Nicole Ari Parker News

RENT alum and LAW & ORDER vet, Jesse L. Martin, is set to join the cast of NBC's upcoming pilot, THE SECRET LIVES OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES.

The NAACP Beverly Hills/Hollywood Branch announced the complete list of honorees for the 22(nd) Annual NAACP Theatre Awards. The show will be held on Monday, November 5, 2012 at the Directors Guild of America in Hollywood and will feature performances by Tichina Arnold (Everyone Hates Chris) and Shoshana Bean (Wicked).

Louisiana has been a hot bed of activity in the film world thanks to the great economic incentives. BURN starring Nicole Ari Parker (Soul Food, Street Car Named Desire), Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon, Color Purple, Dream Girls), Giancarlo Esposito ( Do the Right Thing, Last Holiday, Alex Cross (2012) and Sean Faris (Pearl Harbor, Yours, Mine, and Ours) will join the list of great films to sprout from New Orleans scheduled to begin filming in November.

The acclaimed Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by Emily Man, takes its final Broadway bows on its original closing date, today, July 22, 2012. The show is aiming to open on London's West End this fall.

Last night, July 19, opera singer Jessye Norman saw A Streetcar Named Desire again and stopped backstage to see stars Nicole Ari Parker and Blair Underwood. Check out the photo below! A Streetcar Named Desire closes on Broadway this Sunday, July 22.

The Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire was awarded the Extraordinary Excellence in Diversity on Broadway Award for the 2011-2012 Season from Actors' Equity Association (AEA) on Tuesday. The show, produced by Front Row Productions (Stephen Byrd, Alia Jones-Harvey), received the honor at a presentation at Equity headquarters. Christine Toy Johnson and Julia Breanetta Simpson (AEA Co-chairs Eastern Regional Equal Employment Opportunity Committee) presented the award, which turns the spotlight onto those doing exemplary work to promote the goals of diversity, inclusion and equal opportunity in theatre. Check out photos from the big event below!

On Saturday, July 14, several members of the Congressional Black Caucus came out to see A Streetcar Named Desire on Broadway and caught the stars and producers backstage at the Broadhurst Theater. The show is headed into its final performances; it is set to close on Sunday, July 22. Check out the photos below!

Celebrities Danny Glover, Delroy Lindo, Eriq La Salle, Sinbad and Boris Kodjoe together with Robert Greenblatt, President of NBC, caught Streetcar Named Desire stars and producer Stephen Byrd backstage last night at the Broadhurst Theater. The show is headed into its final performances; it is set to close on Sunday, July 22.

Actors' Equity Association (Equity) announced today that the Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE has been selected as the recipient of its Extraordinary Excellence in Diversity on Broadway Award for the 2011-2012 Season. The Diversity Award will be presented at a reception prior to Equity's National Council Meeting at the Equity headquarters in New York City on Tuesday, July 17, 2012 at 12:30PM EST.

A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE star Blair Underwood recently stopped by “Melissa Harris-Perry,' where he chatted about how the face of Broadway is changing and bringing in more African Americans both on-stage and behind the curtain. Click below to watch the full interview!

Tennessee-born actress Elaine Hendrix, perhaps best known for her many film and television roles, takes on the challenge of becoming Blanche DuBois in the University of North Alabama's Summer Theatre 2012 production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, opening this Thursday night, June 28, and continuing through July 8. Directed by two-time Tony Award nominee Randal Myler (for Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical for Ain't Nothin' But the Blues), the cast also includes Broadway veteran Myk Watford in the role of Stanley Kowalski. The production is part of the University's Summer Theatre program, which gives UNA's Department of Music and Theatre students integrated opportunities with professional actors. A Streetcar Named Desire runs from June 28 until July 8 at UNA's George S. Lindsey Theater. Evening show times are June 28 to 30 and July 5 to 7 at 7:30 p.m. Matinee performances are set for June 30 and July 1 and 8 at 2 p.m. "One of the priorities of Summer Theater is to bring in professional actors for our students to work with," said UNA theater faculty Charlton James. "[Hendrix] is someone for our students to look up to, and she is appealing to the audience because many people have seen the movies she has been in. She has been wonderful to work with, and, at the same time, students are networking and making connections with professionals." With more than 100 film, television and stage credits under her belt, Hendrix is perhaps best known for her role as opportunistic, scheming fiancee Meredith Blake in the 1998 Disney remake of The Parent Trap. She has also been cast in countless movies such as Inspector Gadget 2, SNL's Superstar, What the Bleep Do We Know!? and the cult classic Romy & Michelle's High School Reunion. Her television projects include Castle, The Mentalist, Criminal Minds, NCIS: Los Angeles, CSI: Miami, Rules of Engagement, 90210 and two years on the critically acclaimed CBS series Joan of Arcadia, among many others. She will soon appear alongside Janeane Garofolo and Larry Miller in the film General Education, which is set for an August release. The Tennessee-bred (she was born in Oak Ridge) and Los Angeles-living star remains just as active offstage as on by devoting her free time ensuring humane care and treatment of neglected or abused animals as co-founder of the nonprofit organization Animal Rescue Corps. Hendrix is also an annual Honorary Committee Member of the Genesis Awards, presented by The Humane Society of the United States, and she received the Guardian Award at the National Animal Rights Conference for her work on behalf of animals. She has also received numerous other awards and honors for both her humanitarian and acting work, including two Telly Awards (one for her work on Pets 90210), two film festival Best Actress awards and the Founder's Award at the Secret City Film Festival. Tickets for A Streetcar Named Desire are on sale in the UNA Department of Music and Theatre office or Kennedy-Douglass Center for the Arts. For further details, call (256) 765-5500 or visit the website at www.una.edu/summertheatre.

The acclaimed Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by Emily Man has cancelled its previously announced summer extension, and will now take its final Broadway bow on its original closing date- July 22. BroadwayWorld has learned that the show might be moving to London, aiming for a Fall 2012 opening.

A Streetcar Named Desire stops at THEATER TALK for Tony Awards weekend, with stars Blair Underwood and Nicole Ari Parker, joined by producer Stephen C. Byrd, discussing the historic Broadway production with series co-hosts Michael Riedel of the New York Post and executive producer Susan Haskins. Also on board in a separate interview is comedian-character actor-writer Rob Bartlett, most recently seen in the revival of How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.

The acclaimed Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by Emily Man will extend its run through August 19, 2012. Streetcar began performances on April 3 and opened on April 22 and was originally set to end its limited run on July 22 at the Broadhurst.

Outer Critics Circle, the organization of writers and commentators for media covering New York theatre announced today its award winners for the 2011-12 season in 24 categories.

Earlier this morning, stage and screen stars Kristin Chenoweth & Jim Parsons announced this year's Tony nominees from the New York Public Library. In a season as rich as this past theatrical season though, there are only so many spots for nominees and some very talented shows and performers were not nominated. Below are the eligible performers and shows who were not nominatined in the major categories.

Stage and screen stars Kristin Chenoweth & Jim Parsons will announce this year's Tony nominees tomorrow morning, May 1, 8:30am EST at New York Public Library. The Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards, which are presented by The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing, will be broadcast in a live three-hour ceremony from the Beacon Theatre, on the CBS television network on Sunday, June 10, 2012. In preparation for the big announcement, TonyAwards.com has released a Cheat Sheet that reminds you of the eligible shows/people of this season. The full Cheat Sheet is as follows:

Looking for a quick roundup of this week's events in the theatre world? Look no further - here are some of the best articles the week had to offer!

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK: Easter Bonnet earns big money, FOLLIES preps for LA, six shows open, and so much more!

In every previous Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, a white Blanche DuBois has complained that her sister Stella's white husband Stanley has “something downright bestial about him.”  She refers to him as “sub-human” and “ape-like.”  And depending on her co-star's performance, audience members might have agreed with her to some extent.