THEATER TALK to Welcome Tony Nominees from A RAISIN IN THE SUN & ALADDIN this Weekend

An all-new THEATER TALK celebrates Tony® Award nominees from A Raisin in the Sun and Aladdin, all moving toward the June 8 awards ceremonies with considerable momentum.

Co-hosted by New York Post Broadway columnist Michael Riedel and Susan Haskins, the latest edition of THEATER TALK premieres in the New York metropolitan area on Friday, May 16 (2014) at 1 AM (early Saturday morning) on Thirteen/PBS, with repeats on CUNY TV* on Saturday 5/17 at 8:30 PM, Sunday 5/18 at 12:30 PM, and Monday 5/19 at 7:30 AM, 1:30 PM, and 7:30 PM.

First, the fine ensemble of women who comprise Denzel Washington's family in the current revival of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun - LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Sophie Okonedo and Anika Noni Rose - take the spotlight to talk about the classic play and what it's like to work with Washington in the well-made ensemble piece, directed by Kenny Leon at the Ethel Barrymore Theater. Richardson Jackson is nominated for Best Actress in A Play, and Okonedo and Rose are both nominated for Best Featured Actress.

Next up, THEATER TALK features the two genies of Aladdin -- James Monroe Iglehart, the one onstage, and director/choreographer Casey Nicholaw, the one who worked his wonders behind the scenes. They talk about meeting the show's challenges; Iglehart brilliantly succeeded in reinterpreting the character of "Genie'" previously identified closely with Robin Williams (who voiced "Genie" in the animated Disney film that inspired the show), and made it his own. As for Nicholaw, he met The Challenge of transforming the tepidly received out-of-town tryouts into a musical spectacular that opened on Broadway (at The New Amsterdam Theater) to raves. As a result, Iglehart was nominated for Best Featured Actor in A Musical, and Nicholaw has been nominated for Best Choreography.

THEATER TALK is jointly produced by the not-for-profits Theater Talk Productions and CUNY TV. The program is taped in the Himan Brown TV and Radio Studios at The City University of New York (CUNY) TV in Manhattan, and is distributed to 100+ participating public television stations nationwide. THEATER TALK is made possible in part by The New York State Council on the Arts, The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, The TDF/TAP Plus Program, The CUNY TV Foundation and The Friends of THEATER TALK.

*CUNY TV, the City University of New York television station, is broadcast over-the-air in the New York metropolitan area on digital Ch. 25.3, and cablecast in the five boroughs of New York City on Ch. 75 (Time Warner and Cablevision/Optimum), Ch. 77 (RCN), and Ch. 30 (Verizon FiOS). The show is available online anytime at www.cuny.tv and www.theatertalk.org, and via iTunes podcasts. CUNY TV is also live-streamed in New York on www.Aereo.com.

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