George Jean Nathan News

Exactly two years after surviving a racially biased and anti-gay hate attack after seeing a Broadway show, Randy Gener earned New York's Nubian Union Legend Award given for leadership at a 'Chasing Stars' Gala in Greenwich Village in New York City.

A friendly reminder! Rehearsals begin on Monday, January 18th for Shuffle Along Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed, a new production that presents both the 1921 musical itself, and additionally details the events that catalyzed the songwriting team of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake, and librettists F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles to create this ground-breaking work. SHUFFLE ALONG will star six-time Tony Award-winner Audra McDonald, Tony Award-winners Brian Stokes Mitchell and Billy Porter, and Tony Award-nominees Brandon Victor Dixon and Joshua Henry.

With a handful of new pieces set to bow before the Tony Awards deadline in April, BroadwayWorld brings you a look at those currently set to bow on the Great White Way this year!

On the next UNDAY MORNING on CBS, correspondent Maurice DuBois goes behind the scenes of the new Broadway production SHUFFLE ALONG, a reimagining of the classic 1921 musical

The George Jean Nathan Award Committee has chosen two recipients of the 2014-15 prize for the year's best work in dramatic criticism. Brian Eugenio Herrera is receiving the award for his book Latin Numbers: Playing Latino in Twentieth-Century U.S. Popular Performance (University of Michigan, 2015). Chris Jones has been chosen for his work as theater critic for the Chicago Tribune. 

BroadwayWorld has just learned that Shuffle Along Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed has shifted its spring performance schedule. Instead of opening on April 21, 2016, the show will now open on April 28, with previews beginning on March 15.

Breaking all box office records in its day, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, currently in previews at the Broadway Theater and scheduled to open December 20th, has thrilled audiences on Broadway and around the world for more than half a century. Generations have embraced Tevye's story and such unforgettable songs as 'Tradition,' 'If I were a Rich Man,' and 'Sunrise, Sunset.' Now as this beloved musical returns to the New York stage, the Museum at Eldridge Street welcomes the show's legendary lyricist: Tony, Grammy, and Pulitzer Prize winner, Sheldon Harnick.

The six time Tony winner is also a tireless advocate for New York City's children.

Add another threat to the Tony-winning star's list of talents.

John Lahr, long-time drama critic for The New Yorker and winner of the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award for his acclaimed biography Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh, will talk about his newest book, JOY RIDE: Show People and Their Shows (W. W. Norton: September 21, 2015), a collection of some of his most popular and engaging New Yorker pieces, which puts the plays on Mr. Lahr's watch in the context of the lives of the artists who created them. Lahr will speak tonight, October 7, at 7:00pm at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place.

John Lahr, long-time drama critic for The New Yorker and winner of the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award for his acclaimed biography Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh, returns to Theatre for a New Audience for a talk about his new book, JOY RIDE: Show People and Their Shows, with one of its subjects: MacArthur Fellow and two-time Pulitzer Prize nominee Sarah Ruhl (The Clean House, In The Next Room). Mr. Lahr and Ms. Ruhl will speak on Wednesday, October 7, at 7:00pm at the Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place. 

John Lahr, long-time drama critic for The New Yorker and winner of the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award for his acclaimed biography Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh, will talk about his newest book, JOY RIDE: Show People and Their Shows (W. W. Norton: September 21, 2015), a collection of some of his most popular and engaging New Yorker pieces, which puts the plays on Mr. Lahr's watch in the context of the lives of the artists who created them. Lahr will speak on Wednesday, October 7, at 7:00pm at Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place. 

BroadwayWorld has just learned that six-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald, who will star next spring in Shuffle Along Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed, will take a break from the show next summer. An official show rep commented: 'Due to a pre-existing commitment, Audra McDonald will not appear in Shuffle Along from Tuesday, June 21 to Sunday, September 25, 2016.  Miss McDonald will return to Shuffle Along beginning Tuesday, September 27 and is currently contracted to stay with the production through  Sunday, June 11, 2017.'

Tickets go on sale tomorrow, Saturday, September 12 for SHUFFLE ALONG Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed, the striking new production that presents both the landmark 1921 musical itself, and additionally details the events that catalyzed the songwriting team of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake, and librettists F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles to create this ground-breaking work. 

The vintage photo appears on sheet music covers for selections from GEORGE WHITE'S SCANDALS OF 1928.

The woman who popularized The Black Bottom for white audiences is featured in the new production's artwork.

Next spring, Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Billy Porter, Brandon Victor Dixon, and Joshua Henry will star in Shuffle Along Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed, a striking new production that presents both the 1921 musical itself, and additionally details the events that catalyzed the songwriting team of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake, and librettists F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles to create this ground-breaking work. Check out the just-released artwork for the show below and visit the official website here!

Next spring, Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Billy Porter, Brandon Victor Dixon, and Joshua Henry will star in SHUFFLE ALONG Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed, a striking new production that presents both the 1921 musical itself, and additionally details the events that catalyzed the songwriting team of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake, and librettists F.E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles to create this ground-breaking work.

Andrea Most, author of Theatrical Liberalism: Jews and Popular Entertainment in America, will discuss her book at a free event on Monday, May 4, at 7:00pm at Theatre for a New Audience, Polonsky Shakespeare Center, 262 Ashland Place.