Branford Marsalis News

New Dramatists, Tony® Honor recipient and the nation's premier playwright development laboratory, just honored Tony®and Academy Award-winner Denzel Washington at its 69th Annual Spring Luncheon tribute. Washington, currently starring on Broadway in The Iceman Cometh, directed by George C. Wolfe, received New Dramatists' 2018 Distinguished Achievement Award. Tributes to Mr. Washington and performances were presented by three-time Grammy Award-winner Branford Marsalis with bassist Noah Jackson, Tony®Award-winners George C. Wolfe and Stephen McKinley Henderson, Constanza Romero (August Wilson Estate), and Pulitzer Prize finalist and New Dramatists resident playwright Kristoffer Diaz (The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity).

Producer Hal Luftig announced today that co-producer Nyle DiMarco will host a talkback for the audience at Children of a Lesser God today, May 15, following the 7:00pm show. DiMarco will join the cast immediately following the performance for a moderated discussion and an opportunity for audience members to ask questions. The talkback will happen on stage and is open to any ticketholder for that evening's performance.

The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, in a co-presentation with Pomegranate Arts, is thrilled to announce the special guest artists who will perform in Taylor Mac's ambitious, internationally acclaimed work A 24-Decade History of Popular Music. Local Philadelphia performance artists and musicians will join Mac in these final U.S. performances of the full, 24-hour-long pop odyssey, June 2 & 9 at the Kimmel Center's Merriam Theater, as part of the 2018 Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA). Mac will perform A 24-Decade History of Popular Music as two distinct 12-hour concerts, Saturday, June 2 (1776-1896) and Saturday, June 9 (1896-present day) - Mac's longest continuous performances since the work premiered at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn in 2016.

The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, in a co-presentation with Pomegranate Arts, is thrilled to announce the special guest artists who will perform in Taylor Mac's ambitious, internationally acclaimed work A 24-Decade History of Popular Music. Local Philadelphia performance artists and musicians will join Mac in these final U.S. performances of the full, 24-hour-long pop odyssey, June 2 & 9 at the Kimmel Center's Merriam Theater, as part of the 2018 Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA). Mac will perform A 24-Decade History of Popular Music as two distinct 12-hour concerts, Saturday, June 2 (1776-1896) and Saturday, June 9 (1896-present day) - Mac's longest continuous performances since the work premiered at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn in 2016.

New Dramatists, Tony® Honor recipient and the nation's premier playwright development laboratory, will honor Tony®and Academy Award-winner Denzel Washington at its 69th Annual Spring Luncheon tribute. Washington, currently starring on Broadway in The Iceman Cometh, directed by George C. Wolfe,will receive New Dramatists' 2018 Distinguished Achievement Award on Tuesday, May 15 at the New York Marriott Marquis. Tributes to Mr. Washington and performances will be presented by three-time Grammy Award-winner Branford Marsalis with bassist Noah Jackson, Tony®Award-winners George C. Wolfe and Stephen McKinley Henderson, Constanza Romero (August Wilson Estate), and Pulitzer Prize finalist and New Dramatists resident playwright Kristoffer Diaz (The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity).

Pianist Makoto Ozone, hailed internationally for both his jazz and classical performances, takes the stage at Japan Society on Thursday, June 7 (7:30 pm). It will be his first NYC solo concert in more than 30 years, following a 1985 recital at Town Hall. Ozone will offer an upbeat, freewheeling program of selections from his wide-ranging repertoire, spanning Gershwin and Bernstein, Piazzolla and Ravel.

Producer Hal Luftig announced today that the acclaimed Broadway revival of Mark Medoff's Children of a Lesser God will play its final performance at Studio 54 (254 West 54th Street) on Sunday, May 27, 2018. 

The Cincinnati Pops Orchestra will present the Star Wars: A New Hope In Concert featuring screenings of the complete film with Oscar-winning composer John Williams' musical score performed live with the film on September 7, 8 and 9 2018 at Cincinnati Music Hall. The three performances will be led by Cincinnati Pops conductor John Morris Russell.

Abingdon Theatre Company (Tony Speciale, Artistic Director; Denise Dickens, Producing Director) presents the final main stage production of its 25th Anniversary season, Fruit Trilogy, a new trilogy of plays by Tony Award winner Eve Ensler (The Vagina Monologues, In the Body of the World) and directed by Mark Rosenblatt

Jack Kleinsinger's Highlights In Jazz closes its 46thseason with a tribute to lauded jazz guitarist Russell Malone. A mainstay on the Manhattan music scene since the 1980s, as well as a regular at international festivals and concert halls, Russell has attracted critical and fan recognition for his work as an accomplished leader and in-demand sideman. 

BRIC, the leading presenter of free cultural programming in Brooklyn, is pleased to announce the lineup and sponsors for its 40th season of the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival. With 31 performances (June 5 – August 11), BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! launches a yearlong celebration to cap off four decades for the pioneering NYC arts-and-media organization and leading presenter of free cultural programming in Brooklyn. The programming, reflective of Brooklyn's eclecticism and diversity, will feature a wide array of free, world-class performances at the beautiful Prospect Park Bandshell.

Continuing the momentum created with the current season launch of its Music Knows No Borders series, Executive Director Thor Steingraber unveils the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts' 2018-19 Season, which features four world premieres, two American premieres, several of the world's greatest orchestras, innovative jazz programs, two tributes to Hollywood legends, Broadway classics plus artists from 18 different nations who will appear on stage at The Soraya next season.  New Subscription Series tickets will go on sale May 1, 2018.

As we enter into this, the most industry of all industry times, there are some Tony related questions that many believe need answering.

The 2018 Tony nominations were announced this morning. If you haven't checked them out yet, what are you waiting for?! CLICK HERE to check out a full list of this year's nominees, and HERE for reactions from the lucky few!

International Jazz Day 2018 came to a phenomenal close this evening in St. Petersburg, following an extraordinary All-Star Global Concert at the historic Mariinsky Theatre that capped off several days of educational outreach programs across the city. The concert, led by artistic co-directors Herbie Hancock (USA) and Igor Butman (Russia), was streamed live by the United Nations and UNESCO and on www.jazzday.com. It featured performances by an international roster of artists including Oleg Akkuratov (Russia), Till Brnner (Germany), Oleg Butman (Russia), Terri Lyne Carrington (USA), Joey DeFrancesco (USA), Fatoumata Diawara (Mali), Vadim Eilenkrig (Russia), Kurt Elling (USA),Antonio Fara (Italy), James Genus (USA), Robert Glasper (USA), David Goloschekin (Russia), Hassan Hakmoun (Morocco),Gilad Hekselman (Israel), Horacio Hernandez (Cuba), Taku Hirano (Japan), Anatoly Kroll (Russia), Gaoyang Li (China), Rudresh Mahanthappa (USA), The Manhattan Transfer (USA), Branford Marsalis (USA), James Morrison (Australia), Moscow Jazz Orchestra (Russia), Makoto Ozone (Japan), Danilo Prez (Panama), Dianne Reeves (USA), Lee Ritenour (USA), Luciana Souza (Brazil) and Ben Williams (USA). John Beasley (USA) served as musical director.

The Playing For Change Foundation is joining with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO's) International Jazz Day to announce a long-term partnership involving mutually beneficial programs and events. The partnership will debut as part of the seventh annual International Jazz Day on April 30, featuring legendary talent including Herbie Hancock, Dianne Reeves, Branford Marsalis, and more.

Multiple Grammy and Emmy Award-winning musician, actor and Broadway star Harry Connick Jr. brings "A New Orleans Tricentennial Celebration" live to the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) on Thursday, June 21 at 7:30P.  Connick will usher in the start of summer with a concert celebrating the music of his hometown, New Orleans. 

Fans of the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame group THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND will be excited to hear Peach Picks: Cream Of The Crop 2003, a collection of the best performances culled from six shows in July and August 2003. Set for release May 16via the band's Peach Records (Orchard distribution), the collection includes 36 tracks recorded between July 25 and August 10, 2003 in Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, Darien Center, NY, Hartford, Charlotte and Raleigh, with no song repeated.

Harry Connick, Jr. will bring his A New Orleans Tricentennial Celebration tour to the Peace Center on Sunday, June 10, at 7 p.m.

Sting and Shaggy's new, island-inspired collaborative album 44/876 is available now at all retailers and digital platforms on A&M/Interscope Records (see below for album tracklistings & configurations).