Ava DuVernay News

The Museum of Pop Culture today announced details for its upcoming exhibition Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design which will open on June 18. Through more than 60 costumes by the Academy Award-winning designer (Marvel Studios’ Black Panther), the exhibition illustrates Carter’s vision and the in-depth process she uses for each project.

Joaquina Kalukango has won the 2022 Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for PARADISE SQUARE. 

Immediately following a nomination for her work in Slave Play, Joaquina Kalukango is a Tony nominee once again- this time, for her standing ovation-earning performance in Paradise Sqaure. 

A new play about the decades-long, tempestuous friendship between Dorothy Parker and Robert Benchley will receive an industry reading on Wednesday, May 18, 2022.

Today, The Bentonville Film Festival unveiled their distinguished Competition Jury, singularly dedicated to inclusive representation in media and entertainment. The festival, produced by the BFFoundation and chaired by Academy Award-winning Actor Geena Davis, will take place in-person June 22-26 and virtually June 22-July 3. The illustrious group of jurors is composed of award-winning producers, directors, actors and authors, including actor Yolonda Ross, film and television producer Bird Runningwater, actor Shohreh Aghdashloo, writer and filmmaker Justine Bateman, among others. The Festival is sponsored by Founding Partner, Walmart and Presenting Partner Coca-Cola. 

The first museum exhibition of its kind, Regeneration: Black Cinema 1898–1971 opens at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on August 21, 2022. It offers the public a chance to learn more about how Black performers and filmmakers have helped define cinema in the United States. The exhibition explores the achievements and challenges of both independent production and the studio system, from cinema’s infancy in the 1890s through the height of the civil rights movement. Regeneration features rarely seen excerpts of films restored by the Academy Film Archive, as well as other narrative films and documentaries; newsreels and home movies; photographs; scripts; drawings; costumes; equipment; posters; and historical materials, such as entrance tickets, note cards, and telegrams; along with augmented reality experiences (AR) designed specifically for the exhibition.

Today, the Ms. Foundation for Women announced the honorees for the 2022 Women of Vision Awards: The Future is Feminist. The annual gala will take place at Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City on May 17, 2022.

Producers Brian Anthony Moreland, Sonia Friedman and Tom Kirdahy announced additional cast for the revival of August Wilson’s seminal, Pulitzer Prize-winning drama The Piano Lesson, the first Broadway revival in more than 30 years since the play’s Main Stem premiere in 1990.

He expresses himself as articulately when speaking as he does when singing

Special guests for the 33rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards in New York will include Ariana DeBose, Cody Rigby, Peppermint, Amber Tamblyn, Anthony Rapp, Cynthia Nixon, Lily Rose, Nyle DiMarco, Wilson Cruz, GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis, and more.

The Town Hall is celebrating its first 100 years, and is proud to announce a special virtual event to honor Thelonious Monk. On Monday, April 11 at 7PM, MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellow Jason Moran will be in conversation with Robin D. G. Kelly, an American historian and the Gary B. Nash professor of American History at UCLA.

Roundabout Theatre Company has announced full casting for the Roundabout Underground world premiere of Exception to the Rule by Dave Harris, directed by Roundabout Resident Director Miranda Haymon.

Ground Floor Theatre has announced the cast for the Austin premiere of Dot written by award-winning actor, director and playwright Colman Domingo running May 13–28, 2022. Directed by Lisa B. Thompson, this twisted and hilarious new play grapples unflinchingly with aging parents, midlife crisis, and the heart of a West Philly neighborhood.

Contra Costa Civic Theatre concludes its live, in-person Main Stage season with the musical Crowns by Regina Taylor, adapted from the book “Crowns: Portraits of Black Women in Church Hats” by Michael Cunningham and Craig Marberry. Directed by Kimberly Ridgeway, with music direction by Branice McKenzie and choreography by Jennifer Frazier, Crowns plays for 15 performances from April 15-May 15.

How I Learned to Drive officially begins performances tonight, Tuesday, March 29, 2022 ahead of a Tuesday, April 19, 2022 opening night. Learn more about the cast bringing this show to Broadway!

The series stars Robin Thede, Gabrielle Dennis, Ashley Nicole Black and Skye Townsend. The new season will feature more than 40 celebrity guest stars, including Ava DuVernay, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Raven-Symoné, Wanda Sykes, David Alan Grier, Jemele Hill, Kel Mitchell, Michael Ealy, Wayne Brady, Bob the Drag Queen, Vanessa Williams, and more.

The series will feature prolific filmmakers Patty Jenkins, Aaron Sorkin, Kasi Lemmons, Jon M. Chu, Malcolm D. Lee and Michael Mann, as well as blockbuster films including “Wonder Woman,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” “Harriet,” “Crazy Rich Asians,” “Girls Trip and Heat.”

Three-time NBA Champion and two-time MVP Stephen Curry has joined forces with basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal to support the Academy Award® nominated short subject documentary “The Queen of Basketball” as executive producer with a mission to make Lusia “Lucy” Harris a household name. Harris died unexpectedly at age 66 on January 18.

Paradise Square begins previews on Broadway tonight, March 15, 2022, ahead of an opening night on April 3 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. Learn more about the cast bringing this musical to life on stage here!

The new series stars Rosario Dawson, Benjamin Bratt, Hoon Lee, Freddy Miyares, Jordan Preston Carter, Venus Ariel. Guest stars include Rutina Wesley, Nora Dunn, Jade Wu, Rey Gallegos, Mamie Gummer, Agam Darshi, Juani Feliz, Henry G. Sanders. Watch the trailer for the new limited series now!