'MIGHTY REAL' Returns to NYC for One Night Only Tonight
By: BWW News Desk May. 07, 2016
Tickets are priced at $79.50 - $99.50 and are now on sale via TicketMaster by calling 1.800.745.3000, or online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.FabulousSylvester.com.
Produced by AnthonyKen LLC and Sheryl Lee Ralph/The DIVA Foundation, MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL is written by and stars Anthony Wayne (Pippin, Anything Goes, Priscilla Queen of the Desert) and has direction and costume design by Kendrell Bowman.
MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL stars Anthony Wayne as Sylvester, Jacqueline B. Arnold as Martha, Anastacia McCleskey as Izora, and Moeisha McGill and Rahmel McDade as the "Sylvester Singers."
MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL has costume design by Kendrell Bowman, lighting design by Stephanie P. Freed, and sound design by J. Rafe Carlotto. The choreographer is Anastacia McCleskey and the music director is Alonzo Harris.
Sylvester James, Jr. (September 6, 1947 - December 16, 1988), better known as Sylvester, was an American disco and soul singer-songwriter. Known for his flamboyant, androgynous appearance, he became known in the United States as the "Queen of Disco." Born in Watts, LA, Sylvester developed a love of singing through the gospel choirs of his Pentecostal church, which he left after being persecuted for his homosexuality. His career started as an early founder of a group of black cross-dressers and trans women known as The Disquotays. After that group disbanded, he moved to San Francisco and embraced the counterculture, joining a drag troupe, The Cockettes, and he eventually produced solo shows heavily influenced by female blues and jazz singers like Billie Holiday and Josephine Baker. Sylvester left the Cockettes to focus on his solo career, and by 1978, his acclaimed album Step II spawned the disco classics "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" and "Dance (Disco Heat)." He released 12 albums in his career, and had several more hits, including "Do Ya Wanna Funk," and "Can't Stop Dancing." An activist who campaigned against the spread of HIV/AIDS, Sylvester died from complications arising from the virus in 1988. In 2004, "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)," was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame, and one year later in 2005, Sylvester himself was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame for his achievement as an artist.
MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL (formerly known as Fabulous, One More Time) began a series of concerts at le poisson rouge in New York City in 2012. These early concerts were followed by sold-out performances at The Howard Theatre in Washington, D.C. in January 2013, and additional concerts in Miami soon followed. MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL made its Off-Broadway premiere in an acclaimed one-month limited engagement at Theatre at St. Clement's (423 W. 46th Street) in September 2014. In early 2015, the musical headed west to The BRAVA! Theater in San Francisco for a limited engagement, and performances/engagements followed in Philadelphia, D.C., and Atlanta. Earlier this year, the show returned to The BRAVA! Theater in San Francisco for an acclaimed, sold-out limited engagement.
MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL was nominated for a 2015 Off-Broadway Alliance Award and a 2015 AUDELCO Award for Best New Musical. Mr. Wayne was featured as one of Out Magazine's "Out 100" in 2014. MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL was also featured in the acclaimed music documentary series"Unsung: Revisted" in 2015.
MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL is co-presented by Sheryl Lee Ralph and The DIVA Foundation. Ms. Ralph's award-winning body of work in film, television and the Broadway stage includes originating the role of Deena Jones in the landmark musical Dreamgirls (Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations) as well as the role of Muzzy van Hossmere in Thoroughly Modern Millie. She can currently be seen in the hit TV series "Instant Mom" on Nickelodeon and "Ray Donovan" on Showtime. A passionate health advocate and honored AIDS activist, Ms. Ralph is the founding director of the DIVA (Divinely Inspired Victoriously Aware) Foundation, a 501(C) 3 she created in memory of the many friends she has lost to HIV/AIDS. In the work of "Driving Infectious Viruses Away," The DIVA Foundation focuses on raising awareness, erasing stigma and discrimination, testing, and lowering the HIV infection rate - especially as it pertains to women and young people. As an artist, Sheryl believes in the transformational power of the arts and works to develop new, effective and creative programs to combat the disease. The Foundation disseminates information and provides advocacy and mobilization from a uniquely and unapologetically feminine point of view. Visit www.thedivafoundation.org.
MIGHTY REAL: A FABULOUS SYLVESTER MUSICAL Live Original Cast Recording is available online on iTunes and CD Baby.
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