Robert Nederlander Jr., Stanley Browne and Nederlander Worldwide Events have just announced the presentation of BROADWAY AMBASSADORS at the 14th Annual Havana Theatre Festival in Havana, Cuba. Directed by Rob Evan (Jekyll & Hyde, Les Misérables, Tarzan), BROADWAY AMBASSADORS is a full-length concert showcasing the many musical styles that make up the Broadway Songbook. BROADWAY AMBASSADORS features performances from Luba Mason (Chicago, How to Succeed . . . The Will Rogers Follies) Capathia Jenkins (Caroline or Change, The Look of Love), Norm Lewis (Porgy & Bess, The Little Mermaid, Side Show) and Mr. Evan. Jeremy Roberts is the musical director. Performances will take place at the historic Grand Theatre of Havana - also known as the Garcia Lorca Theatre - on November 3rd, 4th, and 5th, 2011. In addition, the artists from the production will conduct several workshops and master classes for students of ISA, the State run performing arts institute.
Sponsored by the Cuban National Council for the Performing Arts, The Havana Theatre Festival brings together an international array of cutting-edge performance companies for seven days of theatre workshops, performances, and panel discussions. The festival's mission is to participate in the needs of Cuba's culture by promoting theatre as an art "that continues to defend the possibility of human exchange." The Havana Theatre Festival hosts performers from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Puerto Rico, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Greece, Switzerland, South Korea and Cuba.
"I'm very proud to be involved in this cultural exchange with Cuba, and to have the unique privilege to present the very best of the American art form that is Broadway and musical theater to its people," said Mr. Nederlander.
Robert Nederlander, Jr. (Presenter) is a third generation member of the Nederlander theatrical family, and is the founder and President of Nederlander
Worldwide Entertainment, which produces tours of Broadway shows for international markets, undertakes theater management and operations, as well as training and educational initiatives. In 2005 Mr. Nederlander established the first foreign joint venture in the Chinese performance industry and since then has toured Broadway shows across China, including 42nd Street,
Elton John and
Tim Rice's Aida, LUMA, and Fame-The Musical. Future touring productions in China include Groovaloos and a Mandarin version of Aida. In January 2009,
Nederlander Worldwide presented Soul of Shaolin, the first Chinese production to appear on Broadway, at the Marquis Theater. Previously, Nederlander presented The Dream of the Red Chamber at Lincoln Center's Rose Hall. Zhou Xuan, an original Chinese production, is scheduled to perform on Broadway in 2012. In 2010 Mr. Nederlander inaugurated The Cultural Trade & Industry Exchange Program with China's Ministry of Culture, an annual program introducing Chinese cultural officials and senior executives to all facets of the Broadway industry.
Photo Credit: Genevieve Rafter-Keddy
