Concluding Oct. 13
Soul Doctor (Broadway at the Circle in the Square). Soul Doctor, the new Broadway musical about the life of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, arrived on Broadway in July following engagements in New Orleans, Florida and a guest run at the New York Theatre Workshop. Drama Desk nominee Eric Anderson stars as Shlomo Carlebach with Amber Iman as Nina Simone. Here's how it's billed: "The new musical Soul Doctor tells the fascinating story of the beloved yet controversial father of popular Jewish music, Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach. A modern-day troubadour, Shlomo ignited the spirit of millions around the world with his soul-stirring melodies, transformative storytelling and boundless love. After his childhood escape from Nazi Germany, the young Rabbi formed an unlikely friendship with legendary jazz singer Nina Simone, who introduced him to soul and gospel music. Fusing his roots with his new found inspiration, Shlomo created a revolutionary musical sound, writing songs that became instant standards. As a 'Rock Star Rabbi' of the 1960s, he struggled to harmonize his traditional beliefs with the 'free love' generation. Today, his uplifting music and message help to define America’s most defiant era." Visit SoulDoctorBroadway.com.
Women Or Nothing (Off-Broadway at the Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theater). Ethan Coen's first full-length play, Women Or Nothing, starring Deborah Rush, Halley Feiffer and Susan Pourfar, is directed by David Cromer. "Women or Nothing is a play about two women so desperate to have a child that one of them will even sleep with a man," press notes state. "Who the man is, what he thinks is going on, what the women think about what he thinks, and what the mother of one of the women reveals about her own colorful past — it all defies belief. Why then does it all make sense?" Visit AtlanticTheater.org.
Fetch Clay, Make Man (Off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop). The New York Theatre Workshop production of Will Power's Fetch Clay, Make Man features Ray Fisher, K. Todd Freeman, Anthony Gaskins, Tony winner Nikki M. James, John Earl Jelks, Jeremy Tardy and Richard Masur. "In the days leading up to one of Cassius Clay's most anticipated fights, the heavyweight boxing champion forms an unlikely friendship with the controversial Hollywood star Stepin Fetchit," according to press notes. "Fetch Clay, Make Man explores the improbable bond that forms between two drastically different and influential cultural icons. One a vibrant and audacious youth, the other a resentful and almost forgotten relic, they fight together to form their public personas and shape their legacies amidst the struggle of the civil rights movement of the mid-1960s. This true story is as powerful and poetic as Clay himself while also humorous and irreverent like Fetchit's signature act." Visit NYTW.org.
