukin. “I met with Jonathan Lethem and, in a shockingly wonderful show of faith and generosity, he granted permission to give this idea a go.”

Friedman, the composer and lyricist of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, was also drawn to the story. “It’s always tricky to find material that really wants to be musicalized,” he says. “Jonathan’s novel is full of music, both imagined and remembered.”

Friedman and Moses adapted the novel together. “It has always been a kind of recursive process of responding to each other, supporting each other, following each other in whatever direction feels most useful and effective,” says Moses.

The result is a heartbreakingly beautiful tale of the childhood friendship between Dylan Ebdus and Mingus Rude, set against the backdrop of the musical landscape of the end of the twentieth century. It is a story of 1970s Brooklyn and beyond – of black and white, soul and rap, block parties and blackouts, friendship and betrayal, comic books and 45s.

Adam Chanler-Berat, who originated the role of Henry in Broadway’s Next to Normal and of Peter in Broadway’s Peter and the Starcatcher, plays the role of Dylan Ebdus. Kyle Beltran, who recently starred in Tarell McCraney’s Choirboy at Manhattan Theatre Club, and who also appeared in the Broadway production of In the Heights, is Mingus Rude. The boys, both abandoned by their mothers and left in the care of difficult fathers, bond over comic books, LPs, and graffiti. Emmy Award®-winning and Tony Award®-nominated actor Andre De Shields comes to Dallas Theater Center for the first time ever as Barrett Rude Senior, Mingus’ grandfather. De Shields has appeared in countless Broadway productions including The Wiz, Ain’t Misbehavin’ and The Full Monty. Kevin Mambo, who appeared as the title character in the Broadway production of Fela! and in the national tour of The Book of Mormon as Mafala, plays Barrett Rude, Jr., Mingus’ father and the lead singer of the soul group the Subtle Distinctions.

DTC Brierley Resident Acting Company member Alex Organ, recently in Fly By Night and A Christmas Carol, plays Dylan’s father Abraham. Local musical theater star Patty Breckenridge plays the roles of Rachel, Dylan’s mom, and Mrs. Lomb. Etai Benshlomo from the Broadway production of Wicked appears as Arthur; Nick Christopher from the Broadway production Motown as the neighborhood bully Robert; Jeremy Dumont from DTC’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor® Dreamcoat and A Christmas Carol as Gabe; Carla Duren from the Broadway production of 110 in the Shade, and Dallas Theater Center’s Give it Up!, is Lala and Abby; local actress Alison Hodgson, who has appeared on stage at Circle Theatre and Jubilee Theatre, plays Liza; Helen Hayes Award nominee Jahi Kearse appears as Henry and Raf; and local actress Traci Lee, who appeared in DTC’s production of Cabaret, plays Marilla. Britton Smith, who has appeared at Lincoln Center; Akron Watson, who has appeared locally at Dallas Theater Center, Theatre Three and WaterTower Theatre; and Juson Williams, from Encore’s The Wiz round out the cast as the members of the Subtle Distinctions.

The Fortress of Solitude marks the return to Dallas of legendary set designer, Eugene Lee, for the first time in more than two decades. The three-time Tony Award®-winning designer was DTC’s resident designer from 1984-1991. His work at DTC included legendary productions of All the King’s Men, Galileo and The Tempest, as well as his design for the Arts District Theater, where DTC produced productions from 1984-2005, when it was torn down for the construction of the AT&T Performing Arts Center. Lee’s many national credits include serving as the resident scenic designer for NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” since its inception, and his groundbreaking designs for Broadway musicals, including Wicked, Sweeney Todd, and Candide.

Tyler Micoleau returns to DTC as lighting designer for The Fortress of Solitude. His previous DTC productions include A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Who’s Tommy, among others. Making her DTC debut is Jessica Pabst (The Whale and Moses’ Nobody Loves You) as costume designer. Also returning to DTC is Tony Award®-winning sound designer Robb Kaplowitz (Fela!), who previously designed DTC’s It’s a Bird…It’s a Plane…It’s Superman.

Southern Methodist University alumnus Kimberly Grigsby, who was the music supervisor for DTC’s It’s a Bird…It’s a Plane…It’s Superman, returns to Dallas to be the show’s musical director. Grigsby’s recent Broadway credits include Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark and Spring Awakening. Rounding out the creative team is Camille A. Brown as choreographer. Brown is the artistic director and choreographer of the award winning Dance Company, Camille A. Brown & Dancers.

“The Fortress of Solitude is an emotionally moving musical filled with breathtaking songs and beautifully crafted characters,” says DTC Artistic Director Kevin Moriarty. “It is an honor to welcome back to Dallas so many long-time friends and collaborators for this production, including Eugene Lee, a man who helped create this organization’s artistic identity and whose work has served as a constant source of inspiration for Dallas theatergoers for several decades.”

Tickets for The Fortress of Solitude are on sale now. Ticket prices start at $15 and are available online at www.DallasTheaterCenter.org or by phone at (214) 880-0202. The Fortress of Solitude opens with previews on Friday, March 7 at 8:00 p.m. with a Pay-What-You-Can performance. Tickets to this performance will be available for purchase online at www.DallasTheaterCenter.org beginning Monday, March 3. Any unsold tickets to the PWYC performance will be available for purchase at the Wyly Theatre box office the night of the show beginning at 6:30 p.m. DTC’s Come Early sponsored by Wells Fargo will take place one hour before every performance and will be led by Alex Organ. Patrons will have the opportunity to learn about the play prior to viewing the production. DTC’s Dr. Pepper Snapple Stay Late will take place after each performance. Patrons will have the opportunity to engage with artists, learn about the production and share insights about the play in a lively discussion, which will be moderated by Alex Organ. Details for Come Early and Stay Late are available online.

ABOUT DALLAS THEATER CENTER:
One of the leading regional theaters in the country, Dallas Theater Center (DTC) performs to an audience of more than 120,000 North Texas residents
annually. Founded in 1959, DTC is now a resident company of the AT&T Performing Arts Center and presents its Mainstage season at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre, designed by REX/OMA, Joshua Prince-Ramus and Rem Koolhaas and at its original home, the Kalita Humphreys Theater, the only freestanding theater designed and built by Frank Lloyd Wright. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Kevin Moriarty and Managing Director Heather M. Kitchen, DTC produces a seven-play subscription series of classics, musicals and new plays and an annual production of A Christmas Carol; extensive education programs, including the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award-winning Project Discovery, SummerStage and partnerships with Southern Methodist University’s Meadows School of the Arts and Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts; and community outreach efforts including leading the DFW Foote Festival and recent collaborations with the Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Public Library, Dallas Holocaust Museum, North Texas Food Bank, Dallas Opera, and Dallas Black Dance Theater. Throughout its history, DTC has produced many new works, including The Texas Trilogy by Preston Jones in 1978, Robert Penn Warren’s All the King’s Men, adapted by Adrian Hall, in 1986, and recent premieres of FLY by Rajiv Joseph, Bill Sherman and Kirstin Childs; Fly by Night by Kim Rosenstock, Michael Mitnick and Will Connolly; Giant by Michael John LaChiusa and Sybille Pearson; The Trinity River Plays by Regina Taylor; the revised It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… It’s Superman by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Charles Strouse and Lee Adams; Give It Up! (now titled Lysistrata Jones and recently on Broadway) by Douglas Carter Beane and Lewis Flinn; Sarah, Plain and Tall by Julia Jordan, Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin; and The Good Negro by Tracey Scott Wilson.

ABOUT THE PUBLIC THEATER AT ASTOR PLACE:
Under the leadership of Artistic Director Oskar Eustis and Executive Director Patrick Willingham, The Public Theater is the only theater in New York that produces Shakespeare, the classics, musicals, contemporary and experimental pieces in equal measure. The Public continues the work of its visionary founder, Joe Papp, by acting as an advocate for the theater as an essential cultural force, and leading and framing dialogue on some of the most important issues of our day. Creating theater for one of the largest and most diverse audience bases in New York City for nearly 60 years, today the Company engages audiences in a variety of venues—including its landmark downtown home at Astor Place, which houses five theaters and Joe’s Pub; the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, home to its beloved, free Shakespeare in the Park; and the Mobile Unit, which tours Shakespearean productions for underserved audiences throughout New York City’s five boroughs. The Public’s wide range of programming includes free Shakespeare in the Park, the bedrock of the Company’s dedication to making theater accessible to all; Public Works, a new initiative that is designed to cultivate new connections and new models of engagement with artists, audiences and the community each year; new and experimental stagings at The Public at Astor Place, including Public Lab; and a range of artist and audience development initiatives including its Public Forum series, which brings together theater artists and professionals from a variety of disciplines for discussions that shed light on social issues explored in Public productions. The Public Theater is located on property owned by the City of New York and receives annual support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; and in October 2012 the landmark building downtown at Astor Place was revitalized to physically manifest the Company’s core mission of sparking new dialogues and increasing accessibility for artists and audiences, by dramatically opening up the building to the street and community, and transforming the lobby into a public piazza for artists, students, and audiences. Key elements of the revitalization included infrastructure updates to the 158-year old building, as well a construction of new exterior entry stair and glass canopy; installation of ramps for improved accessibility; an expanded and refurbished lobby; the addition of a mezzanine level with a new restaurant lounge, The Library at The Public, designed by the Rockwell Group. The LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust provides leadership support for The Public Theater’s year-round activities. www.publictheater.org

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night
Bryan Cranston Makes Broadway Debut in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre, Opens March 6, 2014
Celebrating the Year of the Horse with David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu at Signature Theatre; Previews begin February 4, 2014
Photos: Backstage Q & A with Thom Sesma and the cast of Signature’s Miss Saigon
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards 
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72 
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Other articles on Andre De Shields:
André De Shields to receive 2014 Making Waves Award; will perform “Frederick Douglass: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” at Florida Atlantic University
Nov. 16: Conversations with the Divine with Owais Ahmed, Baize Buzan, Kathryn Cesarz, Kamal Hans, Brian Grey, Donica Lynn, Patrese McClain and Miranda Zola at Chicago’s Victory Gardens Theater
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
André De Shields Delivers Keynote at the International Conference of Fine Arts Deans in New Orleans
Photos: André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Akash Chopra, Richard M. Sherman, Kevin Carolan, Larry Yando, Nehal Joshi and More Celebrate The Jungle Book Opening Night at Huntington Theatre in Boston
Click here for more articles on André De Shields.

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia will make her jazz vocalist debut on March 1, 2014, in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Anjali Bhimani, André De Shields, NIkka Graff Lanzarone, Monique Haley, Geoff Packard, Akash Chopra, Ed Kross and Govind Kumar in The Jungle Book at The Huntington Theatre in Boston on September 5, 2013. Photo by Lia Chang

The world premiere adaptation of Disney’s The Jungle Book, Huntington Theatre Company’s co-production with Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, written and directed by Mary Zimmerman, has garnered ten award nominations in the Large Theatre category by Boston’s Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE).

Larry Yando (Shere Khan), Mary Zimmerman (Director/Playwright), André De Shields (Akela/King Louie) and Anjali Bhimani (Mother Wolf). Photo by Lia Chang

The award nominations including Best Musical; Best Ensemble; Best Director – Musical; Mary Zimmerman, Best Music Director; Doug Peck, Best Choreography; Christopher Gattelli, Best Set Design; Daniel Ostling, Best Costume Design; Mara Blumenfeld, Best Actor – Musical; Usman Ally, Best Supporting Actor – Musical; André De Shields and Best Supporting Actor – Musical; Kevin Carolan.

L to R: Doug Peck (orchestrator/arranger/conductor), Andre De Shields (Akela/King Louie), and Kevin Carolan (Baloo) with Monica Lopez, who co-starred in The Goodman Theatre’s production of Camino Reale. Photo by Lia Chang

The 18th Annual IRNE Awards Ceremony will take place at Boston Cyclorama at the Boston Center for the Arts on Monday, April 7, 2014 at 7:30pm. The Pre-Ceremony Reception begins at 7:00pm and is open to the public – no tickets are required.

The Huntington production of The Jungle Book featured the entire original cast including Two-time Tony Award nominee André De Shields (Full Monty, Play On!, Ain’t Misbehavin’, The Wiz) as King Louie, Kevin Carolan as Baloo, Larry Yando (Candide) as Shere Kahn, Thomas Derrah (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) as Kaa, Usman Ally as Bagheera and Akash Chopra and Roni Akurati as Mowgli.

Nikka Graff Lanzarone (Peacock & Others), Alka Nayyar (Doe, Insect, and Monkey), Timothy Wilson (Wolf and others), Victor Wisehart (Wolf & Others), Govind Kumar (Wolf, Vulture, and others), Nehal Joshi (Rama (a wolf and others), Anjali Bhimani (Raksha (a wolf and others), Monique Haley (Insect and others), Jeremy Duvall (Insect and others), Ed Kross (Colonel Hathi and others), Geoff Packard (Lieutenant George, Giddha (a vulture), and others), Glory Curda (Little Girl), Nebi Berhane (Ensemble) round out the cast.

Wholly reimagined for the stage by Tony Award winner Mary Zimmerman (Candide) is based on Nobel Laureate Rudyard Kipling’s 1893 collection of stories set in the Indian jungle and Walt Disney’s 1967 animated film. Zimmerman’s adaptation is a music-and movement-filled adventure of young Mowgli’s coming-of-age in the animal kingdom featuring the movie’s best-loved songs in wholly new Indian-inspired arrangements. Legendary Academy Award and Grammy winner Richard M. Sherman — whose numerous songwriting credits with brother Robert B. Sherman include the motion pictures The Jungle Book, Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and The AristoCats — collaborates on this production, providing Music Director Doug Peck access and permission to adapt songs that Sherman and his brother wrote for the film, plus never-before-heard material. Tony Award-winning choreographer Christopher Gattelli with Indian dance consultant Hema Rajagopalan combine elements of classical Indian dance forms with jazz, tap, and more to enhance the storytelling.

ABOUT THE HUNTINGTON
Since its founding in 1982, the Huntington Theatre Company has developed into Boston’s leading theatre company. Bringing together superb local and national talent, the Huntington produces a mix of groundbreaking new works and classics made current. Led by Artistic Director Peter DuBois and Managing Director Michael Maso, the Huntington creates award-winning productions, runs nationally renowned programs in education and new play development, and serves the local theatre community through its operation of the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA. The Huntington is in residence at Boston University. For more information, visit huntingtontheatre.org.

About the IRNE Awards:
The Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Awards were founded by Beverly Creasey of the Journal Newspapers and Larry Stark of the TheaterMirror in 1997. The IRNE Awards recognize the extraordinary wealth of talent in the Boston theatre community.

The IRNE reviewers include:
Jules Becker, Sheila Barth, Kay Bourne, Shanni Brown, Beverly Creasey, Kathi Scrizzi Driscoll, Shirley Esthimer, Rich Fahey, Tom Garvey, Guy Giampapa, Norm Gross, Nancy Grossman, Robert Israel, Becca Kidwell, Bryce Lambert, Kilian Malloy, and Larry Stark.

Congrats to all of the nominees listed below:
2014 IRNE Small Theater Nominations

Best New Play
WINDOWMEN by Steven Barkhimer (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
OPERATION EPSILON by Alan Brody (The Nora Theatre Company)
SPLENDOR by Kirsten Greenidge (Company One)
PAPER CITY PHOENIX by Walt McGough (Boston Actors Theater)
THE RAG DOLL by David Reiffel & Silvia Graziano (Blue Spruce Theatre)
FROM DENMARK WITH LOVE by John J. King (Vaquero Playground)

Best Set Design
Matthew Woods HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
Jenna McFarland Lord DISTANT MUSIC (Stoneham Theatre)
Luke Sutherland THE LOVER (Bridge Repertory Theater)
Janie E. Howland OPERATION EPSILON (The Nora Theatre Company)
Christina Todesco TRIBES (SpeakEasy Stage Company)

Best Lighting Design
Chris Bocchiaro HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
Karen Perlow IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Jeff Adelberg DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE (Stoneham Theatre)
Michael Clark Wonson THE NORMAL HEART (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
Ian King THE TURN OF THE SCREW (Simple Machine)

Best Projection Design
Kelly Leigh David THE AFTER DINNER JOKE (Whistler in the Dark Theatre)
Garrett Herzig TRIBES (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Shawn Boyle 33 VARIATIONS (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)
Michael Flowers THE NORMAL HEART (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
Seaghan McKay ON THE TOWN (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)
Johnathan Carr BY THE WAY MEET VERA STARK (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)

Best Costume Design
Cotton Talbot-Minkin HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
Angela Huff THE LIBERTINE (Bridge Repertory Theater & Playhouse Creatures Theatre Company)
Tyler Kinney HENRY VIII (Actors’ Shakespeare Project)
Frances Nelson McSherry AMADEUS (New Repertory Theatre)
Scott Martino MILDRED FIERCE (The Gold Dust Orphans)

Best Sound Design
Arshan Gailus TRIBES (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Ed Young THE LOVER (Bridge Repertory Theater)
Andrew Duncan Will SOMEONE WHO’LL WATCH OVER ME (Bad Habit Productions)
Dewey Dellay OPERATION EPSILON (The Nora Theatre Company)
Sam Beebe HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
Nathan Leigh DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE (Stoneham Theatre)

Best Choreography
Jodi Leigh Allen SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
Larry Sousa IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Kiki Samko HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
Meredith Langton (Merry Death) PORNOCCHIO (The Gold Dust Orphans)

Best Solo Performance
Colin Hamell JIMMY TITANIC (Tir Na Theatre @ New Repertory Theatre)
Neil McGarry A CHRISTMAS CAROL (The Bay Colony Shakespeare Company)
Noah Tobin PORNSTAR (Heart & Dagger Theatre Company)
Daniel Alexander Jones JOMAMA JONES RADIATE (The Theater Offensive)

Best Ensemble (Midsize)
CLYBOURNE PARK (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
OPERATION EPSILON (The Nora Theatre Company)
IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)

Best Ensemble (Small/Fringe)
WINDOWMEN (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
CLOSER (Bad Habit Productions)
PUNK ROCK (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
A SOLDIER’S PLAY (Roxbury Repertory Theater)
THE NORMAL HEART (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
THE MEMORANDUM (Flat Earth Theatre)
THE EIGHT: REINDEER MONOLOGUES (Happy Medium Theatre)

Best Supporting Actress In A Play (Small/Fringe)
Sarah DeLima CEMETARY CLUB (Next Door Center for the Arts)
Angela Smith LIFE OF RILEY (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
Charlotte Peed DANCING AT LUGHNASA (Wellesley Summer Theatre)
Stacy Fischer THE SEAGULL (Harbor Stage Company)
Angela Bilkic HOLIDAY (Wellesley Summer Theatre)

Best Supporting Actress In A Play (Midsize)
Marvelyn McFarlane CLYBOURNE PARK (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Erica Spyres TRIBES (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Liz Hayes ABSURD PERSON SINGULAR (The Nora Theatre Company)
Esme Allen DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE (Stoneham Theatre)
Nicole Prefontaine SPLENDOR (Company One)

Best Supporting Actor In A Play (Midsize) John Davin ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)
Maurice Parent ROMEO AND JULIET (Actors’ Shakespeare Project)
Will Lyman OPERATION EPSILON (The Nora Theatre Company)
Alexander Platt DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE (Stoneham Theatre)
Tim Spears AMADEUS (New Repertory Theatre)
Russell Garrett AMADEUS (New Repertory Theatre)

Best Supporting Actor In A Play (Small/Fringe)
Joey Pelletier PSYCHO BEACH PARTY (Happy Medium Theatre)
Michael Underhill HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
Mikey DiLoreto THE NORMAL HEART (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
Brooks Reeves CLOSER (Bad Habit Productions)
Steven DeMarco FROM WHITE PLAINS (Apollinaire Theatre Company)
Ed Peed THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST (Moonbox Productions)
Jeff Mahoney SOMEONE WHO’LL WATCH OVER ME (Bad Habit Productions)

Best Actress In A Play
McCaela Donovan THE LOVER (Bridge Repertory Theater)
Anna Waldron THE TURN OF THE SCREW (Simple Machine)
Caroline L. Price PAPER CITY PHOENIX (Boston Actors Theater)
Linda Goetz MACBETH (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)
Lindsay Crouse DRIVING MISS DAISY (Gloucester Stage Company)
Aimee Doherty NORTH SHORE FISH (Gloucester Stage Company)
Paula Plum 33 VARIATIONS (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)

Best Actor In A Play (Midsize)
Johnny Lee Davenport DRIVING MISS DAISY (Gloucester Stage Company)
Neil A. Casey ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)
Michael Ryan Buckley DISTANT MUSIC (Stoneham Theatre)
Tim Spears THE ELEPHANT MAN (New Repertory Theatre)
James Caverly TRIBES (SpeakEasy Stage Company)

Best Actor In A Play (Small/Fringe)
Joseph W. Rodriguez THE LIBERTINE (Bridge Repertory Theater & Playhouse Creatures Theatre Company)
Stephen Libby THE TURN OF THE SCREW (Simple Machine)
Daver Morrison A SOLDIERS PLAY (Roxbury Repertory Theatre)
Gregory Balla SOMEONE WHO’LL WATCH OVER ME (Bad Habit Productions)
Phil Gillen PUNK ROCK (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
Kevin Fennessey ALMOST BLUE (Theatre On Fire)
Brandon Whitehead WINDOWMEN (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
Dave Rich MACBETH (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)

Best Supporting Actress In A Musical
Stephanie Granade THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE (Stoneham Theatre)
Carolyn Saxon IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Marissa Haddad IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Amelia Broome SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
M. Lynda Robinson OLIVER (Wheelock Family Theatre)
Michele A. DeLuca ON THE TOWN (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)

Best Supporting Actor In A Musical
Athan Mantalos CHESS (Longwood Players)
Ross Mumford SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
Robert D Murphy CAMELOT (NewRep)
Jared Walsh ASSASSINS (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)
Jared Dixon IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Jorge Barranco IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Andrew Giordano THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE (Stoneham Theatre)

Best Actress In A Musical
Ephie Ardema THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE (Stoneham Theatre)
Jane Staab OLIVER (Wheelock Family Theatre)
Erica Spyres CAMELOT (New Repertory Theatre)
Jackie Coco SWEENEY TODD (Next Door Center for the Arts)
Melody Madarasz  SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
Santina Umbach IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)

Best Actor In A Musical
Benjamin Evett CAMELOT (New Repertory Theatre)
Peter S. Adams SWEENEY TODD (Next Door Center for the Arts)
Ryan Vona CURSE OF THE CRYING HEART (The Circuit Theatre Company)
Phil Tayler SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
Tom Shoemaker A NEW BRAIN (Moonbox Productions)

Best Music Director
Catherine Stornetta SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
Steven Bergman ASSASSINS (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)
Stephen Peters CHESS (Longwood)
Nicholas James Connell IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Jonathan Goldberg ON THE TOWN (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)

Best Director of a Musical
Joey DeMita ASSASSINS (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)
Kaitlyn Chantry CHESS (LONGWOOD)
Eric Engel SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
Paul Daigneault IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Russell Garrett CAMELOT (New Repertory Theatre)

Best Director of a Play (Small/Fringe)
Matthew Woods and Michael Underhill HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
A. Nora Long SOMEONE WHO’LL WATCH OVER ME (Bad Habit Productions)
Brett Marks WINDOWMEN (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
Shana Gozansky THE LOVER (Bridge Repertory Theater)
Susanna Harris Noon CLOSER (Bad Habit Productions)
David Miller THE NORMAL HEART (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
Eric Tucker THE LIBERTINE (Bridge Repertory Theater & Playhouse Creatures Theatre Company)
Darren Evans PARTY TIME (Theatre On Fire)

Best Director of a Play (Midsize)
Jim Petosa THE ELEPHANT MAN (New Repertory Theatre)
M. Bevin O’Gara TRIBES (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
Andy Sandberg OPERATION EPSILON (The Nora Theatre Company)
Benny Sato Ambush DRIVING MISS DAISY (Gloucester Stage Company)
Courtney O’Connor STONES IN HIS POCKETS (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)
Robert Walsh NORTH SHORE FISH (Gloucester Stage Company)

Best Visiting Production  
OTHELLO: Actors From the London Stage (Wellesley Summer Theatre)
THE NINA VARIATIONS (Brown Box Theatre Project)
MY MOTHER’S ITALIAN, MY FATHER’S JEWISH AND I’M IN THERAPY (Regent Theatre)

Best Musical
CHESS (Longwood Players)
ASSASSINS (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)
SPRING AWAKENING (Gloucester Stage Company)
IN THE HEIGHTS (SpeakEasy Stage Company)

Best Play (Small/Fringe)
HAIRY TALES (Imaginary Beasts)
SOMEONE WHO’LL WATCH OVER ME (Bad Habit Productions)
THE TURN OF THE SCREW (Simple Machine)
THE LOVER (Bridge Repertory Theater
CLOSER (Bad Habit Productions)
THE VALENTINE TRILOGY (The Circuit Theatre Company)
WINDOWMEN (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
THE NORMAL HEART (Zeitgeist Stage Company)

Best Play (Midsize)
OPERATION EPSILON (The Nora Theatre Company)
ELEPHANT MAN (New Repertory Theatre)
TRIBES (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
DRIVING MISS DAISY (Gloucester Stage Company)
STONES IN HIS POCKETS (Lyric Stage Company of Boston)
CLYBOURNE PARK (SpeakEasy Stage Company)

Most Promising Young Performer
Sirena Abalian PIPPI LONGSTOCKING (Wheelock Family Theatre)
Alec Shiman DISTRACTED (The Nora Theatre Company)
Charlie Clinton OLIVER (Wheelock Family Theatre)
Cecilia Cipullo DRAWIN’ ON THE WALL (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)
Isaac Haber DRAWIN’ ON THE WALL (The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company)

2014 IRNE Large Theater Nominations

Best New Play
ALL THE WAY by Robert Schenkkan (American Repertory Theater)
SOCIAL CREATURES by Jackie Sibblies Drury (Trinity Repertory Company)
STELLA AND LOU by Bruce Graham (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
THE HEART OF ROBIN HOOD by David Farr and Poor Old Shine (American Repertory Theater)

Best Set Design
Eugene Lee HOUSE AND GARDEN (Trinity Repertory Company)
Allen Moyer THE COCKTAIL HOUR (Huntington Theatre Company)
Borkur Jonsson THE HEART OF ROBINHOOD (American Repertory Theater)
Bob Crowley THE GLASS MENAGERIE (American Repertory Theater)
Clint Ramos A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
Bill Clarke STELLA AND LOU (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
Daniel Ostling THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)

Best Lighting Design
Natasha Katz THE GLASS MENAGERIE (American Repertory Theater)
Mary Louise Geiger INVISIBLE MAN (Huntington Theatre Company)
John Ambrosone THE GRAPES OF WRATH (Trinity Repertory Company)
Deb Sullivan RYAN LANDRY’S M (Huntington Theatre Company)
Jane Cox ALL THE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
Rui Rita THE POWER OF DUFF (Huntington Theatre Company)

Best Costume Design
Mara Blumenfeld THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
Dominique Lemieux PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Emma Ryott THE HEART OF ROBIN HOOD (American Repertory Theater)
Paula Peasley-Ninestein THE WIZARD OF OZ (North Shore Music Theatre)
Marcia Zammarelli LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (North Shore Music Theatre)

Best Sound Design
David Remedios RYAN LANDRY’S M (Huntington Theatre Company)
Jonathan Deans THE HEART OF ROBIN HOOD (American Repertory Theater
J Hagenbuckle TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company)
Clive Goodwin THE GLASS MENAGERIE (American Repertory Theater)
Michael Eisenberg MISS SAIGON (North Shore Music Theatre)
Martin Desjardins/Andre Pluess COLUMBINUS (American Theater Company @ Arts Emerson)

Best Choreography
Chet Walker PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Christopher Gattelli THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
Michael Lichtefeld LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (North Shore Music Theatre)
Richard Stafford CATS (North Shore Music Theatre)

Best Solo Performance
Seana McKenna SHAKESPEARE’S WILL (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
Dennis O’Hare AN ILIAD (Arts Emerson)

Best Ensemble
THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
ALL THE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
HOUSE AND GARDEN (Trinity Repertory Company)
GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
THE GRAPES OF WRATH (Trinity Repertory Company)

Best Supporting Actress In A Play
Crystal A. Dickinson ALL THE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
Betsy Aidem ALL THE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
Ashley Everage A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
Celia Keenan-Bolger THE GLASS MENAGERIE (American Repertory Theater)
Janice Duclos VANYA AND SONIA AND MASHA AND SPIKE (Trinity Repertory Company)

Best Supporting Actor In A Play
Johnny Lee Davenport INVISIBLE MAN (Huntington Theatre Company)
Christopher Sieber THE HEART OF ROBIN HOOD (American Repertory Theater)
Brendan Griffin THE POWER OF DUFF (Huntington Theatre Company)
Dakin Matthews ALL THE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
Joe Paulik THE POWER OF DUFF (Huntington Theatre Company)
Todd Licea GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)

Best Actress In A Play
Cherry Jones THE GLASS MENAGERIE (American Repertory Theater)
Kinberly Scott A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
Anne Scurria THE GRAPES OF WRATH (Trinity Repertory Company)
Karen MacDonald RYAN LANDRY’S M (Huntington Theatre Company)
Keira Keeley PROOF (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
Christina Bennett Lind THE HEART OF ROBIN HOOD (American Repertory Theater)
Jan Neuberger MRS. MANNERLY (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)

Best Actor In A Play
Bryan Cranston ALL THE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
Teagle F. Bougere INVISIBLE MAN (Huntington Theatre Company)
LeRoy McClain A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
Mark Zeisler RED (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
Peter Cambor TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company)

Best Supporting Actress In A Musical
Andrea Martin PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Jacquelynn Fontaine THE SOUND OF MUSIC (North Shore Music Theatre)
Charlotte D’Amboise PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Shana Dirik THE LITTLE PRINCESS (Fiddlehead Theatre Company)
Bridget Beirne THE LITTLE PRINCESS (Fiddlehead Theatre Company)

Best Supporting Actor In A Musical
Peter Mill CHICAGO (Reagle Music Theatre)
Kevin Carolan THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
David Carney LES MISERABLES (Reagle Music Theatre)
David Coffee THE WIZARD OF OZ (North Shore Music Theatre)
James Beaman THE SOUND OF MUSIC (North Shore Music Theatre)
Terrence Mann PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Andre De Shields THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)

Best Actress In A Musical
Lisa O’Hare SOUND OF MUSIC (North Shore Music Theatre)
Patina Miller PIPPIN(American Repertory Theater)
Jennifer Paz MISS SAIGON (North Shore Music Theatre)
Danielle Bowen THE WIZARD OF OZ (North Shore Music Theatre)

Best Actor In A Musical
Usman Ally THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
Rick Pessagno CHICAGO (Reagle Music Theatre)
Jonathan Hammond LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (North Shore Music Theatre)
Francis Jue MISS SAIGON (North Shore Music Theatre)
Ivan Rutherford LES MISERABLES (Reagle Music Theatre)

Best Music Director
Doug Peck THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
Charlie Alterman PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Dan Rodriguez CHICAGO (Reagle Music Theatre)
Andrew Bryan MISS SAIGON (North Shore Music Theatre)
Dale Rieling LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (North Shore Music Theatre)

Best Director of a Musical
Mary Zimmerman THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
Diane Paulus PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Richard Stafford MISS SAIGON (North Shore Music Theatre)
Charles Repole LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (North Shore Music Theatre)

Best Director of a Play
Bill Rauch ALL THE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
Liesl Tommy A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
Charles Towers GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
Brian McEleney HOUSE AND GARDEN (Trinity Repertory Company)
Maria Aitken THE COCKTAIL HOUR (Huntington Theatre Company)
John Tiffany THE GLASS MENAGERIE (American Repertory Theater)

Best Visiting Production
The Hypocrites PIRATES OF PENZANCE (American Repertory Theater)
ODYSSEO (Cavalia)
MIES JULIE (Baxter Theatre Centre @ Arts Emerson)
WAITING FOR GODOT(Gare St. Lazare Players @ Arts Emerson)
A CHRISTMAS STORY: The Musical  (Broadway In Boston)
METAMORPHOSIS (Vesturport Theatre @ Arts Emerson)

Best Visiting Performer
John Bolton A CHRISTMAS STORY: The Musical  (Broadway In Boston)
Hilda Cronje MIES JULIE (Baxter Theatre Centre @ Arts Emerson)
Gisli Orn Gardarsson METAMORPHOSIS (Vesturport Theatre @ Arts Emerson)
Stefanie Powers LOOPED (Cutler Majestic Theatre at Emerson College)
Samantha Marie Ware THE BOOK OF MORMON (Broadway In Boston)

Best Musical
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (North Shore Music Theatre)
LES MISERABLES (Reagle Music Theatre)
PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
THE JUNGLE BOOK (Huntington Theatre Company)
CHICAGO (Reagle Music Theatre)
MISS SAIGON (North Shore Music Theatre)

Best Play
ALLTHE WAY (American Repertory Theater)
A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
HOUSE AND GARDEN (Trinity Repertory Company)
GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS (Merrimack Repertory Theatre)
THE GLASS MENAGERIE (American Repertory Theater)
THE HEART OF ROBIN HOOD (American Repertory Theater)

Most Promising Young Performer
Sirena Abalian THE LITTLE PRINCESS (Fiddlehead Theatre Company)
Andrew Cekala PIPPIN (American Repertory Theater)
Cory Janvier A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Huntington Theatre Company)
Jake Lucas and Luke Spring A CHRISTMAS STORY: The Musical (Broadway In Boston)

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night
Bryan Cranston Makes Broadway Debut in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre, Opens March 6, 2014
Celebrating the Year of the Horse with David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu at Signature Theatre; Previews begin February 4, 2014
Photos: Backstage Q & A with Thom Sesma and the cast of Signature’s Miss Saigon
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camille Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater
2014 is the Year of the Horse, Dragons and Lions in The Chinese New Year Parade
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards 
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72 
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.Other articles on Andre De Shields:
Mar. 7-Apr. 6: André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
André De Shields to receive 2014 Making Waves Award; will perform “Frederick Douglass: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” at Florida Atlantic University
Nov. 16: Conversations with the Divine with Owais Ahmed, Baize Buzan, Kathryn Cesarz, Kamal Hans, Brian Grey, Donica Lynn, Patrese McClain and Miranda Zola at Chicago’s Victory Gardens Theater
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
André De Shields Delivers Keynote at the International Conference of Fine Arts Deans in New Orleans
Photos: André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Akash Chopra, Richard M. Sherman, Kevin Carolan, Larry Yando, Nehal Joshi and More Celebrate The Jungle Book Opening Night at Huntington Theatre in Boston
Click here for more articles on André De Shields.

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia will make her jazz vocalist debut on March 1, 2014, in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

“Breaking Bad”‘s Bryan Cranston makes Broadway debut portraying Lyndon B. Johnson in All the Way, the new play by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan (The Kentucky Cycle), which began previews Monday, February 10, 2014, at The Neil Simon Theatre (250 West 52nd Street) in New York, with opening night set for Thursday, March 6, 2014 at 6:30 p.m.

The cast of All The Way. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

Bryan Cranston, Brandon J. Dirden and Richard Poe. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

The cast also features Eric Lenox Abrams (Bob Moses), Betsy Aidem (Lady Bird Johnson), J. Bernard Calloway (Ralph Abernathy), Rob Campbell (Governor George Wallace), Brandon J. Dirden (Martin Luther King, Jr.), James Eckhouse (Robert McNamara), Peter Jay Fernandez (Roy Wilkins), Christopher Gurr (Senator Strom Thurmond), William Jackson Harper (Stokely Carmichael), Michael McKean (J. Edgar Hoover), John McMartin (Senator Richard Russell), Christopher Liam Moore (Walter Jenkins), Robert Petkoff (Senator Hubert Humphrey), Ethan Phillips (Stanley Levison), Richard Poe (Senator Everett Dirksen), Roslyn Ruff (Coretta Scott King), Susannah Schulman (Lurleen Wallace), Bill Timoney (Senator Karl Mundt) and Steve Vinovich (Rep. Emanuel Celler). The play is directed by Bill Rauch, Artistic Director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, where All the Way began its theatrical life.

All the Way takes audiences behind the doors of the Oval Office and inside the first year of Lyndon B. Johnson’s presidency, his fight to pass a landmark civil rights bill and his relationship with key political figures, including Martin Luther King Jr., J. Edgar Hoover and Senator Richard Russell.

Tickets are available at at The Neil Simon Theatre Box office (250 West 52nd Street) in New York and are on sale at Ticketmaster.com or by calling (800) 745-3000.

Michael McKean, Bryan Cranston and Brandon J. Dirden. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

Performance Schedule:
Beginning February 18: Tuesday through Saturday at 8pm Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm Sunday at 3pm
Beginning March 11: Tuesday and Thursday at 7pm Wednesday and Friday at 8pm Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm Sunday at 3pm.

Brandon J. Dirden, Roslyn Ruff. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

All the Way was commissioned by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle and premiered at OSF in 2012. It then went on to play a sold-out and critically acclaimed run at the A.R.T. from September 13-October 12, 2013 starring Cranston. The play was awarded the 2013 inaugural Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History, established through Columbia University in honor of the late Senator Kennedy, honoring new plays or musicals exploring US history and issues of the day.

All the Way is produced by Jeffrey Richards, Louise Gund, Jerry Frankel, Stephanie P. McClelland, Double Gemini Productions, Rebecca Gold, Scott M. Delman, Barbara H. Freitag, Harvey Weinstein, Gene Korf, William Berlind, Luigi Caiola, Gutterman Chernoff, JAM Theatricals, Gabrielle Palitz, Cheryl Wiesenfeld and Will Trice. Set design is by Christopher Acebo, costume design by Deborah M. Dryden, lighting design by Jane Cox, composition and sound design by Paul James Prendergast, video projections by Shawn Sagady, the projection design consultant is Wendall K. Harrington, hair & wig design is by Paul Huntley, and the sound consultant is Peter Fitzgerald. The Dramaturge is Tom Bryant and casting is by Telsey + Company William Cantler, CSA.

Bryan Cranston won the 2014 Golden Globe® and three consecutive Emmy® Awards for “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series” for his portrayal of Walter White on AMC’s “Breaking Bad”. Cranston holds the honor of being the first actor in a cable series, and the second lead actor in the history of the Emmy® Awards to receive three consecutive wins. His performance has also earned him a fourth Emmy® nomination this year, a Television Critics Association award, three Golden Globe nominations and a Screen Actors Guild award. Cranston will make his Broadway debut playing President Lyndon Johnson in All the Way, by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Robert Schenkkan. Cranston received rave reviews for his performance, which just finished a sold out run at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts. On the big screen, Cranston won a second Screen Actors Guild award this year for his co-starring role in the 2012 Oscar-winning Best Picture, Argo, essaying the role of CIA operative Jack O’Donnell opposite star-director Ben Affleck. He will next star in Legendary Pictures remake of Godzilla opposite Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen, which will be released by Warner Bros. on May 16, 2014. He will also voice a character in DreamWorks Kung Fu Panda 3. He will then begin production on Jay Roach’s Trumbo playing the title role of Dalton Trumbo, who was one of Hollywood’s most successful screenwriters whose career came to an end when he was blacklisted in the 1940’s for being a communist.

About the Creative Team:
Robert Schenkkan is the Pulitzer Prize winning author of eleven plays, two musicals and a collection of short plays. The Kentucky Cycle (Pulitzer Prize, LA Drama Critics Award and Penn Award) was produced on Broadway where it was nominated for the Tony, Drama Desk, and the Outer Critics’ Circle Awards. His other plays include, A Single Shard, By the Waters of Babylon, Handler, Lewis and Clark Reach the Euphrates, The Marriage of Miss Hollywood and King Neptune, The Devil and Daniel Webster, Heaven on Earth, Tachinoki, Final Passages, and The Dream Thief. He is the co-author of the film, The Quiet American. His film, Hacksaw Ridge, is currently in pre-production to be directed by Randall Wallace later this year. For television he wrote on the HBO miniseries The Pacific, produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, and was nominated for two Emmys and won a WGA Award. He also wrote the miniseries: The Andromeda Strain, Crazy Horse, and Spartacus. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, Ensemble Studio Theater and an alumnus of New Dramatists.

Bill Rauch, Artistic Director, Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Photo by Lia Chang

Bill Rauch is the Artistic Director of Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Having spent eleven seasons as director, he has directed three world premieres: Mr. Schenkkan’s All the Way and By the Waters of Babylon, and Bill Cain’s Equivocation; and thirteen other plays including Medea/Macbeth/Cinderella, Measure for Measure, The Pirates of Penzance, Hamlet, The Merchant of Venice, The Music Man, Romeo and Juliet, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Comedy of Errors, Hedda Gabler, and Handler. Among his initiatives at OSF, Mr. Rauch committed to commissioning up to 37 new plays to dramatize moments of change in American history. American Revolutions: the U.S. History Cycle is now in its fourth year of productions. Mr. Rauch is also cofounder of Cornerstone Theater Company, where he directed more than 40 productions and served as its artistic director from 1986 to 2006. He has directed a number of world premieres, including The Clean House at Yale Repertory Theatre; Living Out and For Here or To Go? at the Mark Taper Forum; and My Wandering Boy and The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler at South Coast Repertory. He also directed the New York premiere of The Clean House at the Lincoln Center. Work elsewhere includes productions at South Coast Repertory, Guthrie Theater, Arena Stage, Long Wharf Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, Great Lakes Theater Festival and En Garde Arts. He is the recipient of numerous awards, and is a graduate of Harvard College.

The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University is dedicated to expanding the boundaries of theater. Winner of the 2012 and 2013 Tony Awards for Best Musical Revival for its productions of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess and Pippin, the A.R.T. is a leading force in the American theater, producing groundbreaking work in Cambridge and beyond. The A.R.T. was founded in 1980 by Robert Brustein, who served as Artistic Director until 2002, when he was succeeded by Robert Woodruff. In 2008, Diane Paulus became the A.R.T.’s Artistic Director. The A.R.T. is the recipient of numerous other awards including the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theater, the Pulitzer Prize, and many Elliot Norton and I.R.N.E. Awards. Its recent premiere production of Death and The Powers: The Robots’ Opera was a 2012 Pulitzer Prize finalist. During its 33-year history, the A.R.T. has welcomed many major American and international theater artists, presenting a diverse repertoire that includes premieres of American plays, bold reinterpretations of classical texts and provocative new music theater productions. The A.R.T. has performed throughout the U.S. and worldwide in 21 cities in 16 countries on four continents. In association with the renowned Moscow Art Theatre School, the A.R.T. is also a training ground for young artists. The Theater’s artistic staff teaches undergraduate classes in acting, directing, dramatic literature, dramaturgy, voice, and design at Harvard University, providing world-class professional training. Since becoming Artistic Director, Tony Award-winning director Diane Paulus has enhanced the A.R.T.’s core mission to expand the boundaries of theater by continuing to transform the ways in which work is developed, programmed, produced and contextualized, always including the audience as a partner. Productions such as Pippin, The Glass Menagerie, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Sleep No More, The Donkey Show, Gatz, The Blue Flower, and Prometheus Bound have engaged audiences in unique theatrical experiences. The A.R.T.’s club theater, OBERON, which Paulus calls a second stage for the 21st century, has become an incubator for local and emerging artists, and has also attracted national attention for its innovative programming model.

Established in 1935, the Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival is among the oldest and largest professional regional theatres in the country. Located in Ashland, Oregon, OSF is a cultural and recreational destination for more than 120,000 visitors per year, has a company that numbers more than 550 (including over 100 actors) and an attendance of more than 400,000. As many as nine plays are performed concurrently on three stages. OSF offers a wide-ranging playbill, including Shakespeare, American classics, musicals, contemporary works and world premieres. Plays originating at OSF have gone on to be produced by theatres across the country, including Arena Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Center Theatre Group, Denver Center Theatre Company, Guthrie Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Seattle Repertory Theatre and Yale Repertory Theatre. ALL THE WAY was commissioned through OSF’s American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle, initiated in 2008 to look at moments of change in America’s past. The sequel, THE GREAT SOCIETY, commissioned by and co-produced with Seattle Repertory Theatre, will premiere at OSF in 2014. More information about OSF can be obtained at www.osfashland.org.

http://www.AllTheWayBroadway.com
Facebook.com/AllTheWayBroadway
Twitter.com/AllTheWayBroadway (@AllTheWayBway)

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia will make her jazz vocalist debut on March 1, 2014, in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. Lia recently starred as Carole Barbara in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar.

Other Articles about Peter Jay Fernandez:
Bryan Cranston Makes Broadway Debut in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre, Opens March 6, 2014 
Sept. 13 – Oct. 12: Bryan Cranston, Brandon J. Dirden, Michael McKean, Reed Birney, Peter Jay Fernandez, Crystal Dickinson and More Set for Robert Schenkkan’s All The Way at A.R.T.
Peter Jay Fernandez, Francois Battiste, Charles Brice, J. Bernard Calloway, Bryan Terrell Clarke, Patrick Cummings, Devin E. Haqq, Billy Eugene Jones, Stanley Wayne Mathis, Cedric Turner, Stephen Tyrone Williams Set for PROJECT1VOICE’s Benefit Staged Reading of A Soldier’s Story at Kumble Theatre on June 17, 2013
James Wallert, Peter Jay Fernandez, Melissa Friedman, Godfrey L. Simmons and More Set for Epic Theatre’s RICHARD III: Born with Teeth at the Pershing Square Signature Center, April 16 – May 4, 2013
Peter Jay Fernandez Set for World Premiere of Catherine Filloux’s LUZ at La MaMa’s First Floor Theatre, September 28-October 14, 2012
Photos: Larry Bryggman, Denise Burse, Peter Jay Fernandez, Tim Hopper, Arliss Howard, Kobi Libii, Mary McCann, Neil Pepe, David Pittu, Steve Rosen, Sheila Tapia, Debra Winger at Atlantic Theatre’s Opening Night of Gabe McKinley’s CQ/CX
Larry Bryggman, Peter Jay Fernandez, Arliss Howard and David Pittu Set for Atlantic Theater Company’s CQ/CX, January 25-March 4, 2012
Denise Burse & Peter Jay Fernandez Featured in INTAR Reading of Andrew Dolan’s The Many Mistresses of Martin Luther King
Multimedia: Zooman and The Sign Opening Night Party Peter Jay Fernandez and Laura Heisler Star in Too Much Memory

Other articles by Lia Chang:
André De Shields, Kevin Carolan, Usman Ally, Mary Zimmerman, Doug Peck Among 10 IRNE Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran 
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series 
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night 
March 21 – May 4: Arena Stage Presents World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David Starring Tony Award winner Ron Rifkin and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Jan. 22-31: Photos: Tracey Conyer Lee, Lelund Durond Thompson, Matthew Murumba, and Carmen LoBue set for Camile Darby’s Lords Resistance Featured in The Fire This Time Festival at The Kraine Theater Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington 
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Cheryl Lynn Bruce, André De Shields, Sandra Marquez, Dennis Zacek and More Celebrate Opening Night of Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at Victory Gardens
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
Photos: Playwright Lonnie Carter Talks TRIM, The Tiger Woods What If Story, The Romance of Magno Rubio and The Lost Boys of Sudan
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999 Crafting a Career
Photos: All-Access Pass to Disney’s Aladdin at The Muny with Thom Sesma, Francis Jue, Robin De Jesus, John Tartaglia, Jason Graae, Curtis Holbrook, Eddie Korbich, Samantha Massell and Ken Page Performing Arts Images from the Asian American Pacific Islander Collection on Display at the Library of Congress to Celebrate APA Heritage Month

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website. Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Opening night for All The Way at The Neil Simon in New York on March 6, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

All the Way, the new play by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan (The Kentucky Cycle) starring “Breaking Bad”‘s Bryan Cranston in a self-assured Broadway debut as Lyndon B. Johnson, opened on Thursday, March 6, 2014, at The Neil Simon Theatre (250 West 52nd Street) in New York. The play is directed by Bill Rauch, Artistic Director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, where All the Way began its theatrical life.

Peter Jay Fernandez and Bryan Cranston. Photo by Lia Chang

Brandon J. Dirden backstage at The Neil Simon Theatre on opening night of All The Way on March 6, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

The tight ensemble cast features Eric Lenox Abrams (Bob Moses), Betsy Aidem (Lady Bird Johnson), J. Bernard Calloway (Ralph Abernathy), Rob Campbell (Governor George Wallace), Brandon J. Dirden (Martin Luther King, Jr.), James Eckhouse (Robert McNamara), Peter Jay Fernandez (Roy Wilkins), Christopher Gurr (Senator Strom Thurmond), William Jackson Harper (Stokely Carmichael), Michael McKean (J. Edgar Hoover), John McMartin (Senator Richard Russell), Christopher Liam Moore (Walter Jenkins), Robert Petkoff (Senator Hubert Humphrey), Ethan Phillips (Stanley Levison), Richard Poe (Senator Everett Dirksen), Roslyn Ruff (Coretta Scott King), Susannah Schulman (Lurleen Wallace), Bill Timoney (Senator Karl Mundt) and Steve Vinovich (Rep. Emanuel Celler).

Peter Jay Fernandez, Crystal Dickinson and Brandon J. Dirden. Photo by Lia Chang

All the Way takes audiences behind the doors of the Oval Office and inside the first year of Lyndon B. Johnson’s presidency, his fight to pass a landmark civil rights bill and his relationship with key political figures, including Martin Luther King Jr., J. Edgar Hoover and Senator Richard Russell.

Performances are Tuesday and Thursday at 7pm Wednesday and Friday at 8pm Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm Sunday at 3pm. Tickets are available at at The Neil Simon Theatre Box office (250 West 52nd Street) in New York and are on sale at Ticketmaster.com or by calling (800) 745-3000.

I attended the opening night performance as a guest of cast member Peter Jay Fernandez and his wife Denise Burse. All of the opening night attendees were spirited to The Restaurants at Rockefeller Center in UBER cars, a co-sponsor with AMC for the All The Way opening night party. Once ensconced at Rockefeller Center, we dined on macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, salmon, whipped sweet potatoes, chili and jalepeno cord bread.

Jeremiah Abiah, MaameYaa Boafo, Denise Burse, Peter Jay Fernandez. Photo by Lia Chang

All the Way was commissioned by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle and premiered at OSF in 2012. It then went on to play a sold-out and critically acclaimed run at the A.R.T. from September 13-October 12, 2013 starring Cranston. The play was awarded the 2013 inaugural Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History, established through Columbia University in honor of the late Senator Kennedy, honoring new plays or musicals exploring US history and issues of the day.

Roslyn Ruff, Leslie Uggams, Peter Jay Fernandez and Grahame Pratt. Photo by Lia Chang

All the Way is produced by Jeffrey Richards, Louise Gund, Jerry Frankel, Stephanie P. McClelland, Double Gemini Productions, Rebecca Gold, Scott M. Delman, Barbara H. Freitag, Harvey Weinstein, Gene Korf, William Berlind, Luigi Caiola, Gutterman Chernoff, JAM Theatricals, Gabrielle Palitz, Cheryl Wiesenfeld and Will Trice. Set design is by Christopher Acebo, costume design by Deborah M. Dryden, lighting design by Jane Cox, composition and sound design by Paul James Prendergast, video projections by Shawn Sagady, the projection design consultant is Wendall K. Harrington, hair & wig design is by Paul Huntley, and the sound consultant is Peter Fitzgerald. The Dramaturge is Tom Bryant and casting is by Telsey + Company William Cantler, CSA.

Dramaturge Tom Bryant, Denise Burse, Peter Jay Fernandez and Diane Paulus. Photo by Lia Chang

The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University is dedicated to expanding the boundaries of theater. Winner of the 2012 and 2013 Tony Awards for Best Musical Revival for its productions of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess and Pippin, the A.R.T. is a leading force in the American theater, producing groundbreaking work in Cambridge and beyond. The A.R.T. was founded in 1980 by Robert Brustein, who served as Artistic Director until 2002, when he was succeeded by Robert Woodruff. In 2008, Diane Paulus became the A.R.T.’s Artistic Director. The A.R.T. is the recipient of numerous other awards including the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theater, the Pulitzer Prize, and many Elliot Norton and I.R.N.E. Awards. Its recent premiere production of Death and The Powers: The Robots’ Opera was a 2012 Pulitzer Prize finalist. During its 33-year history, the A.R.T. has welcomed many major American and international theater artists, presenting a diverse repertoire that includes premieres of American plays, bold reinterpretations of classical texts and provocative new music theater productions. The A.R.T. has performed throughout the U.S. and worldwide in 21 cities in 16 countries on four continents. In association with the renowned Moscow Art Theatre School, the A.R.T. is also a training ground for young artists. The Theater’s artistic staff teaches undergraduate classes in acting, directing, dramatic literature, dramaturgy, voice, and design at Harvard University, providing world-class professional training. Since becoming Artistic Director, Tony Award-winning director Diane Paulus has enhanced the A.R.T.’s core mission to expand the boundaries of theater by continuing to transform the ways in which work is developed, programmed, produced and contextualized, always including the audience as a partner. Productions such as Pippin, The Glass Menagerie, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Sleep No More, The Donkey Show, Gatz, The Blue Flower, and Prometheus Bound have engaged audiences in unique theatrical experiences. The A.R.T.’s club theater, OBERON, which Paulus calls a second stage for the 21st century, has become an incubator for local and emerging artists, and has also attracted national attention for its innovative programming model.

Established in 1935, the Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival is among the oldest and largest professional regional theatres in the country. Located in Ashland, Oregon, OSF is a cultural and recreational destination for more than 120,000 visitors per year, has a company that numbers more than 550 (including over 100 actors) and an attendance of more than 400,000. As many as nine plays are performed concurrently on three stages. OSF offers a wide-ranging playbill, including Shakespeare, American classics, musicals, contemporary works and world premieres. Plays originating at OSF have gone on to be produced by theatres across the country, including Arena Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Center Theatre Group, Denver Center Theatre Company, Guthrie Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Seattle Repertory Theatre and Yale Repertory Theatre. ALL THE WAY was commissioned through OSF’s American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle, initiated in 2008 to look at moments of change in America’s past. The sequel, THE GREAT SOCIETY, commissioned by and co-produced with Seattle Repertory Theatre, will premiere at OSF in 2014. More information about OSF can be obtained at www.osfashland.org.

http://www.AllTheWayBroadway.com
Facebook.com/AllTheWayBroadway
Twitter.com/AllTheWayBroadway (@AllTheWayBway)

Denise Burse, Peter Jay Fernandez and Lia Chang. Photo by MaameYaa Boafo

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia recently starred as Carole Barbara in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar, and made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. She is profiled in Jade Magazine.

Other Articles about Peter Jay Fernandez:
Bryan Cranston, Brandon J. Dirden, Michael McKean, Peter Jay Fernandez, Roslyn Ruff and More Open in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre on March 6, 2014
Bryan Cranston Makes Broadway Debut in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre, Opens March 6, 2014 
Sept. 13 – Oct. 12: Bryan Cranston, Brandon J. Dirden, Michael McKean, Reed Birney, Peter Jay Fernandez, Crystal Dickinson and More Set for Robert Schenkkan’s All The Way at A.R.T.
Peter Jay Fernandez, Francois Battiste, Charles Brice, J. Bernard Calloway, Bryan Terrell Clarke, Patrick Cummings, Devin E. Haqq, Billy Eugene Jones, Stanley Wayne Mathis, Cedric Turner, Stephen Tyrone Williams Set for PROJECT1VOICE’s Benefit Staged Reading of A Soldier’s Story at Kumble Theatre on June 17, 2013
James Wallert, Peter Jay Fernandez, Melissa Friedman, Godfrey L. Simmons and More Set for Epic Theatre’s RICHARD III: Born with Teeth at the Pershing Square Signature Center, April 16 – May 4, 2013
Peter Jay Fernandez Set for World Premiere of Catherine Filloux’s LUZ at La MaMa’s First Floor Theatre, September 28-October 14, 2012
Photos: Larry Bryggman, Denise Burse, Peter Jay Fernandez, Tim Hopper, Arliss Howard, Kobi Libii, Mary McCann, Neil Pepe, David Pittu, Steve Rosen, Sheila Tapia, Debra Winger at Atlantic Theatre’s Opening Night of Gabe McKinley’s CQ/CX
Larry Bryggman, Peter Jay Fernandez, Arliss Howard and David Pittu Set for Atlantic Theater Company’s CQ/CX, January 25-March 4, 2012
Denise Burse & Peter Jay Fernandez Featured in INTAR Reading of Andrew Dolan’s The Many Mistresses of Martin Luther King
Multimedia: Zooman and The Sign Opening Night Party
Peter Jay Fernandez and Laura Heisler Star in Too Much Memory

Other articles by Lia Chang:
André De Shields, Kevin Carolan, Usman Ally, Mary Zimmerman, Doug Peck Among 10 IRNE Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran 
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series 
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night 
March 21 – May 4: Arena Stage Presents World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David Starring Tony Award winner Ron Rifkin and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington 
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999 Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved.  All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Lia Chang and Voza Rivers. Photo by Will Chang

Woodie King, Jr.’s New Federal Theatre will honor Voza Rivers, founding member of New Heritage Repertory Theatre, at the 44th Anniversary Gala on Sunday, March 16, 2014, at BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center (199 Chambers Street).  Danny Glover and Debbi Morgan will co-host this special event saluting NFT, which kicks off at 4pm, and features performances from Daniel Beaty, Impact Repertory Theater (Academy Award Nominee, “Raise It Up” from the film August Rush), Chuck Jackson, and Valerie Simpson.  Honorary Chairmen are Harry Belafonte and Hon. Mayor David N. Dinkins.

Voza Rivers is an accomplished theatre, music, film and events producer and is recognized as one of the country’s leading African American theatre producers. Rivers’ involvement in the theatre dates back to 1964 when he met Roger Furman, a playwright/ director, and a member of the American Negro Theatre (1940-1949), which included Harry Belafonte, Ruby Dee, Sidney Poitier, Gertrude Jeannette, and Fred O’Neil among many others. Furman launched New Heritage 50 years ago on the philosophy and mission of his beloved American Negro Theatre. Rivers joined New Heritage with Furman’s encouragement and guidance which left an indelible impression on the importance of black theater and the role it played then and now in mirroring the lives of people of color around the world. Rivers became Executive Director of New Heritage upon Furman’s death in 1983. In 1973 Furman directed a staged revival of the American Negro’s Theatre’s 1940′s production of Striver’s Row, starring Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis. Under River’s leadership New Heritage produced, in tribute to Furman, a 1984 production of Strivers Row, which earned New Heritage lavish praise and many awards. The successful impact of Striver’s Row inspired Rivers to look beyond the African American experience and reach across the world to introduce Harlem to the works of Black South African playwrights and actors. In 1984, as Executive Producer of New Heritage, Rivers and his team convinced the producers of a two character South African play, Woza Albert!, featuring Mbongeni Ngema and Percy Mtwa, and directed by Barney Simon, at the Lucille Lortel Theater in New York City to allow New Heritage to transfer and produce Woza Albert!, this extraordinary and powerful play about apartheid, at New Heritage’s theater in Harlem. The success of Woza Albert!, an example of agitprop theater, initiated a historic relationship between New Heritage,Mbongeni Ngema and Black South African artists that has fostered such major productions such as Ngema’s Asinamali! and Sarafina! the Musical – both shows went to Broadway. The relationship between New Heritage’s team (Phyllis Yvonne Stickney, Andre Robinson, and Duma Ndlovu) continues to this day. In 1988, New Heritage presented the stage production of Sarafina! in Harlem at Aaron Davis Hall for two presentations; one for 750 Harlem students and the second for the community. Also in 1988, Rivers received the FEDAT (Foundation for the Extension and Development of the American Professional Theatre, supported by the League of American Theatres and Producers) award for his work on Sarafina! That same year Rivers received the United Nations Medal for Peace, also for Sarafina! and in 1989, a banner year, he received a Grammy nomination, as one of the producers of the Sarafina! cast album and co-produced with Lincoln Center Theater a musical concert featuring Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masakela and the Sarafina! cast at Radio City Music Hall.

Actor, producer and humanitarian Danny Glover has been a commanding presence on screen, stage and television for more than 25 years. As an actor, his film credits range from the blockbuster Lethal Weapon franchise to smaller independent features, some of which Glover also produced. He co-starred in the critically acclaimed feature Dreamgirls directed by Bill Condon and in Po’ Boy’s Game for director Clement Virgo. He appeared in the hit feature Shooter for director Antoine Fuqua and can be seen in Honeydripper for director John Sayles and Be Kind, Rewind for director Michel Gondry. Glover has also gained respect for his wide-reaching community activism and philanthropic efforts, with a particular emphasis on advocacy for economic justice, and access to health care and education programs in the United States and Africa. For these efforts, Glover received a 2006 DGA Honor. Internationally, Glover has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program from 1998-2004, focusing on issues of poverty, disease, and economic development in Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, and currently serves as UNICEF Ambassador. In 2005, Glover co-founded Louverture Films dedicated to the development and production of films of historical relevance, social purpose, commercial value and artistic integrity. A native of San Francisco, Glover trained at the Black Actors’ Workshop of the American Conservatory Theater. It was his Broadway debut in Fugard’s Master Harold…and the boys, which brought him to national recognition and led director Robert Benton to cast Glover in his first leading role in 1984′s Oscar®-nominated Best Picture Places in the Heart. The following year, Glover starred in two more Best Picture nominees: Peter Weir’s Witness and Steven Spielberg’s The Color Purple. In 1987, Glover partnered with Mel Gibson in the first Lethal Weapon film and went on to star in three hugely successful Lethal Weapon sequels. Glover has also invested his talents in more personal projects, including the award-winning To Sleep With Anger, which he executive produced and for which he won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor; Bopha!; Manderlay; Missing in America; and the film version of Athol Fugard’s play Boesman and Lena. On the small screen, Glover won an Image Award and a Cable ACE Award and earned an Emmy nomination for his performance in the title role of the HBO movie Mandela. He has also received Emmy nominations for his work in the acclaimed miniseries “Lonesome Dove” and the telefilm “Freedom Song.” As a director, he earned a Daytime Emmy nomination for Showtime’s “Just a Dream.”

Debbi Morgan at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival Gala in Winston-Salem, NC, on July 29, 2013. Photo by Lia Chang

Debbi Morgan was born in Dunn, North Carolina and raised in the South Bronx. Morgan appeared in several commercials before joining the New Federal Theatre Company. Her theatrical career includes roles in the Broadway hit What the Wine Sellers Buy, Off-Broadway production of Does the Tiger Wear a Necktie? and Los Angeles productions of My Sister, My Sister and Once in a Wifetime. Ms. Morgan’s career over the past thirty years has been filled with colorful and deeply captivating roles such as the controversial film, Color of The Cross where Morgan portrayed Mary, the Mother of Jesus. She co-starred in the provoking film, Woman Thou Art Loosed along with Loretta Divine and the Reverend TD Jakes. She appeared opposite Samuel L. Jackson in the feature film Coach Carter, and co-starred along with Alfre Woodard, Omar Epps, and Dennis Haysbert in the popular Love and Basketball. Morgan also co-starred opposite Denzel Washington in Norman Jewison’s The Hurricane, which won her a Best Actress nomination for an NAACP Image Award. However, it was in Kasi Lemmons’ critically acclaimed feature Eve’s Bayou that Debbi made her unforgettable big screen debut. Her performance garnered her an Independent Film Project Spirit Award and a Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress, as well as Best Supporting Actress nominations from the NAACP Image Awards and the Golden Satellite Awards. Morgan has guest starred on numerous primetime series, and starred in her own series opposite Lea Thompson on the Lifetime series “For the People”. She also starred in the short lived FX televsion series, “Touching Evil”. Other notable primetime appearances include re-curring guest-star roles as Darrin DeWitt Henson’s ne’er- do-well mother on Showtime’s popular family drama “Soulfood”, for which she won an NAACP Image Award, and as the mystical Seer on the WB supernatural drama “Charmed.” But it was in the role of Angie Hubbard on the popular daytime drama “All My Children,” which catapulted Morgan into public consciousness in 1989, where she became the first, and only thus far, African American actress to win an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress. But one of her biggest award highlights was in 2009 when Debbi received the prestigious Gracie Award honoring women who’ve made enormous strides in television. Currently, in addition to her other commitments, Debbi has mounted a one-woman show “The Monkey on My Back!” based on her memoir of the same title. It has been playing to standing room only audiences and is the first of a series of such performances. And the actress’s production company, Dam Entertainment is working in conjunction with Goldline Productions to bring to reality TV “All About The Benjamin’s”, a family’s journey in dealing with two young adult sons, one with Autism, and the other with Asperger’s syndrome. Debbi also just joined the cast of the new series “Power” for the Starz network, playing the recurring role of Estelle, executive produced by 50 Cent and slated to begin airing in 2014. And capping off the end of the 2013 Debbi was offered a book deal with Simon & Schuster for penning her personal memoir The Monkey on My Back, scheduled for release next year.

Woodie King, Jr. at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival Gala in Winston-Salem, NC, on July 29, 2013. Photo by Lia Chang

Founded by Woodie King, Jr. in 1970, New Federal Theatre has gone on to international acclaim for its bold mission to integrate minorities and women into the mainstream of American theater by training artists for the profession and by presenting plays by minorities and women to integrated, multicultural audiences – plays which evoke the truth through beautiful, artistic recreations of ourselves. Specializing in minority drama, New Federal Theatre has brought the joy of the living stage to not only the minority community living on the Lower East Side near NFT’s home at Henry Street Settlement’s Abrons Arts Center, but to audiences from all over the metropolitan area. NFT has provided emerging playwrights with the opportunity to have their works produced; it has brought minority actors, directors and designers to national attention and sponsored numerous ethnic theater groups and events. NFT’s vocational training workshops continue to prepare minority people for employment in theater and related fields. Most importantly, NFT provides the multi-ethnic Lower East Side, as well as the New York Metro area, with theater of the highest caliber that relates to the interest of different cultural groups. The impact of NFT is nothing less than extraordinary. Writers first presented at NFT are now part of the literary fabric of the American mainstream. Many plays attained national significance and reached much wider audiences by having been showcased at NFT. The alumni list of NFT productions reads like a Who’s Who of American theater, film and television: Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman, Debbie Allen, Phylicia Rashad, S. Epatha Merkerson, Jackee Harry, Laurence Fishburne, Dick Anthony Williams, Taurean Blacque, Debbie Morgan, Robert Downey, Jr. Garrett Morris, Lynn Whitfield, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Ruby Dee, Leslie Uggams, Samuel L. Jackson and many more. Under Woodie King, Jr.’s stewardship, NFT presented over 280 productions in the last four decades including: For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf, What the Winesellers Buy, Reggae, The Taking of Miss Janie and The Dance and The Railroad. His directorial credits are extensive and include work in film as well as in theater. He has directed at the most prominent theaters across the country and has been the recipient of numerous awards from AUDELCO, The NAACP, Drama Critics Circle and an Obie Award for Sustained Achievement.

Tickets for the Gala (from $100 to $300 including pre-event reception) may be purchased by calling New Federal Theatre at 212/353-1176 or by email at newfederal@aol.com.

Lia Chang. Photo by Charles Richard Barboza

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia recently starred as Carole Barbara in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar, and made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.  She is profiled in Jade Magazine.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Jose Llana, Ruthie Ann Miles, Melody Butiu, Conrad Ricamora and More Return for Here Lies Love; Previews Begin April 14, 2014
Photos: Bryan Cranston, Peter Jay Fernandez, Roslyn Ruff, Tamara Tunie, Leslie Uggams, Ruben Santiago-Hudson Celebrate All The Way Opening Night
Mar. 7-Apr. 6: André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
Mar. 21-May 4: Richard Thomas, Ron Rifkin, Hallie Foote and Khaled Nabaway Set for Arena Stage’s World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Bryan Cranston, Brandon J. Dirden, Michael McKean, Peter Jay Fernandez, Roslyn Ruff and More Open in Robert Schenkkan’s All the Way at The Neil Simon Theatre on March 6, 2014
André De Shields, Kevin Carolan, Usman Ally, Mary Zimmerman, Doug Peck Among 10 IRNE Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran 
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series 
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night 
March 21 – May 4: Arena Stage Presents World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David Starring Tony Award winner Ron Rifkin and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington 
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999 Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved.  All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman at New Federal Theatre’s 44th Anniversary Gala on March 16, 2014 at BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center in New York. Photo by Lia Chang

Tony and Drama Desk Award winner Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman (“Sesame Street”) lead the cast of The Fabulous Miss Marie, Woodie King Jr.’s New Federal Theatre Off-Broadway revival of the second play of “The Ed Bullins Project” dedicated to Ed Bullins, the pioneer of the Black Arts Movement and one of America’s most important and influential playwright.

The Fabulous Miss Marie, first produced in 1971 at the New Lafayette Theatre in Harlem will begin performances April 17th and continue through May 18th, with opening night set for May 1st at Castillo Theatre, 543 W 42nd St (between 10th Ave and 11th Ave) in New York. Woodie King Jr. directs a cast that also features Toccarra Cash, Michael Chenevert, Ugo Chukwu, Aaliyah Habeeb, Beethovan Oden, G. Alverez Reid, Ashley C. Turner, and Brittany N. Williams.

Set during a three-day holiday party at the home of Marie Horton in the Wilshire section of Los Angles in the early 1960s, it takes place against the backdrop of the Civil Right Movement and on the eve of the Watts Rebellion. Most of the play’s middle class characters, however, are distant from those upheavals; instead they drink, flirt, quarrel and reminisce as they hope their lives in the emerging Black middle class can shield them against the painful legacy of slavery and racism in America.

Roscoe Orman, Ed Bullins and Tonya Pinkins. Photo by Lia Chang

The Fabulous Miss Marie is structured like a jazz improvisation, with each of the ensemble members taking a solo/monologue, that reveals the pain simmering under the party’s cheerful, suburban façade. As New York Times theatre critic Clive Barnes said at the time, “Bullins writes the way Charlie Parker played: It is all so easy and effortless. It sounds improvised, and yet it doesn’t sound improvised, simply because it is the improvisation of formalitThe Fabulous Miss Marie, is set in Los Angeles during the Civil Rights’ student sit-ins. This is arguably Bullins’ greatest work, one that bears comparison to Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard. Like Chekhov, Bullins is interested in how love can be expressed in a “cemetery of human failure and class arrogance.” With this play, part of his Twentieth Century Cycle, Bullins perfected a dramatic structure also found in In the Wine Time, which kicked off this season.

Ed Bullins is considered one of the most prolific and influential playwrights of the Black Arts Movement. Winner of the prestigious NY Drama Critics’ Circle Award and OBIE Award for The Taking of Miss Janie, he has greatly influenced American theatre, especially Black theatre. He is the author of more than 100 plays that have been produced throughout the United States and Europe. His acclaimed canon of plays include Clara’s Ole Man, Dialect Determinism (or The Rally), How Do You Do (1965), A Minor Scene, It Has No Choice, The Theme Is Blackness (1966); In New England Winter, Black Commercial #2 (1967); Goin’ a Buffalo, A Son Come Home, The Electronic Nigger, The Corner, In The Wine Time, The Gentleman Caller (1968); The Box Office, One-Minute Commercial, State Office Bldg. Cruse, The American Flag Ritual, We Righteous Bombers (1969); The Helper, Death List, A Short Play for A Small Theater, Street Sounds, The Man Who Dug Fish, The Duplex, It Bess Dat Way, A Street Play, A Black Time for Black Folk (1970); The Fabulous Miss Marie, Night of the Beast (1971); The Play of the Play (1973); Malcolm: 71 or Publishing Blackness (1975); The Taking of Miss Janie, The Mystery of Phyllis Wheatley: An Historical Play for Young Americans, I Am Lucy Terry: An Historical Fantasy for Young Americans (1976); City Preacher (1984); High John Da Conqueror: the Musical (1985); and Salaam, Huey Newton, Salaam (1990), among others. He received the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, the Drama Desk Vernon Rice Award, the Drama Prize at the Venice Biennale Arts Festival, an Honorary Doctor of Letters from Columbia College, three OBIE Awards, two Guggenheim fellowships, three Rockefeller Foundation Playwriting grants and three NEA playwriting grants. A Professor of Theatre at Northeastern University, Mr. Bullins has also won AUDELCO Awards and The Black Theatre Festival Living Legend Award. Bullins has published four collections of plays: Five Plays by Ed Bullins (1968), The Fabulous Miss Marie (1970), The Duplex: A Black Love Fable in Four Movements (1971), Four Dynamite Plays (1972) and The Theme is Blackness (1972), as well as short prose The Hungered One: Early Writings (1971) and a novel The Reluctant Rapist (1973). Bullins was recently represented Off-Broadway by the York Theater’s revival of Storyville. His work, characterized by disdain for ineffective political rhetoric as a substitute for action, most often examines the lives of Black people in the inner city. In 1968, Clive Barnes, writing in the New York Times called Bullins “a welcome addition to the ranks of New York playwrights.” Four years later, Barnes added “Bullins writes the way Charlie Parker played: It is all so easy and effortless. It sounds improvised, and yet it doesn’t sound improvised, simply because it is the improvisation of formality.” Today, Bullins is regarded as a seminal force in the American theater.

Performances will be Thursday and Friday evenings at 7:30 PM, Saturday at 2 PM and 7:30 PM, and Sunday at 2 PM. Tickets will be $25 and can be ordered through www.castillo.org or by phone at 212/941-5800.

For more information, please visit www.newfederaltheatre.com or call NFT at 212-353-1176.

Founded by Woodie King, Jr. in 1970, New Federal Theatre has gone on to international acclaim for its bold mission to integrate minorities and women into the mainstream of American theater by training artists for the profession and by presenting plays by minorities and women to integrated, multicultural audiences – plays which evoke the truth through beautiful, artistic recreations of ourselves. Specializing in minority drama, New Federal Theatre has brought the joy of the living stage to not only the minority community living on the Lower East Side near NFT’s home at Henry Street Settlement’s Abrons Arts Center, but to audiences from all over the metropolitan area. NFT has provided emerging playwrights with the opportunity to have their works produced; it has brought minority actors, directors and designers to national attention and sponsored numerous ethnic theater groups and events. NFT’s vocational training workshops continue to prepare minority people for employment in theater and related fields. Most importantly, NFT provides the multi-ethnic Lower East Side, as well as the New York Metro area, with theater of the highest caliber that relates to the interest of different cultural groups. The impact of NFT is nothing less than extraordinary. Writers first presented at NFT are now part of the literary fabric of the American mainstream. Many plays attained national significance and reached much wider audiences by having been showcased at NFT. The alumni list of NFT productions reads like a Who’s Who of American theater, film and television: Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman, Debbie Allen, Phylicia Rashad, S. Epatha Merkerson, Jackee Harry, Laurence Fishburne, Dick Anthony Williams, Taurean Blacque, Debbie Morgan, Robert Downey, Jr. Garrett Morris, Lynn Whitfield, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Ruby Dee, Leslie Uggams, Samuel L. Jackson and many more. Under Woodie King, Jr.’s stewardship, NFT presented over 280 productions in the last four decades including: For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf, What the Winesellers Buy, Reggae, The Taking of Miss Janie and The Dance and The Railroad. His directorial credits are extensive and include work in film as well as in theater. He has directed at the most prominent theaters across the country and has been the recipient of numerous awards from AUDELCO, The NAACP, Drama Critics Circle and an Obie Award for Sustained Achievement.

Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia recently starred as Carole Barbara in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar, and made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.  She is profiled in Jade Magazine.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Photos: Bryan Cranston, Peter Jay Fernandez, Roslyn Ruff, Tamara Tunie, Leslie Uggams, Ruben Santiago-Hudson Celebrate All The Way Opening Night
Mar. 7-Apr. 6: André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
André De Shields, Kevin Carolan, Usman Ally, Mary Zimmerman, Doug Peck Among 10 IRNE Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Jose Llana, Ruthie Ann Miles, Melody Butiu, Conrad Ricamora and More Return for Here Lies Love; Previews Begin April 14, 2014
Mar. 21-May 4: Richard Thomas, Ron Rifkin, Hallie Foote and Khaled Nabaway Set for Arena Stage’s World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series 
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night 
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington 
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Denise Burse, Michael Genet, Doug Eskew, Tracie Thoms, Sakina Ansari-Wilson and More Celebrate Marcus Gardley’s dance of the holy ghosts Opening Night at Center Stage
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999 Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved.  All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Rome Neal is celebrating Jazz Appreciation and Poetry Month in April with a pair of jazzy turns. On Saturday, April 5, 2014, he’ll be the featured vocalist in his Banana Puddin’ Jazz Series at the Nuyorican Poets Café, with Lafayette Harris, Jr. on Piano, Ricky Gordon on the Drums, Christopher Hall on Bass. Wild in the Wind, My Foolish Heart and Afro Blue are among the 8-10 songs that he will sing. The house opens at 9:30 p.m. His guest poet, Richard Williams, will start the evening off at 9:45 p.m, followed by Neal’s 4 year old grandson who will perform his Michael Jackson dance. Admission is $15. Advance tickets are available onine at www.nuyorican.org or by calling (212 780-9386).

Nuyorican Poets Cafe
236 East Third Street (bet B & C Aves)
New York City
For Reservations: 718-288-8048
9:30 p.m.
On Thursday, April 24, 2014, Neal will reprise his Audelco Award Winning Solo Performance as the title character in Laurence Holder’s MONK for one performance only, as part of the 15th Annual Central Brooklyn Jazz Festival at “FOR MY SWEET”, 1103 Fulton St. in Brooklyn, New York at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20. For more information call (917) 757-0170 or (718) 288-8048.

FOR MY SWEET
1103 Fulton Street
Brooklyn, NY
For reservations: 718-288-8048
8 p.m.
Rome Neal in Laurence Holder’s MONK at the NUYORICAN POETS CAFÉ in New York

An Audelco award-winning actor, director, producer and jazz vocalist, Rome Neal is also the Artistic Theatre Director of the theatre program and has curated the Banana Puddin’ Jazz Series for 11 years. Last month, in honor of Women’s Herstory Month, I made my jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Series “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York, attended Barry Harris’ Jazz Vocals Workshop and sang at Cobi Narita’s Friday Night Open Mic at Pearl Studios in New York. Below are excerpts from our chat after Cobi’s Open Mic.

Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Series “LADY” featuring Lia Chang, Kathleen Doran (trumpet/vocals), Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Sista, Linda Hudson (piano), Adi Meyerson (bass), Josephine Morena Cuevas (drummer) and Rome Neal at the Nuyorican Poets Café in New York on March 1, 2014. Photo by Tom Goodwin

Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran

Lia: How did you start Banana Puddin’ Jazz?
Rome: It started with me doing the research for the character of Thelonious Monk in the play MONK, penned exclusively for me by my good friend Laurence Holder. I would go to jazz clubs to find out the essence of my character. It was important to me to listen to music live, being with the musicians and getting a true sense of the environments that I was talking about in the play. Then it clicked. I wanted to sing the music; I wanted to promote the music. I wanted to be a part of the music. And I have my home, the Nuyorican Poets Café, my artistic home. So I said, “Hey, let me bring this energy that I was feeling from uptown in Harlem clubs like the legendary Saint Nick’s Pub and The Lenox Lounge, downtown to the Lower East Side, and do a jazz series.”

Lia: How do you choose who you are going to shine the spotlight on each month?
Rome: I like themes – Like the Women in Jazz for Women’s Herstory Month which you were in, LGBT greats in Jazz-which I explored people in the gay and lesbian community who were jazz musicians; vocalists who created this music, like Billy Strayhorn, Billie Holiday, Carmen MacCrae; The Young and the Jazzy; Gentle Gentlemen in Jazz; Marvtastic Ladies in Jazz, the Japanese Jazz Connection. One idea surfaced for a couple of Jazzy Thespians events which was in celebration of the National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, NC and was followed by another one which paid tribute to the New York based AUDELCO Black Theatre Awards. I want to do the Russian Jazz Connection, because there are a lot of Russians in town that are doing jazz. Then there are times I just like to showcase up and coming talent.

Lia: Tell me about your TV show.
Rome: The Banana Puddin’ Jazz TV Show is in it’s 4th year  on Brooklyn Public Network Channel 3. It can also be found on these cable stations: Cablevision 69, Time Warner 56, Verizon FIOS 44, RCN 84. It plays every Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. and 7:30 pm. It is a 28 minute edited version of what I do at the Nuyorican Poets Café, the essence of my Banana Puddin’ Jazz evening. It is also streamed world wide.

The closing night curtain call of Ishmael Reed’s The Final Version at the Nuyorican Poets Café in New York on January 19, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Lia: This past winter, you starred in and directed Ishmael Reed’s The Final Version, which explores the complex intersections between racial identity and liberal ideology, and examines how New York City’s leftist culture has changed since the 1930′s. You portrayed Lee Ransom, an African-American writer sponsored by the American Communist Party, who struggles with tensions between Communist ideology and commercial success from the 1930s through the 1960s.
Rome: Ishmael is a genius and you can sense this in the many plays he has written over the years of which I have been blessed to direct. He has an investigative skill of having the audience discover societal and political truths that not only make you more knowledgeable about what’s going on around you, but makes you laugh out loud!!!

Rome Neal takes his turn at the mic during Barry Harris’ (seated) Jazz Vocals Workshop at the Lincoln Square Neighborhood Community Center in New York on March 11, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Lia: Who are the jazz musicians that inspire you?
Rome: At the top of the list is pianist/composer/educator, Dr. Barry Harris, another genius and man with a heart of gold. Barry is not only one of the most acclaimed jazz musicians on the scene he is an educator of the music who holds court every Tuesday at 250 w 65th Street, a community center on the Westside. Then there’s bassist/composer Bill Lee (Spike’s dad). We live in the same neighborhood and one day we met and a whole new world opened up for me. Bill is like a father/brother and good friend who scored the music not only for his son, Spike’s movies like Do The Right Thing, Mo Betta Blues and others, but he he created the score and performed on the soundtrack of MONK in which I get to hear his great music everytime I perform the play. I have been a vocalist in his band and had the opportunity to hire him to play at Banana Puddin’ Jazz with his big band and small band… I’m truly inspired by his love for the music and support of other musicians. This list can go on but to name a few more: – there’s saxophonists, James Carter and Patience Higgins, pianists, Johnnie O’Neal, Lafayette Harris Jr., Frank Owens, and of course Thelonious Sphere Monk….

Rome Neal and his daughter Olympian swimmer Lia Neal at the 2012 Olympics in London. Photo courtesy of Rome Neal

Lia: Your daughter Lia Neal is an Olympian Swimmer. When did she start training?
Rome: She started going to lessons at 6 and then she started going to competitions around 8, and then excelling around 10 years old showing signs of someone who was really going to be great in the water. I recall seeing her around 10, she would be swimming and be one body length behind the lead person in the pool, and all of sudden, she comes out of nowhere and wins the race. Those were great moments and recently it happened at the 2014 NCAA Championships in Minnesota where she swam the anchor leg of the 400 yard relay for her Stanford team. While the team, being a body length behind swimming against some of the fastest swimmers in the country, she was able win the race for them. It was an amazing moment!

Rome Neal with his daughter Lia Neal and Siu Neal at the International African Arts Festival in Broooklyn in 2013. Photo courtesy of Rome Neal

Lia: What does it feel like to have an Olympian in the family? Is anybody else athletic?
Rome: My sons are good basketball players. To have an Olympian in the family feels good, real good. A sense of pride, a sense of relaxation. It is a good relaxed feeling to know that this young lady is taking it to another level where she is respected, rewarded for what she does in the pool. And she just happens to be my daughter. Above all that I’m glad she is happy.

Rome Neal sings at Cobi Narita’s Friday Night Open Mic at the Pearl Studios in New York on March 14, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Lia: After making my jazz vocalist debut at Banana Puddin’ Jazz, you suggested we hit some open mics around town, including Cobi Narita’s Friday Night Open Mic with Frank Owens on the keys. How do you choose to hone your craft?
Rome: For me, back in the days, first I was studying this Monk character, then I was going out to these clubs. While you are sitting there, you can not not get the bug. One night I was sitting there and I saw one lady go up to sing and she didn’t sound so good. This was with these top musicians. I said, “wow, if she can do that, then I can do that.” So the next week, I had a song and I came to the club. The song was In My Solitude orBody and Soul. I sang this song, and low and behold, I didn’t sound too good. It made me realize that you just don’t get up there and sing a song. You have to do your homework. These great jazz musicians that are up there playing behind you singing, these guys have studied this music, religiously and spiritually, some scientifically, it is a part of their being. I had to grasp those elements up under me. I still went out to the clubs, and I would take a song. I would hit 3 clubs, including St. Nicks Pub and Lenox Lounge, and I would sing the same song, that’s 3 times in the same evening. Then I would go back the next week and sing that same song again, until I landed that song. Once I get a song down, I would go on to the next song and continue at these different clubs.

Then I realized I had to go a little bit deeper. In my research for Monk, I had to touch base with Barry Harris. Barry Harris knew Monk very well. He lived in the same household as Monk for 10 years before Monk had passed. They lived in the Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter’s mansion in Weehawken. Barry still lives there now. I went to Barry Harris’ Workshop and I took classes with him and have been there ever since.

Rome Neal at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York on March 1, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Lia: How did Dr. Barry Harris come to your attention?
Rome: I was walking by this workshop and I saw these people and they were doing music, but I was too intimidated to go in there. This is 20 years ago. I forgot all about that workshop. I remember walking by there but I do not recall who was in there. But I do remember that workshop, because I found out about it later on. Something about it drew me in. I still was intimidated, I didn’t want to go inside. These musicians, singers… I wasn’t into the music that much anyway.

Learning this Monk character, I ran into Barry Harris at a reading for another playwright. Monk has been so much in my life. There’s another guy who had written a three character play about Monk, which included the Baroness and Bud Powell. We did a reading of it. The playwright had invited Barry Harris to the reading because he wanted Barry to do the music for the play. So I was sitting up there under Barry Harris, reading the play. At that time I really didn’t have a clue as to who Monk was. People said I looked like him. So I was just ‘acting’. After the reading, I asked Barry what he thought. He said, “That was good, but Monk didn’t talk that much.” So I still had to search more for this character. But that was my first introduction to Barry Harris.

Barry Harris (seated) during his Jazz Vocals Workshop he conducts at the Lincoln Square Community Center in New York on March 11, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Years later, when I got to do the play with Laurence Holder, I knew I had to connect with Barry Harris, and get some insight from him, because he was one of the ones that was really close to him. That worked out very well. Once I started going to the workshop and turning him on to the play, he became interested in what I was doing with the play and he invested some money into the play, and got others to invest when it went Off-Broadway. Then he invited me over to the house on the last day of tech, before we opened. He said, “You can come over now.” I picked him and drove him over to Weehawken and went into this house that Monk lived in 10 years before he died. There was the piano there that Monk played on. There was the small bedroom that Monk stayed in most of the time. He was really reclusive, so I got all of that energy. Then he showed me some pictures of Monk in the house. Then I started taking classes with Barry, who when not travelling, conducts weekly music workshop sessions in New York City for vocalists, students of piano and other instruments. I realized, “Oh, they’re singing, oh, they’re learning the song.” I’ve been going for more than 14 years. Someone captures you that way, and it is a must that you go there. Everybody loves Barry, he is very special. We hope to have him forever.

Rome Neal. Photo by Lia Chang

ROME NEAL (Actor/Director/Producer/Jazz Vocalist) is the Artistic Theatre Director of the Nuyorican Poets Café theatre program. Rome received an Obie Grant with Café founder Miguel Algarin for excellence in theatre. He is the recipient of five Audelco Awards – two for directing – Pepe Carril’s SHANGO de IMA and Samuel Harp’s DON”T EXPLAIN; two for acting – Lead Actor in Gabrielle N. Lane’s SIGNS, and one for Solo Performance in his critically acclaimed MONK, by Laurence Holder. He also received the National Black Theatre Festival’s coveted Lloyd Richards Director’s Award. His fifth Audelco Award was a technical award for his lighting design of SHANGO de IMA. Mr. Neal received a Triumph Award for his acting in Alex Mc Donald’s PRISM and a Monarch Merit Award for his outstanding contributions in New York Theatre. His directorial credits includes his adaptation of William Shakespeare’s JULIUS CAESAR SET IN AFRICA, Sekou Sundiata’s THE CIRCLE UNBROKEN IS A HARD BOP Amiri Baraka’s MEETING LILLIE, SHANGO de IMA, PRISM, Ishmael Reed’s THE C ABOVE C ABOVE HIGH C and Amiri Baraka’s PRIMITIVE WORLD: AN ANTI- NUCLEAR JAZZ MUSICAL, all performed at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Rome directed Wesley Brown’s LIFE DURING WARTIME at the Cafe and The National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta Georgia. His production of Alex McDonald’s PRISM was performed at the Ex-Ponto Festival in Slovenia, Eastern Europe. His acting credits include Dan Owen’s FOREVER MY DARLIN’, directed by Daune Jones at the Richard Allen Center, and later by John Amos, and Judi Ann Mason’s A STAR AIN’T NOTHIN BUT A HOLE IN HEAVEN directed by Mikel Pickney. Rome’s film acting credits include Michael Almereyda’s HAMLET, Spike Lee’s SUMMER OF SAM and Leon Ichaso’s PINERO. As a Jazz Vocalist, Rome has performed at Town Hall on Broadway, The Metropolitan Room, The Museum of the City of New York, Lenox Lounge, Joe’s Pub, Saint Nick’s Pub, Minton’s Playhouse, Showman’s, 966Jazz, Baker’s Keyboard Lounge in Detroit, The Nuyorican Poets Cafe, The Jazz Spot, and has performed around town as the lead vocalist for the Bill Lee Mo’ Better Quintet (Spike’s father). Mr. Neal has a CD entitled: “A Brighter Crooner”, and now his live concert “All in The Puddin’” recently released on DVD along with his “Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Jam… A Night To Remember”.

Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Series is sponsored by Cobi Narita, John D. Smith, Pure Jazz Magazine, Rustik Tavern, George Johnson, Malchijah Hats, Eric Frazier, Donald Byrd Jazz Foundation, Ron San Marchi, United Music Makers, Paris Blues, Barbara’s Flower Shop, Phil Young, Grace L. Jones and Jackie McCaffrey.

Cedric Rose, Rome Neal, Lia Chang and Eric Frazier at Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York on March 1, 2014.

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. She recently starred in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival opposite Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar.

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Photos: AALDEF Honors Mari Matsuda, Aasif Mandvi, and John Chou in 2014 at 40th Anniversary Celebration
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
Jun. 22 – July 27: Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Set for Old Globe Debut in OTHELLO
Apr. 17-May 18: Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman Lead the Cast of New Federal Theatre’s Off-Broadway Production of The Fabulous Miss Marie
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Mar. 7-Apr. 6: André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
André De Shields, Kevin Carolan, Usman Ally, Mary Zimmerman, Doug Peck Among 10 IRNE Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Mar. 21-May 4: Richard Thomas, Ron Rifkin, Hallie Foote and Khaled Nabaway Set for Arena Stage’s World Premiere of Lawrence Wright’s Camp David
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Ishmael Reed’s THE FINAL VERSION Stars Rome Neal at Nuyorican Poets Cafe through January 19, 2014 Rome Neal Leads the Cast of the World Premiere of Ishmael Reed’s THE FINAL VERSION at Nuyorican Poets Cafe, 12/12/13-1/19/14
2013 National Black Theatre Festival Photos: Gala, Power Play and Knock Me A Kiss
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Roscoe Orman, Phynjuar, Horace Vincent Rogers and More Set for Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz: “A Jazzy Thespians Night” at Nuyorican Poets Café
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz presents Motown… Ain’t Nothin’ But A Party 2 at Nuyorican Poets Cafe
Rome Neal in Laurence Holder’s MONK at the NUYORICAN POETS CAFÉ in New York
Signature’s Revival of The Piano Lesson Sweeps AUDELCO’s with 8 Wins including Best Revival, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Roslyn Ruff, Chuck Cooper and Brandon J. Dirden; Also Among 2013 “VIV” Winners – Wild with Happy’s Coleman Domingo and Sharon Washington; and Storyville’s Mercedes Ellington Photos: LAByrinth’s Opening Night of Dominique Morisseau’s Sunset Baby with John Earl Jelks, DeWanda Wise, Harvey Gardner Moore, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Tracie Thoms, Alano Miller and More
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Olney Theatre Center, continues its critically-acclaimed 76th Anniversary season with the family musical Once On This Island April 9 – May 4, 2014 on the Mainstage.

From the Tony Award-winning creators of RAGTIME and SEUSSICAL comes a glorious, Caribbean-infused family musical of enormous heart and magical wisdom. In almost non-stop song and dance, ONCE ON THIS ISLAND follows the story’s young heroine, Ti Moune, on her quest to prove love is more powerful than the forces of prejudice, hatred and death.

Alan Muraoka

Full of capricious gods, island magic, and joyous dance numbers, Olney’s production is directed by Alan Muraoka, proprietor of “Sesame Street”‘s Hooper’s Store since 1997.

“Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty are America’s most talented, versatile musical theater team, and what they’ve done with this simple story is magic from start to finish,” says Olney Theatre Center Artistic Director Jason Loewith. “Add to that Alan Muraoka’s heartfelt direction, Helen Huang’s fantastical costumes and Milagros Ponce de León’s extraordinary set and you’ve got 90 minutes of world-class entertainment for audiences of every age.”

The cast of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND is led by Olney Theatre Center newcomer Aisha Jackson as Ti Moune. Ms. Jackson recently appeared in American Repertory Theater’s production of WITNESS UGANDA. Eymard Cabling, Lun Tha in last season’s hit production of THE KING AND I, returns as Ti Moune’s love interest Daniel. Sharing the role of young Ti Moune are Baltimore native Ariel Cunningham and Silver Spring native Shelby Renée Fountain. ONCE ON THIS ISLAND marks both girls’ debut at Olney Theatre Center. Playing the island gods are Theresa Cunningham as Asaka, Fahnlohnee Harris-Tate as Erzulie, Broadway veteran James T. Lane as Papa Ge, and Nicholas Ward as Agwe. Rounding out the cast are Kellee Knighten Hough, Wendell Jordan, David Little, Duyen Washington, and Stephen Scott Wormley.

Director Alan Muraoka partners with Music Director Darius Smith (Signature’s Dreamgirls, Adventure Theatre-MTC Three Little Birds) and Choreographer Darren Lee to bring Ahrens and Flaherty’s story to life on the Olney stage. Rounding out the design team are Scenic Designer Milagros Ponce De León, Costume Designer Helen Huang, Lighting Designer Marc Hurst, and Sound Designer Jeffrey Dorfman.

ONCE ON THIS ISLAND runs April 9 – May 4. Press Night: Saturday, April 12, 2014 at 7:00pm. Performances are Wednesday-Saturday at 7:00pm; matinees on Sunday at 1:30pm; Saturday matinees at 1:30pm on April 19 and 26, and May 3; and, Wednesday matinees at 1:30pm on April 16, 23, and 30. Tickets are $32.50-$65. Discounts available for groups, seniors, military, and students.

ABOUT OLNEY THEATRE CENTER Olney Theatre Center is an award-winning, nonprofit, Equity theatre. Located just north of Washington, D.C. in arts-rich Montgomery County, Maryland, Olney Theatre Center offers a diverse array of professional productions year-round. Olney Theatre Center is situated on 14 acres in the heart of the beautiful Washington-Baltimore-Frederick “triangle,” within easy access of all three cities. Olney Theatre Center is home to the National Players, America’s longest-running touring company and led by Artistic Director Jason Loewith and Managing Director Amy Marshall. For more information, visit www.olneytheatre.org. Follow Olney Theatre Center on Twitter @olneytheatre or twitter.com/olneytheatre and on Facebook at facebook.com/olneytheatre.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Q & A with Mel Sagrado Maghuyop, The King in Harbor Lights’ Production of The King and I
Playing Lady Thiang in the Harbor Lights’ Production of The King and I is a dream come true for Christine Toy Johnson
Mel Sagrado Maghuyop, Tamara Jenkins, Christine Toy Johnson and Ron Domingo Lead the Cast of Harbor Lights Theater Company’s Production of The King and I, directed by Alan Muraoka, November 2-18, 2012
Photos: AALDEF Honors Mari Matsuda, Aasif Mandvi, and John Chou in 2014 at 40th Anniversary Celebration
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
Jun. 22 – July 27: Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Set for Old Globe Debut in OTHELLO
Apr. 17-May 18: Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman Lead the Cast of New Federal Theatre’s Off-Broadway Production of The Fabulous Miss Marie
Signature’s Production of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu, starring Cole Horibe, Phoebe Strole and Francis Jue, extends through April 6, 2014
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Celebrating the Year of the Horse with David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu at Signature Theatre; Previews begin February 4, 2014
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Febone1960.net Review: Power Play Powerful & Suspenseful
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Anjali Bhimani, André De Shields, NIkka Graff Lanzarone, Monique Haley, Geoff Packard, Akash Chopra, Ed Kross and Govind Kumar in The Jungle Book at The Huntington Theatre in Boston on September 5, 2013. Photo by Lia Chang

Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman, is up for four Elliot Norton Award nominations, including André De Shields for Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor, Mary Zimmerman for Outstanding Director, Large Theater, Scenic design by Daniel Ostling, costumes by Mara Blumenfeld, lighting by T.J. Gerckens, sound by Joshua Horvath, Ray Nardelli, and Andre J. Pluess for Outstanding Design, Large Theater, and Outstanding Musical Production by a Large Theater.

The awards are presented annually by The Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA) (Don Aucoin, Jared Bowen, Terry Byrne, Carolyn Clay, Nick Dussault, Iris Fanger, Joyce Kulhawik, Kilian Melloy, Bob Nesti, and Ed Siegel) to honor the outstanding productions, directors, designers, and performers audiences see on Greater Boston stages all year long. The Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA) will hand out the Elliot Norton Awards, celebrating its 32nd anniversary, on Monday, May 19 at the Wheelock Family Theatre, 200 The Riverway Boston, MA 02215. Ceremony highlights include musical performances, The Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence, a guest of honor, who is a theater artist who has enriched the cultural life of our region, and post-ceremony party.

In the past, that distinguished list of honorees has included, among others: Chita Rivera, Tommy Tune, Al Pacino, Edward Albee, Brian Dennehy, August Wilson, Julie Harris, Sir Ian McKellen, Lynn Redgrave, and Jason Robards.

The Elliot Norton Awards are named for the eminent Boston theater critic Elliot Norton, who remained an active supporter of the drama, both locally and nationally, until his death in 2003 at the age of 100. The Boston theater community carries on his legacy and can be proud of its remarkable growth at a time in our nation’s history when the arts are truly struggling to survive.

Tickets are $30 ($10 off discount “norton2014″ is good through April 30, 2014) For tickets and information visit www.nortonawardsboston.com or by calling Wheelock Family Theatre 617-879-2300.

The 32nd Annual Elliot Norton Awards Nominations

Elliot Norton Lifetime Achievement Award:

• Olympia Dukakis

Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence:

• Paul Daigneault

Outstanding Visiting Production

• Mies Julie (Baxter Theatre Centre, presented by ArtsEmerson)
• Waiting for Godot (Gare St Lazare Players and Dublin Theatre Festival, presented by ArtsEmerson)
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Bristol Old Vic in association with Handspring Puppet Company, presented by ArtsEmerson)

Outstanding Production by a Large Resident Theater

• All the Way (American Repertory Theater)
• The Heart of Robin Hood (American Repertory Theater) Venus in Fur (Huntington Theatre Company)

Outstanding Production by a Midsize Theater

• Tribes (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
• Imagining Madoff (New Repertory Theatre)
• The Cherry Orchard (Actors’ Shakespeare Project)

Outstanding Production by a Small Theater

• Windowmen (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
• How We Got On (Company One)
• The Flick (Company One)

Outstanding Production by a Fringe Theater

• Punk Rock (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
• The Normal Heart (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
• The Libertine (Bridge Repertory Theater)

Outstanding Design, Large Theater

• The Heart of Robin Hood: Set design by Börkur Jónsson, costumes by Emma Ryott, lighting by Björn Helgason, sound by Jonathan Deans (American Repertory Theater)
• Mies Julie: Set and lighting design by Patrick Curtis, original lighting design by Paul Abrams, costumes by Birrie Le Roux, music composed and performed by Daniel and Matthew Pencer (Baxter Theatre Centre, presented by ArtsEmerson)
• The Jungle Book: Scenic design by Daniel Ostling, costumes by Mara Blumenfeld, lighting by T.J. Gerckens, sound by Joshua Horvath, Ray Nardelli, and Andre J. Pluess (Huntington Theatre Company)

Outstanding Design, Midsize, Small or Fringe Theater

• Windowmen: Scenic design by Andrew R. Phelps, sound and lighting by David Wilson, costumes by Rachel Padula Shufelt (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
• The Flick: Scenic design by Cristina Todesco, lighting by Jen Rock, costumes by Amanda Maciel Antunes, sound by Edward Young, props master Anita Shriver (Company One)
• The Whale: Scenic design by Cristina Todesco, costumes by Gail Astrid Buckley, lighting by Jeff Adelberg, sound David Remedios (SpeakEasy Stage Company)

Outstanding Musical Production by a Large Theater

• Once (Broadway in Boston)
• The Jungle Book (Huntington Theatre Company)
• Witness Uganda (American Repertory Theater)

Outstanding Musical Production by a Midsize, Small or Fringe Company

• Thoroughly Modern Millie (Stoneham Theatre)
• It’s a Horrible Life (Gold Dust Orphans)
• Hairspray (Wheelock Family Theatre)

Francis Jue. Photo by Lia Chang

Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor

• Andre De Shields, The Jungle Book (Huntington Theatre Company)
• Paul Melendy, It’s a Horrible Life (Gold Dust Orphans)
• Francis Jue, Miss Saigon (North Shore Music Theatre)

Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actress

• Melody Betts, Witness Uganda (American Repertory Theater)
• Aimee Doherty, On the Town (Lyric Stage Company of Boston), Hairspray (Wheelock Family Theatre)
• Ephie Aardema, Thoroughly Modern Millie (Stoneham Theatre)

Outstanding New Script

• Windowmen, by Steven Barkhimer (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
• Absence, by Peter M. Floyd (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
• Breaking the Shakespeare Code, by John Minigan (Vagabond Theatre Company)

Outstanding Director, Large Theater

• Gisli Örn Gardarsson, The Heart of Robin Hood (American Repertory Theater)
• Mary Zimmerman, The Jungle Book (Huntington Theatre Company)
• Yael Farber, Mies Julie (Baxter Theatre Centre, presented by ArtsEmerson)

Outstanding Director, Midsize Theater

• M. Bevin O’Gara, Tribes (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
• Ilyse Robbins, Thoroughly Modern Millie (Stoneham Theatre)
• Melia Bensussen, The Cherry Orchard (Actors’ Shakespeare Project)

Outstanding Director, Small or Fringe Theater

• Summer L. Williams, How We Got On (Company One)
• David J. Miller, Punk Rock and The Normal Heart (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
• Shawn LaCount, The Flick (Company One)

Michael McKean, Bryan Cranston and Brandon J. Dirden. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

Outstanding Actor, Large Theater

• Bryan Cranston, All the Way (American Repertory Theater)
• Bongile Mantsai, Mies Julie (Baxter Theatre Center, presented by ArtsEmerson)
• Denis O’Hare, An Iliad (Homer’s Coat, presented by ArtsEmerson)

Outstanding Actress, Large Theater

• Hilda Cronje, Mies Julie (Baxter Theatre Center, presented by ArtsEmerson)
• Andrea Syglowski, Venus in Fur (Huntington Theatre Company)
• Christina Bennett Lind, The Heart of Robin Hood (American Repertory Theater)

Outstanding Actor, Midsize Theater

• John Kuntz, The Whale (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
• Steven Barkhimer, The Cherry Orchard (Actors’ Shakespeare Project)
• Jeremiah Kissel, Imagining Madoff (New Repertory Theatre)

Outstanding Actress, Midsize Theater

• Erica Spyres, Tribes (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
• Georgia Lyman, The Whale (SpeakEasy Stage Company)
• Marianna Bassham, The Cherry Orchard (Actors’ Shakespeare Project)

Outstanding Actor, Small or Fringe Theater

• Phil Gillen, Punk Rock (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
• Alex Pollock, This Is Our Youth (Gloucester Stage Company), Windowmen (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre), The Flick (Company One)
• Victor Shopov, The Normal Heart (Zeitgeist Stage Company)

Outstanding Actress, Small or Fringe Theater

• Maureen Adduci, The Normal Heart (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
• Brenna Fitzgerald, The Flick (Company One)
• Cloteal Horne, How We Got On (Company One)

Outstanding Ensemble, Large Theater

• All the Way (American Repertory Theater)
• The Heart of Robin Hood (American Repertory Theater)
• The Seagull (Huntington Theatre Company)

Outstanding Ensemble, Midsize, Small or Fringe Theater

• Punk Rock (Zeitgeist Stage Company)
• Windowmen (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)
• Hairspray (Wheelock Family Theatre)
• Thoroughly Modern Millie (Stoneham Theatre)

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Photos: AALDEF Honors Mari Matsuda, Aasif Mandvi, and John Chou in 2014 at 40th Anniversary Celebration
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
Jun. 22 – July 27: Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Set for Old Globe Debut in OTHELLO
Apr. 17-May 18: Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman Lead the Cast of New Federal Theatre’s Off-Broadway Production of The Fabulous Miss Marie
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards 
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72 
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Other articles on Andre De Shields:
André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
André De Shields to receive 2014 Making Waves Award; will perform “Frederick Douglass: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” at Florida Atlantic University
Nov. 16: Conversations with the Divine with Owais Ahmed, Baize Buzan, Kathryn Cesarz, Kamal Hans, Brian Grey, Donica Lynn, Patrese McClain and Miranda Zola at Chicago’s Victory Gardens Theater
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
André De Shields Delivers Keynote at the International Conference of Fine Arts Deans in New Orleans
Photos: André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Akash Chopra, Richard M. Sherman, Kevin Carolan, Larry Yando, Nehal Joshi and More Celebrate The Jungle Book Opening Night at Huntington Theatre in Boston
Click here for more articles on André De Shields.

Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia will make her jazz vocalist debut on March 1, 2014, in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Playwright James McManus. (Photo courtesy of Samuel French)

Working Theater, in its 29th season off-Broadway, will continue its current exploration of the face of poverty in America, with James McManus’ Princess Grace Award-winning play, CHERRY SMOKE. The play is a brutal love story that details the irrational hope of four destitute young people, all stretching to grasp the American dream. Directed by Tamilla Woodard, the production will run April 22nd through May 18th at Urban Stages, 259 West 30th Street in Manhattan. The official opening is on Thursday, May 1st.

a life for him and Cherry?
On the outskirts of Pittsburgh, Fish is a ticking time bomb and a back alley fighter who has been in and out of jail his entire life, Cherry is a runaway who has been on her own since age 10 and hopes for a more simple life where she and Fish can be together, Will Fish be able to harness his rage and make a life for him and Cherry?

James McManus captures the devastated remnants of the steel towns of his youth, channeling the frustrations of a working class without work. A vivid combustion of the magical and the mundane, Cherry Smoke takes you to a world rarely seen on the New York stage.

Todd London, Artistic Director of New Dramatists explains that McManus “writes about characters with hard lives and hard luck, and he writes about them with profound love. His dialogue is painful and gorgeous. It’s a poetry of the actual, reminiscent of two American masters–Paddy Chayevsky and, McManus’s great example, August Wilson. But like everything else in CHERRY SMOKE, the voice is entirely his own. James McManus is an important American playwright, who deserves to be more widely known. It’s fitting and encouraging that the Working Theater is producing this beautiful play in New York City.”

The cast of CHERRY SMOKE features Molly Carden (Emotional Creature) Patrick Carroll, (Good People) Julie Jesneck, (Rock and Roll) and Vayu O’Donnell (Golden Boy).

Playwright James McManus is the author of six plays: Love on San Pedro, Dorothy 6, Bulldog Whiskey, Underground, Cherry Smoke and Blood Potato. His plays have been developed and performed at Cornerstone Theater Company, Labyrinth Theater Company, Apothecary Theatre Company, The Clockwork Theatre, Glass Umbrella Creative (Sydney), Revolt Theatre (Melbourne), Gurnet Theatre Project, The Kennedy Center, The BE Company, Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company, The Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Barebones Productions, Irish Repertory Theatre, Son of Semele, The Side Project Theatre Company, The Lark Play Development Center, The Inkwell, Diverse City Theater Company, and the August Wilson Center for African American Culture. James was the recipient of the 2006 Princess Grace Award in Playwriting for Cherry Smoke, which is published by Samuel French. He received an MFA in Dramatic Writing from Carnegie Mellon University and is a resident playwright at New Dramatists.

Tamilla Woodard is a Director residing in New York City. She is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama, an alumnus of The Lincoln Center Directors Lab and founder of PopUp Theatrics, a partnership creating site impacting theatrical events in collaboration with theatre artists working around the globe. Most recent work: Long Distance Affair: BA Edition, (Bienal Arte Joven Buenos Aires and PopUP Theatrics, Buenos Aires) INSIDE (PopUP Theatrics, Madrid, Spain;) La Ruta, by Ed Cardona Jr. ( Working Theater, NYC) With PopUP Theatrics: Long Distance Affair, an international collaboration for live Skype performance; Hotel Project, Co-Creator, world premiere in Querétaro Mexico in July 2011, American premiere at Washington Jefferson Hotel and the Summit Grand Hotel in January 2012; Other recent work includes, 3 Editions of Long Distance Affair, Edinburgh, Scotland, Querétaro, Mexico, New York, USA; DramaTour in Querétaro Mexico (Sabandijas del Palacio) Valiant by Lanna Joffrey at InterAct Theatre (Philadelphia, PA); Nightlands by Sylvan Oswald (New Georges,NYC) and the development and direction of Saviana Stanescu’s Polanski Polanski (Teatrul Odeon, Bucharest; The Sibiu International Theatre Festival, Sibiu, TIFF International Festival, Cluj; PS122/SoloNOVA festival, HERE, NYC and The Chain, LIC, New York). She has directed for the Working Theater, HERE, The Actors Theatre of Louisville, PS122, DR 2, The Culture Project, Urban Stages, Dance Theatre Workshop, The Kitchen Theatre and for festivals around the US and internationally. She a recipient of The Charles Bowden Award from New Dramatists, The Josephine Abady Award from The League of Professional Theatre Women, New York Theatre Workshop Director Fellowship, New Georges Audrey Residency and a TCG On The Road Grant.

CHERRY SMOKE features Scenic Design by Mikiko Suzuki MacAdams, Costume Design by Emily DeAngelis, Lighting Design by Solomon Weisbard, Sound Design by Sam Kusnetz. Prop Design by Claire Kavanah, Fight Coreography by Rick Sordelet. The Production Stage Manager is Megan Dickert. The Assistant Stage Manager is Kelly Hardy. The Production Manager is Libby Jensen and the Assistant Director is Dina Vovsi.

Performances of CHERRY SMOKE are on Monday, Wednesdays – Saturdays at 7:00PM with Saturday matinees at 2PM and Sunday matinees at 3:00PM. At Urban Stages 259 West 30th Street between 7th and 8th Aves in New York.

Tickets to CHERRY SMOKE are $25 (General Admission) and $23 (Students/Seniors/Union Members) and may be purchased in advance at http://www.smarttix.com or by calling 212-868-4444. For group rates, contact info@theworkingtheater.org. Working Theater offers pay-what-you can performances on each Monday. Subject to availability and at the door only.

ABOUT WORKING THEATER
Now in its 29th season, Working Theater is New York’s only professional Off- Broadway theatre company dedicated to producing plays for and about the workingmen and women of New York. Past productions include Ed Cardona Jr.’s site-specific play about immigration reform, La Ruta, performed inside a real 48’truck; Lisa Ramirez’s play about nannies, Exit Cuckoo, directed by Colman Domingo; Roberto Aguirre Sacasa’s King Of Shadows; Annie Wiesman’s Hold Please; Israel Horovitz’s Henry Lumper, Rob Ackerman’s Table Top; Stefanie Zadravec’s Honey Brown Eyes and many others. For more information, visit www.theworkingtheater.org.

Other articles on Working Theater:
Photos: Working Theater and the Harold Clurman Lab Theater Present Michael Milligan’s Mercy Killers Off-Broadway through February 16, 2014
Photos: Working Theater’s World Premiere of Ed Cardona, Jr.’s La Ruta through May 12, 2013
Working Theater in Collaboration with Magnum Foundation Present World Premiere of Ed Cardona, Jr.’s La Ruta, April 10 – May 12, 2013
Working Theater presents The Best of TheaterWorks!: Stories from the 99%, at The Dorothy Strelsin Theatre at the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex
Working Theater presents The Poetry of Philip Levine with Jeffrey Eugenides, André De Shields, Gene Gillette and Lisa Ramirez on May 7
Photos: Working Theater’s Production of Rob Ackerman’s CALL ME WALDO at Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex
Papermag.com: An Emerson-Loving Electrician Takes the Stage in Call Me Waldo
1199SEIU President George Gresham to receive Labor Leadership Award at 2011 Working Theater Annual Awards Ceremony
André De Shields & Alison Fraser Star in Reading of Michael Aman’s The Unbleached American at Theater Row on 5/9
Working Theater Presents Staged Reading of Chay Yew’s Visible Cities at The Studio Theatre on Theatre Row
Photos:The Working Theater’s Off-Broadway production of HONEY BROWN EYES by Stefanie Zadravec at The Clurman
Lia Chang Photo Slideshows of Productions in the Working Theater’s 25th Anniversary Season
Multimedia: Photos of Ed Cardona, Jr.’s American Jornalero at the Dorothy Strelsin Theatre
Photos of André De Shields in Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory: From Douglass to Deliverance
Achieving the American Dream, Professional Charmer Andre De Shields Sees Theater is a Way to Life

Other articles by Lia Chang:
André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Among 4 Elliot Norton Award Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Photos: Bryan Cranston, Peter Jay Fernandez, Roslyn Ruff, Tamara Tunie, Leslie Uggams, Ruben Santiago-Hudson Celebrate All The Way Opening Night
Photos: AALDEF Honors Mari Matsuda, Aasif Mandvi, and John Chou in 2014 at 40th Anniversary Celebration
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
Jun. 22 – July 27: Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Set for Old Globe Debut in OTHELLO
Apr. 17-May 18: Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman Lead the Cast of New Federal Theatre’s Off-Broadway Production of The Fabulous Miss Marie
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

The New York premiere of the late award-winning playwright Oni Faida Lampley’s play Tough Titty, a poignant and funny exploration of what comes next for a Brooklyn mother diagnosed with breast cancer, will be presented by actress/producer Ami Brabson (“Homicide: Life on the Street,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “Damages”) & her husband, Emmy and Obie Award-winning actor Andre Braugher (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Homicide: Life on the Street,” “Law & Order,” “Glory,” “City of Angels”), April 23 – May 11 at the Paradise Factory in the East Village (64 East 4th Street) in New York. Awoye Timpo will direct. The play premiered at the Williamstown Theatre Festival and made Lampley a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Award.

Christine Toy Johnson Photo by Bruce Alan Johnson

The cast will feature Broadway veterans Christine Toy Johnson (The Music Man and Grease), Antoinette LaVecchia (A View from the Bridge) & Richard Topol (The Normal Heart, The Merchant of Venice) and Victor Williams (“The King of Queens”), Nikkole Salter (Inked Baby at Playwrights Horizons), Elizabeth Van Dyke (Flyin’ West) and Ami Brabson.

In Tough Titty, a woman’s breast cancer diagnosis propels her on a journey of self-discovery… When Angela’s routine cannot keep breast cancer at bay, she must learn to face the disease, her family and her community with equal doses of tenacity and humor. Richly emotional, Tough Titty is a boisterous exploration of one woman’s willful search for grace.

The creative team also includes Brooke Cohen (Costume Design), Aaron Porter (Lighting Design), Jason Sherwood (Set Design), Beth Lake (Sound Design), Alanna Maniscalco (Props Master), Allison Bressi (Line Producer), Aneesha Kudatarkar (Assistant Director), Jenney Shamash (Assistant Producer), Michelle Heller (Production Stage Manager), Kryssa Bowman (Assistant Stage Manager), Jeff Englander (Lighting Programmer), Abigail Rose Solomon (Marketing) and Eric Emch (Show Artwork).

Tough Titty will run from April 23-May 11 at the Paradise Factory in the East Village (64 East 4th Street) with performances Wed.-Sat. at 8pm and Sundays at 7pm, there is also a show on Monday, 5/5 at 8pm. Tickets are $18 and can be purchased online at www.SmartTix.com or by phone at 212-868-4444.

Wed- Sat @ 8pm, Sun @ 7pm
Special performance Mon, May 5 @ 8pm
Wed, April 30 & Sat, May 10 SOLD OUT!

Paradise Factory Theater
64 E. 4th St. (btw. Bowery & 2nd Ave.)

FOR $16.00 DISCOUNT TICKETS (Reg. $18)
Use Discount Code FRIEND at:
www.Smarttix.com or 212-868-4444

Other articles about Christine Toy Johnson:
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
playbill.com: Jose Llana and Baayork Lee Join Christine Toy Johnson for Stage 72 Concert
Nov. 11: Christine Toy Johnson Performs in Final Installment of Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” Concert Series at Stage 72; Baayork Lee and Jose Llana to Guest Star
“Sesame Street” Star Alan Muraoka Helms Lyric’s The King and I Starring Mel Sagrado Maghuyop, Heather Geery, Christine Toy Johnson and Ron Domingo, July 9-13, 2013
Christine Toy Johnson, Thom Sesma, Ali Ewoldt, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Telly Leung and More Set for The Asian American Composers and Lyricists Project at The Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre
Christine Toy Johnson and Raul Aranas Lead the Cast of the National Asian Artists Project’s (NAAP) Benefit Presentation of Hello Dolly!, at The Pershing Square Signature Center on April 29 and May 6
Playing Lady Thiang in the Harbor Lights’ Production of The King and I is a dream come true for Christine Toy Johnson
Mel Sagrado Maghuyop, Tamara Jenkins, Christine Toy Johnson and Ron Domingo Lead the Cast of Harbor Lights Theater Company’s Production of The King and I, directed by Alan Muraoka, November 2-18, 2012
Broadway Stars Pay Tribute to Alan Muraoka at National Asian American Theatre Co. Gala on September 10, 2012
Christine Toy Johnson to Receive 2012 Wai Look Award for Outstanding Service at Asian American Arts Alliance Gala on October 9, 2012 
Christine Toy Johnson to play Bloody Mary in Ogunquit Playhouse’s Production of Rogers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific, June 20 – July 14, 2012
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Angela Lin, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Jake Manabat, David Shih in Jen Silverman’s Crane Story at The Cherry Lane
Christine Toy Johnson Leads the Cast of Pan Asian Repertory Theatre’s Shanghai Lil’s, 11/11-11/27/11
Lia Chang Picks: THE NEW DEAL and other plays from The Christine Toy Johnson Portfolio and TRANSCENDING: THE WAT MISAKA STORY
Photos:Leviathan Lab’s reading of Christine Toy Johnson’s Adventures of a Faux Designer Handbag
Christine Toy Johnson, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, Etsu Mineta Masaoka, Roxanna Saberi to be honored by JACL
Christine Toy Johnson Plays Christmas Eve in AVENUE Q at Weston Playhouse Theatre in Vermont
Dr. Leroy Chiao and Wat Misaka to Receive 2010 OCA Pioneer Awards in Houston
Screening of “Transcending: The Wat Misaka Story”, Kicks Off OCA National Convention and 6th Annual Houston APA Film Festival on June 17; Wat Misaka and Dr. Leroy Chiao to Receive 2010 OCA Pioneer Awards
Harada, Leung, Llana, Johnson, Takara Et Al. Sing Once On This Island on May 16 at Theatre at Saint Peter’s Church
A Helluva Town DVD Release Celebration and Fundraising Concert for Transcending: The Wat Misaka Story
New York Knicks to Honor Wat Misaka at Madison Square Garden
Offical List of Films for the 2009 San Diego Film Festival
Making Work Now: The Asian American Artistic Community
Transcending: The Wat Misaka Story Screens at Rhode Island International Film Festival on 8/8 Wat Misaka: First Person of Color Drafted in NBA
Christine Toy Johnson’s Paper Son at Queens Theatre in the Park Studio Theatre

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Miss Saigon’s Francis Jue Receives Elliot Norton Award Nomination for Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor
Photos: On the Town with Rome Neal, Jazz Vocalist and Star of Laurence Holder’s MONK
Apr. 22 – May 18: Working Theater Presents The off-Broadway Premiere of James McManus’ CHERRY SMOKE at Urban Stages
André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Among 4 Elliot Norton Award Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Photos: Bryan Cranston, Peter Jay Fernandez, Roslyn Ruff, Tamara Tunie, Leslie Uggams, Ruben Santiago-Hudson Celebrate All The Way Opening Night
Photos: AALDEF Honors Mari Matsuda, Aasif Mandvi, and John Chou in 2014 at 40th Anniversary Celebration
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
Jun. 22 – July 27: Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Set for Old Globe Debut in OTHELLO
Apr. 17-May 18: Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman Lead the Cast of New Federal Theatre’s Off-Broadway Production of The Fabulous Miss Marie
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Garth Kravits. Photo by Lia Chang

“From Carousel to Kinky Boots”, Bickford Theatre Guild’s annual fundraiser at the Bickford Theatre, 6 Normandy Heights Rd in Morristown, NJ., will feature an evening of cabaret songs spanning from classical musical theatre and jazz, to contemporary musicals and the hottest new composers, with award winning talent from the world of Broadway, Film & Television and London’s West End, on Saturday, April 26th at 7:30 p.m.

Hosted by Peter Filichia; theatre columnist, author, and former theatre critic for the Newark Star Ledger, the evening is directed by Thom Christopher Warren, longtime cast member of Disney’s THE LION KING, and director of the Bickford’s production of CROSSING DELANCEY in 2010. Musical Direction is by Peter Candela; Broadway keyboardist and musical director for dozens of professional theatres across the tri-state area. The evening kicks off with a pre-show champagne reception where guests will have the opportunity to mingle with the artists. Following the reception, guests will enjoy a cabaret of timeless, musical classics from the golden age through modern day. A post-show reception will follow and feature a silent auction, 50/50 raffle, and a cork pull. The doors open at 6:30pm.

Suzzanne Douglas. Photo by Dennis Kwan

Performers include Garth Kravits (THE DROWSY CHAPERONE on Broadway and star of Bickford’s CROSSING DELANCEY), Suzzanne Douglas (NAACP Award winner and star of the Bickford’s LADY DAY AT EMERSON’S BAR AND GRILL), Gavin Lee (Drama Desk winner and TONY Award nominee for the role of Bert in both Broadway and the West End productions of MARY POPPINS), Erin Dilly (TONY nominee for her role in Broadway’s CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG, and most recently seen in the Broadway production of the holiday hit, A CHRISTMAS STORY), Stephen Buntrock (Curly in OKLAHOMA, and most recently opposite Bernadette Peters in the Broadway revival of A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC), Graham Rowat (Broadway’s BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, GUYS AND DOLLS, MAMMA MIA), Marni Raab (Christine in THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA), Loni Ackerman (original companies of CATS, EVITA, and STARTING HERE STARTING NOW), and Bickford favorite Susie Speidel.

Other performers include Adam Williams, Max Clayton, Kate Johannigman, Kate McMillan, Cassie Levine, Greg Kamp (Barry Manilow’s HARMONY), Rose Pedone and the cast of the Bickford’s upcoming production of FOREVER PLAID.

Proceeds from the benefit provide support for future programming at the Morris Museum’s Bickford Theatre. One of New Jersey’s premier professional theatres, the Bickford produces and presents year-round entertainment including a Main Stage Series, two Children’s Theatre series, a Jazz Showcase, and Blues at the Bickford. The theatre is a Senior Member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance, a not-for-profit organization of 30 professional theaters throughout the state, and works in conjunction with Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) and the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC). From its beginnings in 1994 to the present, tens of thousands of theater-goers from across the tri-state area have enjoyed the Bickford Theatre’s many entertaining and diversified offerings in theatre, music and dance.

Tickets

$250 – Pre-show “Mingle with the Stars” Champagne Reception, priority seating and post show reception
$100 – Show and Post Show Reception
$65 – Show Only

Tickets may be purchased by phone at (973) 971-3706, or in person at the Bickford Theatre Box Office. The Bickford Theatre is an integral part of the Morris Museum, located at 6 Normandy Heights Road in Morristown, NJ, and offers free parking and full accessibility. Box Office hours for phone sales are Monday through Friday, 10:00am to 5:00pm. Walk-up hours are Tuesday, through Friday, 11:00am to 5:00pm.

About the Morris Museum
Celebrating 100 years, the Morris Museum is an award-winning, community-based arts and cultural institution which serves the public through high caliber exhibitions in the arts, sciences and humanities. The Museum also offers educational programs, family events, and is home to the Bickford Theatre and its wide range of performing arts offerings. Continuously serving the public since 1913, the Morris Museum has been designated a Major Arts Institution and has received the New Jersey State Council on the Arts’ Citation of Excellence, among other awards. The first museum in New Jersey to be accredited, the Morris Museum was re-accredited in 2013 by the American Alliance of Museums.

The Morris Museum is a Blue Star Museum, offering free admission to active duty military personnel and their families, from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

The Museum is located at 6 Normandy Heights Road (at the corner of Columbia Turnpike) in Morristown, NJ, and is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 11:00am to 5:00pm and Sunday, 12:00 to 5:00pm. In addition, the Museum is open evenings from 5:00 to 8:00pm on the second and third Thursday of the month. Admission to the Museum is $10 for adults and $7 for children, students and senior citizens. Admission is always free for Museum members. Every second and third Thursday of the month between 4:00 and 8:00pm, the Museum offers visitors the opportunity to Pay What You Wish. For more information, call (973) 971-3700, or visit www.morrismuseum.org.

Other articles on “From Carousel to Kinky Boots”:
Playbill: From Carousel to Kinky Boots: A Cabaret of Broadway’s Best Will Feature Erin Dilly, Stephen Buntrock and Gavin Lee
Broadwayworld.com: Erin Dilly, Marni Raab & More Set for Bickford Theatre Guild’s ‘FROM CAROUSEL TO KINKY BOOTS’ Fundraiser, 4/26

Other articles on Garth Kravits:
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Dec. 4 – 29: Garth Kravits Returns to Bucks County Playhouse for Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play
Gettin’ The Band Back Together Featuring Manu Narayan, Alison Fraser, Mitchell Jarvis, Garth Kravits, Emily McNamara, Jay Klaitz at George Street Playhouse through October 27, 2013
centraljersey.com: Clang Clang Clang!’Meet Me in St. Louis’ in Bucks County
BWW Interviews: Garth Kravits Talks about Bucks County Playhouse’s MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS: A RADIO PLAY
nj.com: Jersey actor Garth Kravits sings the praises of appearing on Broadway and closer to home

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Late Night with Holy Land’s Jojo Gonzalez
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Receives $275,000 Doris Duke Artist Award
Kerry Butler, Edward James Hyland, Matt Walton, Megan Sikora and More in Previews of Off-Broadway Production of Under My Skin at The Little Shubert Theatre
Apr. 22 – May 18: Working Theater Presents The off-Broadway Premiere of James McManus’ CHERRY SMOKE at Urban Stages
André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Among 4 Elliot Norton Award Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Photos: AALDEF Honors Mari Matsuda, Aasif Mandvi, and John Chou in 2014 at 40th Anniversary Celebration
Apr. 17-May 18: Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman Lead the Cast of New Federal Theatre’s Off-Broadway Production of The Fabulous Miss Marie
Apr. 18-20: Pacific Arts Movement and Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company present the San Diego premiere of 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
Jun. 22 – July 27: Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Set for Old Globe Debut in OTHELLO
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards 
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72 
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia recently made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Ami Brabson and André Braugher. Photo by Lia Chang

In the New York premiere of the late, award-winning playwright Oni Faida Lampley’s play Tough Titty, Ami Brabson stars as Angela, a Brooklyn mother whose breast cancer diagnosis propels her on a journey of self-discovery… When Angela’s routine cannot keep breast cancer at bay, she must learn to face the disease, her family and her community with equal doses of tenacity and humor.

The play, a richly emotional, boisterous exploration of one woman’s willful search for grace, premiered at the Williamstown Theatre Festival and made Lampley a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Award. The New York production is being presented by actress/producer Ami Brabson (“Homicide: Life on the Street,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “Damages”) and her husband, Emmy and Obie Award-winning actor André Braugher (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Homicide: Life on the Street,” “Law & Order,” “Glory,” “City of Angels”), April 23 – May 11 at the Paradise Factory in the East Village (64 East 4th Street) in New York. Awoye Timpo directs.

Ami Brabson, André Braugher and Awoye Timpo. Photo by Lia Chang

The cast also features Broadway veterans Christine Toy Johnson (The Music Man and Grease), Antoinette LaVecchia (A View from the Bridge) and Richard Topol (The Normal Heart, The Merchant of Venice), Victor Williams (“The King of Queens”), Nikkole Salter (Inked Baby at Playwrights Horizons) and Elizabeth Van Dyke (Flyin’ West).

The cast of Tough Titty (L-R) Antoinette LaVecchia, Christine Toy Johnson, Elizabeth Van Dyke, Ami Brabson, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Richard Topol. Photo by Lia Chang

The creative team also includes Brooke Cohen (Costume Design), Aaron Porter (Lighting Design), Jason Sherwood (Set Design), Beth Lake (Sound Design), Alanna Maniscalco (Props Master), Allison Bressi (Line Producer), Aneesha Kudatarkar (Assistant Director), Jenney Shamash (Assistant Producer), Michelle Heller (Production Stage Manager), Kryssa Bowman (Assistant Stage Manager), Jeff Englander (Lighting Programmer), Abigail Rose Solomon (Marketing) and Eric Emch (Show Artwork).

Tough Titty runs from April 23-May 11 at the Paradise Factory in the East Village (64 East 4th Street) with performances Wed.-Sat. at 8pm and Sundays at 7pm, there is also a show on Monday, 5/5 at 8pm. Tickets are $18 and can be purchased online at www.SmartTix.com or by phone at 212-868-4444.

Wed- Sat @ 8pm, Sun @ 7pm
Special performance Mon, May 5 @ 8pm
Wed, April 30 & Sat, May 10 SOLD OUT!

Paradise Factory Theater
64 E. 4th St. (btw. Bowery & 2nd Ave.)

FOR $16.00 DISCOUNT TICKETS (Reg. $18)
Use Discount Code FRIEND at:
www.Smarttix.com or 212-868-4444

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Apr. 23-May 11: New York Premiere of Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty Features Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke, Ami Brabson at the Paradise Factory
Late Night with Holy Land’s Jojo Gonzalez
Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Receives $275,000 Doris Duke Artist Award
Miss Saigon’s Francis Jue Receives Elliot Norton Award Nomination for Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor
Apr. 26: Garth Kravits, Suzzanne Douglas, Erin Dilly, Gavin Lee and More Set for “From Carousel to Kinky Boots”, Bickford Theatre Guild’s annual fundraiser
Photos: On the Town with Rome Neal, Jazz Vocalist and Star of Laurence Holder’s MONK
Apr. 22 – May 18: Working Theater Presents The off-Broadway Premiere of James McManus’ CHERRY SMOKE at Urban Stages
André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Among 4 Elliot Norton Award Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
Photos: Bryan Cranston, Peter Jay Fernandez, Roslyn Ruff, Tamara Tunie, Leslie Uggams, Ruben Santiago-Hudson Celebrate All The Way Opening Night
Photos: AALDEF Honors Mari Matsuda, Aasif Mandvi, and John Chou in 2014 at 40th Anniversary Celebration
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
Jun. 22 – July 27: Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Set for Old Globe Debut in OTHELLO
Apr. 17-May 18: Tonya Pinkins and Roscoe Orman Lead the Cast of New Federal Theatre’s Off-Broadway Production of The Fabulous Miss Marie
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz Presents “LADY” Featuring Lia Chang, Monica Garrido, Carolyn Holmes, Noel Simon’ Wippler, Linda Hudson, Adi Meyerson and Kathleen Doran
Photos: Steve Rosen, David Rossmer, Hannah Elless, Vadim Feichtner, Cathryn Salamone, Ken Triwush and Kate Wetherhead Celebrate The Other Josh Cohen Opening Night
Q & A with Meet Me in St. Louis: A Live Radio Play’s Garth Kravits
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Photos: Christine Toy Johnson, Baayork Lee, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Dodie Pettit and More at Charles Randolph-Wright’s “Three Voices” concert series at Stage 72
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
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Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com