Bob Kendrick talks about Toni Stone and the Negro Leagues
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A trailblazing spirit
Toni Stone
Coming in 2021
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Credits
Arena Stage in Association with A.C.T. Presents
The Roundabout Theatre Company’s Production of
Toni Stone
By Lydia R. Diamond
Directed by Pam MacKinnon
Choreographed by Camille A. BrownIn Association with Samantha Barrie
Toni Stone runs approximately two hours and 20 minutes, including one 15-minute intermission. -
Location
Kreeger Theater
FOLLOWING THE EXTENDED STAY-AT-HOME ORDER THROUGH JUNE 8, THE SUMMER PRODUCTION OF TONI STONE HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED. WITH THIS NEW DEVELOPMENT, WE ARE TAKING THIS TIME TO UPDATE THE SCHEDULE AND WILL BE IN TOUCH WITH DETAILS ABOUT NEW DATES.
“[Diamond] is a powerfully smart writer”
— New York Times
Considered a pioneer, Toni Stone is the first woman to play baseball in the Negro Leagues, also making her the first woman to play professionally in a men’s league in the 1950s. Against all odds, Stone blazes a path in the male-dominated sports world, shattering expectations and creating her own set of rules. Based on Martha Ackmann’s book Curveball, The Remarkable Story of Toni Stone, the latest work from award-winning playwright Lydia R. Diamond (Smart People, The Bluest Eye) tells the dynamic and uplifting story of Stone’s journey of perseverance and resilience just to do what she loved the most — play baseball.
Commissioned by Roundabout Theatre Company and Samantha Barrie.
Toni Stone received development support from the Resident Artists Program at Arena Stage, Washington, D.C.
Toni Stone is generously sponsored by:
SUPPORTING SPONSORS
Susan and Steve Bralove
Sue Henry and Carter Phillips
This production contains strong language.
Alert
ARENA STAGE SUSPENDS ALL PERFORMANCES FOR THE REMAINDER OF ITS 2019/20 SEASON
In light of ongoing developments resulting from the coronavirus (COVID-19) and the national move to cancel group gatherings as recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and District of Columbia Health Authorities, Arena Stage has made the difficult decision to suspend all remaining performances for its 2019/20 Season, as well as select special events and community engagement programs. Productions of Celia and Fidel, August Wilson’s Seven Guitars and Toni Stone have been postponed to the 2020/21 Season. Additionally, our building will be closed through at least April 27, 2020.
SUPPORT AMERICAN THEATER — DONATE TO THE ROARING BACK FUND
The next few months will be challenging for us and other arts organizations. With your help, we believe the theater will come back stronger than ever.
“We have artists who are longing to perform and artists who have powerful stories to tell; our audiences are the best and the brightest in the country,” said Artistic Director Molly Smith. “Many of our patrons are donating tickets back and we are grateful for their generosity. We ask our community, in this difficult time, to make a donation to our newly announced campaign: the Roaring Back Fund.”
Donate online at arenastage.org/roaringback. Your support would ensure that our artists and staff can continue to produce the best of American theater.
A MESSAGE FROM ARENA STAGE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR MOLLY SMITH
INTERMISSION
Arena Stage hosts virtual programming to engage the community. Programs include Molly’s Salon, virtual dance classes and the Arena Stage Civil Dialogues.
Theater brings us together whether it’s in a theater or reaching out through our computer screens. We have also asked many of our favorite artists to offer you their gifts of art and they did. We’ve been sharing these “gifts of art” on social media. View gallery and details about programs here.
TICKETING OPTIONS
Transferring your ticket to a gift certificate or donation supports non-profit theaters like Arena Stage during these uncertain times and we appreciate your consideration. The following options are available for those who have already purchased tickets to rescheduled performances this season:
- DO NOTHING: We have already taken care of transferring your tickets to the new run dates in the 2020/21 Season. We will be in touch with more specific details about your new date(s) shortly and new tickets will be mailed out later in the spring.
- TICKET DONATION: Donate your ticket and receive a tax deduction for the total ticket value. Click here to request this option.
- TICKET EXCHANGE: Change your ticket to a future Arena Stage performance of any production. Click here to request this option.
- GIFT CERTIFICATE: Apply the value of your ticket towards a gift certificate valid up to five years. Click here to request this option.
- REQUEST A REFUND: Please note that refunds will take up to 30 business days to process. You can make this request via email to info@arenastage.org.
SALES OFFICE HOURS
Beginning March 31, our Sales Office staff will be available Tuesday–Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. to assist you and answer any questions. You may reach the Sales Office via phone at 202-488-3300 or email at info@arenastage.org.
We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience as we all navigate these difficult circumstances. Take care of your friends and family and continue to protect your health and well-being.
Cast
GILBERT LEWIS BAILEY II
Spec/Gabby
JABEN EARLY
King Tut/Supervisor
MARQUIS D. GIBSON
Jimmy
KENN E. HEAD
Millie/Willie
RODNEY EARL JACKSON JR.
Elzie/Dance Captain
SEAN-MAURICE LYNCH
Stretch/Syd/Fight Captain
ALDO BILLINGSLEA
Alberga/Rufus
JARROD MIMS SMITH
Woody/Mother
SANTOYA FIELDS
Toni Stone
GILBERT LEWIS BAILEY II
Spec/Gabby
GILBERT LEWIS BAILEY II (Spec) is excited to be making his Arena Stages debut in Toni Stone. Before COVID-19 struck, he was an original company member of Beetlejuice. Other Broadway credits include the original company of A Bronx Tale and The Book of Mormon. He has also performed at The Milwaukee Repertory Theatre where, while playing Harpo in The Color Purple, he made a move on the woman playing Squeak. Now, her name is Jessie Hooker-Bailey, they are married, and they are raising a beautiful puppy together, a black lab mix named Jade, who became a one-year-old this past June! You can follow Gilbert on Instagram @GLBaileyii , to see a copious amount of pictures that feature his wife and/or his dog. Thanks Michael!
JABEN EARLY
King Tut/Supervisor
JABEN EARLY (King Tut) is a native Washingtonian, previously seen in Junk, The Great Society, All the Way and Ruined at Arena Stage. D.C. credits include Father Comes Home from the Wars (Round House Theatre), Unexplored Interior (Mosaic Theater Company), The Convert (Woolly Mammoth), Julius Caesar (Folger Theatre), F***ing A (Studio Theatre), Native Sun (American Century Theater), Titus Andronicus (Molotov Theatre), Me and The Devil Blues (Flying V) and The Cloak Room (Capital Fringe Festival). Regional credits include Toni Stone (A.C.T), All The Way (Lincoln Center), Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (Guthrie Theatre), We Are Proud to Present… (Philly Interactive Theatre), Ruined (Marin Theatre Company) and The Death of Bessie Smith (Liberty Free Theatre). Early's film work includes Harriet and Arena's May 22, 2020. He trained at Morehouse College, Sarah Lawrence University and the BADA program at Magdalen College, University of Oxford.
MARQUIS D. GIBSON
Jimmy
MARQUIS D. GIBSON (Jimmy) is grateful for this debut at Arena Stage. Some of his D.C. credits include Wig Out! (Studio Theatre) and Black Nativity (Theater Alliance, Helen Hayes Award Outstanding Ensemble). Regional credits include: A Midsummer Night's Dream (Marin Shakespeare Company); The Christians and Sex with Strangers (Hippodrome Theatre); Shakespeare in Love (Cincinnati Playhouse and Baltimore Centerstage); and Mother Emanuel (NYC Fringe). Training: Howard University. www.marquisdgibson.com.
KENN E. HEAD
Millie/Willie
KENN E. HEAD (Millie) is thrilled to be part of this production of Toni Stone. He has worked on numerous plays at many theaters over his career including Steppenwolf, Yale Repertory, The Goodman, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Next Theater Company, American Theater Company and Victory Gardens. His television credits include The Chi, Chicago Med, Empire, The Exorcist, Chicago Fire, Early Edition and ER. He is also particularly proud of some of the Indie films of which he has been part, Once Upon A River due to premiere soon as well as The Chosen.
RODNEY EARL JACKSON JR.
Elzie/Dance Captain
RODNEY EARL JACKSON JR. (Elzie/Dance Captain) made his Broadway debut in The Book of Mormon and was last seen at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in the world premiere of Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations. He traveled in the first national tour of Motown: The Musical. Jackson is a San Francisco native who built his love and foundation for arts and theater in public city organizations, such as San Francisco Arts Education Project, San Francisco Recreation and Parks, Young People’s Teen Musical Theatre Company and the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts. He is the co-founder/artistic director of the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company (SFBATCO), a five-year-old nonprofit whose mission is to produce live theater that reflects the experiences of the Bay Area’s historically and currently marginalized communities and creating mentorships that aspire to engage a new generation of live theater supporters. (he/him) @rodneyearljacksonjr
SEAN-MAURICE LYNCH
Stretch/Syd/Fight Captain
SEAN-MAURICE LYNCH (Stretch/Fight Captain)'s recent credits include Jubliee at Arena Stage. D.C. area credits include Twelve Angry Men, Ragtime and Parade at Ford's: Ruined at Everyman Theatre; Lost in the Stars at Washington Opera; Passing Strange and Pop! at Studio Theater; Show Boat, Sweeney Todd, Hairspray, and Dreamgirls at Signature Theater. Sean-Maurice is currently Associate Producer of New Play Development at Theater Alliance in Washington, D.C.
ALDO BILLINGSLEA
Alberga/Rufus
ALDO BILLINGSLEA (Alberga) studied Theatre in Texas at Austin College and Southern Methodist. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, he teaches Acting at Santa Clara University. He’s performed in the works of Lorraine Hansberry, Eugene O’Neill, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, Oscar Wilde, Lillian Helman, Thorton Wilder and Marcus Gardley. Productions include more than two dozen plays by Shakespeare and eight of August Wilson’s decalogy. Favorite productions include, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Winter’s Tale at Folger, The Elephant Man at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and Othello at Marin Theatre Company and California Shakespeare Theatre.
JARROD MIMS SMITH
Woody/Mother
JARROD SMITH (Woody) is from New Orleans, LA. He’s making his Arena Stage and Washington DC debut. Jarrod has performed in “The Whipping Man” (South Coast Rep & Pasadena Playhouse), “Soujourners” (Magic Theatre), and “The Royale” (A Contemporary Theater).
SANTOYA FIELDS
Toni Stone
SANTOYA FIELDS (Toni Stone) is excited to be making her debut at Arena Stage. She is a teaching artist and actor whose credits include School Girls; or the African Mean Girls Play (Berkeley Repertory Theater); Men on Boats (American Conservatory Theater), Black Odyssey (California Shakespeare Theater) and White (Shotgun Players). For her performance in White, Fields was nominated for a two theater awards. Offstage Santoya studies African American Studies at UCLA. She is advocate for arts and education, and creates workshops and trainings focused on historical cultural awareness, racial esteem and equality in organizations and classrooms.
Creative
LYDIA R. DIAMOND
Playwright
PAM MACKINNON
Director
CAMILLE A. BROWN
Choreographer
RICCARDO HERNÁNDEZ
Set Designer
DEDE AYITE
Costume Designer
ALLEN LEE HUGHES
Lighting Designer
BROKEN CHORD
Sound Design and Original Music
COOKIE JORDAN
Hair and Wig Designer
ELISA GUTHERTZ
Stage Manager
KURT HALL
Assistant Stage Manager
LYDIA R. DIAMOND
Playwright
LYDIA R. DIAMOND (Playwright) is a 2013/14 Arena Stage resident playwright. Award-winning plays include Smart People, Stick Fly, Voyeurs de Venus, The Bluest Eye, The Gift Horse, Harriet Jacobs, The Inside and Stage Black. Theaters include Broadway’s Cort Theatre, The Arden, Chicago Dramatists, Company One, Congo Square, Goodman, Guthrie, Hartford Stage, Huntington, Jubilee, Kansas City Repertory, Long Wharf, Lorraine Hansberry, McCarter, Mo`olelo, MPAACT, New Vic, Playmakers Repertory, Plowshares, Second Stage, Steppenwolf and True Colors. Commissions from Arena Stage, Steppenwolf, McCarter, Huntington, Center Stage, Victory Gardens and Roundabout. Lydia was a W.E.B. Du Bois Institute non-resident fellow, TCG/NEA playwright-in-residence at Steppenwolf, Huntington playwright fellow, Sundance Institute Playwright Lab creative advisor, Radcliffe Institute fellow and serves on the Dramatists Guild Legal Defense Fund Board of Directors. She is a Northwestern University graduate and has an honorary doctorate of arts from Pine Manor College.
PAM MACKINNON
Director
PAM MACKINNON (Director) This is Pam’s third season as A.C.T.’s fourth artistic director. She is a Tony, Drama Desk, and Obie award-winning director, having directed upwards of 75 productions around the country, off-Broadway, and on Broadway. Her Broadway credits include Beau Willimon’s The Parisian Woman (with Uma Thurman), Amélie: A New Musical, David Mamet’s China Doll (with Al Pacino), Wendy Wasserstein’s The Heidi Chronicles (with Elisabeth Moss), Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance (with Glenn Close and John Lithgow), Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle nomination), and Bruce Norris’s Clybourne Park (Obie Award, Tony and Lucille Lortel nominations). Her most recent credits include world premieres of Bruce Norris’s Downstate (Steppenwolf Theatre Company, London’s National Theatre), Lydia R. Diamond’s Toni Stone (Roundabout Theatre Company, A.C.T.), Kate Attwell’s Testmatch (A.C.T.), Christopher Chen’s Communion (A.C.T.), as well as Edward Albee’s Seascape (A.C.T.). She is an artistic associate of the Roundabout Theatre Company, an advisory board member of Clubbed Thumb, and an alumna of the Drama League, Women’s Project, and Lincoln Center Theater’s Directors’ Labs. She just completed a three-year term as executive board president of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC) and continues to serve on the board. She grew up in Toronto, Canada, and Buffalo, New York, acted through her teens, but majored in economics and political science at the University of Toronto and briefly pursued a Ph.D. in political science at UC San Diego, before returning to her true passion: theater. (she/her)
CAMILLE A. BROWN
Choreographer
CAMILLE A. BROWN (Choreographer): Broadway: Choir Boy (nominee: Tony, Drama Desk Awards), Once on This Island (nominee: Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and Chita Rivera Awards), and A Streetcar Named Desire. Off-Broadway: For Colored Girls… (The Public Theater); Opera: Porgy & Bess (The Metropolitan Opera), Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare in the Park, Audelco Award Winner), Toni Stone (Roundabout Theatre Company), tick, tick…BOOM!, Thoroughly Modern Millie (Encores!) Bella (Lucille Lortel Nominee, Audelco Award Winner), Fortress of Solitude (Lucille Lortel Nominee) and ink at The Kennedy Center (Camille A. Brown & Dancers). Television: “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert” (NBC); Film: Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix). Ms. Brown will make her directorial debut with Ain’t Misbehavin’ at Westport Country Playhouse & Barrington Stage Company in July 2020. www.camilleabrown.org
RICCARDO HERNÁNDEZ
Set Designer
RICCARDO HERNÁNDEZ (Scenic Designer)’s Broadway credits include: Jagged Little Pill; Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune; Indecent; The Gin Game; The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess; The People in the Picture; Caroline, or Change (National Theater London); Elaine Stritch at Liberty (Old Vic London); Topdog/Underdog (Royal Court); Bells Are Ringing; Parade (Hal Prince director, Tony and Drama Desk nominations); Bring in ‘Da Noise, Bring in ‘Da Funk; and The Tempest. Recent: Claudia Rankine’s The White Card (Diane Paulus director, ART); Lempicka (Rachel Chavkin director, WTF); Admissions (LCT); La Dame aux Camélias (France); and The Invisible Hand (NYTW – Henry Hewes Outstanding Set Design Award). He has designed over 250 productions in the U.S. and internationally. Awards include: OBIE Award Sustained Excellence; Yale School of Drama Design Faculty.
DEDE AYITE
Costume Designer
DEDE AYITE (Costume Designer) is a costume designer whose Broadway credits include American Buffalo, A Soldier’s Play, Slave Play, American Son, and Children of a Lesser God. Select off-Broadway credits include The Secret Life of Bees and Fireflies, (Atlantic Theater Company); By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (Signature Theatre); BLKS, School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play (MCC Theater); Bella: An American Tall Tale (Playwrights Horizons); Sugar in Our Wounds (Manhattan Theatre Club); The Royale (Lincoln Center Theater); and Ugly Lies the Bone (Roundabout Theatre Company). Regionally, Ayite’s work has appeared at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Steppenwolf Theatre, Signature Theatre in VA, California Shakespeare Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage and McCarter Theatre Center. Her television work includes Netflix, Comedy Central, and FOX. Ayite earned her MFA at the Yale School of Drama and has received an Obie, Lucille Lortel, Helen Hayes, Theatre Bay Area, and Jeff awards. @dedeayitedesign
ALLEN LEE HUGHES
Lighting Designer
ALLEN LEE HUGHES (Lighting Designer) returns for his 71st design at Arena Stage. Arena audiences will remember his work on The Price. Washington audiences will also remember his lighting for the August Wilson Twentieth Century plays at the Kennedy Center. Broadway credits include A Soldier’s Play, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Clybourne Park, Having Our Say, Mule Bone, Once on This Island, K2, Strange Interlude, Accidental Death of an Anarchist and Quilters. He’s received the 1997 Merritt Award for Excellence in Design and Collaboration, two Washington Helen Hayes Awards and four Tony nominations. His work has been seen at major theaters throughout the country, including Seattle Rep, New York Shakespeare Festival, Guthrie Theater, Shakespeare Theater, Goodman and Lincoln Center Theater. Allen teaches at New York University and is very proud to have the Arena Stage fellows program named in his honor.
BROKEN CHORD
Sound Design and Original Music
BROKEN CHORD (Sound Design and Original Music) Arena Stage credits include Kleptocracy and Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune. Broadway credits are The Parisian Woman, and Eclipsed. Off-Broadway credits include Toni Stone at Roundabout Theatre Company; The Lying Lesson at the Atlantic; OZET at Incubator Arts; Bull in a China Shop at LCT3; Party People at The Public. Selected regional credits are Angels in America at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis; Enemy of the People at the Guthrie Theatre; Ruined at Berkeley Repertory Theatre; Top Girls at the Huntington Theatre; UniSon at OSF; Macbeth at Shakespeare Theatre Company. Film credits include Fall to Rise. www.brokenchord.us
COOKIE JORDAN
Hair and Wig Designer
COOKIE JORDAN (Hair and Wig Designer) coming soon
ELISA GUTHERTZ
Stage Manager
ELISA GUTHERTZ (Stage Manager) has been a San Francisco Bay Area stage manager for over 27 years. She stage managed Toni Stone at American Conservatory Theater. Some of her recent A.C.T. include, Testmatch, Rhinoceros, Seascape and Sweat. She has stage-managed A Thousand Splendid Suns at A.C.T., The Old Globe, and Theatre Calgary. She has also worked on many shows for Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Other credits: The Good Body with Eve Ensler at the Booth Theater on Broadway. Big Love at Long Wharf Theatre, Goodman Theater and Brooklyn Academy of Music. The Vagina Monologues with Eve Ensler at Alcazar Theatre.
KURT HALL
Assistant Stage Manager
KURT HALL (Assistant Stage Manager) coming soon