South Coast Repertory Adds Extra Performance of NINA SIMONE: FOUR WOMEN
Powerful play featuring music of the singer turned civil rights activist runs through Oct. 23.
By: A.A. Cristi Oct. 14, 2022
Due to popular demand, South Coast Repertory (Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Director Paula Tomei) added an extra performance to its season-opening production of Nina Simone: Four Women by Christina Ham. The added performance is Sunday, Oct. 23 at 7:45 p.m. on the Julianne Argyros Stage and it wraps up the show's run.
Directed by Logan Vaughn, Nina Simone: Four Women tells the story behind the iconic singer fulfilling her pledge that "An artist's responsibility is to reflect the times." Simone (1933-2003) created some of the most powerful civil rights anthems ever written. Nina Simone: Four Women include several of her most forceful and impactful songs, including "Sinnerman," "Old Jim Crow" and "Mississippi Goddam."
When "Mississippi Goddam" was released in 1964, most Southern radio stations refused to play it. One station shattered the record and sent the pieces back to Philips, Simone's record label at the time. In 2019, more than a half-century later, the Library of Congress selected "Mississippi Goddam" for preservation in the National Recording Registry. It called the work "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Nina Simone: Four Women features Chibuba Osuala (Nina Simone), Meredith Noël (Sweet Thing), Arie Bianca Thompson (Sephronia), Jennifer Leigh Warren (Sarah) and Richard Baskin Jr. (Sam Waymon).
The design and creative team include Baskin as musical director; Jack Magaw, set design; Jessica Ford, costume design; Christine A. Binder, lighting design; Andrea Allmond, sound design; Yee Eun Nam, projections design, Kevin Boseman, choreographer, and Joanne DeNaut, CSA, casting director. Maisie Chan is the production manager and Randall K. Lum is the production stage manager.
Tickets range in price from $32 to $105, with additional discounts available for educators, seniors and theatregoers ages 25 and under. Tickets may be purchased online at www.scr.org or by phone at (714) 708-5555.
Location: South Coast Repertory is located at 655 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa, at the Bristol Street/Avenue of the Arts exit off the San Diego (405) Freeway in the David Emmes/Martin Benson Theatre Center, part of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. Parking is available on Park Center Drive, off Anton Boulevard.
2022-23 Productions: Nina Simone: Four Women, Oct. 2-23; (Theatre for Young Audiences and Families) Snow White, Nov. 4-20; A Christmas Carol, Nov. 26-Dec. 24; The Little Foxes, Jan. 29-Feb. 26, 2023; Appropriate, Jan. 28-Feb. 26, 2023; Prelude to a Kiss, The Musical, April 8-May 6, 2023; Coleman '72, April 23-May 14, 2023. The annual showcase of new works, the Pacific Playwrights Festival, runs May 5-7, 2023.
Complete information is available at www.scr.org.
ABOUT South Coast Repertory: Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory, founded in 1964, is led by Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Director Paula Tomei. SCR is widely recognized as one of the leading professional theatres in the United States. While its productions represent a balance of classic and modern plays and musicals, SCR is renowned for its extensive new-play development program-The Lab@SCR-which includes one of the nation's largest commissioning programs for emerging, mid-career and established writers. Of SCR's more than 500 productions, one-quarter have been world premieres. SCR-developed works have garnered two Pulitzer Prizes and eight Pulitzer nominations, several Obie Awards and scores of major new-play awards. Located in Costa Mesa, Calif., SCR is home to the 507-seat Segerstrom Stage, the 336-seat Julianne Argyros Stage and the 94-seat Nicholas Studio. www.scr.org
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