Crossroads Celebrates Black History Month With Streamed Encore Performance of George C. Wolfe's The Colored Museum
The Colored Museum
WHEN: February 2 – 28, 2021
WHERE: streamed via the Home With Crossroads virtual platform accessible from the Crossroads website www.crossroadstheatrecompany.org.
TICKETS: free
The Colored Museum is
being streamed as part of Crossroads Theatre Company’s commemorative
programming celebrating Black History Month. The play, written by Crossroads’ alumni and
famed Broadway director George C. Wolfe premiered at the theatre in 1986. It was first directed by Crossroads
Co-Founder L. Kenneth Richardson.
The Colored Museum is a play that
features 11 insightful,
edgy and comedic “exhibits” of African-American history, experience and culture;
themes that are as relevant today as when they were originally written and performed.
The play was considered groundbreaking comedy that painted an in your face
picture of what it’s like to be Black in America. When the Public Broadcasting
Service (PBS) offered Crossroads the opportunity to choose one of its
productions to record for WNET’s Great Performances
series, it selected The Colored Museum.
“For more than
four decades, Crossroads Theatre Company has been the place where stories are
told, unapologetically and unfettered, said Anthony Carter, President of
Crossroads Board of Trustees. “The encore performance of this very important
play celebrates our history as a theatre and perfectly aligns with the theme of
our season today, Stages of Change,”
Carter added.
George C. Wolfe is an award-wining playwright and director who is a leader in American theatre, as well as on screen. His most recent work as a director was on August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom featuring Viola Davis and the late Chadwick Boseman.
Race, culture, history and identity have unabashedly showed up in Wolfe’s writings and those themes are very relevant to today. “Thirty-five years later, this brilliant, razor-sharp satire has earned itself an unshakeable place in the canon of Great American Theater, and is still being produced across America and throughout the world,” said Ricardo Khan, Crossroads Co-Founder.
All programs have been available free of charge. The program is sponsored by Zendesk, Inc., a Silicon Valley company known for its innovative customer relationship management software platforms.
About Crossroads Theatre
The 1999 Tony® Award-winning
Crossroads Theatre Company (CTC), now a resident member of the New Brunswick
Performing Arts Center (NBPAC), is dedicated to creating and producing
work that tells the stories of African Americans. In its 42nd year being a
preeminent gateway for black theatre, it has been the stage for many actors,
directors, designers, writers and other theatre professional, Crossroads has
built a rich and storied legacy, celebrating the culture, history, spirit and
voices of the African Diaspora. www.crossroadstheatrecompany.org
About the New Brunswick
Performing Arts Center (NBPAC)
NBPAC has propelled New
Brunswick’s Downtown Cultural Arts District into the spotlight as the region’s
most exciting and dynamic performing arts center. NBPAC features two state-of-the-art
theatrical venues in the Elizabeth Ross Johnson and Arthur Laurents Theaters,
dedicated rehearsal studios and collaborative work spaces for arts
organizations across the region. www.nbpac.org
About Zendesk
Zendesk is a service-first CRM company that builds support, sales,
and customer engagement software designed to foster better customer
relationships. Zendesk serves more than 160,000 customers across a multitude of
industries in over 30 languages. Zendesk is headquartered in San Francisco, and
operates offices worldwide. Learn more at www.zendesk.com
