''It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues'' is a
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...
written by Charles Bevel,
Lita Gaithers
Lita Gaithers (born July 30, 1956) is an American singer and actress. Lita, who received a nomination for the ''Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical'', is the third of only four African American women who have ever been nominated in that categor ...
, Randal Myler,
Ron Taylor, and Dan Wheetman. It was originally produced at The
Denver Center for the Performing Arts and later presented by the
Crossroads Theatre Crossroads Theatre is a theatre in New Brunswick, New Jersey, located in the city's Civic Square government and theatre district. Founded in 1978, it is the winner of the 1999 Regional Theatre Tony Award.
It is an African-American Theater focused ...
, in association with
San Diego Repertory Theatre and
Alabama Shakespeare Festival
The Alabama Shakespeare Festival (ASF) is among the ten largest Shakespeare festivals in the world. The festival is permanently housed in the Carolyn Blount Theatre in Montgomery, Alabama.
ASF puts on 6-9 productions annually, typically includi ...
in New York City at the
New Victory Theatre,
Lincoln Center, and Broadway's
Ambassador Theatre, where it garnered five
Tony Award nominations, including
Best Musical.
The musical traces the history of "
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
" music with more than three dozen songs. Ron Taylor acted as singing narrator. It was directed by
Randal Myler with movement by
Donald McKayle
Donald McKayle (July 6, 1930 – April 6, 2018) was an American modern dancer, choreographer, teacher, director and writer best known for creating socially conscious concert works during the 1950s and '60s that focus on expressing the human con ...
.
''It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues'' started as a Denver Center Theater Company school touring show in circa 1994. The Denver Center production played at the
Arena Stage (Washington, D.C.), in November 1996. It subsequently opened in
New York City at the
New Victory Theater in March 1999 for a limited run, and then transferred to
Broadway. It opened at the
Vivian Beaumont Theater on April 26, 1999, transferred to the
Ambassador Theatre on 9/7/1999, and ran until January 9, 2000, with 284 performances. It was nominated for five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book Of A Musical, Best Featured Actress (Gretha Boston) and Best Featured Actor ( Ron Taylor).
Subsequently, the show has been produced throughout the country.
Cast
*
"Mississippi" Charles Bevel
*
Gretha Boston
Gretha Denise Boston (born April 18, 1959, Crossett, Arkansas) is an American singer and actress.
Biography
Boston' s early musical training and experience was in the choir at Crossett High School and in the Gates Chapel African Methodist Episc ...
*
Carter Calvert
Carter(s), or Carter's, Tha Carter, or The Carter(s), may refer to:
Geography United States
* Carter, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Carter, Mississippi, an unincorporated community
* Carter, Montana, a census-designated place
* Carter, ...
*
Eloise Laws
Eloise Laws (born November 6, 1943) is an American singer and a member of the prominent Laws family of musicians from Houston, Texas.
Biography
Lavern Eloise Laws was born in Houston, Texas, as the fourth of eight children of Miola Luverta Donah ...
*
Gregory Porter
*
Ron Taylor
*
Dan Wheetman
Dan or DAN may refer to:
People
* Dan (name), including a list of people with the name
** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark
* Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa
**Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoir ...
On-stage 6-member band, musical director Dan Wheetman, with
Debra Laws
Debra Renee Laws (born September 10, 1956) is an American singer and actress from Houston, Texas. She is best known for her 1981 R&B/soul ballad " Very Special". In her music career, she works closely with her siblings, Eloise Laws, Hubert Laws ...
and Kevin Cooper on Bass Guitar
*
Songs (partial)
''Sources: ''The Washington Post'', Lloyd Rose, D01, November 22, 1996 and ''Curtain Up'' review, April 1999''
*"Come On in My Kitchen"
*"Black Woman"
*"Crawlin' King Snake"
*"Walkin' Blues"
*"Crossroad Blues"
*"I Can't Stop Loving You"
*"Dangerous Blues"
*"His Eye Is on the Sparrow"
*"Fever"
*"Someone Else is Stepping In"
*"Walking After Midnight"
*"Good-Night Irene"
Awards and nominations
Original Broadway production
References
Curtain Up review
External links
''It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues''at the
Internet Off Broadway Database
*{{ibdb title, id=8379, title=It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues
''New York Times'' review, April 1, 1999
Broadway musicals
Off-Broadway musicals
Original musicals
1999 musicals
All-Black cast Broadway shows
Revues