A Raisin In The Sun

Last night I took my spiritual god mama out to the screening/ panel discussion of the upcoming made for TV movie version of A Raisin In The Sun at the new Times Center building. With Phylicia Rashad, Diddy, Audra McDonald and Kenny Leon all on the panel it was, of course, a sold out affair. The movie itself is quite good. I really, really liked being able to see and to get a wonderful sense for what it was like living on the south side of Chicago in the 1950's from a Black perspective. The backdrop of the landscape and the people and seeing Mama Lena and Walter Lee's work environments just gave the play that much more body and soul.

Not to give anything away but the ending is slightly different from the book and the play, which gives the overall theme of this historic play a slightly new twist or nuance if you will. Just as I was about to ask Kenny and company about this change the dang host announced the event was over and the lights came up and my mic was silenced. Let me tell you they run this Times Center stage like a unioned Broadway production—started right on time and ended exactly when they said they would. Sucks for me though! This is like the third time this has happened to me recently. I've got a really strong question and I don't get to ask it because the Ashlee Simpson looking chick in front of me is talking about how she is a revolutionary for change and voting, yada, yada, yada. Ugh! And the chick in front of her in her red satin spaghetti strapped cocktail dress gushed about her new book of poetry and how she dedicated it to Ms. Rashad blah, blah, blah. That kind of crap should have happened after the show in the waiting wings by the exit door. Oh well. It is what it is. I'll get my Q&A moment eventually!

I'm a fan and wannabe student of theatre. I go every year and sometimes two and three times a year depending on what's out and how phat my pockets may be. I'm looking forward to Cat On a Hot Tin Roof. What about you? How many of you go to see theater and do you think adding pop celebs like Diddy, Fantasia and now Terrence Howard (in Cat) to the cast make a production more popular and therefore more successful? Check the trailer for Raisin below and check it out when it hits your boob tube on February 25th at 8pm on ABC.

Raisin>
In The Sun