TSU's Summer Stock Theatre Presents "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)"

NASHVILLE, TN.-Tennessee State University is gearing up for its annual Summer Stock Theatre production. Sponsored by The Department of Communication's Theater Program, this year a company of twenty plus cast members will showcase the grandeur of their talent with a run of Adam Long, Daniel Singer, and Jess Winfield's the Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged).

 

The play is directed by Barry Scott. Scott is a widely known actor, writer, producer, and director, voice over artist and motivational speaker who currently serve on the Tennessee Arts Commission. "The Complete Works of Williams Shakespeare (abridge)" places Shakespeare's works in modern context, and was developed through improvisation. The cast performs as if they are getting through the show on blind enthusiasm, but one thing that is not up for question is the over boundless energy they bring and leave on the stage! Of course the big joke in the original script is having 3 male actors perform all of Shakespeare's plays in a single evening of theatre. In our approach to the material we will utilize upwards of 20 actors both male and female and all of whom are of African decent. So where's the joke in that? I'm so glad you asked! Too black? Or not too black? Black is the question! The mood of the piece will retain its comic/satirical framework but will endeavor to explore the boundaries of political correctness and racial stereotypes. Showing in The Performing Arts Center Cox/ Lewis Theatre, TSU Main Campus, "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)" Too Black? Or Not Too Black? Black is the Question! Begins July 9th at 7pm and run Thursday, Friday, and Saturday until Jul 25th 7pm. For admission simply pay what you can. 100% of donations benefit Summer Stock Theatre Program. For more information visit Friends of the Theatre.

Photos by Greg Funnell

Tony Award-winning McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton NJ to present the world premiere of acclaimed playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney's "The Brother/Sister Plays" April 24 - June 21, 2009

Princeton, NJ— The Tony Award® -winning McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, New Jersey, is preparing to launch the world premiere of the groundbreaking trilogy The Brother/Sister Plays, written by one of the most celebrated young playwrights of his generation: Tarell Alvin McCraney. Set to begin performances on April 24, McCraney's trilogy is comprised of three distinct works – In the Red and Brown Water, The Brothers Size, and Marcus; or The Secret of Sweet—the landmark production, which has the theater world buzzing, will be directed by Tina Landau and Robert O’Hara. Performances run through June 21.


 

“There is no doubt that Tarell Alvin McCraney is one of the most startling new voices to emerge in the American theater. His first major work, The Brother/Sister Plays, is an exquisite and groundbreaking cycle. Though fictional stories, the plays are grounded in the gritty realities that Tarell faced growing up in the Miami projects of the 1980’s, yet they also reflect a mythic quality that harkens back to the Greeks,” said Emily Mann, Artistic Director of McCarter Theatre Center. The Brother/Sister Plays will premiere at McCarter April 24 through June 21, 2009. All three plays will be performed by a single company of nine actors in McCarter’s Berlind Theater. The three plays will be performed in repertory over the course of two evenings of theater (Evening 1: In the Red and Brown Water begins performances on April 25; and Evening 2: The Brothers Size and Marcus; or The Secret of Sweet begins performances on May 15). In addition, there will be six “Marathon Weekends” featuring all three plays in one day on May 23, June 6, June 7, June 13, June 20 and June 21.

The 28-year-old McCraney has been thrilling audiences on both sides of the Atlantic with his provocative and poetic plays. A recent graduate of The Yale School of Drama,

he won the Cole Porter Playwriting Award upon graduation and has since garnered such accolades as the 2007 Giles Whiting Award, the 2007 Kendeda Award, the inaugural Paula Vogel Playwriting Award, and London’s prestigious Evening Standard Award. He has also been named the International Writer in Residence for the Royal Shakespeare Company through 2010, a Hodder Fellowship at the Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University and was awarded a seven-year residency at New Dramatists Center in New York.

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RAW : No More Secrets, No More Lies is a new Off-Broadway play that provocatively questions: what happens when six attractive, uniquely diverse men engage each other in candid conversations about sex —each one confessing his own indiscretions and sharing his inner most secrets?

The emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, and sexually charged confessions underscore embodied tensions and the spectrum of masculinities: from the conservativ e, outspoken man who feels that sex before marriage is wrong, to the confused superstar concerned about his reputation, to the man who wants to be set free from his past sexual addictions.

The audience encounters different male personas masked by sexual objectification (seen perhaps as mere sex objects or phallus images). Reflecting upon their personal observations and private experiences, these men unclothe themselves layer by layer, revealing their God-given bodies and unmasking the complexities of their bondage; including tainted pasts, anxieties of the future, economic woes, cultural boundaries, homophobia, taboos of nu dity, and other issues intersecting race, sexuality, and masculinity. “Raw”, these six men openly proclaim “no more” to the “secrets and lies” which all men, women, and curious audiences can relate to.

A Story That Impacts Our Communities And Touches Our Souls

From the award-winning actor/writer/producer/director Stanley Bennett Clay, The Village Theatre proudly presents “Armstrong’s Kid,” three Thursdays only, February 26th, March 5th and 12th at 8 pm.

 

Not to be missed, Stanley Bennett Clay asks the hard question: “How do you give someone their life back with an ‘I’m Sorry’?” A most illuminating drama of conflict and healing from the recipient of The NAACP Best Actor Image Award, three NAACP Theatre Awards and three Drama-logue Awards, Clay stars in his play as a schoolteacher falsely accused of child molestation by his best friend’s 14-year-old son. 11 years later the now-grown accuser (co-star Tory Scroggins) seeks forgiveness, resulting in an evening of high drama, bitter memories, surprising revelations and unexpected twists and turns. All tickets are $25. Advance sales are highly recommended.  323-293-1356. The Lucy Florence Village Theatre is located at 3551 West 43rd Street, Leimert Park, Los Angeles CA 90008.

New 1/2 Price Ticket Listings!

The Family Of Mann Theatre Neo (10/3 to 11/22) Happy Days - A New Musical La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (10/31 to 11/16) Into the Woods The Lyric Theatre (10/16 to 12/14) Leading Ladies Actors Co-op/Crossley Theatre (10/10 to 11/16) Oliver Twist A Noise Within (11/1 to 12/14) The Sequence The Theatre @ Boston Court (10/3 to 11/9) Two Trains Running Ebony Repertory Theatre (10/8 to 11/9)

Concerts

A 50's/60's Rokcin' Tribute: Twist and Shout Crown City Theatre Company (10/17 to 10/26) "A 50's/60's ROCKIN' TRIBUTE: TWIST AND SHOUT!" Performed by L.A.'s hottest band NOT FADE AWAY Crown City Theater, located at St. Matthew's Church - 11031 Camarillo Street , North Hollywood, 91602 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here!

Alphabetical Listing (A - E)

43 Plays for 43 Presidents Sacred Fools Theatre Company (9/19 to 10/26) A cast of six tells the story of America from George W. to George Dubya! Sacred Fools Theatre Company - P.O. Box 29312 , Los Angeles, 90029 Full Price: $25.00 Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! 7 Redneck Cheerleaders Elephant Stageworks (9/11 to 10/4) The Elephant's Smash Hit Original Comedy is back by popular Demand! Elephant Space Theater - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Abigail's Party Odyssey Theatre Ensemble (8/23 to 10/19) It's a party from hell but one you won't want to miss! Odyssey Theatres - 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90025 Full Price: $25.00, $30.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! The Adventures of the Lieutenant Nun Macha Theatre/Films (9/12 to 10/26) Based on the memoirs of Catalina de Erauso a 17th Century transvestite who was both a lover and a nun. Macha Theatre/Films - 1107 North Kings Rd. , West Hollywood, 90069 Full Price: $30.00  Your Price: $15.00 Click Here! Angry Young Women in Low Rise Jeans with High Class Issues KADM Productions, LLC (10/3 to 11/9) Fresh from it's Off Broadway run in New York! Hudson Mainstage Theatre - 6539 Santa Monica Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Asleep on A Bicycle Elephant Stageworks (9/6 to 10/11) Falling asleep is easy compared to the challenges of waking up. The Lillian Theatre - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Asses and Elephants Suzanne Bressler (10/3 to 11/2) Not your typical political party... Santa Monica Playhouse Main Stage - 1211 4th Street , Santa Monica, 90401 Full Price: $11.00, $22.00  Your Price: $5.50 Click Here! The Belle of Amherst Actors Forum Theatre (9/5 to 10/26) THE BELLE OF AMHERST, the Tony Award-winning theatrical event about the life and poetry of Emily Dickenson. Actors Forum Theatre - 10655 Magnolia Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91601 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Blood Brothers Whitefire Theatre (10/17 to 11/23) Willy Russell's landmark musical (still running in London after 25 years) set in Los Angeles. The Whitefire Theatre - 13500 Ventura Blvd. , Sherman Oaks, 91423 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! The Bones Of Lesser Men MET Theatre (8/22 to 10/12) The WORLD PREMIERE of a compelling new drama by NY playwright -- Yves Lola St. Vil. Tension abounds. MET Theatre - 1089 N. Oxford Avenue , Los Angeles, 90029 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here! Canek- A "Life Size" Puppet Show The New LATC (10/10 to 10/12) "Canek", the tremendously successful "life size" puppet show from Guadalajara, comes to Los Angeles! Los Angeles Theatre Center (Theatre 3) - 514 S. Spring Street , Los Angeles, 90013 Full Price: $35.00  Your Price: $17.50 Click Here! Conversations With My Father Santa Monica Theatre Guild (9/26 to 10/25) A powerful and humorous story about the conflict between tradition and assimilation. Morgan-Wixson Theatre - 2627 Pico Blvd. , Santa Monica, 90405 Full Price: $18.00  Your Price: $9.00 Click Here! Critic's Choice Woodland Hills Theatre at the West Valley Playhouse (9/26 to 10/19) "Critic's Choice" a comedy by Ira Levin West Valley Playhouse - 7242 Owensmouth Ave., , Canoga Park, 91303 Full Price: $24.00 Your Price: $12.00 Click Here! Desperate Writers Edgemar Center for the Arts (10/18 to 11/23) Edgemar Center for the Arts (Main Space) - 2437 Main Street , Santa Monica, 90405 Full Price: $25.00 Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Diva Malibu Stage Company (10/3 to 10/26) This biting comedy tell the behind-the-scenes story of Deanna Denninger, a famous sitcom actress. Malibu Stage Company - 29500 Heathercliff Rd., #169 , Malibu, 90265 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Eagle Hills, Eagle Ridge, Eagle Landing Range View Productions (10/17 to 11/15) Eagle Hills, Eagle Ridge, Eagle Landing - "Talk Big, Dream Small" The Hayworth - 643 Carondelet Street , LA, 90057 Full Price: $20.00, $40.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar & Grille Theatre Palisades (9/5 to 10/12) Regulars at a bar and grill are trying to decide how to spend what might be their last hours on earth. Theatre Palisades - 941 Temescal Cyn Rd. at Sunset Blvd., Pacific Palisades, 90272 Full Price: $16.00, $14.00, $18.00  Your Price: $7.00 Click Here! The Elephant Man Actors Co-op/Crossley Theatre (9/26 to 11/2) This true story questions the ideas of perception and what it means to be truly beautiful. Actor's Co-Op/Crossley Theatre - 1760 N. Gower Street , Hollywood, 90028 Full Price: $30.00  Your Price: $15.00 Click Here!

Alphabetical Listing (F - M)

Faithful Ruskin Group Theatre Co. (9/26 to 10/26) YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN FAITHFUL. Ruskin Group Theatre - 3000 Airport Ave. , Santa Monica, 90405 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!  The Family Of Mann Theatre Neo (10/3 to 11/22) A biting comedy that takes a behind-the-scenes look at the writing of a television sitcom. Secret Rose Theatre - 11240 Magnolia Blvd. STE 205, North Hollywood, 91601 Full Price: $12.50, $25.00 Your Price: $6.25 Click Here! The Four of Us VS. Theatre Company (9/5 to 10/19) What if all your dreams came true...for your best friend? Elephant Space Theater - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here!  Freedom of Speech Sidewalk Studio Theatre (10/3 to 11/28) If Lily Tomlin and Anna Deavere Smith were to merge their talents, the result might be something like Eliza Jane Schneider's Freedom of Speech Sidewalk Studio Theatre - 4150 Riverside Drive Suite D, Burbank, 91505 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!  The Friendly Hour Road Theatre Company (9/13 to 10/31) World premiere of Tom Jacobson's newest play (Bunbury, Ouroboros, Cyberqueer, Tainted Blood). Lankershim Arts Center - 5108 Lankershim Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91601 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Gem of the Ocean Fountain Theatre (10/3 to 11/16) August Wilson's powerful and moving masterpiece about a young man's journey to redemption. Fountain Theatre - 5060 Fountain Avenue , Los Angeles, 90029 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here!  Halo Theatre Forty (10/4 to 11/6) American Premiere - a genuinely funny meld of faith, drama & humor. Theatre Forty at Reuben Cordova Theatre - 241 Moreno Dr. Bev.High Campus, Beverly Hills, 90212 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Happy Days - A New Musical La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (10/31 to 11/16) HAPPY DAYS - A New Musical launches its national tour at La Mirada Theatre in October 2008! La Mirada Theatre for the Perf. Arts - 14900 La Mirada Blvd. , La Mirada, 90638 Full Price: $48.00 Your Price: $24.00 Click Here!   Into the Woods The Lyric Theatre (10/16 to 12/14) The Lyric Theatre now presents "Into the Woods," a dark musical directed by Ryan Braun. The Lyric Theatre - 520 N. La Brea Ave. , Los Angeles, 90036 Full Price: $30.00 Your Price: $15.00 Click Here!    It's the Housewives! Juber Productions, Inc. (9/6 to 10/12) Move over 'Spinal Tap'. The Whitefire Theatre - 13500 Ventura Blvd. , Sherman Oaks, 91423 Full Price: $30.00  Your Price: $15.00 Click Here! James and the Giant Peach MainStreet Theatre Company (10/18 to 11/1) James & his insect pals tell the story of their adventure from England to NYC inside a giant peach! Lewis Family Playhouse - 12505 Cultural Center Drive , Rancho Cucamonga, 91739 Full Price: $16.50  Your Price: $8.25 Click Here!  Kiss Of The Spider Woman - The Musical Havok Theatre Company (9/18 to 10/26) L.A. Intimate Theatre Premiere of the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, Directed by Nick DeGruccio. Bootleg Theatre - 2220 Beverly Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90057 Full Price: $34.00  Your Price: $17.00 Click Here! Leading Ladies Actors Co-op/Crossley Theatre (10/10 to 11/16) Romance and chaos abound as two hapless Shakespearean actors attept to scam an inheritance. Actor's Co-Op/Crossley Theatre - 1760 N. Gower Street , Hollywood, 90028 Full Price: $30.00 Your Price: $15.00 Click Here! Little Green Men Kentwood Players (9/12 to 10/18) WORLD PREMIERE of Scott Martin's musical, set on the night of Orson Welles infamous "War of the Worlds. Westchester Playhouse - 8301 Hindry Ave. , Los Angeles, 90045 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Love's Old Sweet Song The Syzygy Theatre Group (10/17 to 11/22) In celebration of the William Saroyan centennial Syzygy Theatre presents one of his "lost" classics. GTC Burbank - 1111B West Olive Blvd , Burbank, 91506 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! M. Butterfly The Production Company (10/3 to 11/8) Awarded 'BEST PLAY' by The Tonys, Outer Critics Circle, and Drama Desk. Chandler Studio Theatre Center - 12443 Chandler Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91607 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Made Me Nuclear, the Operetta Santa Monica Playhouse (9/5 to 10/11) They radiated him but they couldn't silence him, Charlie Lustman surviving cancer one song at a time. Santa Monica Playhouse Main Stage - 1211 4th Street , Santa Monica, 90401 Full Price: $20.00 Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Magnum Opus Theatre Sacred Fools Theatre Company (10/3 to 10/24) An Amazingly Awful Screenplay. Word for Word. Unedited. We Didn't Change a Thing. Sacred Fools Theatre Company - 660 N. Heliotrope Dr. , Los Angeles, 90004 Full Price: $10.00  Your Price: $5.00 Click Here! Mary's Wedding The Colony Theatre Company (10/22 to 11/23) A breathtaking saga of young lovers who must surrender their fate to their tumultuous times. The Colony Theatre - 555 N. Third St. , Burbank, 91502 Full Price: $20.00, $37.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Mastergate The Actors Repertory (10/3 to 11/2) A White House Scandal of Hollywood Proportions! The Actors Group Theatre - 4378 Lankershim Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91602 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here!  Mulatto Juliette Fairley (9/19 to 10/31) One-woman show about looking for love; finding your fate in the 1920s when race mixing was forbidden. Moving Arts Hyperion Space - 1822 Hyperion Ave. , Los Angeles, 90027 Full Price: $30.00 Your Price: $15.00 Click Here! My Old Friends The Victory Theatre Center (9/5 to 9/28) At the Golden Years retirement hotel, there's a mixed bag of guests, a little romance, songs, dancing. The Big Victory Theatre - 3326 W. Victory Blvd. , Burbank, 91505 Full Price: $34.00  Your Price: $17.00 Click Here!

Alphabetical Listing (N - T)

Native Voices at the Autry's World Premiere of Salvage Native Voices at the Autry (10/31 to 11/23) World Premiere of Salvage By Diane Glancy Directed by Sheila Tousey A hard-working family sc Autry National Center in the Wells Fargo Theater - 4700 Western Heritage Way , Los Angeles, 90027 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!  Of Mice and Men Repertory East Playhouse (9/19 to 10/18) John Steinbeck's, Of Mice and Men at the REP. Repertory East Playhouse - 24266 Main Street , Newhall, 91321 Full Price: $17.00  Your Price: $8.50 Click Here! Old Glories The Inkwell Theater (9/28 to 10/26) The Inkwell Theater presents two new one-act plays by Elliot Shoenman. Zephyr Theatre - 7456 Melrose Ave. , Hollywood, 90046 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Oliver Twist A Noise Within (11/1 to 12/14) Wildly theatrical, musically vibrant - this is a Dickensian adventure not to be missed! A Noise Within - 234 S. Brand Blvd. , Glendale, 91204 Full Price: $28.00 Your Price: $14.00 Click Here! Proof Eclectic Company Theatre (9/5 to 10/12) Taylor Ashbrook directs the critically acclaimed story of four people. Eclectic Company Theatre - 5312 Laurel Canyon Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91607 Full Price: $18.00  Your Price: $9.00 Click Here! Pugilist Specialist VS. Theatre Company (9/14 to 10/19) Victory forgives dishonesty. Elephant Space Theater - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Push Theatre Forty (10/11 to 11/8) L.A. Premiere - Award-winning dark comic examination of loe, manipulation, fidelity and deceit. Theatre Forty at Reuben Cordova Theatre - 241 Moreno Dr. Bev.High Campus, Beverly Hills, 90212 Full Price: $22.00, $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!   The Rainmaker A Noise Within (10/4 to 12/6) N. Richard Nash's joyful romantic comedy of hope, dreams and drought. A Noise Within - 234 S. Brand Blvd. , Glendale, 91204 Full Price: $28.00  Your Price: $14.00 Click Here! Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury's Pandemonium Theatre Company (4/20 to 11/23) A government suspends basic individual liberties in the name of homeland security. Fremont Centre Theatre - 1000 Fremont Ave. , So. Pasadena, 91030 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!  Razorback Rogue Machine (9/20 to 11/2) A former criminal's violent past catches up with him in this pitch-dark comedy about fathers and sin. Theatre/Theater - 5041 W. Pico Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90019 Full Price: $15.00, $25.00, $10.00  Your Price: $5.00 Click Here! The School for Scandal Little Fish Theatre (10/10 to 11/22) Gossip rules at The School for Scandal-Sheridan's timeless comedy for the modern age. Little Fish Theatre - 777 Centre Street , San Pedro, 90731 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $11.00 Click Here! Sea Change LA Gay & Lesbian Center (9/19 to 10/12) One Boat, Five Friends, Twenty-Five Years. The Davidson/Valentini Theatre - The Village 1125 N. McCadden, Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! The Sequence The Theatre @ Boston Court (10/3 to 11/9) Double-talk and double-cross in the pursuit of double-stranded DNA. Boston Court - 70 N. Mentor Ave. , Pasadena, 91106 Full Price: $17.00  Your Price: $8.50 Click Here! The Sound of Murder Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Company (8/15 to 10/5) A wife and her lover plan the perfect murder of her heartless husband. Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Theatre - 10900 Burbank Blvd. , N. Hollywood, 91601 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Tilted Frame C.A.F.E. / Theatre Asylum (10/2 to 11/13) Created in 2002, TILTED FRAME is back again with live video, internet with comedic improv. Theatre Asylum - 6320 Santa Monica Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $10.00  Your Price: $5.00 Click Here! Tragedy: a tragedy Son of Semele Ensemble (10/17 to 11/16) The sun has set. Night has fallen,perhaps for the last time. The media reports on this tragic event. Son of Semele - 3301 Beverly Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90057 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Two Trains Running Ebony Repertory Theatre (10/8 to 11/9) Ebony Repertory Theatre's Inaugural Production ~ August Wilson's Two Trains Running Nate Holden Performing Arts Center - 4718 W. Washington Blvd , Los Angeles, 90016 Full Price: $50.00 Your Price: $25.00 Click Here!

Alphabetical Listing (U - Z)

Waiting in the Wings Theatre West (10/11 to 11/23) Betty Garrett in the West Coast Premiere of Noel Coward's tribute to the great ladies of the stage. Theatre West - 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. West , Hollywood, 90068 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $11.00 Click Here! The Way We Get By 3KO Broadway Theatre Company (9/27 to 11/1) This West Coast Premiere features rarely staged short plays by Neil LaBute. The Gardner Stages - 1501 N. Gardner Street , Los Angeles, 90046 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here! The Women Circus Theatricals (9/19 to 11/8) Clare Boothe Luce's outrageous 1936 comedy about society women in New York during the Depression. Circus Theatricals Studio Theatre @ The Hayworth - 2511 Wilshire Blvd , Los Angeles, 90057 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!

LASTAGEAlliance.com is the online home for LA STAGE Alliance:  a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization serving the performing arts community of Los Angeles since 1975 (formerly TheatreLA). All service fee revenue goes directly back into supporting our programs: LA STAGE TIX - a half-price online ticketing service LA STAGE - the bi-monthly print magazine covering Los Angeles performing arts LA STAGE Alliance's Ovation Awards, a peer-evaluated awards program honoring excellence in Los Angeles Theatre LA STAGE Times - our discounted advertising program with the Los Angeles Times For more information about membership with LA STAGE Alliance Click Here!   LASTAGETIX is supported, in part, by the James Irvine foundation, the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, Grants Division.

New 1/2 Price Ticket Listings! Be Like Water East West Players (9/17 to 10/12) Blood Brothers Whitefire Theatre (10/17 to 11/23) Cheerios In My Underwear and Motherhood Unplugged - Real Moms Real Stories It Ain't No Fairy Tale Productions (9/28 to 9/28) Conversations With My Father Santa Monica Theatre Guild (9/26 to 10/25) Diva Malibu Stage Company (10/3 to 10/26) The Friendly Hour Road Theatre Company (9/13 to 10/31) Genius From A Blue Collar Neighborhood Zoey Productions (Maria Menozzi) (10/18 to 11/22) Old Glories The Inkwell Theater (9/28 to 10/26) Pugilist Specialist VS. Theatre Company (9/14 to 10/19) Push Theatre Forty (10/11 to 11/8) Ray Bradbury Ray Bradbury's Pandemonium Theatre Company (4/20 to 11/23) Reunion in Bartersville Cambridge Players - Next Generation (9/5 to 9/28) The School for Scandal Little Fish Theatre (10/10 to 11/15) Speech & Debate The Blank Theatre Company (9/13 to 10/26) Vanities, a new musical Pasadena Playhouse (8/22 to 9/28) Waiting in the Wings Theatre West (10/11 to 11/23)

Concerts A Tribute to Neil Diamond City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (10/4/2008) Hot August Night: A Tribute to Neil Diamond. Starring Dean Colley and the Hot August Night Showband. Madrid Theatre - 21622 Sherman Way , Canoga Park, 91303 Full Price: $40.00 Your Price: $20.00 Click Here! Jazz 'n Blues City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (9/20/2008) The 2nd Annual Musical Evening of Jazz 'n Blues. Madrid Theatre - 21622 Sherman Way , Canoga Park, 91303 Full Price: $25.00, $35.00 Your Price: $12.50 Click Here!

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Alphabetical Listing (A - E) 12th Night Crown City Theatre Company (9/5 to 9/28) Hilariously Funny and only One hour and 50 minutes long. Shakespeare cut for a modern audience. Crown City Theater, located at St. Matthew's Church - 11031 Camarillo Street , North Hollywood, 91602 Full Price: $10.00  Your Price: $5.00 Click Here! 43 Plays for 43 Presidents Sacred Fools Theatre Company (9/19 to 10/26) A cast of six tells the story of America from George W. to George Dubya! Sacred Fools Theatre Company - P.O. Box 29312 , Los Angeles, 90029 Full Price: $25.00 Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! 7 Redneck Cheerleaders Elephant Stageworks (9/11 to 10/4) The Elephant's Smash Hit Original Comedy is back by popular Demand! Elephant Space Theater - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $20.00, $25.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Abigail's Party Odyssey Theatre Ensemble (8/23 to 10/19) It's a party from hell but one you won't want to miss! Odyssey Theatres - 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90025 Full Price: $25.00, $30.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Angry Young Women in Low Rise Jeans with High Class Issues KADM Productions, LLC (10/3 to 11/9) Fresh from it's Off Broadway run in New York! Hudson Mainstage Theatre - 6539 Santa Monica Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Asleep on A Bicycle Elephant Stageworks (9/6 to 10/11) Falling asleep is easy compared to the challenges of waking up. The Lillian Theatre - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Assassins West Coast Ensemble (9/5 to 9/28) An exploration of nine individuals who assassinated or attempted to assassinate the President. El Centro Theatre - 804 N. El Centro Ave. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $34.00  Your Price: $17.00 Click Here! Be Like Water East West Players (9/17 to 10/12) David Henry Hwang Theater - 120 N. Judge John Aiso St. , Los Angeles, 90012 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! The Belle of Amherst Actors Forum Theatre (9/5 to 10/12) THE BELLE OF AMHERST, the Tony Award-winning theatrical event about the life and poetry of Emily , w Actors Forum Theatre - 10655 Magnolia Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91601 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Blood Brothers Whitefire Theatre (10/17 to 11/23) Willy Russell's landmark musical (still running in London after 25 years) set in Los Angeles. The Whitefire Theatre - 13500 Ventura Blvd. , Sherman Oaks, 91423 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! The Bones Of Lesser Men MET Theatre (8/22 to 9/28) The WORLD PREMIERE of a compelling new drama by NY playwright -- Yves Lola St. Vil. Tension abounds. MET Theatre - 1089 N. Oxford Avenue , Los Angeles, 90029 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here! Bye Bye Birdie Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities (9/17 to 10/5) Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center - 2224 Artesia Blvd. , Redondo Beach, 90278- Full Price: $40.00, $50.00  Your Price: $20.00 Click Here! Cheerios In My Underwear and Motherhood Unplugged - Real Moms Real Stories It Ain't No Fairy Tale Productions (9/28 to 9/28) LA's Longest Running Solo show is the hilarious and poignant journey of modern day motherhood. fanaticSalon - 3815 Sawtelle Blvd. , Culver City, 90066 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here! Conversations With My Father Santa Monica Theatre Guild (9/26 to 10/25) A powerful and humorous story about the conflict between tradition and assimilation. Morgan-Wixson Theatre - 2627 Pico Blvd. , Santa Monica, 90405 Full Price: $18.00  Your Price: $9.00 Click Here! Diva Malibu Stage Company (10/3 to 10/26) This biting comedy tell the behind-the-scenes story of Deanna Denninger, a famous sitcom actress. Malibu Stage Company - 29500 Heathercliff Rd., #169 , Malibu, 90265 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar & Grille Theatre Palisades (9/5 to 10/12) Regulars at a bar and grill are trying to decide how to spend what might be their last hours on earth. Theatre Palisades - 941 Temescal Cyn Rd. at Sunset Blvd., Pacific Palisades, 90272 Full Price: $16.00, $14.00, $18.00  Your Price: $7.00 Click Here! Educating Rita The Colony Theatre Company (9/4 to 9/21) The poignant, comic masterpiece that explores what it really means to be educated. The Colony Theatre - 555 N. Third St. , Burbank, 91502 Full Price: $37.00  Your Price: $18.50 Click Here!

Alphabetical Listing (F - M) F*cking Hollywood Ark Theatre Company (8/28 to 10/4) Is it love, or is it something slightly more unseemly that really makes the world go round? The Ark Theatre Company - 1647 S. La Cienega Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90035 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $11.00 Click Here! Fables Du Theatre Unknown Theater (9/4 to 9/27) Succubae, princesses and clowns collide in an entertaining feast for the senses. Unknown Theater - 1110 Seward St. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $24.00  Your Price: $12.00 Click Here! The Four of Us VS. Theatre Company (9/5 to 10/19) What if all your dreams came true...for your best friend? Elephant Space Theater - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here!  The Friendly Hour Road Theatre Company (9/13 to 10/31) World premiere of Tom Jacobson's newest play (Bunbury, Ouroboros, Cyberqueer, Tainted Blood). Lankershim Arts Center - 5108 Lankershim Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91601 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Genius From A Blue Collar Neighborhood Zoey Productions (Maria Menozzi) (10/18 to 11/22) How does an ordinary woman in the middle of her life give herself a second chance at her dreams? Two Roads Theatre - 4348 Tujunga Ave , Studio City, 91604 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! The Great Election John Stark Productions (9/18 to 10/12) The perfect political play, with plenty of comic bite and wit. Odyssey Theatres - 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90025 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Greek Tragedy Film @ 11! Vox Humana Theatre Company (9/5 to 10/4) Greek tragedy comically crossed with today's tabloid media fascinated culture. The Pico Playhouse - P.O. Box 93338 , Hollywood, 90093 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here! Halo Theatre Forty (10/4 to 11/6) American Premiere - a genuinely funny meld of faith, drama & humor. Theatre Forty at Reuben Cordova Theatre - 241 Moreno Dr. Bev.High Campus, Beverly Hills, 90212 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! It's A Wonderful Life Advent Theatre (9/26 to 10/25) Philip Grecian's radio play adaptation of Frank Capra's classic holiday film IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. Advent Theatre - 4390 Colfax Ave , Studio City, 91604 Full Price: $20.00, $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here!  It's the Housewives! Juber Productions, Inc. (9/6 to 10/12) Move over 'Spinal Tap'. The Whitefire Theatre - 13500 Ventura Blvd. , Sherman Oaks, 91423 Full Price: $30.00  Your Price: $15.00 Click Here! Kiss Of The Spider Woman - The Musical Havok Theatre Company (9/18 to 10/26) L.A. Intimate Theatre Premiere of the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, Directed by Nick DeGruccio. Bootleg Theatre - 2220 Beverly Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90057 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! The Lieutenant Nun Macha Theatre/Films (9/12 to 10/26) Based on the memoirs of Catalina de Erauso a 17th Century transvestite. Macha Theatre/Films - 1107 North Kings Rd. , West Hollywood, 90069 Full Price: $30.00, $40.00  Your Price: $15.00 Click Here! Little Green Men Kentwood Players (9/12 to 10/18) WORLD PREMIERE of Scott Martin's musical, set on the night of Orson Welles infamous "War of the Worlds. Westchester Playhouse - 8301 Hindry Ave. , Los Angeles, 90045 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Long Stay Cut Short Actors Art Theatre (8/27 to 9/21) Actors Art Theatre presents two 1 Act gems from Tennessee Williams Actor's Art Theatre - 6128 Wilshire Blvd., #110 , Los Angeles, 90048 Full Price: $16.00  Your Price: $8.00 Click Here! Lovers and Others Strangers 68 Cent Crew Theatre Company (9/5 to 9/28) A sexy comedy set in the 1960s, which examines the impact of the women's movement and... Theatre 68 - 5419 Sunset Blvd Suite D, Hollywood, 90028 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Made Me Nuclear, the Operetta Santa Monica Playhouse (9/5 to 10/11) They radiated him but they couldn’t silence him, Charlie Lustman surviving cancer one song at a time Santa Monica Playhouse Main Stage - 1211 4th Street , Santa Monica, 90401 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Moliere Plays Paris Knightsbridge Theatre (9/6 to 10/12) One of the world’s greatest playwrights will come to life in this Los Angeles premiere. Knightsbridge Theatre Company - 1944 Riverside Dr. , Los Angeles, 90039 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! My Old Friends The Victory Theatre Center (9/5 to 9/28) At the Golden Years retirement hotel, there's a mixed bag of guests, a little romance, songs, dancing. The Big Victory Theatre - 3326 W. Victory Blvd. , Burbank, 91505 Full Price: $34.00  Your Price: $17.00 Click Here!

Alphabetical Listing (N - T) Of Mice and Men Repertory East Playhouse (9/19 to 10/18) John Steinbeck's, Of Mice and Men at the REP. Repertory East Playhouse - 24266 Main Street , Newhall, 91321 Full Price: $17.00  Your Price: $8.50 Click Here! Old Glories The Inkwell Theater (9/28 to 10/26) The Inkwell Theater presents two new one-act plays by Elliot Shoenman Zephyr Theatre - 7456 Melrose Ave. , Hollywood, 90046 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Proof Eclectic Company Theatre (9/5 to 10/12) Taylor Ashbrook directs the critically acclaimed story of four people whose love is set against a so Eclectic Company Theatre - 5312 Laurel Canyon Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91607 Full Price: $18.00  Your Price: $9.00 Click Here! Pugilist Specialist VS. Theatre Company (9/14 to 10/19) Victory forgives dishonesty. Elephant Space Theater - 6322 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Push Theatre Forty (10/11 to 11/8) L.A. Premiere - Award-winning dark comic examination of loe, manipulation, fidelity and deceit. Theatre Forty at Reuben Cordova Theatre - 241 Moreno Dr. Bev.High Campus, Beverly Hills, 90212 Full Price: $22.00, $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! R.R.R.E.D. | The Redhead Musical Manifesto Grove Theater Center (9/6 to 9/27) Spread the R.R.R.E.D. Stop Redhead Extinction! Join the movement! Have Sex with a Redhead today! GTC Burbank - 1111B West Olive Blvd , Burbank, 91506 Full Price: $30.00  Your Price: $15.00 Click Here! Rabbit Hole Camelot Artists Productions (8/1 to 9/28) A married couple deals with the grief of having lost their 4-year old son in a car accident. The Skylight Theatre - 1816 1/2 N. Vermont Ave. , Los Angeles, 90027 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Ragtime, the Musical Musical Theatre of Los Angeles Alliance (9/12 to 10/5) Hudson Backstage Theatre - 6539 Santa Monica Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $34.99  Your Price: $17.50 Click Here! Ray Bradbury Ray Bradbury's Pandemonium Theatre Company (4/20 to 11/23) A government suspends basic individual liberties in the name of homeland security. Fremont Centre Theatre - 1000 Fremont Ave. , So. Pasadena, 91030 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Razorback Rogue Machine (9/20 to 11/2) A former criminal's violent past catches up with him in this pitch-dark comedy about fathers and sin| Theatre/Theater - 5041 W. Pico Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90019 Full Price: $15.00, $25.00, $10.00  Your Price: $5.00 Click Here! Reunion in Bartersville Cambridge Players - Next Generation (9/5 to 9/28) A superbly acted comedy with an all-star cast. The Egyptian Arena Theatre - 1625 N. Las Palmas , Hollywood, 90028 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! Scaredycats Fremont Centre Theatre (8/29 to 9/28) Cheryl Bascom's world premiere, SCAREDYCATS is both outrageously funny & surprisingly moving, reveal Fremont Centre Theatre - 1000 Fremont Ave. , So. Pasadena, 91030 Full Price: $25.00  Your Price: $12.50 Click Here! The School for Scandal Little Fish Theatre (10/10 to 11/15) A deliciously witty comedy of manners. Little Fish Theatre - 777 Centre Street , San Pedro, 90731 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $11.00 Click Here! Sissystrata Celebration Theatre (9/4 to 9/28) A bawdy, hilarious all-male adaptation of Lysistrata set 5 yrs in the future in WeHo. World premiere The Celebration Theatre - 7051 Santa Monica Blvd , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Sona Tera Roman Hess New Perspectives Theatre Company (9/5 to 9/21) World Premiere opening August 16th! Written by Dennis Miles and Directed by Kiff Scholl. Lounge Theatre - 6201 Santa Monica Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! The Sound of Murder Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Company (8/15 to 10/5) A wife and her lover plan the perfect murder of her heartless husband. In the heat of passion. Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Theatre - 10900 Burbank Blvd. , N. Hollywood, 91601 Full Price: $20.00  Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!   Souvenir La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts (9/12 to 9/28) "Hilarious & Deeply Touching" - NY Daily News La Mirada Theatre for the Perf. Arts - 14900 La Mirada Blvd. , La Mirada, 90638 Full Price: $48.00  Your Price: $24.00 Click Here! Speech & Debate The Blank Theatre Company (9/13 to 10/26) Three teenagers form a speech & debate team after discovering they are linked by a town sex scandal. 2ND Stage - 6500 Santa Monica Blvd. , Hollywood, 90038 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $11.00 Click Here! Spider Bites Theatre of NOTE (8/29 to 10/4) "You know, this is 2007. People don't climb up a hill in the suburbs to die." Theatre of NOTE - 1517 Cahuenga Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90028 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $11.00 Click Here! The Subject Was Roses West Coast Ensemble (8/26 to 9/12) This Pulitzer Prize-winning classic is an unblinking exploration of domestic warfare. El Centro Theatre - 804 N. El Centro Ave. , Los Angeles, 90038 Full Price: $15.00  Your Price: $7.50 Click Here! Summer Sizzle One-Act Play Festival The Production Company (9/5 to 9/20) Eight Great Local Writers Cook Up Hot Competition In A Contest the Audience Decides! Chandler Studio Theatre Center - 12443 Chandler Blvd. , North Hollywood, 91607 Full Price: $20.00   Your Price: $10.00 Click Here! Third Eye Blonde Malibu Stage Company (9/6 to 9/14) Carla Collins, Canada's Queen of Comedy, and her husband Tyrone Power, Jr. star in this show. Malibu Stage Company - 29500 Heathercliff Rd., #169 , Malibu, 90265 Full Price: $20.00   Your Price: $10.00 Click Here!

Alphabetical Listing (U - Z) Vanities, a new musical Pasadena Playhouse (8/22 to 9/28) A tangy tale of coming of age in the 60s and 70s! "Critic's Pick!" - Back Stage West. "GO" LA Weekly Pasadena Playhouse - 39 S. El Molino Ave. , Pasadena, 91101 Full Price: $66.00  Your Price: $33.00 Click Here! Waiting in the Wings Theatre West (10/11 to 11/23) Betty Garrett in the West Coast Premiere of Noel Coward's tribute to the great ladies of the stage. Theatre West - 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. West , Hollywood, 90068 Full Price: $22.00  Your Price: $11.00 Click Here! Wonder of the World Little Fish Theatre (8/15 to 9/20) It's a wild ride to Niagara Falls in a barrel of laughs with this wacky comedy set at the famous landmark. 777 Centre Street, San Pedro  Map Full Price: $22.00  Your price: $11.00 Click Here!

 

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By Lawson Taitte

Dallas – A Soldier's Play holds up very well 26 years after winning Charles Fuller the Pulitzer Prize. In fact, its story of a black man who lunges toward his goal despite extreme opposition seems remarkably timely.

 

Seen at a special Thursday performance honoring veterans, police officers and firefighters on the anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks, this is the first production by an ambitious new company, African American Repertory Theater.

Veteran stage and movie actor Irma P. Hall is the artistic director; her co-founders are William (Bill) Earl Ray and Regina Washington. The venue is the Corner Theatre in DeSoto's town center.

Mr. Ray directed and stars in A Soldier's Play. Onstage with him you'll find a quorum of the area's best black actors. Together they tell a story of racial inequality and turmoil during World War II, an era when the American military was still segregated.

A morose taskmaster of a sergeant (Mr. Ray) is shot to death as the play begins. Eventually Capt. Richard Davenport (Vince McGill) – the first black officer anybody in this Southern post has ever seen – arrives to investigate. Taylor (Vince Davis), a white officer who has been trying to prevent a cover-up, fears that Davenport's race will prevent him from getting a conviction even if he does discover the truth.

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A gay schoolteacher is falsely accused of child molestation by his best friend's 14-year-old son and ends up spending a year in prison before the truth is revealed. Ten years later, the now-grown accuser seeks out the accused to ask for forgiveness.

 

Portrait By: Matt Shallenberger

"Armstrong's Kid," the explosive new stage play written by and starring three-time NAACP Theatre Award-winning playwright, novelist, filmmaker, and actor Stanley Bennett Clay, and produced by Tory Scroggins, opens Friday, October 3, 2008, at Theatre Unlimited, 10943 Camarillo St., off Lankershim and Vineland, in North Hollywood, California. Clay, best known for his controversial stage play "Ritual" ( he also wrote and directed the film adaptation), is the author of three novels, "Diva," "In Search of Pretty Young Black Men," and "Looker." He will soon be represented on the Broadway stage with his book and lyrics for "Invisible Life," based on the best-selling novel by E. Lynn Harris. Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson wrote the musical score and additional lyrics.

As the falsely accused in "Armstrong's Kid," Stanley Bennett Clay is making his first official dramatic stage appearance since winning the NAACP Best Actor Image Award 22 years ago. During the late 1960's through the late 1990's Clay starred and guest-starred in over 200 films, television shows, commercials, and stage plays including "Room 222," "Good Times," "The Blue Knight," "The Bill Cosby Show," "Cheers," "Cannonball," the critically-acclaimed CBS dramatic special "Minstrel Man" and gave award-winning stage performances in "Zooman and the Sign," "A Hat Full of Rain," and "Anna Lucasta." Producer Tory Scroggins, who has had leading roles in such Los Angeles stage productions as "Blues For Mister Charlie," "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," "Before It Hits Home," and "One Flew West," will play the title role in "Armstrong's Kid." "Armstrong's Kid" will perform Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm, and Sundays at 7 pm thru November 9. All shows are $25. Tickets are available online at www.ticketmaster.com. To charge by phone call 213.480.3232. The first two shows, Friday October 3 and Saturday October 4, are sold out. For further information call 323.737.2612 or go online at armstrongskid@gmail.com.

An exciting new comedy has opened produced by our intrepid brotherin Nathan 7 Scott and Dwight Allen O'Neal. It is their first entre into the theatre world. If you are looking for a great comedy that really makes you die laughing, then you have found the right play.

The show runs Sept 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, and 14...

SYNOPSIS
Set in Radio's Golden Age of the 40's, the cast of ABN's nighttime broadcast seems to have its own problems: when a death occurs in the station, it's all they can do to finish the evening's program. It's only sheer coincidence tonight's broadcast is a mystery thriller....or is it?

The play was written by Evan Storey and Laura Dickinson (additional material written by: Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh, Bob Carroll Jr, and Charlotte M. Russell)

It is directed by Evan Storey and Laura Dickinson

To Buy Tickets in Person
Theatre Row
410 West 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
Open Daily 12-8pm

Directions to the Show by Subway/Bus
Take the A/C/E to 42nd Street or the N/Q/R or 1/9 to Times Square.

Race, passion, and civil rights are at the heart of this acclaimed, deeply personal story by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Tony Kushner who was partially raised by a black housekeeper around the busy schedule of his parents, both professional musicians. The play is inspired by a childhood incident, and is set in Mr. Kushner’s hometown of Lake Charles, Louisiana.

 

Caroline, or Change begins in the final months of 1963, a painful turbulent year as witnessed by the assassination of President Kennedy, the Birmingham church bombing, Martin Luther King’s March on Washington, and the Viet Nam War.

Dobama & Karamu Performing Arts Center, Karamu House Present The Ohio Premiere of Caroline, or Change Book & Lyrics by Pulitzer Prize Winning Playwright Tony Kushner Music by Jeanine Tesori September 17- October 12, 2008 Jelliffe Theatre at Karamu House Performing Arts Theatre 2355 E. 89th Street Cleveland, OH Directed by Sarah May, Musical Director Ed Ridley

Caroline Thibodeaux, a 39-year-old African American divorcee with four children barely survives as a $30 a week domestic for the Gellman family. Their 8-year-old son, Noah Gelman, who has recently suffered the loss of his mother and the arrival of a stepmother, idolizes her. Noah spends considerable time in Caroline’s basement domain equating Caroline’s importance and strength with that of the president of the United States. Although this tentative and touching relationship is shattered over loose change, Caroline, or Change is imbued with the confidence that change is possible; people are capable of working toward reconciliation and mutual respect.

Caroline, or Change is a remarkable piece of theatre in its coalescence of human struggle, passionate exploration of today’s critical issues and an exhilarating mixture of classical, R & B, Motown, Klezmer, and Negro spiritual music.

Producing a landmark Kushner play with our friends at Karamu Theatre brings together two of my fondest memories during my years at Dobama Theatre. During the 1990’s Karamu and Dobama shared a rich collaborative history bringing Cleveland audiences blazing productions of The Grapes of Wrath; My Children, My Africa; Distant Fires; Playland; and Fires in the Mirror. We staged the first “forced theatrical busing” when, during the intermission of 4 performances of My Children, My Africa, we bused audience members, via double decker buses, to the other theatre for Act II. (Joyce Casey, Artistic Director, Dobama Theatre)

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Tennessee artist, James McKissic, is having a solo art show entitled, Root Workers and Railroad Tracks, at the Chattanooga African American Museum (CAAM). The CAAM is located at 200 East Martin Luther King Blvd in Chattanooga, TN.

McKissic, a 2007 recipient of the Four Bridges Art Festival Emerging Artist Scholarship, is exhibiting 17 paintings. Most recently he has exhibited his work at UNUM Corporate Headquarters and WTCI PBS Studios as part of the Association for Visual Artists Corporate Lending Program. He also shows regularly at the Fine Line Gallery in Atlanta’s Grant Park and Outloud Books in Nashville, TN. Mckissic has show his work at Nashville Black Pride as well and sells to collectors throught the region.

“With this show at the Chattanooga African American Museum, I want to let people see what I’ve been doing over the past couple of years. I chose the title Root Workers and Railroad Tracks because so much of my work and my aesthetic are based on my experiences as a southern, African American, gay man.”

Three of the large scale paintings in the show celebrate the lives of Michael Sandy, Lawrence King and Ronnie Paris, three youth of color who were victims of hate crimes; others are inspired by the writings of African American LGBT writers Audre Lorde and Richard Bruce Nugent.

The exhibit runs from Friday, August 22 to October 31. The CAAM is open Monday – Friday 10:00 – 5:00. For more information, call the CAAM at 423-266-8658 or visit www.jhmckissic.artistportfolio.net or www.caamhistory.com. To bring the exhibit to your own community, e-mail James McKissic at jhmckissic@gmail.com.

The New York City Gay Men's Chorus is auditioning for new members to join their 29th season! Also looking for non-singers interested in joining the NYCGMC family.

Auditions will take place on Tuesday, September 2 and Wednesday, September 3 from 7-10PM at Shetler Studios (Penthouse 5, 939 8th Avenue at 55th Street). Auditions are by appointment only and may be scheduled by calling 212-344-1777 ext. 4 before Monday September 1, 2008.

For more information visit www.nycgmc.org

Looking For: a passion for singing, musicality, a good voice, openness, teamwork and a positive attitude, some level of reading skill and/or good musical memory, a commitment to the NYCGMC mission of fighting homophobia through song.

Clearly, not everyone will have all of these attributes - don't worry, you do not have to be the perfect 10. More often than not, a healthy mix of most of the above qualities will be enough to qualify for the Chorus. Whatever your skills, all we ask is that you embrace singing in all styles and we can guarantee you'll find people in the Chorus who share your interests and voices in the Chorus with whom you can blend.

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Event marks culmination of inaugural Black Play Lab

BLOOMINGTON, Ind.--To create a space for black voices to be heard artistically and start a meaningful dialogue about black identity in the theatre, Indiana University Bloomington's Department of Theatre and Drama will host the university's first-ever conference (Aug. 1-3) devoted solely to black theatre projects.

The 2008 IU Mini-Conference on Black Theatre seeks to stimulate scholarship and discussion about theatre by and for people of African descent, said conference organizer Edris Cooper-Anifowoshe.

Edris Cooper-Anifowoshe gives instruction to a performer.     Photo by: Donya Maleto

"We seek to remark on black theatre's relevance, creation and practice," said Cooper-Anifowoshe, a faculty member in IU's Department of Theatre and Drama. "We seek to create definitions of black theatre, both continental and abroad, and integrate it within the context of the black community, the nation and in relationship to other popular culture -- as well as to identify and honor black theatre artists past and present."

The three-day event marks the culmination of IU's inaugural Black Play Lab (July 18 - Aug. 3), a development workshop for black dramatic works. The conference -- which will be attended by a multiethnic array of scholars from as far away as Indonesia -- will feature a keynote address by Obie Award-winning playwright Ed Bullins, a seminal black playwright and distinguished professor at Northeastern University.

Robert Alexander

Conference highlights will include staged readings of two new, never-before performed plays by playwrights Robert Alexander and Niyi Coker Jr. and a workshop with playwright Amy Evans.

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Chad Goller-Sojourner's Sitting in Circles With Rich White Girls: Memoirs of a Bulimic Black Boy opens tonight at the BrownBox Theatre @ the Rainier Valley Cultural Center, and runs through Sunday, July 20. Tix available online.

In terms of identity, Chad Goller-Sojourner either hit the jackpot or got the short end of the stick, depending on one's perspective: a gay black man raised by a white family with a "girl's" eating disorder.

"I thought it was harder to come out as a Christian in Seattle than to be gay," he told us with a characteristic smile and hearty laugh over coffee recently. Add one more to the list.

The complexity of identity is just one of the themes that runs through Chad's writings. A poet, prose writer, and spoken word artist, Chad has always identified himself as a story-teller first and foremost, and starting tonight at the BrownBox African American Theatre at the Rainier Valley Cultural Center, Chad has transformed his diverse writings into a one-man show, Sitting in Circles With Rich White Girls: Memoirs of a Bulimic Black Boy, running through July 20.

Through poetic monologues and stories, Chad recounts his rocky coming-of-age. Predictably, the show runs the gamut of the painful and the psychologically scarring, from racial slurs to identity crises to the absurdity of eating disorder treatments. But this isn't navel gazing or misery tourism.

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Hundreds of gay rights supporters have marched in the Indian capital, Delhi, for the first time.

Gays, lesbians and transgender people gathered in the central Connaught Place area in what was the country's largest ever display of gay pride.

Activists also marched in the cities of Calcutta, which has seen similar events in the past, and Bangalore.

The marchers were demanding an end to discrimination in a society where homosexuality is still illegal.

The gay pride marches are a global event held in the last week of June every year.

They commemorate the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York which broke out after police raided a gay bar.

'Celebrating sexuality'

Marchers in Delhi on Sunday shouted "long live queer movement" and danced merrily and waved the rainbow flag, revered by sexual minorities around the world.

"This is for the first time Delhi is organising a pride festival to celebrate sexuality and people of all sexualities," student Mario Depeno was quoted by news agency Reuters as saying.

"Gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender and even straight are coming together here to talk and to celebrate, it's a party, to celebrate themselves," he said.

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Gay Pride - New Dehli

 

 

"Canada mirrors the experience that I want to see in Jamaica," Gareth Henry

TORONTO — Hundreds of revellers danced, shimmied, and strutted their way through downtown Toronto Sunday in the Gay Pride parade - and for the first time, members of the Canadian Armed Forces were among them.

"It's a huge thing for me personally," said Warrant Officer John McDougall, a parade participant who has been an openly gay member of the military for 13 years. "To be able to be in public and be recognized not just for being a soldier, but for being a soldier who happens to be gay is amazing." McDougall and his colleagues joined 5,000 drag queens, bikers, and scantily-clad men who marched in the parade in front of more than one million spectators. Other participants in the flashy celebration included Liberal MPs Bob Rae and Belinda Stronach, Toronto Mayor David Miller, and Federal NDP leader Jack Layton. Toronto Pride Executive director Fatima Amarshi said that the Armed Forces initiated their participation in the parade.

"We're all familiar with stories of lesbians and gays in the military and the struggle that they've had," she said. "So for the military to turn around and recognize its soldiers, the diversity within its ranks and the need to have a presence at Pride means a tremendous amount."

Garth Henry - 2008 Grand Marshal

Earlier this month, the Gay Pride festival in Hamilton, Ont., banned the Canadian military because of alleged human rights violations around the world. The decision ignited a furious backlash within some in the gay community who claimed that the military has changed since it overturned its discriminatory policies against homosexuality in 1992. "Different members of our community have all kinds of different opinions on the military, and they will make sure they are heard quite loudly," Amarshi said. She added that she didn't notice any "substantial" negative reactions to the military personnel in Toronto's parade.

Though the parade is seen as a chance to let loose and party in Toronto's streets, it also highlighted some of the political messages that permeated Saturday's Dyke March - a smaller, more grassroots parade that included a fist-fight between several women and a papier mache version of Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Many participants in the Pride parade called for more support for people living with HIV/AIDS or held signs chiding the government for cutting funding to social programing.

Gareth Henry, the International Grand Marshal of the parade who left Jamaica after being persecuted for his sexual orientation, said that the parade "is not about a party."

"Pride Toronto is very unique in having a human rights component to the whole thing, where we can highlight the human rights violations that happen in some countries," he said.

Henry decided to live in Canada because of the violence he faced as a homosexual in Jamaica. He said he'd been the victim of homophobic violence at the hands of that country's police and had received several death threats.

"Canada mirrors the experience that I want to see in Jamaica," he said.

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by William Shakespeare · Directed by Barry Scott

The Montague's are "the Crips", the Capulet's are "the Bloods" as the words of Shakespeare collide with the world of African American street gangs.

June 27, 2008 - Nashville, TN - Tennessee State University Summer Stock Theatre will present William Shakespeare's ROMEO & JULIET at the TSU Performing Arts Center Cox/Lewis Theater from July 24th through August 10th.

The Montague's are "the Crips" are the Capulet's are "the Bloods" as the words of Shakespeare collide with the world of African American street gangs. A long, hot summer in the housing projects of Nashville enflames the old feud between the Montague's and the Capulet's leading to public brawls. As the tension builds in the streets, two teenagers fall in love at first sight. Married in secret, they hope for reconciliation between the two rival gangs. When short tempers lead to deadly consequences, the young lovers find themselves alone and on the run, facing impossible odds and making desperate decisions. What starts as a bawdy teenage comedy transforms into a heart-stirring romance for the ages, and features the shining lyricism of Shakespeare's extraordinary poetry.

Director Barry Scott says, "This particular approach has an important social relevance for urban America today. This treatment fits like a glove."

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During Hall of Fame Ceremony

CLEVELAND – June 17, 2008 – Karamu House will posthumously induct native son Langston Hughes into its Hall of Fame on June 28 at 20/20 in the Flats. Theatergoers may not realize Hughes wrote the critically acclaimed “Black Nativity,” which Karamu has produced for 24 seasons to enthusiastic crowds.

In 1961, Hughes was commissioned to create a gospel drama for Christmas. He wanted to make African-American gospel music the heart and soul of the drama and based his play, “Wasn’t That A Mighty Day,” on the theme of the Nativity story. The musical later became known as “Black Nativity.”

The literary works of Hughes, a poet, writer and playwright, are studied and discussed in high school classrooms and university lecture halls across the country. Hughes, who attended Cleveland’s Central High School from 1916 to 1920, is one of the most popular and influential writers of the 20th century.

For many years, Hughes was a familiar face at Karamu, where he taught art classes while in high school. He wrote his first play at Karamu, “The Golden Piece,” in 1921. He wrote and debuted several other works at Karamu. Hughes also became a member of the Karamu Players, a theatrical troupe.

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The Strawberry One-Act Festival is celebrating its 14th season this summer with 37 One-Act Plays at the Baruch Performing Arts Center, 55 Lexington Avenue, NYC.  Entrance on 25th Street, between 3rd Avenue & Lexington Avenue, from July 24th - August 3rd.  Performances are Monday thru Friday at 7:00pm and 9:00pm, Saturdays & Sundays at 1pm, 3pm, 5pm, 7pm & 9pm.  Tickets for Round 1 & The Semi Finals are $20.  Tickets for The Finals, August 3rd at 1:00 p.m. are $25.00 and includes a reception during intermission.

Tickets to the Awards Ceremony & Performance, which will be held at The Leonard Nimoy Thalia Theatre at Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th, on Saturday, August 9th at 8pm, are $35.00.  The 4 nominees for BEST PLAY of the season will be performed and awards will be presented for BEST PLAY, BEST DIRECTOR, BEST ACTOR & BEST ACTRESS.  The playwright of the Best Play will win a $1,500 Prize and a development deal to have a full-length play to be produced by the Riant.  A prize of $150 will be awarded to Best Director, Best Actor & Best Actress. 

The Riant Theatre founded in 1979 by classically trained actor Van Dirk Fisher, is a New York State 501(c) 3 professional theatre corporation, dedicated to providing a nurturing environment to develop new plays and outstanding artists.  The Strawberry One-Act Festival, the brainchild of Artistic Director, Van Dirk Fisher, is a play competition in which the audience and the theatre's judges cast their votes to select the best play of the season.  Twice a year, hundreds of plays from across the country are submitted for the competition, of which 37 were chosen to compete. Plays move from the 1st round to the semi-finals and then the finals. The playwright of the winning play receives $1,500 and the opportunity to have a full-length play developed by the Riant. Some of the plays in the festival will be chosen for publication in the anthology of The Best Plays From The Strawberry One-Act Festival: Volume 5.

In July the Strawberry One-Act Festival will also broadcast the festival via the internet on the second day of each series in the competition.  To pay to view the festival online and cast your vote, go to www.therianttheatre.com/video.  The online fee is $25.00 to see a series of 3 to 5 plays.

The Strawberry One-Act Festival will have a KICK-OFF PARTY on Monday, July 14th from 6pm - 8pm, the place to be determined.  The playwrights, directors, actors and production crew from the plays in the festival will be available for interviews with the press.  For Press Tickets please call Kevin Hansen at 646-623-3488.

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Fire Island Black Out, more popularly known as FIBO, is the annual celebration and summer season finale for the LGBT community of color. Popularity has grown from 50 attendees in 2003, to nearly 2,000 last year.

The seven-hour Saturday Night FIBO Bump and Dip dance party ends just a few hours before the Sunday, August 10 FIBO Brunch, where remaining revelers can nourish their bodies before putting the cap on a wonderful weekend. In 2008, a percentage of proceeds from FIBO will benefit the Ali Forney Center, a New York-based 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, which houses LGBT adolescents and provides these young persons with the skills necessary to help them transition into adulthood. Fire Island Black Out holds the distinction of being the only beach party for the LGBT community of color on Fire Island, and we are one of the largest events in the Northeast.

With the help of our sponsors, Cherry Grove business partners, and private donors, Fire Island Black Out creates the ultimate party atmosphere where persons of all genders, sexual identities, and ethnicities can come together for that all-important "end-of-summer hurrah", while generating money for an organization taking the lead in raising the next generation of LGBT leaders.

Please visit fireislandblackout.com for more information and FIBO Bump and Dip dance party DJ line-up.

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