Just for Love - 1968 - Off-Broadway Articles Page 17

Vincent Victoria has made a name for himself by recreating black female icons that loom large over our cultural imagination. Eartha Kitt like Lena Horne defied the beauty standards of her time to create her own definition of what a leading lady should look and act like.

My fall quarter at SCAD just ended last week and now I'm off until the beginning of January for my winter break. One of the classes I took as a dramatic writing major was playwriting and I got to thinking about some of my favorite plays that I would love to share with people and hopefully they can experience for themselves one day. You can also add these to your Christmas wish list if you so desire.

The ICB Artists, known as one of the nation's most creative artist collectives, will present their biggest event of the year, the 2019 Winter Open Studios. The ICB is a collective with excellent art in a variety of mediums including Painting, Drawing, Printing, Sculpture, Textiles, Jewelry, Photography, Film, Technology.

Craft Recordings is thrilled to announce The Memphis Masters—a limited video series celebrating various albums from the iconic Stax Records label, showcasing its enduring musical legacy, as well as its influence on Memphis, TN. Created in partnership with Memphis Record Pressing and Memphis Tourism, and directed by Andrew Trent Fleming of TheFilmJerk Media, the multi-part series was shot in several locations around the city—also known as the home of blues, soul and rock 'n' roll—including such historic landmarks as Sam Phillips Recording Service, Royal Studios and the Stax Museum of American Soul Music. With interviews spanning multiple generations of artists, The Memphis Masters offers insight from the likes of Robert Trujillo (Metallica), Grace Potter, Matt Berninger (The National), Walshy Fire (Major Lazer), Steve Selvidge (The Hold Steady) and producer Boo Mitchell—all of whom were inspired by the label's music and the albums being reissued. The Memphis Masters also includes interviews with Stax legends like Steve Cropper, Big Star's Jody Stephens, James Alexander (the Bar-Kays) and Booker T. Jones, plus longtime label publicist Deanie Parker and songwriter Bettye Crutcher, who share their memories from the label's heyday.

Ambassador Theatre Group Productions, Gavin Kalin Productions, and Hal Luftig announced today that Tony Award® winner Marc Shaiman will write original music for the recently announced production of Neil Simon's comedic play about marriage, Plaza Suite, starring two-time Tony Award winner Matthew Broderick and two-time Emmy Award® winner Sarah Jessica Parker, directed by Tony Award winner John Benjamin Hickey. 

Many will know the story of Oliver from the classic Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. The musical Oliver! by Lionel Bart, first opened in the West End in 1960 and on Broadway in 1962. The show has been revived numerous times and, in 1968, it was adapted for the screen. For the sake of the stage version, the original story by Dickens was dramatically simplified and provides a rather different interpretation of the character of Fagin. The musical is particularly true to Dickens in its emphasis on class differences and prejudices related to class, while presenting the subject matter with a healthy dose of comedy. Oliver! can be seen on stage at Oyster Mill Playhouse from November 8-24. I was given a rare opportunity to have a sneak preview of the show during one of their dress rehearsals, and it is a show that you will want to make time for this month.

With 200 singers, dancers and musicians donning 6,000 costumes under a winter wonderland of falling snow and singing more than 45 holiday songs, The Magic of Christmas starring The Young Americans (www.YoungAmericans.org) returns to the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, December 6 a?" 15. The Young Americans performance company tour the world bringing the performing arts into schools to empower and inspire entire communities. In a limited engagement, three international touring casts along with students from the Corona, CA-based, fully accredited, The Young Americans College of Performing Arts come together to stage the high-energy The Magic of Christmas, Southern California's longest-running holiday extravaganza.

On May 4, 1970, over a period of 13-seconds, nearly 70 shots were fired upon Kent State University unarmed students by the Ohio State National Guard. The students, and their supporters, were protesting against the bombing of Cambodia by the United States, part of the ill-conceived Vietnam incursion. Forever after, to be known as 'The Kent State Massacre,' the attack killed four and wounded nine others.

Craft Recordings is thrilled to announce the release of a vinyl box set celebrating one of music's greatest gospel and soul groups, The Staple Singers. Set for a December 6th release date, Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection presents all of the group's studio albums released on the iconic Memphis label, spanning 1968–1974, and features the Staples' biggest hits, including “I'll Take You There,” “Respect Yourself” and “If You're Ready (Come Go with Me).” The six studio albums were cut from the original analog masters by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl. The final, seventh disc offers rarities, non-album singles and several live recordings from the legendary 1972 Wattstax music festival. The seven discs come in heavyweight 180-gram vinyl pressed at Memphis Record Pressing. Housed in a slipcase, the collection also includes a deluxe booklet with archival photos and new liner notes from American music specialist and curator Levon Williams (formerly of the Stax Museum and the National Museum of African American Music), and folklorist, ethnomusicologist and writer Dr. Langston Wilkins. The complete collection will also be released digitally, and the six studio albums will be available in hi-res 24-bit/192 kHz and 24-bit/96 kHz formats for the first time.

Julien's Auctions, the world-record breaking auction house, held its marquee two-day music auction event Icons & Idols: ROCK 'N' ROLL Friday, October 25 and Saturday, October 26 live in Hard Rock Cafe® New York and online at juliensauctions.com in front of a buzzing crowd of collectors and music fans bidding live on the floor, online and on the phone across the globe for over 700 items owned and used by a who's who of music legends including Kurt Cobain, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Queen, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Janis Joplin and more. 

Thomas brings to life the conscience and energy of Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey in Robert Schenkkan's latest exploration of the earth-shaking events of the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson.

Theatre production company Parity Productions, a producer of new work that ensures they fill at least 50% of the creative positions (playwrights, directors, and designers) on their productions with women and/or trans and gender nonconforming (TGNC) artists, has launched an auction on Paddle8 and their annual Silent Auction Buy Now Prices on The Parity Store.

Actress, singer, author, and activist Eartha Kitt might be best known as the singer behind a?oeSanta Babya?? and a?oeC'est si bon,a?? or as the third Catwoman on the sixties Batman TV series. However, a government-led blacklisting following anti-war statements she made at a White House luncheon halted her career for an entire decade. The infamous blacklisting forms the basis for the AUDELCO nominated play Down To Eartha, a one-woman show which will hold a four-show run at the Dwyer Cultural Center (258 Saint Nicolas Ave. in Harlem), January 17 through 20 next year. January 17 marks what would have been Kitt's 93rd birthday, as well as the 52nd Anniversary of the White House incident. Tickets for opening night are on sale now for $35, with the remaining dates on sale ranging from $20-$30.

Ensemble Studio Theatre Los Angeles (EST/LA) presents the world premiere of CHARLOTTE STAY CLOSE, a new play by Christine Hamilton-Schmidt, directed by Jonathan Muñoz-Proulx.

As the final production in its 2019 Subscription Season, Catskill's Bridge Street Theatre presents a real American classic a?" Frank D. Gilroy's heartwarming 1965 Pulitzer Prize-winning Drama THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES, coming to the theatre's Mainstage for eight performances only, October 17-27.

Today's top stories: The Great Society opens and more!

IN CIRCLES is a feast for the eyes, even if Gertrude Stein's texts as lyrics seem nonsensical at times. Just go with the flow and let the atmosphere of the avant-garde 1968 theatre scene set your mind free! If only Stein's lover Alice B. Toklas was there to hand out her special recipe brownies to enhance the 80-minute experience!

Drina Durazo and Gus Krieger are about to open an adaptation of Night of the Living Dead at Group Rep on October 4. In our conversation they talk about the excitement of presenting this Halloween treat. Gus Krieger (Writer): Original stage plays include Deity Clutch, Sherlock, Through The Looking-Glass, The Armadillo Necktie, and Breaking Bard. Awards include the Spirit of the Fringe Award for Best Writing, Scenie Awards for Best World Premiere Play and Outstanding Production, and the Valley Theatre Award for Best Play. Krieger's first produced feature screenplay a?oeThe Killing Rooma?? premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. As writer-director-producer, Krieger's films include the philosophical thriller 'The Binding,' and the award-winning hip-hop drama 'My Name Is Myeisha.' Additionally, Krieger is the Associate Artistic Director of The Porters of Hellsgate, which will become the first Los Angeles theatre company to produce the complete works of William Shakespeare.

Amas Musical Theatre is seeking an actor to play Shakespeare's Romeo, who has time-slipped into 1960's Brooklyn, for the upcoming premiere production (January 2020) of a?oeRomeo and Bernadette: A Musical Tale of Verona and Brooklyn,a?? with a book by Mark Saltzman and music based on classic Italian melodies. Justin Ross Cohen is set to direct.

MBnb is pleased to present Tee Corinne: Bodies of Work, an evolving presentation of materials relating to the extensive practice of Tee Corinne organized by artist and curator Jenni Crain. The exhibition will be on view from August 11th through September 15th, 2019.

Stories of hope, honor, and resilience are among the films to be honored at the upcoming GI Film Festival San Diego Awards Celebration. 

Join the highly talented tribe of HAIR as Padgett Productions brought the opening night to Kansas City on Saturday, September 7. This is one of the top productions of the highly acclaimed musical that I have had the good fortune to review. Return to an age of hippies, free-love, and the tribe as you enter the small newly renovated Black Box Theatre in the West Bottoms Entertainment District. If you're not ready to party, you are probably in the wrong place.

When an iconic pianist like Chick Corea gets together with such modern masters as bassist Christian McBride and drummer Brian Blade, perhaps it should come as no surprise that the music they create together is absolutely magical. Their 2014 release Trilogy earned universal acclaim, including a pair of GRAMMY Awards (Best Jazz Instrumental Album and Best Improvised Jazz Solo for “Fingerprints”), and confirmed the trio as one of Corea's most revered ensembles.

This fall, Craft Recordings will reissue five albums from the Stax vault on 180-gram vinyl. In stores November 1st, the titles include The Bar-Kays'Gotta Groove, Melting Pot from Booker T. & The M.G.'s, Delaney & Bonnie's Home, David Porter's Victim of the Joke?...An Opera, and Johnnie Taylor's Who's Making Love. All LPs have been cut from their original analog tapes by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl and manufactured at Memphis Record Pressing. These reissues are part of a yearlong celebration of Stax, and of the 50th anniversary of the legendary label's “Soul Explosion”—an era of rebuilding following its separation from Atlantic Records. During this period, the newly independent label not only signed fresh, emerging talent but also released an impressive collection of 27 albums and 30 singles in just a handful of months.

Led by Brad Ford, who has starred as CCR's lead singer John Fogerty since 1994, on guitar and harmonica, FORTUNATE SON band members include Mike Franceschini (Aka 'The Butcher') on Guitar/Vocals, Ron Ota (Aka 'The Deacon') on Bass /Vocals, and Dan Murdy (Aka 'The Matrixx') on Drums/Percussion, all of whom bring the excitement, spirit and grit of America's Favorite Rock & Roll Band, who personifies the turbulent late 60s in their music, alive in each and every song performed.