black on broadway
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Theater, Film and TV Actor Anthony Chisholm Dead at 77
Theater, film and television actor Anthony Chisholm has died at age 77, The Katz Company, his talent management, announced Friday. Chisholm was born on April 9, 1943, in Cleveland, Ohio and before he was a beloved actor he was a platoon leader for the U.S. Army’s 4th Armored Cavalry, 1st Infantry Division in the Vietnam…
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White Woman Accuses Playwright Jeremy O. Harris of Being 'Racist Against White People' During Tirade
White people might hate to season their food, but boyyyyyyy do they love to call black people “racist.” Take black playwright Jeremy O. Harris, who, following a Broadways performance of Slave Play, was engaged in a Q&A with the audience when a white woman—who I’ll refer to as “Broadway Becky,” henceforth—“completely freaked out and couldn’t…
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Are We Ready to Have a Constructive Conversation About Slave Play? (Because We Saw It for Ourselves, and Have Thoughts)
In the months since Jeremy O. Harris’ Slave Play upended the theater world (and many of our moral and historical sensibilities), moving from a sold-out run at the New York Theatre Workshop to Broadway, much has been written about its controversial narrative—some factual, some distinctly disingenuous (and some from the playwright himself). In fact,…
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The Force Don’t Stop: Michael Jackson Musical, MJ, Still Coming to Broadway
It’s back on like popcorn. A musical on the life of Michael Jackson in his heyday originally called Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough, has morphed—like Jackson did many, many times in his life—into MJ. It’s scheduled to hit Broadway in the summer of 2020, according to Playbill. A spokesman for the show announced the…
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'I Am What I Am': In Concert and Conversation, Audra McDonald Pulls Back the Curtain on a Brilliant Career
When you get an opportunity to see Audra McDonald perform, you take it. The record-breaking six-time Tony Award winner, Grammy and Emmy winner and 2015 National Medal of Arts recipient has conquered both stage and screen with her acting and singing and is lauded across the globe as one of the brightest lights of Broadway.…
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Stage Presence: The Stars Show Out for the 2019 Tony Awards
Feathers, tulle, velvet, yards of train and even more star power; the theatrical community celebrated its biggest honors Sunday night at the 73rd Annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. While black talent didn’t take home all the Tonys we’d hoped, we nevertheless made a major showing on the red…
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‘Somebody Can Send Your Luggage’: Matthew Knowles to Bring to Life the Story of Destiny’s Child
Not only is the writing on the walls, but it’s also on a new script of a stage production detailing the evolution of Destiny’s Child. According to Broadway, Beyoncé’s father, Matthew Knowles wants to “pull back the curtain,” and tell the story of Destiny’s Children through his eyes. This the group that brought us continuous…
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Redefining the Role: LaTanya Richardson Jackson Finds a Well-Deserved Spotlight in Broadway's To Kill a Mockingbird
Many know her as one-half of one of Hollywood’s most enduring marriages, but LaTanya Richardson Jackson (wife of Samuel L. Jackson), is an acting powerhouse in her own right. Just ask the audiences currently experiencing her talent nightly in Broadway’s acclaimed production of To Kill a Mockingbird. Scripted by award-winning writer, producer and director Aaron…
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Phenomenal Woman: Maya Angelou’s Legacy Will Be Adapted for the Stage
The miraculous life and words of Maya Angelou are being made into a one-woman show that producers hope to bring to Broadway, Deadline reports. Her only son, Guy Johnson, is working on the project, which is being led by Angelou’s former representative David Michael Rich and Hollywood and Broadway producer J. Todd Harris. Maya Angelou—recipient…
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Jenifer Lewis Lets Loose: Black-ish Star Dishes on Returning to 'Broadway,' Tracee Ellis Ross Drama, Donald Trump, Colin Kaepernick and Kanye West
Jenifer Lewis is ready for her closeup. Again. And unlike all of her previous big moments, the showbiz veteran—whose scores of professional credits include stints on Broadway, television and film over the past four decades—the timing of it couldn’t be more better this go round. The Black-ish actress, who turned turned 62 last month, is…