Hattie's Big Night to Make World Premiere In Houston

Vincent Victoria Presents will be producing the World Premiere of the musical play Hattie's Big Night February 1-10 2019 at Midtown Art Center 3414 La Branch.

When actress Hattie Mc Daniel entered the famed Cocoanut Grove Restaurant at the Ambassador Hotel on February 29, 1940, she not only made history as the first African American ever to be nominated for an Academy Award she was also the first Black person ever to attend the awards ceremony.

The play aims to delve into the mindset Mc Daniel as she entered the still segregated restaurant in Hollywood in the 1940's.

Hattie Mc Daniel had appeared in scores of pictures by 1940, but her roles were of the domestic subservient type, as those were the only roles available to black actors at the time in major Hollywood movies even though independent producer Oscar Michaux was producing films with black actors in positive lights. Mc Daniel's role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind was still a slave character, but her powerful performance transcended race and earned her a deserved nomination and Oscar win.

Says playwright Vincent Victoria Ironically, Hattie mc Daniel was friends with a lot of the Hollywood stars attending the Oscars that night including Bette Davis, Clark Gable, and Joan Crawford. But she was still forced to sit at a small table at the back of the restaurant with her date and agent.

There have been many progressive strides for Black Actresses in Hollywood since 1940 including Oscar wins for actresses Whoopi Goldberg, Halle Berry, Monique, Octavia Spencer, Viola Davis, Jennifer Hudson, and Lupita N'Yongo; but what must have been a lonely, angst filled, and still triumphant night for Hattie Mc Daniel still stands as the most memorable and significant.

Hattie's Big Night plays February 1-10. Show times are Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm Sundays at 4pm plus an additional matinee performance Saturday Feb.9 at 3pm. Tickets are $20 online and $25 at the Door. $12.50 for Students and seniors over 60 with an I.D.

More information can be obtained on the website www.vincentvictoriapresents.com or by calling 281-832-6380.