We’re continuing with our celebration of Black History Month on this week’s Dress Circle (2/23 7:00 p.m.) with a look at a few of the musicals to appear on Broadway that featured full or predominantly Black casts. We’ll begin with two of the earliest shows, 1921’s “Shuffle Along” featuring a score by Eubie Blake and Nobel Sissle and 1928’s “Lou Leslie’s Blackbirds” featuring songs by Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields which were both hits on Broadway at a time when segregation was still rampant on stage and in the audience.
From there, we’ll Look at some spectacular revues such as “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” “Black and Blue,” and “Five Guys Named Mo” and turn to shows that explore the black experience in the United States through “Purlie,” a musical version of Ossie Davis’ “Purlie Victorious,” “Raisin,” the musicalization of Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun,” and the trials of Langston Hughes’ charming character “Simple” in “Simply Heavenly.” Join us for an hour of wonderful performances.
