Tony Award winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson, who directed this season's acclaimed revival of Jitney, will helm an invitation-only reading of Ed Schmidt's Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting May 4–5 in Manhattan.
The cast of the reading will feature Gaius Charles (Friday Night Lights, Grey’s Anatomy), Nick Christopher (Whorl Inside A Loop, Hamilton), Larry Marshall (Jesus Christ Superstar, Cotton Club) Jeff Perry (Scandal, Steppenwolf Theatre Company), Keith Randolph Smith (Malcolm X, Jitney), and Marcel Spears.
Set in April 1947, the play concerns Branch Rickey, general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, who “has decided to break baseball's color barrier by promoting Jackie Robinson to the Major Leagues. But he can't do it alone. So… Mr. Rickey Calls A Meeting at The Roosevelt Hotel to ensure the support of three of America's most influential black men: Joe Louis, the world's heavyweight champion; Bill 'Bojangles' Robinson, the legendary entertainer; and Paul Robeson, actor and political activist. The meeting erupts in a clash of egos, ideas, and ideals.”
The upcoming reading is produced by R. Erin Craig, in association with Randy Donaldson, Leap on Three Productions, Donna Walker-Kuhne, Rashad Chambers, Wolfstone Productions, Scott Silberstein, Black Sheep Theatricals, and One Company.
Casting is by Caparelliotis Casting; the general manager is Bespoke Theatricals.
Check out footage from the recent Broadway production of Jitney below:
