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Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' is a 1982 play – one of the ten-play Pittsburgh Cycle by August Wilson, and the only one not set in Pittsburgh – that chronicles the 20th-century African-American experience. The play is set in a recording studio in 1920s Chicago, and deals with issues of race, art, religion, and the historic exploitation of Black recording artists by white producers. The play's title comes from Ma Rainey's song of the same name, which refers to the Black Bottom dance. Rainey, whose life as a well-known blues-singer of the 1920s is an inspiration for the play, is also the titular character. ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' was published in the early 1980s and premiered at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. Its Broadway debut at the Cort Theatre in 1984 won a New York Drama Critics' Circle award and garnered a Tony Award nomination for Best Play. Plot In a Chicago recording studio in 1927, Ma Rainey's band players Cutler, Toledo, Slow Drag, and Levee gather to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
August Wilson
August Wilson ( Frederick August Kittel Jr.; April 27, 1945 – October 2, 2005) was an American playwright. He has been referred to as the "theater's poet of Black America". He is best known for a series of ten plays, collectively called ' (or ''The Century Cycle'')'','' which chronicle the experiences and heritage of the African-American community in the 20th century. Plays in the series include ''Fences'' (1987) and ''The Piano Lesson'' (1990), both of which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, as well as ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' (1984) and ''Joe Turner's Come and Gone'' (1988). In 2006, Wilson was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame. His works delve into the African-American experience as well as examinations of the human condition. Other themes range from the systemic and historical exploitation of African Americans, as well as race relations, identity, migration, and racial discrimination. Viola Davis said that Wilson's writing "captures our humor, our vulnera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Judd (actor)
Robert Judd (c. 1926 – January 20, 1986) was an American actor who appeared on stage, television, and in occasional films. He is best remembered for his performances as the Devil (also referred to as Scratch or Legba) in ''Crossroads'' and as Toledo the piano player in the original production of August Wilson's '' Ma Rainey's Black Bottom''. Life before acting As a young man, Judd served in the United States Navy. After leaving the service in 1946, he went through a number of jobs, including clothes presser, and experiences before discovering acting in the late 1960s.Wilson, August, "Memory of Actor Robert Judd" in ''Broadway Day & Night'' (Ken Marsolais, Rodger McFarlane, and Tom Viola, editors), New York: Pocket Books (1992): pp. 114–16. Acting career Judd's first known film credit was '' Across 110th Street'' (1972). [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ram John Holder
John Wesley Holder (born 1934), known professionally as Ram John Holder, is a Guyanese-British actor and musician, who began his professional career as a singer in New York City, before moving to England in 1962. He has performed on stage, in both film and television and, is best known for playing Augustus "Porkpie" Grant in the British television series ''Desmond's''. Background Holder's parents were devout members of the USA-based Pilgrim Holiness Church. He grew up in Georgetown, Guyana, during the 1940s and 1950s. Influenced by the church and the musical talents of his parents, he became quite accomplished playing the guitar. During the early '50s, the strict, strait-laced church membership was scandalised when he broke away and changed his name to "Ram" John. Holder began to perform as a folk singer in New York City. Acting career In 1962, Holder arrived in London and worked with Pearl Connor's Negro Theatre Workshop initially as a musician, and later as an actor. Hol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antonio Fargas
Antonio Juan Fargas (born August 14, 1946) is an American actor known for his roles in 1970s blaxploitation and comedy movies, as well as his portrayal as Huggy Bear in the 1970s TV series '' Starsky & Hutch''. Early life Fargas was born in New York City to Mildred (née Bailey) and Manuel Fargas; he was one of 11 children. His father was a Puerto Rican who worked for the City of New York. His mother was from Trinidad and Tobago. Raised in New York's Spanish Harlem, Fargas graduated from Fashion Industries High School in 1965. Acting career Fargas' breakout role was in the comedy film ''Putney Swope'' (1969). After starring in a string of blaxploitation movies in the early 1970s, such as ''Across 110th Street'' (1972) and '' Foxy Brown'' (1974), he gained recognition as streetwise informant Huggy Bear in the television series '' Starsky & Hutch''. He appeared in ''All My Children'' beginning in 1982 as Les Baxter, the upper-class lawyer who was the father of Angie Hubbard; he wo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Exchange Theatre
The Royal Exchange is a grade II listed building in Manchester, England. It is located in the city centre on the land bounded by St Ann's Square, Exchange Street, Market Street, Cross Street and Old Bank Street. The complex includes the Royal Exchange Theatre and the Royal Exchange Shopping Centre. The Royal Exchange was heavily damaged in the Manchester Blitz and in the 1996 Manchester bombing. The current building is the last of several buildings on the site used for commodities exchange, primarily but not exclusively of cotton and textiles. History, 1729 to 1973 The cotton industry in Lancashire was served by the cotton importers and brokers based in Liverpool who supplied Manchester and surrounding towns with the raw material needed to spin yarns and produce finished textiles. The Liverpool Cotton Exchange traded in imported raw cotton. In the 18th century, the trade was part of the slave trade in which African slaves were transported to America where the cotton was gro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cornelius Macarthy
Cornelius Macarthy is a British actor and singer. Early life Macarthy was born in Croydon, South London. His mother was an executive secretary, his father an economist and Sierra Leone Creole. At age 5, his mother decided to move back to Freetown, Sierra Leone, where he spent the next 14 years living between the fruit farm of his great, great uncle, Henry Josiah Lightfoot Boston, Sir Henry Josiah Lightfoot Boston, the first indigenously elected Governor-General of Sierra Leone and with his mother's family in The Gambia and Zimbabwe. Career He returned to London and at 21, started his professional career singing with the London Community Gospel Choir, eventually becoming one of their lead vocalists. Numerous tours round the world with the group and their work with many of the world's biggest recording artists led to opportunities for Macarthy to carve a career as a session singer, providing studio/live backing vocals for artists and groups such as Blur (band), Blur, Madonna (e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marion McClinton
Marion Isaac McClinton (July 26, 1954 – November 28, 2019) was an American theatre director, playwright, and actor. He was nominated for the Tony Award for ''King Hedley II''. He won the 2000 Vivian Robinson Audelco Black Theatre Awards, Director/Dramatic Production and the 1999–2000 Obie Awards, Direction, for '' Jitney'', and was nominated for the Drama Desk Award. McClinton's early theater career was at Penumbra Theatre Company in Saint Paul, Minnesota where he was born. He played the part of narrator in August Wilson's first stage piece, ''Black Bart and the Sacred Hills'' in 1981, and remained active at Penumbra through the early 1990s. He has directed all of August Wilson's plays, both on Broadway and regionally, and has been termed "One of the leading Wilson directors". The first premiere of Wilson's works that he directed was ''King Hedley II'' in 2001, taking over from the then-retired Lloyd Richards as Wilson's director. He was an associate artist at Center Stage ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whoopi Goldberg
Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ''The Fremont News-Messenger''. November 29, 1984. Retrieved January 22, 2021. "I'm an actor. That's what I do. I'm not a stand-up comic ... I do characters. I'm very good. I'll be better. But right now I'm a very good actor." A recipient of numerous accolades, she is one of 17 entertainers to win the EGOT, which includes an Emmy Award, a Grammy Award, an Academy Award ("Oscar"), and a Tony Award. In 2001, she received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Goldberg began her career on stage in 1983 with her one-woman show, ''Spook Show'', which transferred to Broadway theatre, Broadway under the title ''Whoopi Goldberg'', running from 1984 to 1985. She won a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for the recording of the show. Her film bre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. Internationally, it is known as the National Theatre of Great Britain. Founded by Laurence Olivier in 1963, many well-known actors have performed at the National Theatre. Until 1976, the company was based at The Old Vic theatre in Waterloo. The current building is located next to the Thames in the South Bank area of central London. In addition to performances at the National Theatre building, the National Theatre tours productions at theatres across the United Kingdom. The theatre has transferred numerous productions to Broadway and toured some as far as China, Australia and New Zealand. However, touring productions to European cities was suspended in February 2021 over concerns about uncertainty over work permits, additional costs and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manhattan Records
Manhattan Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group and operates as a branch of Capitol Music Group. Company history Manhattan Records was formed in 1984 by Bruce Lundvall and was later renamed EMI Manhattan Records after absorbing the EMI America Records imprint. EMI Manhattan was used to reissue back catalogue titles from Capitol Records and other EMI-owned labels such as United Artists Records and Liberty Records. It also distributed new albums from Gamble and Huff's Philadelphia International Records during the later half of the 1980s, after a 15-year stint with CBS Records. The deal gave EMI distribution rights to PIR's back catalog from 1976 onward (CBS, later Sony Music, would retain the rights to PIR's catalog up to 1975 and later acquire the rest in 2007). Artists signed to EMI Manhattan included Kenny Rogers, Richard Marx, Natalie Cole, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Queensrÿche, and Thomas Dolby. In 1989, EMI Manhattan was dissolved and absorbed int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yale Repertory Theater
Yale Repertory Theatre at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut was founded by Robert Brustein, dean of Yale School of Drama, in 1966, with the goal of facilitating a meaningful collaboration between theatre professionals and talented students. In the process it has become one of the first distinguished regional theatres. Located at the edge of Yale's main downtown campus, it occupies the former Calvary Baptist Church. History As head of Yale Repertory Theatre ("the Rep") from 1966 to 1979, Robert Brustein brought professional actors to Yale each year to form a repertory company and nurtured notable new authors including Christopher Durang. Some successful works were transferred to commercial theaters. Michael Feingold was the first literary manager. The dean of Yale School of Drama is the artistic director of the Yale Repertory Theatre, with Lloyd Richards (who most notably nurtured the career of August Wilson) serving in this capacity 1979–1991, Stan Wojewodski, Jr. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
