Jahmaul Bakare

Review: THE COLOR PURPLE at Village Theatre
by Jay Irwin - Jun 1, 2025

Dear Readers, when discussing the musical of Alice Walker’s classic novel “The Color Purple”, you must acknowledge the production’s own journey from the tepidly received original 2005 Broadway production to the enthusiastically received 2015 Broadway revival which launched the career of the incredible Cynthia Erivo. We can discuss them in a bit but to start I will say that the current production at Village Theatre is certainly in the 2015 camp, with its streamlined production and roof shaking performances.

Village Theatre's Soaring New Production Of THE COLOR PURPLE Begins May 27
by A.A. Cristi - May 2, 2025

Beloved Seattle theater mainstay, Director Timothy McCuen Piggee (Hello, Dolly!), brings a triumphant new take to Village Theatre's production of The Color Purple, a powerful musical celebration of resilience and self-discovery featuring a Grammy Award-winning score infused with jazz, gospel, ragtime and the blues, with music supervision by American theater legend Sheilah V Walker (Broadway's Porgy and Bess and Ragtime, The Color Purple National Tour).

Winners Announced For The 2024 BroadwayWorld Madison Awards
by BWW Awards - Jan 14, 2025

Winners have been announced for the 2024 BroadwayWorld Madison Awards! The 2024 Regional Awards honor regional productions, touring shows, and more which had their first performance between October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2024.

See Linda Eder & More Next Week at 54 Below
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Jun 21, 2024

Discover the exciting lineup at 54 BELOW next week, featuring a variety of performances from Broadway stars and up-and-coming talents. Learn more and see how to purchase tickets.

Wake Up With BWW 3/11: ROCK OF AGES Reunion Concert Announced, and More!
by Stephi Wild - Mar 11, 2021

Today's top stories: Rock of Ages reunion concert announced, Sara Bareilles delivers Waitress 'turn off your phone' message in Japanese, and more!

VIDEO: Wilson Jermaine Heredia, Constantine Maroulis and More Sing 'Seasons of Love' With Pandemic-Inspired Lyrics
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Mar 10, 2021

A talented group of theater performers have come together virtually to perform 'Seasons of Love' with pandemic inspired lyrics, including 'Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred TikToks.'

BWW Review: ONCE ON THIS ISLAND at ASU GAMMAGE. The Jewel of the Antilles becomes The Jewel of the East Valley.
by Nathaniel Jones - Mar 5, 2020

If I could just write a?oeThis show was perfect. The enda?? for this production, I would. It would be the simple truth for a show so breathtaking, that trying to put words on this page is near impossible. There are no words that I could type that would truly encompass what is the Magnificence of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND at ASU GAMMAGE. It is truly one of the must-see shows in the valley right now.

Harris Center Welcomes ONCE ON THIS ISLAND National Tour
by A.A. Cristi - Mar 2, 2020

Winner of the 2018 Tony Award for best revival of a musical, Once On This Island is the sweeping, universal tale of Ti Moune, a fearless peasant girl in search of her place in the world, and ready to risk it all for love. Guided by the mighty island gods, Ti Moune sets out on a remarkable journey to reunite with the man who has captured her heart.

Broadway's ONCE ON THIS ISLAND Now On Sale At The 5th Avenue Theatre
by A.A. Cristi - Feb 27, 2020

Tickets for the Seattle engagement of the national tour of the Tony Award-Winning Broadway revival of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND are on sale now.

BWW Review: ONCE ON THIS ISLAND at TUTS Is Raw, Real Storytelling at Its Finest
by Audrey Morabito - Feb 20, 2020

“This—something, life and...breath?” my friend read as she tried to decode my jumbled mess of notes while I drove us home from the show. “Oh no,” I answered, 'that says, 'This musical lives and breathes.” That short phrase is the most indicative of my experience at ONCE ON THIS ISLAND, a show whose movement, melodies, and people formed together before us, seemingly as a new animate creature. A tale of “two worlds never meant to meet”, ONCE ON THIS ISLAND delivers a 90-minute sung-through litany of joyous song, dance, and storytelling.

BWW Review: ONCE ON THIS ISLAND National Tour Presented by Broadway In Chicago
by Rachel Weinberg - Jan 24, 2020

The national tour of Michael Arden's Tony Award-winning revival of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND has arrived in Chicago in a blaze of color and light. While Arden's production makes clear that the tropical island in the French Antilles where the musical takes place is no stranger to the devastating effects of natural disasters, it's also a staging filled with joy and rich visuals. Dane Laffrey's found objects aesthetic for the scenic design also conveys the musical's occupancy between the nebulous space of reality and the mystical world of the four gods that guide the musical's protagonist Ti Moune on her journey.

ONCE ON THIS ISLAND Tour Comes to Houston in February 2020
by Stephi Wild - Jan 8, 2020

The North American Tour of the Tony Award-winning revival of Once On This Island appears at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from Feb. 18 to March 1. For ticketing information, visit TUTS.com.

BWW Review: ONCE ON THIS ISLAND Delivers a Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience at AT&T Performing Arts Center
by Zac Thriffiley - Dec 18, 2019

Through a combination of brilliantly creative stagecraft and psychologically complex characterizations, the current touring production of the ONCE ON THIS ISLAND revival immerses audiences in an experience unlike any other, one in which the power of a story creates a new world from every possible human emotion right before our eyes.

Exclusive: Get A First Look At ONCE ON THIS ISLAND On Tour
by Alan Henry - Nov 1, 2019

The National tour of Once On This Island is now officially on the road across the country! Once On This Island will play over 25 cities in its first year on tour. Get a first look at all new production photos!

BWW Interview: Jahmaul Bakare of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND at Peace Center
by Neil Shurley - Oct 29, 2019

Filled with beauty and magic, ONCE ON THIS ISLAND tells the sweeping, universal tale of Ti Moune, a fearless peasant girl in search of her place in the world, and ready to risk it all for love. Guided by the mighty island gods, Ti Moune sets out on a remarkable journey to reunite with the man who has captured her heart.

BWW Review: ONCE ON THIS ISLAND Launches Stunning National Tour at Nashville's Tennessee Performing Arts Center
by Jeffrey Ellis - Oct 16, 2019

Visually stunning. Inventively staged. Compellingly acted. Beautifully told. Utterly delightful. Heartrendingly poignant. What more can be said about Once On This Island, the Lynn Ahrens-Stephen Flaherty musical which launched its national tour in Nashville last night with a remarkable opening performance before a capacity crowd in Andrew Jackson Hall? The critical raves, audience adulation and awards for the recent Broadway revival of the Caribbean-influenced musical were enough to attract ticket-buyers, to be certain, but the sheer artistry of the production and its amazingly talented cast will be more than enough to propel the company forward on their cross-country tour where, we suspect, the accolades will continue to be bestowed upon the heartfelt and authentic story.

Photo Coverage: Meet The Cast of The National Tour of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND
by Monroe George - Oct 2, 2019

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, the tour of the Tony-winning revival of Once on This Island will launch at The Carson Center for Performing Arts in Paducah, KY on October 12, 2019, followed by its official opening in Nashville, TN at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC) on October 15, 2019. Once On This Island will play over 25 cities in its first year on tour. Click here for a full list of tour stops.

TV: Go Inside Rehearsals for the National Tour of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND!
by TV - On the Road - Oct 1, 2019

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, the tour of the Tony-winning revival of Once on This Island will launch at The Carson Center for Performing Arts in Paducah, KY on October 12, 2019, followed by its official opening in Nashville, TN at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC) on October 15, 2019. Once On This Island will play over 25 cities in its first year on tour. Click here for a full list of tour stops.

Tamyra Gray, Courtnee Carter, Philip Boykin To Lead ONCE ON THIS ISLAND National Tour; Full Casting Announced
by A.A. Cristi - Aug 15, 2019

Cast members from the Broadway company will lead the national tour of 2017 Broadway revival of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND!

SOFT POWER, Kathleen Marshall and More Nominated for 2019 LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards
by A.A. Cristi - Nov 21, 2018

The nominees for the 29th Annual LA STAGE Alliance Ovation Awards, celebrating theatrical excellence and achievement throughout Los Angeles, were announced this week.