Harlem’s Hottest Club. Broadway’s Hottest Night.
Contact:
Rick Miramontez / Ryan Ratelle / Michael Jorgensen
rick@oandmco.com / ryan@oandmco.com / michael@oandmco.com
212-695-7400
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE
HARLEM’S HOTTEST CLUB. BROADWAY’S HOTTEST NIGHT.
A WILDLY ECLECTIC MIX OF UNIQUE ARTISTS COME TOGETHER
IN THE EXPLOSIVE NEW BROADWAY MUSICAL
“ A F T E R M I D N I G H T ”
DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY WARREN CARLYLE
NOW IN PERFORMANCES AT BROADWAY’S BROOKS ATKINSON THEATRE
NEW YORK, NY – Producers Scott Sanders and Wynton Marsalis are proud to present After Midnight (a new production of Cotton Club Parade, conceived by Jack Viertel, which played two smash-hit, sold-out engagements at City Center) on Broadway at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre (256 W 47th Street). Directed and choreographed by Warren Carlyle, After Midnight began preview performances on Friday, October 18, 2013, and opened to rave reviews on Sunday, November 3, 2013.
This evocative new musical takes the sexy, smoky glamour of the original Jazz Age and catapults it into a whole new era of heart-pounding, mind-blowing entertainment for modern Broadway audiences. Refracted through a contemporary lens, After Midnight celebrates Duke Ellington’s years at the Cotton Club using his original arrangements and performed by a world-class big band of 17 musicians hand-picked by living jazz legend, Wynton Marsalis. The timeless tunes set against a narrative of Langston Hughes poetry provide an authentic backdrop for an array of cutting-edge performances by 25 sensational vocalists and dancers, including special guest stars, whose interpretations shatter everything you think you know about music, nightlife and Broadway.
The wildly eclectic cast of After Midnight includes Grammy Award-winning “Special Guest Star” vocalist Fantasia, Dulé Hill, who leads the audience through the heat and glamour of the Harlem Renaissance as “The Host,” Tony Award-winner Adriane Lenox reprising her critically acclaimed role as the blues singer with a sense of humor; Julius “iGlide” Chisolm from the renowned dance crew RemoteKontrol, reimagining Harlem’s popular 1920’s “snakehips” dance; hip hop star Virgil J. Gadson; Tony Award-nominated modern dancer Karine Plantadit; Michael Jackson’s tap coach Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards and tap-dancing choreographer Jared Grimes in stunning tap routines. The cast will also include a male quartet comprised of Grammy Award-nominee and member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band Everett Bradley, Cedric Neal, T. Oliver Reid and Monroe Kent III; a female trio of Broadway vets including Carmen Ruby Floyd, Rosena M. Hill Jackson and Bryonha Marie Parham; and accomplished dancers Marija Abney, Phillip Attmore, Christopher Broughton, Taeler Elyse Cyrus, C.K. Edwards, Danielle Herbert, Bahiyah Hibah, David Jennings, Erin N. Moore, Justin Prescott, Tony Award nominee Desmond Richardson, Allysa Shorte, Monique Smith and Daniel J. Watts.
In its heyday, the Cotton Club featured a cavalcade of guest stars each week, known then as “Celebrity Nights.” After Midnight will reintroduce this exciting tradition by presenting stars of today in limited engagement appearances throughout the musical’s run. Grammy Award-winning recording artist Fantasia begins the tradition, followed by Grammy Award-winners k.d. lang (2/11/14 – 3/9/14) and Toni Braxton & Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds (3/18/14 – 3/30/14). Future “Special Guest Stars” will be announced soon.
After Midnight also features The Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars, a world-class big band of 17 musicians hand-picked by living jazz legend, Wynton Marsalis. Steeped in the tradition of The Duke Ellington Orchestra, The Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars celebrate jazz’s large-ensemble tradition in a way never-before-heard on Broadway. The Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars include Mark Gross, Godwin Louis, Dan Block, Andy Farber and Kurt Bacher on woodwinds; Gregory Gisbert, Bruce Harris, Alphonso Horne and James Zollar on trumpets; Wayne Goodman, Art Baron and James Burton III on trombones; Adam Birnbaum on piano; James Chirillo on guitar; Jennifer Vincent on bass and Alvester Garnett on drums. The Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars
After Midnight is a new production of Cotton Club Parade which played two smash-hit, sold-out engagements at City Center. Conceived by Jack Viertel, After Midnight features direction and choreography by Warren Carlyle, musical direction by Wynton Marsalis and musical supervision by Daryl Waters.
The design team for After Midnight includes prolific design couple Isabel Toledo (costumes) and Ruben Toledo, Tony Award-winners John Lee Beatty (set design) and Howell Binkley (lighting design) and Peter Hylenski (sound).
After Midnight is produced by Scott Sanders Productions, and Wynton Marsalis, in association with Marks-Moore-Turnbull Group; Stephen and Ruth Hendel; Tom Kirdahy.
The performance schedule for After Midnight will be as follows: October 18 through November 3, 2013: Mondays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. with matinee performances on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2 p.m. There will not be a performance on Thursday, October 31 and curtain will be at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, November 3 (opening night). Beginning November 5, 2013: Tuesdays through Thursdays at 7:30 pm, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm, and matinee performances on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2 pm and Sundays at 3 pm. Tickets range from $60.00 to $142.00 (premium tickets are $199) and are available via TicketMaster and in persona at the Brooks Atkinson box office. Tickets for groups of 12 or more can be purchased by calling 212-239-6262 or 800-432-7780 or by visiting http://www.ticketmaster.com/. Tickets for k.d. lang and Toni Braxton and Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds’ engagements will go on sale Monday, November 4, 2013.
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