Eliza Engle News

After two delays due to COVID-19, Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe will finally bring to the stage the world-premiere musical, “Ruby.”

No matter how much you know about the Titanic disaster, the musical grounds the story, humanizes it, and you leave the theatre an emotional wreck.

The world premiere show “Ruby” is a musical retelling by WBTT founder/artistic director Nate Jacobs and his brother, Michael Jacobs, of the shocking killing of a White doctor in Live Oak, Florida, by a Black woman – Ruby McCollum – who was tried in the case and eventually committed to Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee, Florida.  

Yank! tells the story of Stu, a Midwestern kid who gets drafted for World War II in 1943, and becomes a reporter for Yank Magazine, the journal 'for the servicemen, by the servicemen.' Yank! has a score that pays homage to the 1940s and explores what it means to be a man, and what it is to fall in love and struggle. Intelligent and impassioned, suffused with songs in swing, big band and boogie-woogie styles, the show explores the stories that don't get told in wartime, and how WWII became a great catalyst in bringing gay men and women together. Broadway World has an exclusive look into Manatee Performing Arts Center's opening night reception here.

Manatee PlayersThe Manatee Players, Inc.'s production of Monty Python's SPAMALOT opens in Stone Hall at the Manatee Performing Arts Center tonight, April 30 and plays through Sunday May 17. Click below to watch highlights from the show!

The Manatee Players, Inc.'s production of Monty Python's SPAMALOT opens in Stone Hall at the Manatee Performing Arts Center tonight, April 30 and plays through Sunday May 17.

The Manatee Players, Inc.'s production of Monty Python's SPAMALOT opens in Stone Hall at the Manatee Performing Arts Center on Thursday April 30 and plays through Sunday May 17.

The Manatee Players' production of MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS opens in Stone Hall at the Manatee Performing Arts Center on Thursday December 4 and plays through Sunday December 21, 2014.

The George and Ira Gershwin show MY ONE AND ONLY will be tapping its way onto the Stone Hall stage at the Manatee Performing Arts Center on May 1 and running through May 18!

The triple Tony Award-winning musical THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD is coming to the Manatee Performing Arts Center! The Manatee Players will present the show opening today, January 9 and running through January 26.

The triple Tony Award-winning musical THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD is coming to the Manatee Performing Arts Center! The Manatee Players will present the show opening January 9 and running through January 26.

The Manatee Players, Inc. will bring Mel Brooks' YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN to the stage of the Manatee Performing Arts Center. The production runs October 24 and run through November 10. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast onstage below!

The Manatee Players, Inc. will bring Mel Brooks' YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN to the stage of the Manatee Performing Arts Center. The production runs October 24 and run through November 10.

The Manatee Players, Inc. will open their first full season in the new Manatee Performing Arts Center with the internationally acclaimed musical LES MISERABLES. The production will open tonight, August 8 and run through August 25.

The Manatee Players, Inc. will open their first full season in the new Manatee Performing Arts Center with the internationally acclaimed musical LES MISERABLES. The production will open on August 8 and run through August 25.