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OFF- BROADWAY HIT!
NOW PLAYING!!!
BLACK ANGELS OVER TUSKEGEE
A new play from award winner Layon Gray
"POETIC & EXCITING!
Some plays teach, others celebrate, and a few simply entertain"Black Angels Over
Tuskegee" manages to do all three and one thing more: It inspires."
Backstage Magazine
"Awesome! I lost friends. Watching this play reminded me of them. I cried. This play is real!"
Big O.
Original Tuskegee Airmen
"UPLIFTING,INSPIRATIONAL!
Mr. Gray has the instincts of an entertainer.By the end, tears welled up in my eyes."
New York Times
"STUNNING!
Gray creates convincing portraits of African Americans."
Curtain Up-NY
"POWERFUL!
Characters so realistic that the audience can't help but be thoroughly moved."
Associated Press
GET TICKETS TODAY!
"CRITICS PICK!
Black Angels grooves like a tight jazz band, filling St. Luke's Theatre with
snappy riffs of dialogue, and bluesy monologues."
NEW YORK TIMES
READERS TOP 5 PLAYS!
The Story Of The Tuskegee Airmen
Winner of the 2009 NAACP Award
Winner of the 2009 Hollywood ADA Award
The Play
Black Angels Over Tuskegee written by NAACP award winner Layon Gray is a story told in narrative of six men embarking upon a journey to become pilots in the United States Army Air Forces. The play explores their collective struggle with Jim Crow, their intelligence, patriotism, dreams of an inclusive fair society, and brotherhood. It is a perfect vehicle to entertain, inspire and add perspective to a rarely heard chapter in American history. Black Angels Over Tuskegee literally goes beyond the headlines of the popular stories of the Tuskegee Airmen and exposes the men who exhibited the courage to excel, in spite of all the overwhelming odds against them. This play promotes a crowd pleasing, enriching evening of relevant theatre. Winner of the 2009 NAACP Award for Best Ensemble , and winner of the 2009 Hollywood Aritsitic Director Acnheivement Award for Best Play Black Angels Over Tuskegee has been moving audience to joy and tears . The play was also selected as a mainstrage produyctuion at the Natiional Black Theatre Festival, and was requested to perform at the Los Angeles African American Musseum, The Tom Joyner fondation Cruise throughout Canada, and most recently The National Tuskegee Aitrmen Convention in Las Vegas.
Photos taken by Sue Coflin
Photos taken by Alex Marlin
ENDORORSED BY ORIGINAL TUSKEGEE AIRMEN
SHOW TIMES
Mondays _8pm, Tuesdays_ 7pm,
Saturdays_8pm, Sunday _ 5pm
NOW PLAYING THROUGH SEPTEMBER
ACTORS TEMPLE THEATRE
339 W. 47th St.
New York , NY 10036
(Between 8th & 9th Avenue)
Tickets on sale NOW!!!
www.telecharge.com or call ( 212) 239 6200
Focusing on creating conversational diaoluge in his works, Layon continues to make his mark in traditional African-American theatre with Black Angels Over Tuskegee. Born and raised in Louisiana, he has quickly risen as one of Los Angeles premiere playwrights winning Artistic Director Achievement Awards for Best Director, Best Play, and Best Author for his critically acclaimed play MEET ME AT THE OAK. He also won 2 MaddyAwards for Oak which included Best Playwright, and Best Director. In 2005 he won an ADA Award for DIARY OF A CATHOLIC SCHOOL DROPOUT for Best Play in Los Angeles, and was also nominated for a 2005 NAACP AWARD for DIARY and his military drama SOLDIERS DONT CRY.
His female baseball play THE GIRLS OF SUMMER received (6) ADA nominations and was nominated for (4) NAACP awards
taking home an award for Best Play. In 2007 he was named MATCH-LIFE ARTIST OF THE YEAR for theatre. In 2008 he formed THE LAYON GRAY EXPERIENCE which is the umbrella company for DOROTHY SPELLMAN FILMS, and the new LOS ANGELES AFRICAN AMERICAN REPERTORY COMPANY. He has written and directed several films-two features that are currently in post production, ten short films, and eleven original plays. He is currently in early development with three of his feature
films HIP HOP AND LOVE, BREAUX BRIDGE, which will be shot in Louisiana, and the film versions of DIARY OF A
CATHOLIC SCHOOL DROPOUT, and THE GIRLS OF SUMMER. He has directed plays such as FOR COLORED
GIRLS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED SUICIDE WHEN THE RAINBOW IS ENUF, FENCES, BEFORE IT HITS HOME, A
SOLDIERS PLAY, MISS EVERS BOYS, MEDAL OF HONOR RAG, A RAISIN IN THE SUN, STEEL MAGNOLIAS, just to
name a few. Layon is currently putting the finishing touches to his triology play AMERICAN SOUTH a true story set during slavery in Louisiana about his mothers side of the family. His powerful play WEBEIME performed in New York in 2008 winning several awards. His next piece THE HARLEM RENS about the 1939 all Black-basketball team of Harlem New York will debut fall 2010. For more information on Layon log on to www.layongray.com or you can send him a note via e-mail to layongray_gmail.com.
Writer/director
LAYON GRAY
Meet The Cast(s)
David plays Theodre
Derek plays Jerimah
Thom plays Abe
Layon plays Quenten
Demetrius plays Percival
Lamman plays Elijah
Tobias plays Percival
Lawrence plays Elijah
Melvin plays Jerimah
Antonio plays Jerimah
Steve plays Major Roberts
Thadius plays MAN
Ananias plays Theodore
David plays Abe/Percival
Rich plays Major Roberts
"Some plays teach, others celebrate, and a few simply entertain. "Black Angels Over Tuskegee" manages to do all three and one thing more: It inspires."
- Backstage NY
Audinces are screaming Broadway!
Critics are amazed!
OMG! I have been to many plays and this one just blow me away, with a small cast Layon Gray did his thing. I would say this play is a most see. Congratulations!!!!
I am very familiar with the history of the Tuskegee Airmen. This production was heartwarming and fact-based,-- something you could truly believe and be inspired by. It was both educational and entertaining. The cast gave very powerful performances electrifying! I have sent
e-mails to about twenty friends. And, will share info at the office. Parents should take their teenage children to see it its educational!
I was mesmerized. I was captivated. I was enthralled.The show, the performance of each member of the cast was so good, it was amzing. I knew I was in the midst of a learning experience but it was way more then that. I was enmeshed in a show the had my attention at all times. I left say ing over and over..."It was so good!"
This was well written, superply acted tale of 6 tuskegee airmen. Wonderful to see 6 strong, educated, aspiring talented and focused black american men relate to one another professionally and personally. You get to be a fly on the wall of their lives. share their strenghts and weakness' that they use to keep them strong. Fantastic ensemble. went with girlfriends but will go again next week with my son. i feel its a must see. The last things I've saw that left me with such an overwhelming feeling of pride and goodness in the world was Remember the Titans and Obama inauguration. This is right there with them
It can be amazing to witness in-person what great and heartfelt acting and direction and a compassionate writer and his well-researched theatre-piece can do to a live audience, with nary a multi-million dollar staging set-piece in sight.
An extraordinary evening of dramatically staged American history, brimming with humour, drama, the aforesaid compassion, and an unblinking eye towards how men become exemplars through a unique and quite Americam juxtaposition of time and place and war and, absolutely yes, race. See it twice-it's that good....
Before buying tickets to see this performance I read all 13 of the reviews and was floored to see how all had given a perfect score. I had never seen that happen before on Goldstar. At the end of this performance it was obvious why.This show is amazing. The story and acting is absolutely riveting. At several points in the story I was moved to tears. This is a must see play. If you are visiting New York, do yourself a favor and go.
This is by far one of the best shows I have seen a long time! The actors were superb, especially Melvin Huffnagle who gave an amazing performance. This is a must see and I encourage everyone to go see it and take their children. It's not only educational but heartwarming and it makes you see things in a new light.
Great, great cast and illuminating historical perspecive. It is funny, poigant, sad, fantastic. Will see it again.
Exceptionally well done. Informative yet not over bearing. The actors ability to put me in the era was exciting. Every young person in America should see it.
This performance was way more than I could've ever guessed. The actors draw you into their lives in such a way, you forget it's a drama! Go see this show, right away!
This play was AWESOME, it provided both history of African American Pilots and their struggles. It highlights despite their intelligence people still assumed because of the color of their skin, they were not capable.
This play dispelled the myths and blacks not being capable of learning the mechanics of flying and areonautics.
It was well narrated and truely enjoyable. I took my son who is a freshman in college studying to become a pilot and he enjoyed.
I highly recommend this play to others and to the press, because more people need to know about it.
Awesome! Excellent! Fabulous! Moving! Inspirational! I can't say enough about Layon Gray's Black Angels Over Tuskegee. I felt like I was really a part of the Tuskegee experience. I highly recommend that people see this play. Mr. Gray is a very talented playwright and actor! And we had the pleasure of meeting a real Tuskegee Airmen who was in the audience. He gave the playwright and the cast the highest praise. I recommend that parents bring their teenager to experience what the struggle was all about. See it!
Don't walk, run to this play. This play is a must see!! I loved they way important African American historical figures were referenced in the dialogue. As an African American woman this play left me feeling so proud of our men and the sacrifices they made!! Take the children ages 10 and up. There is a bit of language but bareable.
it's SO brilliantly structured and acted, that -- as the chorus of reviewers here insists -- you'll be swept away and emotionally moved unless you're made of rock. These guy's have talent (in spades).
My husband, our 18 year old son, his girlfriend and I loved this show. The actors were superb and the story incredible. We give it 5 stars and hope everyone goes to see it.
The performance was spectacular!!! Outstanding acting by all members of the cast. Poignant, powerful and infused with humor, the story was expertly told and the emotional impact endures long after the house lights come on. A "must see" for all. True theater at its best. BRAVO!
This play was absolutely awesome!!! I'm going back to see again it with my friend who is coming back from Afgahanistan. He is a Buffalo Solider & also flies planes. I told him how great it was & he said he wanted to see it. So it it well worth going to see again & again.
This was a great show, it will make you laugh and it will make you cry- something I go to the theater for. It is in an intimate space, always a plus, our seats were in the 3rd row, can't get too much better than that. I urge you to see it, especially if you do not know much about this chapter in our nation's history, you will see the finest in human nature along with some of the worst.
I'm an actor from Brazil I went to see the play and I was very surprised, I really liked, loved...Is amazing, wonderful!! Every one must go!
JULIO ROCHA
An excellent production, took you inside the events and the minds of the men who participated. One of the best theater pieces around.
Absolutely, wonderful in all respects. The actors are all extraordinary in their individual roles. The writing and directing were superb!! Off-off Broadway does not mean it could not find a home on Broadway, in my opinion. I'm sure any audience would enjoy the "Black Angels" Tuskegee production. A high school group were there the Friday afternoon I went -- they were totally enthralled -- what a GREAT production. All emotions are covered -- humor and sadness. Everybody will cry on this one -- even the "strong" type!
I loved the play. I took advantage of the Friday discount, since I had taken the day off from work. I'm very glad that I did. The play evoked several emotions: joy, laughter, sadness and nostalgia. It was a deeply moving and inspirational event.
The show was by far one of the best if not the best that i've seen. i will absolutely recommend it to friends and family. it is a must see.
This was a wonderful & inspirational show. It had everything you could need laughter, saddens, a special bond between people. It's a must see!
This play was so heartwarming! You cried with them and you laughed with them. Every character had you captivated with their monologue and dialogue. I would recommend that everyone go see some history that we only hear about in passing. EXCELLENT!! It should be on Broadway and not off Broadway
"TOUGH TO RESIST!"
- NEW YORK TIMES
Black Angels Over Tuskegee, Layon Grays sturdy drama about trailblazing African-American fighter pilots entering the European theater in World War II, gets by on the charm of the cast and a commitment to the rules of the uplifting inspirational melodrama.
The leisurely 2-hour-20-minute play is full of good intentions. Mr. Gray, who stages his own work, steers his underdog story so cautiously, moving in the straightest of lines, that you dont always realize how deftly hes setting you up. Bracketing this agreeable drama is that old device, the folksy narrator (Antonio D. Charity), who provides historical context and dictionary definitions of racism and segregation. You see, I believe in the principle that all men are created equal, he says at the start.
The scene shifts to a cold waiting room where six likable and earnest young strivers are waiting to take a test to see if they qualify to serve. They joke with one another, make light of regional differences and bicker, establishing an easygoing chemistry.
The sensitive Quentin (played by Mr. Gray himself, in an ingratiating turn) goes on about his Lucille back home. Quentins brother, Abraham, played with tenderness by Thom Scott II, looks out for him, and their relationship is the plays emotional core.
Mr. Gray has the instincts of an entertainer, this show is tough to resist. By the end, when the pilots overcame their obstacles and finally got up into the air to the swelling of music, tears welled up in my eyes right after I rolled them.
"EXCELLENT! A MUST SEE!!"
- The EPOCH TIMES
Doing triple duty as playwright, director, and actor, Layon Gray presents a compelling and heartfelt look at an all too often overlooked aspect of black, military, and American history with his absolutely brilliant drama Black Angels Over Tuskegee.
Tuskegee, Ala., was the location of a training facility for the U.S. Army Air Forces, as it was called then, where Negro cadets (as they were called then) were trained to serve as pilots during World War II. However, this story starts at a military base in Utah, where six African-Americans are awaiting testing to see if theyve got the right stuff to even get to Tuskegee, let alone begin training there.
The first act, which takes place as the six are waiting to be summoned to the testing room, basically consists of an hour of the group sitting around talking. Yet long before intermission arrives, each of them will be seen as an individual, completely separate from the others. As they make small talk, complain about being kept waiting, try to study, and sing and dance (some of them anyway), the mens various personalities begin to emerge.
There are brothers Abraham and Quentin Dorsey (Thom Scott II, Gray); Elijah Sams (Lamman Rucker), a former boxer; Theodore Franks (David Wendell Boykins), a fellow with a fondness for music; Percival Nash (Demetrius Gross), a guy who enjoys cards; and Jerimah Jones (Derek Shaun), somewhat older than the rest, and the only one with actual flying experience. All educated men, most are all too familiar with racial prejudice. Some of them have girlfriends back home, some have families.
While this group may never become best friends, they quickly realize the need to stand together, as every step of the way there are people just waiting to see them fail. For not only is this story about how the men of the fighting 99th blazed their way into history, but also about how they battled segregation from Utah to Tuskegee and from North Africa to Italy.
A particularly telling exchange occurs when its revealed that the Tuskegee recruits are kept overseas far longer than whites, instead of being sent home after a certain number of missions and becoming flight instructors.
Gray wisely doesnt depict any of the men as heroes, showing them instead as human beingsdrinking, writing, arguing, and each carrying around his own personal baggage. Some of that baggage threatens to destroy not only themselves, but the entire group.
The play works because the story is told in such simple terms, yet is filled with so many layers of characterization and culture; it feels as if one is watching a piece of living history. (In a nice touch, Gray tosses in numerous historical and cultural references of the period, such as Amos and Andy, Bessie Coleman, and Stepin Fetchit.) Gray also nicely avoids the trap of being too preachy with such issues as prejudice, racism, and segregation; instead he works these subjects into the story at the appropriate moments.
The entire cast is excellent. Particularly memorable are Shaun as Jerimah, a man hiding a painful incident in his past beneath a driven and cold demeanor; and Scott II and Gray as the brothers Dorsey, with Scott portraying the protective and more combative older brother Abe, and Gray nicely embodying the more fun-loving and family-oriented Quentin. Also good is Rucker, a man who sometimes feels just a hair out of place with the easy camaraderie of some of the others in the unit.
Working well with the ensemble is Rich Skidmore as the mens training officer in Tuskegee. Adding an extra level of relevance and poignancy is Antonio D. Charity as the narrator of the evening, relating the story as it was originally told to him.
Grays direction is letter perfect. He has a clear vision of what he wants to convey and does so quite well. Perhaps most important, there is never one moment of dead air as Gray and the various characters spin a tale that envelops the audience before we even realize it has done so. The aerial sequences (and there are several) are particularly well done.
At first the play takes place on a seemingly bare stage with a just few props and set pieces, but set designer Josh Iacovelli is able to use the less is more philosophy to nicely bring forth the story. Wardrobe by Jason McGee feels era appropriate; while David Boykins and Graham Kindreds lighting adds an extra level of believability. Aidan Coles production sound (including air battles and music from the period) also help to give a strong sense of place.
Filled with stirring moments of pride and accomplishment, as well as instances of anger and pain, Black Angels Over Tuskegee is a wonderful piece of theater and a great example of ensemble acting. To paraphrase a popular song of the day: Straighten up, fly right, and put this show on your must-see list.
"SHEER DEATH & EMOTIONAL POWER!"
- NYTHEATRE.COM
Black Angels Over Tuskegee is a deeply wonderful production that takes an important historical event, presents it in a very intimate manner, and demands a personal response to its characters. While initially I had reservations about a play written and directed by an artist who is also prominent within the cast, this production took my breath away and quashed every hesitation. The sheer depth and emotional power of this cast creates an authentically fulfilling and glorious night of theatre that honors an impressive group of men, the Tuskegee Airmen.
During World War II, the Army Air Corps was forced by Congress to form an all-black combat unit and so established very restrictive requirements intended to defeat the initiative. Yet despite numerous and ongoing obstacles, between 1941-1946 nearly a thousand African American pilots surpassed the application requirements, were trained and received their wings at the Tuskegee Army Air Field. Despite resistance within the armed forces, they served with valor in the North African and Italian campaigns under the motto, "We do not hate those we fight, we do not love those we defend." It is an amazing story that, in the wrong hands, could be a stolid and cumbersome night of theatre collapsing under the weight of its own importance.
Instead writer-director Layon Gray takes his time in the first act to set up who these men are, and why what they are doing is so vital on a personal level as well as for the broader community of African Americans. After the narrator (a father talking to his son; as the character, Antonio Charity does some fine story work throughout) brings us into the world of the play, he steps out for much of the act, only returning when needed to fill in that which informs the play but would detract from the engaging and real interaction of this piece. Why he is so committed to the story becomes clear in its own time and in the right time for the play.
Act One is simply a room where six men are waiting for the examination that will determine if they are accepted to the program or not. However, through their figuring each other out, the audience forms its own attachments and opinions of these characters. The Southerners confuse the Northerners with their phrases, the brothers committed to serving together keep each other calm, and they become mostly a group as they bump up against each other's differences. Throughout there is tension: this is a group of individuals struggling to diffuse anxieties and ever aware of being judged. There is a quiet, steady strength to the structure of this act that makes the shifts in Act Two contrast all the more sharply.
From classic one-room drama, Act Two goes through various stages of training, into combat and through to its end. Their commanding officer (ably played by Rich Skidmore) makes a few brief appearances. The scenes become shorter and sharper, and make their points a bit more heavily. Stylistically as well there are unexpected additionsthe realism suddenly sometimes gives way to some added symbolic movement. In a lesser production these shifts could be off-putting but here they drive the urgencythe desire these men have to achieveall the more vividly. Precisely because Gray has taken the time to set up these characters and they are all so incredibly well acted, there is an audience craving to know what happens to each of them. The commanding ensemble of Gray, David Wendell Boykins, Demetrius Gross, Lamman Rucker, Thom Scott II, and Derek Shaun embody how deeply-felt, specific acting can grip an audience at a visceral level unlike any special effect or cool gimmick.
At intermission a guy sitting behind me said, "I feel like I haven't done anything with my life now"not in a depressed way, but as a clearly impressed reaction to the lengths these men were going to accomplish their goals. And that may sum it up best, that there was a group of men who went so very far to prove themselves, as well as what their people could dothat it both insists on being remembered and poses the question: what are you doing? Black Angels Over Tuskegee brings that moment in history alive with honor and passion.
"EXCELLENT! CRITICS PICK!"
- BACKSTAGE
"Black Angels Over Tuskegee," the award-winning play about the famed Tuskegee Airmen, grooves like a tight jazz band, filling St. Luke's Theatre with snappy riffs of dialogue, bluesy monologues, and a couple of spontaneous song-and-dance routines. Based on true stories, it presents the saga of six African-American men whose lives entwine as they seek to overcome a mountain of racism and become pilots in World War II. Though the Armyand by extension white Americaseems determined to stop them, they persevere for two reasons: the awareness that their struggle is important for their people and the simple human desire to fly.
The play begins with a narrator informing the audience that he's going to tell us a story "just like it was told to me." We then travel back to Utah in 1943 and meet six men from different parts of country who have come to a Utah army facility to take an exam designed to judge their suitability as pilots. Five of themTheodore Franks, Percival Nash, Elijah Sams, and brothers Abraham and Quentin Dorseyquickly become friends. The sixth man, Jeremiah Jones, holds himself apart, for reasons we learn later.
We follow these men from Utah to Tuskegee, Alabama, where they receive their flight training, and from there to North Africa and Italy, where they see action and serve their country with skill and valor. The play ends with the narrator revealing what happened to the six and who he is.
Excellent ensemble acting keeps "Black Angels Over Tuskegee" soaring. As the airmen, David Wendell Boykins, Demetrius Gross, Thom Scott II, Derek Shaun, Jay Jones (standing in for Lamman Rucker), and playwright Gray form a tightly knit, irresistible sextet. Antonio D. Charity as Man, the narrator, and Rich Skidmore as Major Roberts, the only white character in the play, are solid in less flashy but equally important roles.
Also the show's director, Gray keeps the action flowing, and his air battles are both poetic and exciting. Jason McGee's first-scene costumes provide welcome touches of color and characterization.
Some plays teach, others celebrate, and a few simply entertain. "Black Angels Over Tuskegee" manages to do all three and one thing more: It inspires.
BLACK ANGELS FLY INTO DC IN JULY!
New York, NY- July 12, 2010- Award-winning production, Black Angels Over Tuskegee kicks off its preview tour in Washington, DC, headlining two milestone events. While the production continues a successful Off-Broadway run in New York City, the DC metropolis will be the first of several preview stops prior to the launch of an upcoming 2011 Black Angels Over Tuskegee Worldwide Tour. The production will headline at the historic National Urban League Centennial Conference on Thursday, July 29th at Warner Theatre-8pm. This monumental celebration will host the presence of several original Tuskegee Airmen from the East Coast, Claude B. Govan, Howard Baugh, and Tidewater Chapters. Following the performance tribute, the celebration will be topped by a fitting salute to the legacy of the Airmen and a presentation by National Urban League President/CEO, Marc H. Morial.The captivating performance, written and directed by Playwright, Layon Gray will also kick off the Inaugural DC Black Theater Festival at Howard Universitys Cramton Theater on Saturday, July 31st-8pm. The Red-Carpet Opening Night Gala celebration and performance will commence the week-long festival featuring ground-breaking theatrical performances of urban and traditional theater. The production stars a stellar company of performers aptly named The Black Gents of Hollywood, an all-male ensemble driven to resurrect, redefine, and restore positive images of African-American men. Founded in 2007, the assembly of Actors, Writers and Directors aspire to change the paradigm and empower a generation through relevant storytelling and excellence in community service. The cast includes Screen Actor Lamman Rucker (Tyler Perrys Why Did I Get Married film franchise), Derek Shaun, David Wendell Boykins, Thom Scott II, Demetrius Gross, Steve Brustien, Thaddeus Daniels, and Playwright/Director Layon Gray. The Black Gents are especially honored to pay tribute to The Tuskegee Airmen and the distinguished legacy of the National Urban League. We have been empowered by their tremendous service and extraordinary contribution to our community and have committed ourselves to continuing the movement for this generation. We are equally excited to kick-off the Inaugural DC Black Theater Festival and appreciate the platform it will give talented artists across the nation says Rucker. The narrative depicts the lives of six men who struggle through the Jim Crow era and emerge with distinction as the first African-American pilots in the U.S. Army Air Forces. With courageous brotherhood, their intelligence, patriotism and strength propel a dream into flight while fighting both military and social wars. The captivating all-male cast delivers a powerful performance that will entertain, inspire and inform as audiences discover the story that provoked a monumental change in American history. For more information about the production, visit www.blackangelsovertuskegee.com. For tour and media inquiries, contact Hope Allen-Living Hope Productions-646-812-1557- blackgentspr_gmail.com (Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com and 800-551-7328 for The DC Black Theater Festival. The National Urban League performance is an invitation only event.)
New York, NY- July 12, 2010- Award-winning production, Black Angels Over Tuskegee kicks off its preview tour in Washington, DC, headlining two milestone events. While the production continues a successful Off-Broadway run in New York City, the DC metropolis will be the first of several preview stops prior to the launch of an upcoming 2011 Black Angels Over Tuskegee Worldwide Tour.
The production will headline at the historic National Urban League Centennial Conference on Thursday, July 29th at Warner Theatre-8pm. This monumental celebration will host the presence of several original Tuskegee Airmen from the East Coast, Claude B. Govan, Howard Baugh, and Tidewater Chapters. Following the performance tribute, the celebration will be topped by a fitting salute to the legacy of the Airmen and a presentation by National Urban League President/CEO, Marc H. Morial.
The captivating performance, written and directed by Playwright, Layon Gray will also kick off the Inaugural DC Black Theater Festival at Howard Universitys Cramton Theater on Saturday, July 31st-8pm. The Red-Carpet Opening Night Gala celebration and performance will commence the week-long festival featuring ground-breaking theatrical performances of urban and traditional theater.
The production stars a stellar company of performers aptly named The Black Gents of Hollywood, an all-male ensemble driven to resurrect, redefine, and restore positive images of African-American men. Founded in 2007, the assembly of Actors, Writers and Directors aspire to change the paradigm and empower a generation through relevant storytelling and excellence in community service. The cast includes Screen Actor Lamman Rucker (Tyler Perrys Why Did I Get Married film franchise), Derek Shaun, David Wendell Boykins, Thom Scott II, Demetrius Gross, Steve Brustien, Thaddeus Daniels, and Playwright/Director Layon Gray.
The Black Gents are especially honored to pay tribute to The Tuskegee Airmen and the distinguished legacy of the National Urban League. We have been empowered by their tremendous service and extraordinary contribution to our community and have committed ourselves to continuing the movement for this generation. We are equally excited to kick-off the Inaugural DC Black Theater Festival and appreciate the platform it will give talented artists across the nation says Rucker.
The narrative depicts the lives of six men who struggle through the Jim Crow era and emerge with distinction as the first African-American pilots in the U.S. Army Air Forces. With courageous brotherhood, their intelligence, patriotism and strength propel a dream into flight while fighting both military and social wars. The captivating all-male cast delivers a powerful performance that will entertain, inspire and inform as audiences discover the story that provoked a monumental change in American history.
For more information about the production, visit www.blackangelsovertuskegee.com. For tour and media inquiries, contact Hope Allen-Living Hope Productions-646-812-1557- blackgentspr_gmail.com
(Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com and 800-551-7328 for The DC Black Theater Festival. The National Urban League performance is an invitation only event.)
Click For Tickets
CONTACT US
PRESS AGENT
David Gersten
(212) 575-0263
david_davidgersten.com
PUBLICITY AND MARKETING
Hope Allen
(646) 812-1557
BlackGentsPR_gmail.com
GENERAL INFORMATION
Aidan Cole
(323) 762-3488
blackangelsovertuskegee_gmail.com
