(PRINCETON, NJ) -- McCarter Theatre Center continues the season with a jam-packed lineup of music, theater, dance, and family programming. Season highlights include the musical Ride The Cyclone the first show to be directed by McCarter’s new Artistic Director Sarah Rasmussen, plus A Tribute to Aretha Franklin, National Geographic Live, Audra McDonald, Lil Buck, Zakir Hussain, Shawn Colvin, Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Angélique Kidjo, Mark Morris Dance, Bill Irwin in On Beckett, and more.
McCarter will keep its digital stage active with Paula Vogel’s Bard of the Gate, a virtual reading series, and the (free) digital experience The Manic Monologues - creating conversation around mental health.
March 18 - THEATER/COMEDY - On Beckett starring Bill Irwin. McCarter will host the tour premiere performance of the Tony Award-winning Bill Irwin in his acclaimed solo production On Beckett. Actor, director, writer, and clown, Irwin’s production will be presented in partnership with Princeton University’s Lewis Center for the Arts. In On Beckett, Irwin combines his renowned skill as a master clown and dramatic actor to explore a performer’s relationship to the works of Samuel Beckett, incorporating passages from various works by the Irish writer and playwright, including Waiting for Godot, Texts for Nothing, and Watt. Irwin’s original stage works include The Regard of Flight, The Happiness Lecture, and Old Hats. He won Broadway’s Best Actor Tony Award for Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, and picked up a second statue for Fool Moon (created with David Shiner) which earned four Tony nominations. His many tv credits include Elmo’s World (as Mr. Noodle and Legion (Mr. Loudermilk), and his film credits range from Rachel Getting Married to The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. His many awards include one of the MacArthur Foundation’s “genius” grants.
This production premiered at Irish Repertory Theatre in New York City on October 3, 2018. On Beckett was originally developed at the American Conservatory Theater (ACT) in San Francisco in consultation with Artistic Director Carey Perloff, and produced at the Strand Theater in January 2017. On Beckett was also workshopped at Vineyard Theatre and the Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. A subsequent production was mounted at Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles in 2019.
March 19 - MUSIC - A Tribute to Aretha Franklin: The Queen of Soul. With a legendary career spanning several generations and a multitude of genres, Aretha Franklin truly earned her title, “The Queen of Soul.” Wrought in the Baptist congregations of Detroit, Franklin’s expressive and powerful vocals, complemented by skillfully executed yet profound piano melodies, propelled her to international stardom in the sixties. Beloved by musicians and listeners alike, Aretha is recognized as the most successful female recording artist in history with 112 charted singles on Billboard, 18 Grammy Awards, and over 75 million records sold.
Aretha Franklin continued to perform well into the later years of her illustrious life. During this time, musician, vocalist, and composer Damien Sneed toured along with Aretha, developing a strong mentee relationship with the soul legend. In A Tribute to Aretha Franklin, Sneed pays homage to the monarch herself with fresh renditions of her most cherished hits including “Respect,” “Knew You Were Waiting,” “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Precious Memories,” “Think,” “Until You Come Back To Me,” “Daydreaming,” “Freeway,” “Natural Woman,” and others. Backed by an accomplished cast of jazz, gospel, and soul musicians and vocalists, this multi-media tribute will be a tender and spiritual reflection upon the life of an iconic industry titan.
March 23 - DANCE - Memphis Jookin': The Show. Renowned dance artist Lil Buck conceives, choreographs, and performs in a new touring production called Memphis Jookin’: The Show an ode to Lil Buck’s hometown of Memphis,TN, the birthplace of the singular dance style known as Memphis Jookin’. The 90-minute stage show takes us on a journey to the fabled city to chronicle how the art form emerged from local street dance to international phenomenon.
March 25 - POP - Shawn Colvin Steady On: 32nd Anniversary Tour. Three-time GRAMMY winner Shawn Colvin stopped the industry in its tracks with her arresting 1989 debut, Steady On, a stunning introduction to an artist who quickly established herself as a mainstay in the singer-songwriter genre. The album was lauded for its confessional songwriting and well-crafted melodies, and for Colvin’s delicate and provocative vocals. Colvin received the ultimate acknowledgment for Steady On when she was awarded the GRAMMY award for Best Contemporary Folk Album. She swiftly amassed a dedicated and passionate fanbase, to whom this album remains very special.
To commemorate the 30th anniversary of this landmark album, Colvin has released a newly-recorded solo-acoustic version. Colvin brings a 30-year lens to her treasured songs, casting new light on the stories she first told as a young artist. “I was 32 years old, and the dream of my life had been fulfilled,” Colvin says, “not only because I made an album but mostly because I had written or co-written every song, an accomplishment that was hard-won. I was so proud. My feeling was then -- and still is -- that if I never made another album, Steady On would have been enough.”
Steady On Acoustic strips each song to the core, placing Colvin’s songwriting masterclass on full display. “I’ve played these songs countless times, primarily as a solo acoustic artist,” she says. “All in all, this is the incarnation that feels most genuine. And so, to commemorate this milestone I decided to celebrate Steady On by recording it again, this time using only my voice and my guitar. This represents who I am as an artist and all I ever wanted to be, and I believe it does its predecessor proud.”
Over the course of 3 decades, Colvin has established herself as a legacy artist by creating a remarkable canon of work, touring relentlessly both nationally and internationally, and having her songs featured in television and film. She is a revered storyteller deserving of the special recognition of both her peers and those who have been inspired by her songs. Colvin will perform Steady On Acoustic in its entirety in what promises to be a very special evening for her longtime fans.
April 2 - MUSIC - Audra McDonald. Audra McDonald is unparalleled in the breadth and versatility of her artistry as both a singer and an actor. The winner of a record-breaking six Tony Awards, two Grammy Awards, and an Emmy, in 2015 she was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people and received a National Medal of Arts — America’s highest honor for achievement in the field — from President Barack Obama.
In addition to her Tony-winning performances in Carousel, Master Class, Ragtime, A Raisin in the Sun, Porgy and Bess, and Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill — she has appeared on Broadway in The Secret Garden; Henry IV; 110 in the Shade (Tony nomination); Shuffle Along, or, The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921; and Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune (Tony nomination).
A Juilliard-trained soprano, her opera credits include La voix humaine and Send at Houston Grand Opera, and Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny at Los Angeles Opera, where the resulting recording earned her two Grammy Awards. On television, she was seen by millions as the Mother Abbess in NBC’s "The Sound of Music Live!" and played Dr. Naomi Bennett on ABC’s "Private Practice". She won an Emmy Award for her role as host of PBS’s "Live From Lincoln Center" and received nominations for Wit, A Raisin in the Sun, and Lady Day. Having first appeared as Liz Lawrence on CBS’s "The Good Wife", she can be seen in "The Good Fight" as well as in "The Bite". She will appear in the movie-musical Hello Again, and MGM’s Aretha Franklin biopic, Respect, to be released later this year.
A founding member of Black Theatre United, board member of Covenant House, and prominent advocate for LGBTQAI+ rights, her favorite roles are performed offstage, as an activist, wife, and mother.
April 3 - FAMILY - National Geographic Live: When Women Ruled the World. When it comes to women in power, we’ve come a long way…right? Join Dr. Kara Cooney, professor of Egyptology, for a look at a time in ancient history when women ruled the world.
Often neglected in the history books, these women were considered exceptions to the rule, political pawns in a patriarchal society. But their power and influence are undeniable. Cleopatra used her sexuality — and her money — to build alliances with warlords of the Roman empire. Neferusobek was the first woman to definitively take the title of King. Nefertiti is known more for her beauty than for bringing a fractured Egypt together. What can we learn from how these women ruled? Dr. Cooney shares illuminating answers.
April 8 - MUSIC - Zakir Hussain Trio With Kala Ramnath, and Jayanthi Kumaresh. Zakir Hussain, Kala Ramnath, and Jayanthi Kumaresh have come together for the first time as a trio for the 2022 TRIVENI tour. Leading Indian classical exponents of their respective instruments—tabla, violin, and Saraswati veena—each is also renowned as virtuoso collaborator, pathbreaker and educator, advancing the art of their particular instruments to remarkable levels in the context of their classical traditions and beyond. Feted and honored in India and abroad with numerous awards, each has successfully toured all over the world with their own acclaimed solo projects.
A hallmark of Zakir Hussain’s iconic career has been his groundbreaking work at the forefront of brilliant musical dialogues between Hindustani (North Indian) and South Indian music. With Kala Ramnath, an innovative representative of North Indian raga tradition, Jayanthi Kumaresh, the leading exponent of the ancient South Indian veena, and Zakir Hussain seamlessly stitching North and South Indian rhythm traditions to provide a bridge for veena and violin to meet, TRIVENI promises to be a fluent, joyous and entirely original musical conversation, a sonic experience of the highest order.
April 9 - JAZZ - Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, led by Wynton Marsalis, is made up of 15 of the finest soloists, ensemble players, and arrangers in jazz music today. They have a vast repertoire ranging from original compositions and commissioned works by Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Fletcher Henderson, Thelonious Monk, Mary Lou Williams, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Charles Mingus, and many others. The JLCO has been the Jazz at Lincoln Center resident orchestra since 1988, performing and leading educational events in New York, across the United States, and around the globe.
April 10 - MUSIC/OPERA - J'Nai Bridges. American mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, known for her “plush-voiced mezzo-soprano” (The New York Times), has been heralded as “a rising star” (Los Angeles Times), gracing the world’s top opera and concert stages. While the pandemic forced the cancellation of Ms. Bridges’s engagements in the title role of Carmen at The MET and Canadian Opera, she has emerged at this unique moment as a leading figure in classical music’s shift toward conversations of inclusion and racial justice in the performing arts.
Bridges led a highly successful panel on race and inequality in opera with the Los Angeles Opera that drew international acclaim for being a “conversation of striking scope and candor” (The New York Times). Other upcoming highlights of Bridges’s 20-21 season include Donizetti’s Queens in Concert at Dutch National Opera. She will be joined at this performance by pianist Howard Watkins.
April 13 - DANCE - Mark Morris Dance Group. Founded in New York City in 1980, the internationally-renowned Mark Morris Dance Group has been called “the preeminent modern dance organization of our time” (Yo-Yo Ma), its members receiving “highest praise for their technical aplomb, their musicality, and sheer human authenticity” (Bloomberg).
Live music and community engagement are vital components of the Group, which has toured with its own musicians, the MMDG Music Ensemble, since 1996. Through Access/MMDG programming, the Dance Group provides educational opportunities in dance and music to people of all ages and abilities while on tour around the world and at home at the Mark Morris Dance Center in Brooklyn, New York. The program will feature 3dances new to our audience.
April 30 - May 29 - THEATER/MUSICAL - Ride the Cyclone: The Musical. Book, music & lyrics by Brooke Maxwell & Jacob Richmond. McCarter Artistic Director Sarah Rasmussen’s directorial debut at McCarter! Part comedy, part tragedy, and wholly unexpected, this wildly imaginative story delivers surprises at every turn. The lives of 6 teenagers from a Canadian chamber choir are cut short in a freak accident aboard a roller coaster. A mechanical fortune-teller invites each to tell their story of a life interrupted, offering the chance to come to terms with their fates. At once quirky and smart, edgy and beautiful, Ride the Cyclone ultimately reveals the resilience of the human spirit in spite of senseless tragedy.
May 10 - MUSIC - Angélique Kidjo. Over the last 3 decades, Angélique Kidjo has cemented her status as one of the most singular and extraordinary voices in international music, inspiring countless artists with her ingenuity, eclecticism, and seemingly boundless creative spirit. On her new album Mother Nature, the four-time Grammy Award-winning luminary joins forces with many of her musical progeny, including some of the most captivating young creators of West African music, Afrobeat, Afro-pop, dancehall, hip-hop, and alt-R&B. The result is a truly visionary body of work, rooted in a deep understanding of musical tradition yet endlessly forward-thinking and inventive.
An independent not-for-profit performing arts center located between New York City and Philadelphia – and on the campus of Princeton University – McCarter Theatre Center is a multi-disciplinary creative and intellectual hub offering theater, music, dance, spoken word, and educational programs for all ages. Celebrated for developing new work, and winner of the 1994 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre, world premieres include Christopher Durang's Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (Tony, Best Play), Tarell Alvin McCarey's The Brother/Sister Plays, Emily Mann's Having Our Say. Renowned artists who have appeared at McCarter include: Alvin Ailey, Yo-Yo Ma, Audra McDonald, David Sedaris, The Moth, Terence Blanchard, Roseanne Cash, the rock band Lake Street Dive, Shawn Colvin and more. McCarter connects with the community year-round with a Shakespeare Reading Group, digital programming, on-site classes and in-school residencies. McCarter and Princeton University share a long history of unique partnerships and creative collaborations.
