THE COLOR PURPLE Comes to Alhambra, 3/26-4/27

For the first time in its 48-year history the Alhambra Theatre & Dining in Jacksonville (FL) will perform The Color Purple. Nominated for 11 Tony Awards in 2006, the show will open at the Alhambra on March 26 and run through April 27, 2014.

"This will be a wonderful production for us to produce," stated Alhambra Managing Partner, Craig Smith. He added, "The story, the production values, the incredible cast and, of course, the menu all add up to a great night out for our guests. Having now seen The Color Purple a few times, I think this show will do what theater should do: stimulate conversation. This is a great musical with fantastic and intriguing plot lines. I am excited for it to open."

The Color Purple is a 1982 novel by American author Alice Walker, which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction. It was later adapted into a film and musical of the same name. Taking place mostly in rural Georgia, the story focuses on the life of women of color in the southern United States in the 1930s, addressing numerous issues including their exceedingly low position in American social culture.

The novel was adapted into a film of the same name in 1985. It was directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Whoopi Goldberg as Celie, Danny Glover as Albert, and Oprah Winfrey as Sofia. The play was nominated for 11 Academy® Awards. On December 1, 2005, a musical adaptation of the novel (based on the film) opened at The Broadway Theatre in New York City. The show was produced by Scott Sanders, Quincy Jones, Harvey Weinstein, and Oprah Winfrey. It garnered five 2006 Outer Critics Circle Award® nominations, including Outstanding Broadway Musical and Outstanding New Score. That same year, the show was nominated for eleven Tony® Awards, including Best Musical, Best Original Score Written for the Theater, and Best Leading Actress in a Musical. Rhonda LaChanze Sapp, known professionally as LaChanze, won the Tony® Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical.

About The Menu:

As he does for each show, Executive Chef DeJuan Roy will celebrate the show with a menu that fits its themes. For The Color Purple, the first course includes a choice of Nettie's Fried Green Tomatoes with smoked jalapeno ranch, goat cheese, herb oil and chopped cilantro or Ms. Celie's Salad Chopped kale with candied nuts, dried cranberries, citrus vinaigrette and corn bread croutons. The entrée selections include, Aunt Mae's Fried Chicken Breast with white barbeque sauce, chopped house made pickles, mac-n-cheese inspired risotto, and Mache or Herb Crusted Tilapia with Hoppin' John rice and sautéed kale, or African Adobo Spiced Lamb Shanks with Vidalia onion casserole, and spring carrots, or Spicy Black Eyed Pea Gumbo

with okra, tomato, zucchini, onions, peppers and dirty rice. For dessert, guests will have a choice of Ms. Sophie's Purple Sweet Potato Pie with edible flowers and whipped cream or Shug Avery's Mixed Wild Berry Tart with fresh seasonal berries

The Color Purple will run at the Alhambra March 26 - April 27, 2014. Show time is 8:00 PM for evening shows. Doors open at 5:45 PM and dinner will be served until 7:30 PM. Matinees on Saturday are at 1:15 PM. Doors open at 11:00 AM and brunch starts at 11:15 AM. Sunday matinee is at 2:00. Doors open at noon and the meal starts at 12:15 PM. Group sales are available. Pricing starts at $35 and includes dinner, show and parking. Call the box office at 904.641.1212 or www.alhambrajax.com.