Color Purple Stars Sing on April 9 'Breakfast with the Arts'

The Color Purple stars LaChanze and Elisabeth Withers-Mendes will perform on A&E's "Breakfast with the Arts" on Sunday, April 9th. Hosted by Karina Huber, the popular series airs from 8 to 10 AM.

Tony Award-nominee LaChanze (Once On This Island, Company) and Withers-Mendes will perform The Color Purple's song "What About Love." The latter plays Shug Avery, while the former actress plays Celie, the musical's central character in its story of incest, pain, love and redemption.

Also profiled on the April 9th edition will be Harvard student/author Kaavya Viswanathan, the Orson Welles film Mr. Arkadin, and the classical pianists The Five Browns; there will also be a panel discussion on art theft.

Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning Alice Walker novel and the Steven Speilberg film that it inspired, The Color Purple also features Darlesia Cearcy, Felicia P. Fields, Brandon Dixon, Kingsley Leggs, and Krisha Marcano are among the show's cast. The musical--of which Oprah Winfrey is one of the producers--opened at the Broadway Theatre on December 1st, 2005.

The Color Purple is directed by Gary Griffin, while Marsha Norman (Pulitzer Prize-winner for 'night, Mother, The Secret Garden) wrote the book. The show's eclectic score, which blends gospel, pop, ragtime and blues, was penned by pop tunesmiths Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray. Donald Byrd is The Color Purple's choreographer, while the design team design team comprises John Lee Beatty (sets), Paul Tazewell (costumes), Brian MacDevitt (lighting), and Jon Weston (sound). Orchestrations were provided by Jonathan Tunick, Kevin Stites is the music supervisor and Linda Twine the musical director.

Tickets for The Color Purple can be purchased by calling (212) 239-6200 or visiting the Broadway Theatre's box office.

For more on "Breakfast with the Arts," visit www.aetv.com. For more information on The Color Purple, visit www.colorpurple.com.