Directed and choreographed by Camille A. Brown, the revival of the Ntozake Shange choreopoem opens April 20 at the Booth Theatre.

The Broadway revival of for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf by Ntozake Shange, officially opening April 20 at the Booth Theatre, hosted the cast of the original 1976 Broadway production earlier this week.

Following seven women, Shange’s choreopoem explores their stories and how they find strength in each other’s humor and passion through a fusion of poetry, dance, music, and song.

The Camille A. Brown-directed revival features Amara Granderson as Lady in Orange, Tendayi Kuumba as Lady in Brown, Kenita R. Miller as Lady in Red, Okwui Okpokwasili as Lady in Green, Stacey Sargeant as Lady in Blue, Alexandria Wailes as Lady in Purple, and D. Woods as Lady in Yellow.

In the original production, Lady in Orange was played by Shange, Lady in Brown was played by Janet League, Lady in Red was played by Trezana Beverley, Lady in Green was played by Paula Moss, Lady in Blue was played by Laurie Carlos, Lady in Purple was played by Risë Collins, and Lady in Yellow was played by Aku Kadogo.

READ: For Colored Girls… Offering ASL Performances

Brown makes history with the revival, becoming the first Black woman to serve as choreographer and director on a Broadway production in more than 65 years.

The original Broadway production, which also ran at the Booth Theatre, earned a 1977 Tony nomination for Best Play, and Beverley, the production’s Lady in Red, won the Tony for Best Featured Actress in a Play. Among its other award recognitions are four Drama Desk nominations and one win, as well as winning the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Broadway Musical and a Theatre World Award win for Beverley.

For tickets and more information, visit ForColoredGirlsBway.com.

Check out photos of the two casts meeting below.

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See Original 1976 Broadway Cast of For Colored Girls… Visit the Current Broadway Production

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Tony winner Wayne Cilento directs the seldom-produced work; the production re-creates Fosse’s original, 1978 Tony-winning choreography.

A new production of Bob Fosse’s 1978 dance work Dancin’ begins its run at San Diego’s Old Globe April 19, with opening night set for April 28. The production will continue through May 29, with Broadway reportedly in its sights.

Produced in cooperation with Nicole Fosse and by special arrangement with Joey Parnes, the production re-creates Fosse’s original Tony-winning choreography from the 1978 Broadway musical and features direction and musical staging by Wayne Cilento, who received a Tony nomination for his performance in the original Broadway company. The new production of the dance musical, which features an eclectic songlist from Neil Diamond to George M. Cohan, sees Cilento reimagining Fosse’s original production, bringing its vision into the 21st century. Playwright and fellow Dancin’ cast alum Kirsten Childs is billed as the production’s text consultant and is providing additional material.

The ensemble cast includes Ioana Alfonso (Wicked), Yeman Brown (Jagged Little Pill), Peter John Chursin (Wicked), Dylis Croman (Chicago), Tony d’Alelio (This Ain’t No Disco), Jōvan Dansberry (King Kong), Karli Dinardo (Moulin Rouge!), Jacob Guzman (West Side Story), Manuel Herrera (Wicked), Kolton Krouse (Cats), Mattie Love (Wicked), Yani Marin (Wicked), Nando Morland (West Side Story), Khori Michelle Petinaud (Aladdin), Ida Saki (In the Heights), and Ron Todorowski (Finding Neverland). Rounding out the company as understudies are Ashley Blair Fitzgerald (The Cher Show), Gabriel Hyman (King Kong), Krystal Mackie (Hamilton), and Michaeljon Slinger (Hello, Dolly!).

Cilento leads a creative team that includes scenic designer Robert Brill, costume designers Harriet Jung and Reid Bartelme, lighting designer David Grill, sound designer Peter Hylenski, projection designer Finn Ross, and production stage manager Beverly Jenkins. Music supervision, orchestrations, incidental music, and vocal arrangements are provided by Jim Abbott, with music direction by Darryl Archibald and dance arrangements and additional music by David Dabbon. The production has been cast by Tara Rubin Casting.

Christine Colby Jacques handles reproducing Fosse’s choreography with additional choreographic reconstruction by Corinne McFadden Herrera.

Cilento’s revival follows plans for a Graciela Daniele-helmed Broadway revival in 2009 via Roundabout Theatre Company that failed to materialize.

Fosse’s original production opened at Broadway’s Broadhurst Theatre in 1978, transferring to the Ambassador Theatre before closing 1,774 performances later. The cast included such Fosse favorites as Ann Reinking, Robert La Fosse, Dana Moore, Bebe Neuwirth, and Cynthia Onrubia.

The Pulitzer-finalist play features an ensemble cast including Tony winners Jessie Mueller, Blair Brown, and Letts, along with Schitt’s Creek’s Noah Reid, and more.

The Broadway premiere of The Minutes officially opens April 17 at Studio 54 for a limited run through July 24. The Pulitzer-finalist play by Tracy Letts resumed post-shutdown previews April 2.

The Minutes began previews in February 2020, but never officially opened due to the pandemic interruption. The majority of the Broadway cast returned with the production, including Tony-winning playwright and actor Letts, Tony winners Blair Brown and Jessie Mueller, Tony nominees Ian Barford, K. Todd Freeman, and Austin Pendleton, plus Cliff Chamberlain, Danny McCarthy, Sally Murphy, and Jeff Still. Schitt’s Creek actor Noah Reid joins the company in his Broadway debut.

Anna D. Shapiro directs the work, which premiered at Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 2017 under her helm. The play takes place in real time at a closed-door city council meeting, peeking at all the hypocrisy, greed, and ambition that go-along with the small-town politics in the fictitious town of Big Cherry.

The production features scenic design by David Zinn, costume design by Ana Kuzmanić, lighting design by Brian MacDevitt, sound design and original music by André Pluess, hair and wig design by Tom Watson, choreography by Ty Defoe, dramaturgy by Edward Sobel, and casting by Caparelliotis Casting.

The producing team is led by Jeffrey Richards, Rebecca Gold, Carl Moellenberg, Spencer Ross, Louise Gund with Elizabeth Armstrong, Blakeman Entertainment, HornosBerger, Across the River Productions, Stewart F. Lane/Bonnie Comley/Leah Lane, Kathleen K. Johnson, Jayne Baron Sherman, Emily Dobbs, Robert Flicker, Jacob Soroken Porter, and The Shubert Organization.

Though it is being performed at the Roundabout-operated Studio 54, The Minutes is not a Roundabout Theatre Company production.

See New Production Photos Below: 

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See Photos of Jessie Muller and Noah Reid in The Minutes

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The Neil Simon revival gets its full cast back at the Hudson Theatre following bouts of COVID in the company.

Sarah Jessica Parker returns to Broadway’s Plaza Suite opposite husband and co-star Matthew Broderick at the Hudson Theatre April 16. Parker is second to re-join the production after both she and Broderick received positive COVID tests that put the production on hiatus April 7-13. Broderick and the production resumed performances April 14 with standby and Tony nominee Erin Dilly standing in for Parker.

To allow ticket holders to cancelled performances to reschedule, the production has extended its run by a week, adding performances through July 6. Affected ticket holders will be given exclusive priority access to the new performances at the originally booked ticket price in a comparable location. The point of purchase will contact ticket holders to reschedule their tickets or arrange a refund.

Plaza Suite opened March 28 at the Hudson Theatre, under the helm of director John Benjamin Hickey. Previews began February 25 for the limited engagement.

The Neil Simon play follows three different twosomes (Broderick and Parker), each spending an evening in the famed Plaza Hotel: one couple dealing with difficulties in their marriage on their 24th anniversary, a pair of high-school sweethearts reuniting after many years apart, and the frenzied parents of a jittery bride on her wedding day.

In addition to Broderick and Parker, the cast includes Danny Bolero, Molly Ranson, and Eric Wiegand. Tony winner Michael McGrath and Tony nominee Erin Dilly are Broderick and Parker’s standbys, respectively, with Laurie Veldheer, Cesar J. Rosado, Brian Eng, and Olivia Hernandez serving as understudies.

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A First Look at Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker in Plaza Suite

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