Rhapsody in Black

Performing Arts Center university at albany State University of New York

2023-24

WELCOME!

Performing Arts Center Music Program Theatre Program

(518) 442-3995 (518) 442-4187 (518) 442-4200

www.albany.edu/pac www.albany.edu/music www.albany.edu/theatre

Cover photo: Tatiana Desardouin, Passion Fruit Dance Company | Photo by Loreto Jamlig Photo this page: UAlbany Performing Arts Center | Photo by Patrick Ferlo

The University at Albany sits at the confluence of the Hudson and Mohawk rivers on the traditional lands of the Kanien’keháka and Muh-he-con-neok people, who stewarded this land for generations before the arrival of European colonists. The Kanien’keháka (People of the Flint) and Muh-he-con-neok (People of the Waters that are Never Still) are more commonly known today as the Mohawk Haudenosaunee and StockbridgeMunsee Band of Mohicans. Despite the similarity of their westernized names, the Mohawk and Mohican were culturally and linguistically distinct.

The UAlbany community recognizes that we live and work on the homelands of sovereign Indigenous nations with rich histories and cultures that continue today – both within New York and beyond.

As an institution devoted to teaching, scholarship, and service, we strive to understand and learn from our history and to affirm Indigenous rights and issues. To this end, we are committed to cultivating reciprocal relationships with Indigenous communities focused on equity, social justice, and sustainability – and dismantling legacies of colonization.

Visit the UAlbany Performing Arts Center website at

www.albany.edu/pac

Photo: Dayton Contemporary Dance Company

for a full listing of this season’s events.

The Actors Studio/Bardavon production of

Rhapsody in Black Written & Performed by LeLand Gantt Directorial Consultant: Estelle Parsons Set Design Consultants: Court Watson and Peter Larkin Sound Design: ADI WORLDWIDE Erich Bechtel & Ian Ruben-Schnirman Lighting Design Consultant: Zack Jacobs Production Stage Manager: Laura Gomez Produced by Chris Silva & Stephen LaMarca Educational Consultant: Kay Churchill

Rhapsody in Black is performed without intermission Rhapsody in Black gives special thanks to: Michelle Ferrari, Jeff Paul, Howard Walker, Shawn Bavaresco, Meg Meyers, Emily Ballou, Cheryl Marcus, The WorkShop Theatre, United Solo Festival 2014, Malachy Silva, Allison Zajac-Batell, Bezachin Jifar, Tyler Kniep, George Maloian, Olivia Barton

LeLand Gantt - Writer, Performer Rhapsody in Black was first unveilled at the WorkShop Theater Company’s Sundays @ Six reading series in March 2013. Further development at The Actors Studio yielded a slot in their Playwrights/Directors Unit’s spring festival in May 2013 and, subsequently, a three-week workshop run in December 2013 and a return run at WorkShop Theater in February 2014. In November 2014, it played the United Solo Festival in New York where it won awards for Best Storyteller (LeLand Gantt) and Best Direction (Estelle Parsons). Mr. Gantt’s regional credits include: Two Trains Running and Radio Golf (Syracuse Stage); Walter Mosley’s The Fall of Heaven, world premier (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park); Gem of the Ocean (Arena Stage), Jitney (Pittsburgh Public Theater) and In Walks Ed (Longwharf Theater). Off-Broadway/Broadway: Slippery When Wet (La Mama), Another Man's Poison (Peter Jay Sharpe Theater), OyamO's Killa Dilla and Let Me Live (Drama Desk and Audelco Award nominee for Featured Actor), and the revival of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (u/s Rock Dutton). Film and television credits include: Miracle at St. Anna, Requiem for a Dream, Malcolm X, Presumed Innocent, Law and Order, Law and Order SVU, J.A.G., and HBO's The Affair.

Estelle Parsons - Directorial Consultant: Ms. Parsons won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1967 for her role as Blanche Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde. Among her most noted television roles, she played Roseanne’s mother on the award-winning sitcom Roseanne. She played the title role in Miss Margarita’s Way on Broadway and the National tour, and Violet Weston in August: Osage County on Broadway and the national tour. Ms. Parsons’ directing credits include: a multicultural Anthony and Cleopatra described as “the most exciting

and innovative presentation in English since Peter Brook’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at the Belasco Theater; Flaubert’s Madame Bovary adapted by Adrienne Kennedy at the Signature Theater, NYC; Oedipus the King (Yeats adaptation) and Salome: The Reading (Oscar Wilde) with Al Pacino at the Bardavon, on Broadway, and the National tour. Nominated five times for the Tony Award, Ms. Parsons was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2004.

The Actors Studio is a nonprofit organization for professional actors, directors, and playwrights founded in 1947 in New York City by Elia Kazan, Cheryl Crawford, and Robert Lewis. The Actors Studio was formed to provide a place where professional actors could work together between jobs or during long runs to continue to develop their craft and to experiment with new forms in creative theatre work. Lee Strasberg took the helm in 1951 until his death in 1982. It is currently run by Al Pacino, Ellen Burstyn, and Harvey Keitel. The Studio is best known for its work refining and teaching method acting. The approach was originally developed by the Group Theatre in the 1930s based on the innovations of Constantin Stanislavski. While at the Studio, actors work together to develop their skills in a private environment where they can take risks as performers without the pressure of commercial roles.

Bardavon 1869 Opera House, Inc. is a New York State nonprofit corporation that owns and operates two historic theaters—the 944-seat namesake theater in Poughkeepsie and 1510-seat Ulster Performing Arts Center (UPAC) in Kingston— and the region’s premiere orchestra, the Hudson Valley Philharmonic (the HVP). It presents world class music, dance, theater, and classic films for diverse audiences in both its venues; stages free annual outdoor events in local communities; and partners with area schools to offer unique arts-based learning experiences. The Bardavon also continues to restore and preserve its historic theaters for today’s audiences and future generations to enjoy.

Sponsors Tonight’s performance is presented by the UAlbany Performing Arts Center with support provided by the University at Albany Foundation, University Auxiliary Services, Office of Intercultural Student Engagement and the Alumni Association.

UALBANY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER PAC, 266 518-442-3995 www.albany.edu/pac

UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY FOUNDATION University Administration Building, 226 518-437-5090 www.albany.edu/uafoundation

UNIVERSITY AUXILIARY SERVICES University Administration Building, 232 518-442-5950 www.albany.edu/uas

INTERCULTURAL STUDENT ENGAGEMENT Campus Center, B91 518-442-5565 www.albany.edu/multicultural

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION Alumni House 518-442-3080 www.albany.edu/alumni

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The UAlbany Performing Arts Center’s six theatres, three lounges and other spaces are available for rental.

PAC@albany.edu

(518) 442-3995

www.albany.edu/pac

Performing Arts Center university at albany State University of New York

HOUSE POLICIES Latecomers will be seated at the discretion of the management and its staff. .

The use of photographic or recording devices of any kind during most performances is strictly prohibited. .

There is no food or drink allowed in the theatres, nor is smoking allowed in UAlbany buildings. .

To avoid disrupting the performance, kindly disable any noise making electronic devices you may have with you. .

Please take time to note the location of the fire exits nearest to you. In the event of an emergency, an announcement will be made from the stage. Please proceed to the nearest exit in an orderly fashion.

Created and produced by the University Art Museum, NYS Writers Institute and UAlbany Performing Arts Center in collaboration with WAMC Northeast Public Radio, this popular series features leading figures from a variety of artistic disciplines in conversation about their creative inspirations, their craft and their careers. “Roundtable” host Joe Donahue conducts live on-stage interviews followed by a Q&A with the audience.

Dance Albany 2023-24

in

See all of these performances for only $110!

Dayton Contemporary Dance Co October 20 Passion Fruit Dance Co November 4

Performing Arts Center university at albany State University of New York

Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Co December 2 Photo: Dayton Contemporary Dance Company

Mark Morris Dance Group January 25 Ellen Sinopoli Dance Co with Capital Trio - January 27 * Monica Bill Barnes & Co February 3 No Gravity Theatre February 9 Savion Glover April 13 Ellen Sinopoli Dance Co May 18 Packages also available for choice of five or three at 25% or 10% discounts, respectively.

Executive Park

* This show is free and does not factor into package pricing.

Packages available through The Egg Box Office at the Empire State Plaza or by calling (518) 473-1845

Troy, Albany, Schenectady and Saratoga Springs, NY

The UAlbany Performing Arts Center is no longer operating a box office. All ticketing is done on-line and can be easily navigated from the web site provided through the QR code above or address below.

www.albany.edu/pac/tickets