Behind The Scenes
A Look Inside: Whorl Inside A Loop At Second Stage Theatre
Broadway Black is here to provide you a look inside the highly anticipated world premiere of Whorl Inside a Loop. The production, which stars Sherie Rene Scott, is now in performances at Second Stage Theatre (Tony Kiser Theatre in Midtown 43rd Street and 8th Avenue) and officially opens on Thursday, August 27. In addition to Scott, the cast features Derrick Baskin (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Nicholas Christopher (Motown), Chris Myers (Soho Rep.’s An Octoroon), Ryan Quinn (King Lear), Daniel J. Watts (In the Heights), and Donald Webber Jr. (Motown). Check out photos below!
Photos by Joan Marcus.
Ryan Quinn, Nicholas Christopher, Derrick Baskin, Donald Webber Jr., Daniel J. Watts, Sherie Rene Scott
Ryan Quinn, Nicholas Christopher, Donald Webber Jr.,Chris Myers, Derrick Baskin
Daniel J. Watts and Chris Myers
Daniel J. Watts, Derrick Baskin, and Ryan Quinn.
Donald Webber Jr., Chris Myers, Derrick Baskin, Daniel J. Watts, Nicholas Christopher, and Ryan Quinn.
Whorl Inside a Loop is a new play by Dick Scanlan and Sherie Rene Scott and co-directed by Michael Mayer and Scanlan. After Scott and Scanlan went to Woodbourne Correctional Facility in New York to lead a one-day workshop on personal narratives, some of the inmates asked if they would come back and transform these monologues into a show. That’s exactly what they did. The play offers credit for additional material and a percentage of the profits to five of the men from the prison. Their monologues were woven into the script, and their names and nicknames were assigned to many of the characters.
A well-regarded actress agrees to teach six inmates how to tell their stories behind the bars of a men’s maximum security prison. Sharing intimate and sometimes hilarious details of their former lives, this unlikely group forms a bond — even as the actress’ life outside spins out of control. And when what happens in prison doesn’t stay there, no one is sure who to trust. From the team that brought you Everyday Rapture, this new play features Sherie Rene Scott and six men playing two dozen characters in a constant shifting of scenes, ages, genders and races. Whorl Inside a Loop explores the fine line between convicted felons and the criminal inside each of us, the viability of forgiveness and the unreliability of redemption.
Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased here.
Dont have your tckts to #WhorlInsideALoop yet? @donaldwebber & @DWattsWords tell you how! @2STNYC #WeAreBroadwayBlack pic.twitter.com/386JXQbL6g
— Broadway Black (@BroadwayBlack) August 6, 2015
Go behind-the-scenes of the Vogue photo shoot with the men of Ain’t Too Proud.
Leading the cast as The Temptations will be Derrick Baskin as Otis Williams, James Harkness as Paul Williams, Jawan M. Jackson as Melvin Franklin, Jeremy Pope as Eddie Kendricks, and Ephraim Sykes as David Ruffin. The Broadway cast will also feature Esther Antoine, Saint Aubyn, Shawn Bowers, E. Clayton Cornelious, Rodney Earl Jackson Jr., Taylor Symone Jackson, Jahi Kearse, Jarvis B. Manning Jr., Joshua Morgan, Rashidra Scott, Nasia Thomas, Christian Thompson, Curtis Wiley, and Candice Marie Woods.
Ain’t Too Proud is the electrifying new musical that follows The Temptations’ extraordinary journey from the streets of Detroit to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Five guys. One dream. And a sound that would make music history. With their signature dance moves and unmistakable harmonies, they rose to the top of the charts creating an amazing 42 Top Ten Hits with 14 reaching number one. The rest is history — how they met, the groundbreaking heights they hit, and how personal and political conflicts threatened to tear the group apart as the United States fell into civil unrest. This thrilling story of brotherhood, family, loyalty, and betrayal is set to the beat of the group’s treasured hits, including “My Girl,” “Just My Imagination,” “Get Ready,” “Papa Was a Rolling Stone,” and so many more.
Ain’t Too Proud will play the Imperial Theatre on February 28th, 2019, with an official Opening Night set for Thursday, March 21, 2019.
Eclipsed is returning and this time it’s on television. Well, kind of.
According to the press realease:
BET International releases a multi-part documentary series chronicling the ascent and realization of ‘Eclipsed’; a Broadway play all written, directed and acted by women of African descent.
- Danai Gurira (Zimbabwe), playwright
- Liesl Tommy, (South Africa), director
- Lupita Nyong’o (Kenya), actress
- Akosia Busia, (Ghana), actress
- Zainab Jah (Sierra Leone), actress
- Saycon Sengbloh, (Liberia), actress
- Pascale Armand, (Haiti), actress
A winner of nine accolades including a Tony Award, the play tackles the survival stories of five women near the end of the second Liberian civil war. Written by actress, Danai Gurira who was inspired by a New York Times article about Black Diamond, a female freedom fighter and the female peace activists.
Broken into three episodes, each part delves into a central theme; Context, Cultivation, and Community. The series documents the fearless women using art to combat social injustice and give voice to the voiceless. With a strong production team including Stephen Byrd, Alia Jones Harvey and Michaela Angela Davis the documentary uses cinema-verite style to complement the rehearsal/show footage and ancillary interviews.
Ava L. Hall, executive producer and Vice President, Programming & Brand Advancement, BET International commented:
“It was really important to us to capture and to some extent immortalise the extraordinary stories of these women in Liberia and also the women who fought to bring it to fruition on the other side of the Atlantic, in New York on Broadway. This is a tale of how sisterhood, support and humanity travels globally to create a vision which breaks boundaries, sets new standards and while sobering, inspires a generation to find value and strength in their stories.”
This ground breaking play took its place firmly on Broadway and this documentary will take a place firmly in your heart and mind. Celebrating the intersection of Black and women’s history months airing on March 1, 2017 at 8pm EST on Centric
This is not one you’ll want to miss. You’ll even see a guest appearance from a photoshoot Broadway Black did before the Tony Awards. Live tweet with us tonight! @BroadwayBlack
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