First Breeze of Summer is HOT!

Greetings good people!

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the opening night of "The First Breeze of Summer" at the Signature Theatre in NYC. I told you about it in an earlier post. There were a number of people there including Star Jones (seated behind me to my left) and Lynne Whitfield was seated right next to me! George C. Wolfe was there and so was Lou Meyers - affectionately known as Mr. Gaines from a Different World.

I must tell you, you have to see it. The show has been extended for another week, until October 5th, 2008. Not just because my friends are in it - Crystal, Brandon and Jason - but because this play is in short, GREAT! A memorable piece by award winning playwright, Leslie Lee, a wonderful cast and a fabulous director. You know a performance is great when you can share with the characters all of their emotions - joy, happiness, sadness sorrow and just a plain ole, 'damn, that's tough'.

The cast of "The First Breeze of Summer"

It was great to see be in the presence of Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Leslie Uggams, YaYa DaCosta, Brandon, Jason and Crystal - a wonderful mix of legacy and the future. I am so proud of my people! You should see this play too and I assure you that you will be happy that you did.

Need tickets? Click here.

Check out the story about Brandon and Jason

Me and Crystal, Opening Night After Party, NYC

First Breeze of Summer...

Hey good people...

Remember I told you way back in the day about Crystal and Brandon? The up and coming actors? Well I am going to update you about them and someone else in the group, Jason Dirden. Yes, they are family. Brief background for those just catching up...Crystal is married to Brandon and Jason is his brother which makes him Crystal's bro-in-law. Got it? Oh yeah, most importantly, all three are in the cast of the highly anticipated play, "The First Breeze of Summer".

"The First Breeze of Summer" is the first production of the Signature Theatre's 2008-2009 season celebrating the historic Negro Ensemble Company (NEC). "The First Breeze of Summer" by Leslie Lee and directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, begins previews on August 5, 2008 and continues through September 28 at the Peter Norton Space located at 555 West 42nd Street in New York City.

You should check it out....the tickets are only $20 (special initiative sponsored by Time Warner)

The original production of "The First Breeze of Summer", directed by NEC founder Douglas Turner Ward, received a Tony Award nomination for Best Play during its 1975 run at Broadway's Palace Theatre. The show takes place over the course of one sweltering weekend in June, as the struggles of three generations of the Edwards family collide. Gremmar (Leslie Uggams), the family matriarch, looks back on her past and considers its legacy for her children and grandchildren as they confront the choices that will define their futures. Leslie Lee's Obie Award-winning play is a timeless portrait of family bonds and coming of age.


I am going to check it out and I hope you do too!

A Song For Coretta...Directed by Crystal Dickinson

Hey good people...

Update to an earlier post...

Thought I would share that my friend Crystal (a.k.a. C-Boogie) is directing a play the renowned playwright, Pearl Cleage, "A Song for Coretta".



About the play: Five women, at the end of the line to see Coretta Scott King lay in state, find laughter and hope in this moving and unexpectedly funny new play.

PERFORMANCE DATES: 01/17/2008 -02/17/2008



Crystal Dickinson lived in Atlanta for five years and since then has performed at 7 Stages, Georgia Shakespeare, Synchronicity and Theatre-in-the-Square, served as an alumni volunteer for Miss Porter’s School, a panelist for DeKalb County, Office of Arts, Culture & Entertainment and an auditor for the Governor’s Honor’s Program. She is a proud MFA graduate of The University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and a New Jersey Native. She also studied at the London Academy for Music and Dramatic Art. Currently, Crystal serves as an Assistant Professor of Drama at Spelman College where she teaches Acting and African American Theatre History.