(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- Crossroads Theatre Company is streaming a conversation between Ricardo Khan and Tony, Grammy, and Emmy winner Andre De Shields. The video is available online until January 17, 2021. It includes excerpts from Haarlem Nocturne.
Actor, singer, director, and singular creative force André De Shields has shot to stardom with 21 st century audiences on the wings of Hermes, the god he portrays in the Tony Award winning musical Hadestown. While it was this impressive role that landed Mr. De Shields his first Tony Award, he has in fact played substantial roles in making some of the biggest Broadway shows a success. From originating the roles of The Wiz in The Wiz and Horse in The Full Monty, to appearing in the original Broadway production of the musical revue Ain’t Misbehavin’, to countless other appearances, Mr. De Shields has left a lasting legacy that only continues to grow.
While Broadway currently claims his talents, Crossroads audiences have long been delighted by Mr. De Shields on countless occasions. It is one of these productions – a show called Haarlem Nocturne in which he not only starred, but created and directed – that Mr. De Shields will focus on in a glorious revisitation of his creativity. Excerpts from this production will be interspersed with his reflections on direction, creative choice making, and the challenges of wearing many hats and not just for costume purposes.
While Crossroads waits for spring to come again, don’t miss this opportunity for a veritable master class in artistry, professionalism, and the inimitable class act that is André De Shields. The video is available here.
Crossroads Theatre Company, recipient of the 1999 Tony Award® for Outstanding Regional Theatre in the United States, is the nation's premiere African American theater. The American Theatre Critics Association together with the American Theatre Wing and the League of Regional Theatres and Producers presented the prestigious Tony Award® to Crossroads in recognition of its 22-year history of artistic accomplishment and excellence. Crossroads is the first African American theater to receive this honor in the 33-year history of this special award category. Crossroads continues to lead the nation with its commitment to literary works that examine the African American experience so that it may be understood and appreciated by all people. Crossroads' recent Tony Award® and 20th Anniversary celebration are both indicative of the perseverance and vision of those who continue to support the theater. Both are of great significance, not only to the immediate Crossroads family of staff, subscribers and patrons, but also to the City of New Brunswick, the State of New Jersey, the nation and the legacy of Black theater itself. When co-founders Ricardo Khan and L. Kenneth Richardson envisioned a space where, as actors, the two young men could work on substantive, non-stereotypical roles, little did they realize that their vision would grow into the major institution that it is today.
