Umi Shakti

Los Angeles ensemble theatre company Say Yes! Collective presents its latest production, The Tempest, a reimagining of Shakespeare's celebrated supernatural drama co-produced with the internationally acclaimed Hollywood Fringe Festival.

Downtown Art's alt rock opera The Waistmakers' Opera celebrates the young women who led 'The Uprising of the 20,000', a landmark strike by garment workers in 1909. A remarkable event, the strike brought together women from all classes and backgrounds, became front page news.

Downtown Art's alt rock opera THE WAISTMAKERS' OPERA celebrates the young women who led 'The Uprising of the 20,000', a landmark strike by garment workers in 1909. A remarkable event, the strike brought together women from all classes and backgrounds, became front page news. The show runs at University Settlement for Lower East Side History Month, Wednesday - Friday, May 21-23, 2014.

As of this May, Seth Bisen-Hersh will have produced, emceed and accompanied 300 showcases. To celebrate he is putting on the 300th Showcase Extravaganza consisting of six concerts of his work with 84 showcase alumni Tuesdays, beginning tonight, May 6th and continuing the 13th, 20th and 27th; Friday, May 9th; and Thursday, May 22nd, at 7PM.

Downtown Art's alt rock opera The Waistmakers' Opera celebrates the young women who led 'The Uprising of the 20,000', a landmark strike by garment workers in 1909. A remarkable event, the strike brought together women from all classes and backgrounds, became front page news.

As of this May, Seth Bisen-Hersh will have produced, emceed and accompanied 300 showcases. To celebrate he is putting on the 300th Showcase Extravaganza consisting of six concerts of his work with 84 showcase alumni Tuesdays, May 6th, 13th, 20th, 27th; Friday, May 9th; and Thursday, May 22nd, at 7PM. Each evening will contain 20 songs from his musicals and cabarets over the years. The singers performing are listed below:

Writer, director, and co-composer Daniel Beaty, Grammy Award-winning co-composers Jamal Joseph and Charles Mack, and the cast of Tearing Down The Walls (Dietrice Bolden, Kelechi Ezie, Rumando Kelley, Jevon McFerrin, Adrienne C. Moore, and Umi Shakti) were joined by celebrity guests including Ruby Dee and Damon Dash on the show's opening night, May 12.

Daniel Beaty, writer, director and co-composer of Tearing Down The Walls, has been nominated for a Drama Desk Award, Drama League Award and Outer Critics Circle Award for his acclaimed production of Through the Night. Through the Night has also been honored with 2011 Lucille Lortel Award and United Solo uAward nominations for Best Solo Show, two LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards for the show's 2010 Geffen Playhouse run (Lead Actor in a Play and Sound Design), the 2010 Voice of Change Award, and the 2010 Vivian Robinson AUDELCO Recognition Award for Outstanding Solo Performance. For his acclaimed solo show Emergency!, Beaty received the 2007 OBIE Award for Excellence in Off-Broadway Writing and Performing and the 2007 Vivian Robinson AUDELCO Recognition Award for Outstanding Solo Performance. Tearing Down the Walls begins performances at The Riverside Theatre (91 Claremont Avenue) on Friday, May 6 and will officially open on Thursday, May 12. (Through the Night also premiered at The Riverside Theatre.) Infused with soulful music, impassioned spoken word and laugh-out-loud humor, Tearing Down The Walls tells the story of the residents of a tight-knit Harlem community upended and pushed to the limit by life's challenges, but who find hope in the most unusual places. The cast features Dietrice Bolden, Umi Shakti, Adrienne C. Moore, Rumando Kelley, Jevon McFerrin, and Kelechi Ezie. The creative team includes Oscar and Grammy-nominated songwriting team Jamal Joseph & Charles Mack, along with Beaty, (Music), Dell Howlett (Choreography), Bryan Collier (Scenic and Projections Design), Catherine Fisher (Costume Design) and Andrew Merkel (Lighting Design). The playing schedule during previews will be Friday, May 6 at 8:00 p.m., Saturday, May 7 at 8:00 p.m., Sunday, May 8 at 3:00 p.m., Tuesday, May 10 at 8:00 p.m., and Wednesday, May 11 at 8:00 p.m. After opening night the playing schedule will be Thursday, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m., with 3:00 p.m. matinees on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are available via theriversidetheatre.org or (212) 870-6784. All preview tickets are $15.00, and all regular performance tickets are $25.00. Tickets purchased before April 15 will be $10 (previews) and $20 (regular performances). Opening night tickets are available for purchase at $50, and include exclusive access to the VIP reception, which will include an exhibit of original artwork by Bryan Collier.

Daniel Beaty, writer, director and co-composer of Tearing Down The Walls, has been nominated for a United Solo uAward for his performance in his acclaimed solo show Through the Night (www.unitedsolo.org).

Daniel Beaty, writer, director and co-composer of Tearing Down The Walls, has been nominated for a United Solo uAward for his performance in his acclaimed solo show Through the Night (www.unitedsolo.org).