Hollywood and the creatives who keep it afloat may be on strike right now, but that doesn’t mean all the entertainment has ended. In fact, the 2023-24 Broadway season is already underway and a handful of Blackity-black productions are sure to entertain. And because you know how we do it ‘round this way, let’s take a look at some shows and events that need to be on your radar!
Starting with...
Leslie Odom Jr. in Purlie Victorious
In its first ever Broadway revival, Leslie Odom Jr. returns to the Great White Way for the first time since Hamilton in PURLIE VICTORIOUS: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch. Written by Ossie Davis and directed by last season’s Topdog/Underdog and Ohio State Murders director Kenny Leon, the show is “a comedy of a traveling preacher in the Jim Crow-era South.” The original play, which debuted back in 1961 at the Cort Theatre (now the James Earl Jones Theatre) starred Davis in the titular role of as Purlie Victorious Judson and his wife and frequent collaborator, Ruby Dee. The new iteration also stars Vanessa Bell Calloway, Kara Young, Billy Eugene Jones and more.
Opening Night: September 27 at Music Box Theatre.
The Wiz Returns
The iconic film The Wiz and it’s award-winning Broadway adaptation will be headed back to the theatre for a limited engagement in Spring of 2024. Directed by Schele Williams and starring Nichelle Lewis, Wayne Brady, Deborah Cox, Avery Wilson and more—the upcoming revival production is set to be produced by Kandi Burruss and Todd Tucker with Adam Blackstone attached as the as Dance Music Arranger.
The show will go on tour in limited cities throughout the country before heading back to Broadway next year.
Opening Night: September 23 in Baltimore; Spring 2024 on Broadway.
JaJa’s African Hair-Braiding
Get ready to experience Broadway and Blackness like never before in Jocelyn Bioh’s playwright debut, JaJa’s African Hair-Braiding. Taking place at the at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, this production welcomes you into Jaja’s bustling hair braiding shop in Harlem where every day, a lively and eclectic group of West African immigrant hair braiders are creating masterpieces on the heads of neighborhood women. During one sweltering summer day, love will blossom, dreams will flourish and secrets will be revealed. The uncertainty of their circumstances simmers below the surface of their lives and when it boils over, it forces this tight-knit community to confront what it means to be an outsider on the edge of the place they call home.
The show stars Brittany Adebumola, Maechi Aharanwa, Rachel Christopher, Kalyne Coleman, Somi Kakoma, Lakisha May and more. It’s directed by Whitney White and produced by Manhattan Theatre Club and Madison Wells Live with LaChanze & Taraji P. Henson.
Opening Night: Oct. 3 at Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
Black Theatre United’s Inaugural Gala
Black Theatre United is hosting its inaugural gala on October 30th in New York City. Kicking off under the theme “A Salute to Broadway Legends: Past, Present, and Future” and supported by Business for Good (BFG), the star-studded evening in celebration of the indelible mark that Black culture has had and continues to have on Broadway. This year’s honorees include Common, Kandi Burruss, actress, director, producer and philanthropist LaTanya Richardson Jackson; Academy Award-winning actor and philanthropist Samuel L. Jackson; President of Trate Productions Robyn Coles; Chairman of the Board for Cerevel Therapeutics Dr. N Anthony Coles; and Award-winning Arts & Culture Executive and Director of Steve Jobs Theatre at Apple Dr. Indira Etwaroo.
The event will also boast performances from BTU founders: Vanessa Williams, Norm Lewis, Audra McDonald, LaChanze, Billy Porter, Capathia Jenkins, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Darius de Haas, Natasha Yvette Williams and Lillias White. For more information about the event, head to www.BlackTheatreUnited.com.
Upcoming But Not Confirmed: Home, written by Sam-Art Williams and directed by Kenny Leon. “A revival of the Tony Award-nominated coming-of-age story originally staged by the Negro Ensemble Company in 1979,” per Playbill.
Honorable Mention: The Refuge Plays featuring Nicole Ari Parker.