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True Colors Continues to Soar with Cleage's "Blues"
http://www.gbmnews.com/articles/4311/1/True-Colors-Continues-to-Soar-with-Cleages-Blues/Page1.html
Kevin McNeir
Award-winning journalist with over 12 years in the business as a news, features and editorial writer. Degrees from U of Michigan, Emory and Princeton with two first place awards for feature writing by Chicago Association of Black Journalist. Writing is my passion. Newest projects include J'Adore Magazine and National Black MBA Magazine.  
By Kevin McNeir
Published on 05/22/2009
 
Actors Guy and Ware Deliver a Solid One-Two Punch in Blues for an Alabama Sky

By Sr. Correspondent, D. Kevin McNeir

Kenny Leon's True Colors Theatre Company recently took over new digs at the Southwest Arts Center in Atlanta and is wasting no time in establishing itself as the hottest ticket in town. First, there was the powerful and moving Miss Evers' Boys, which proved that Jasmine Guy has developed into an amazing actress - gone is Whitley Gilbert from the popular sitcom A Different World - the diva is now in charge.

 

And just to emphasize the point, Guy returns in her second lead role in as many shows in New York Times bestselling author Pearl Cleage's Blues for an Alabama Sky.

Directed by one of the sharpest sisters in the business, Andrea Frye, Guy takes on the role of Angel Allen, a nightclub singer whose dreams of making big in the nightclubs of New York City during the euphoric age of the Harlem Renaissance are fading fast as the fear and frustration of the Great Depression sets in.

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Actors Guy and Ware Deliver a Solid One-Two Punch in Blues for an Alabama Sky

By Sr. Correspondent, D. Kevin McNeir

Kenny Leon's True Colors Theatre Company recently took over new digs at the Southwest Arts Center in Atlanta and is wasting no time in establishing itself as the hottest ticket in town. First, there was the powerful and moving Miss Evers' Boys, which proved that Jasmine Guy has developed into an amazing actress - gone is Whitley Gilbert from the popular sitcom A Different World - the diva is now in charge.

 

And just to emphasize the point, Guy returns in her second lead role in as many shows in New York Times bestselling author Pearl Cleage's Blues for an Alabama Sky.

Directed by one of the sharpest sisters in the business, Andrea Frye, Guy takes on the role of Angel Allen, a nightclub singer whose dreams of making big in the nightclubs of New York City during the euphoric age of the Harlem Renaissance are fading fast as the fear and frustration of the Great Depression sets in.
And let the record show, Guy hits the mark with ease, tackling this role with energy, conviction and a sassiness that keeps the play going from start to finish.

Kenny Leon

But this time, Guy has a best friend and co-star, a "guy-gal," a flamboyant homosexual, Guy [Eric Ware], who dreams of having his original fashions worn by his idol Josephine Baker to the toast of all of Paris.

Pearl Cleage

But time is running out on him as well, and with his struggles to pay the rent and then his constant battles with hate-filled, homophobic brothers from the hood, he has more than he can handle.

Cleage was on hand for the show's opening and spoke with this reporter about the play and the actors.

"Of course I ad seen Jasmine [Guy] on television but then got the opportunity to see performance in Chicago: The Musical and her stage presence really struck me," Cleage said. "Then I saw her recently in Miss Evers' Boys and she was wonderful. I thought she would be perfect for the role of Angel and mentioned it to Kenny [Leon] who agreed. It's great that she has moved back home and as talented as she is, we really want to keep her here and working."

Cleage is known in the industry as a prolific writer with over a dozen novels to her credit, essays, articles and three or four plays under her belt.