City Theatre Presents BREAKING THE LEG, 12/18-19

Breaking The Leg, written by comedienne Heather Henderson and produced by rapper Clifford "Redd" Johnson offers a new perspective on the African-American theater experience. In The Shadows of successful African-American Playwrights like Tyler Perry and David E. Talbert, Breaking The Leg sets out to deconstruct stereotypes and challenge the idea that all black plays are the same. The production will be at the City Theatre for a limited two performances on Saturday, Dec. 18 and Sunday, Dec. 19. Both shows start at 7:00 p.m.

Synopsis: Harrison Conner has grown weary of the stereotypical images portrayed by African-American theater after working five years as assistant to the self-proclaimed King of Black Theater. He returns to his hometown of Detroit where he plans to make his debut as a producer. Harrison has no choice but to call upon his old friends from the theater to play the various roles in his production. Among them a Gospel diva, a philandering fool and his estranged wife, the video vixen he left her for, a hoodlum, an old drunk and a hood rat. His friends are loyal to his cause, but they have completely misunderstood his vision. And, no one wants to wear the petticoats or the knickers.

During its first run in October, Henderson found out first hand just how controversial the topic was. "In our quest to prove Black Theater could be more than a man in a dress-we may have inadvertently ruffled a few feathers. But it had to be done if we want growth in the African-American Theater community."

Although the rapper and the comic make an unlikely pair, they share a passion for entertaining and a penchant for the comical and the dramatic. Johnson is front man for the Inkster based hip hop group STREET JUSTICE and Henderson has been making Detroit laugh for the past 5 years sharing the stage with national acts like Kevin Hart, Kyle Grooms and Dave Chappelle.

This play although provocative, received rave reviews from the press and positive feedback from the hundreds that came out for the first run.

Performance Schedule:
Saturday, Dec. 18 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 19 7:00 p.m.

Tickets ($25) are on sale now and can be purchased at OlympiaEntertainment.com, the Fox Theatre and Joe Louis Arena box offices, Hockeytown Authentics in Troy (without service charge), at all Ticketmaster locations and Ticketmaster.com. To charge tickets by phone, call (800) 745-3000. For additional information, call (313) 471-6611.

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