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Passage Theatre, Trenton's professional theater company, will pay tribute to Philadelphia's legendary blues singer and Oscar-nominated actress with two performances of Ethel Waters, His Eye Is On The Sparrow on Saturday, March 14 at 8pm and Sunday, March 15 at 3pm. Written by Larry Parr and starring Demetria Joyce Bailey, this production is being presented as part of Passage Theatre's 7th Annual Solo Flights Festival.
Born in Chester, Pennsylvania in 1896, Ethel Waters grew up living in poverty in Philadelphia -- occasionally stealing food, milk or money, and at times sleeping on grates in the streets to keep warm in winter. But in her early teens she found music, and her singing career propelled her from seedy jazz clubs, to Broadway stages, to the silver screen and Hollywood, where she became only the second African-American actress to be nominated for an Academy Award.Ethel Waters, His Eye Is On the Sparrow, premiered in October of 2005 at Florida Studio Theatre. Mr. Parr's script places Waters in a late phase of her career, performing as a featured singer with Billy Graham's evangelical crusades. As she recounts the hardships and successes of her life, she interjects performances of songs that she helped make classics: "Stormy Weather," "Black and Blue," "Taking a Chance on Love," and of course her signature number "His Eye Is On the Sparrow."
Passage Theatre Company's Solo Flight Festival continues through March 29 with On the Way to Timbuktu, written and performed by Petronia Paley, was the 2008 AUDELCO Award Winner for Best Solo Show on Thursday, March 12 at 8pm and Sunday, March 22 at 3pm; and award-winning performance poet and spoken word artist Mo Beasley puts a whole new spin on the urban male coming of age story in You a Man Now? on Friday, March 13 at 8pm and Thursday, March 19 at 8pm. The Festival will also present former Daily Show correspondent Lauren Weedman in her one-woman razor-sharp confessional comedy Bust for three performancesThursday through Saturday, March 26 through 28, at 8pm. For a complete schedule of performances, visit www.passagetheatre.org.Passage Theatre performs in the historic Mill Hill Playhouse an intimate 115-seat theater in the heart of downtown Trenton adjacent to the beautiful Mill Hill district. Security-guarded on-street parking is available on S. Montgomery St., Ernie Kovacs St., E. Front Street and in the Artworks parking lot.
To reserve tickets, please call (609) 392-0766 or visit online at www.passagetheatre.orgTickets can also be purchased at the Passage Theatre Office: 219 East Hanover Street in Trenton, Monday through Friday from 12:00 pm -5:30 pm or at the box office, one hour before each performance at the Mill Hill Playhouse. For over 20 years, Passage Theatre has developed and showcased new work by emerging and established playwrights. As a key participant in the revitalization of urban Trenton, Passage presents outstanding plays that celebrate experiences common to all and transcend culture and race.
