A Tribute to the Black Stars of the Great White Way
Black Stars of the Great White Way had its Carnegie Hall debut celebrating 100 years of the contributions, influence and legacy of African American Men on Broadway! QPTV’s Roslyn Nieves and Madeline Johnson were there to catch the amazing performance and get interviews at the Black Stars Red Carpet reception. Norm Lewis, Tony Award nominated American actor and baritone singer; along with Broadway choral director/arranger Chapman Roberts created this blockbuster evening of Broadway show stoppers delivered by an all-male cast featuring original cast members of such stellar Broadway hits as Dreamgirls, Porgy and Bess, Eubie!, Sophisticated Ladies, Ain’t Misbehavin’, and Leiber and Stoller’s Grammy winner Smokey Joe’s Cafe. Many of the familiar tunes from these shows, including I Got It Bad And That Ain’t Good, It Don’t Mean A Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing, Minnie the Moocher, Five Guys Named Moe, Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My Baby, and many more, were arranged specifically for Broadway and the original cast albums by Roberts himself. Stage and Screen Legend Ben Vereen joins the cast of Black Stars: Norm Lewis, Andre De Shields, Larry Marshall, Keith David, Keith Robinson, Ted Louis Levy, Omar Edwards, Frank Owens, Longineu Parsons; special performances by the Queensborough Symphonic Band, the York College Big Band, and many more! Watch this program to view highlights presented by Roslyn Nieves and Clifford Jacobs of the 2013 QPAC presentation as well as interviews with the cast members at the Black Stars Red Carpet reception.