Skip to main content
My Shows
News on your favorite shows, specials & more!

Photo Flash: Rheaume Crenshaw, Johmaalya Adelekan, David Samuel, Zurin Villanueva and Borris York In Crossroads Theatre's AIN'T MISBEHAVIN' At NJPAC

By:

NJPAC and Crossroads Theatre Company are co-presenting a limited encore production of Ain't Misbehavin', starring Johmaalya Adelekan as Armelia (Ragtime), Zurin Villanueva as Charlaine (Mean Girls and Shuffle Along), Rheaume Crenshaw as Nell (Groundhog Day), David Samuel as Ken (Ruined, Arena Stage), Borris York as Andre (Holiday Inn; Love Never Dies, U.S. tour), with musical direction from David Alan Bunn, in NJPAC's Victoria Theatre through February 4.

Two-time Tony Award nominee and Emmy-winning actor André De Shields was an original cast member of Ain't Misbehavin' when it opened on Broadway in 1978 and swept up a few Tonys, including best musical. De Shields returned to direct and choreograph this acclaimed production of the Fats Waller award-winning musical, which premiered during Crossroads Theatre Company's 2011-2012 season. The show was conceived by Richard Maltby, Jr. and Murray Horwitz.

Scroll down for production photos.

Immerse yourself in the energetic, exuberant and effervescent world of the 1920s and '30s, from Manhattan nightclubs like the Cotton Club and Savoy Ballroom to Harlem rent parties with stride piano players banging out a new beat known as swing!

The creative team includes costume design by Deborah Caney, sound design by Joshua D. Reid, scenic and lighting design by Burke Wilmore, assistant choreographer Camille Moten and Production Stage Manager Brian Westmoreland.

The band includes Kenneth Crutchfield (drums), George Grier (bass), Irwin Hall (clarinet/tenor sax), Robert Stringer (trombone) and Donald Malloy (trumpet).

The remaining performances are on Saturday, February 3 at 3pm and 8pm and Sunday, February 4 at 3pm and 8pm. For tickets, please visit http://www.njpac.org/events/detail/aint-misbehavin or call 1.888.GO.NJPAC.

NJPAC is located at 1 Center Street in the heart of Newark's Arts District. The Center has convenient parking and mass transit options.

Crossroads is also currently On The Road! While Crossroads Theatre Company awaits Fall 2019 for the arrival of the state-of-the-art New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, the Company will take their productions on the road in New Jersey. After their stop at NJPAC, they will present the world premiere of the cutting-edge satire Back to the Real, by Pia Wilson, at Rutgers University on May 28.

Crossroads Theatre Company continues to lead the nation with its commitment to literary works that examine the African American experience so that it may be understood and appreciated by all people. When co-founders Ricardo Khan and L. Kenneth Richardson envisioned a space where, as actors, the two young men could work on substantive, non-stereotypical roles, little did they realize that their vision would grow into the major institution that it is today. Crossroads has filled an otherwise empty space on the cultural canvas of the country and the world, with a collective body of work that remains unparalleled by any other of culturally-specific theater in the nation by presenting over 50 world premieres. Crossroads forged its vision into reality through the development, production and touring of new works from throughout the African Diaspora where positive images of African American life, history and culture is celebrated. These honest theatrical portrayals helped move the consciousness of the nation forward. Crossroads continues to lead twenty-first century story-telling by building bridges of understanding and veracity between people of all backgrounds in this society and the world. Find out more at CrossroadsTheatreCompany.org.

Photo Credit: Lia Chang





Need more New Jersey Theatre News in your life?
Sign up for all the news on the Summer season, discounts & more...


BroadwayWorld TV


Almost Floyd in New Jersey Almost Floyd
Williams Center (7/11-7/11)
Center Stage Productions presents The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler in New Jersey Center Stage Productions presents The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler
Over The Moon Art Studios (7/02-7/03)
Me and My Girl in New Jersey Me and My Girl
Spring Lake Theatre (7/08-7/19)
Sense and Sensibility in New Jersey Sense and Sensibility
duCret Center of Art (7/10-7/12)
To Kill a Mockingbird (February 20 - February 27, 2027) in New Jersey To Kill a Mockingbird (February 20 - February 27, 2027)
Algonquin Arts Theatre (2/20-2/20)
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl in Concert in New Jersey Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl in Concert
State Theatre New Jersey (2/28-2/28)
Together Off-Broadway: Merman & Martin in Concert in New Jersey Together Off-Broadway: Merman & Martin in Concert
Robert Shackleton Playhouse (7/04-7/10)
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl in Concert in New Jersey Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl in Concert
New Jersey Performing Arts Center (2/27-2/27)
Mala Aria in New Jersey Mala Aria
Premiere Stages at Kean University (7/16-8/02)
Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery in New Jersey Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery
The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey (7/11-8/02)