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The Color Purple

First Preview: Oct 21, 2015
Opening Date: Nov 18, 2015
Closing Date: Jan 8, 2017
Running Time: 02:20
The Color Purple

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Playing @
Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre
242 W 45th St, New York, NY 10036
The Color Purple is the 2016 Tony Award® winner for Best Musical Revival! 

Hailed as “a direct hit to the heart” (The Hollywood Reporter), this joyous American classic has conquered Broadway in an all-new "ravishingly reconceived production” (The New York Times) directed by Tony winner John Doyle.

Best Actress Tony Award winner Cynthia Erivo “has given Broadway one of its most electrifying performances in years” (Time Out New York) in this epic story of a young woman’s journey to love and triumph in the American South. 

Joining her is a powerhouse cast led by Tony and Grammy® winner Heather Headley
(Aida, The Lion King) and Orange is the New Black’s Danielle Brooks in "the kind of heaven-sent debut that dreams are made of” (Entertainment Weekly).

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:
TUESDAY & THURSDAY @ 7 PM
WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY & SATURDAY @ 8 PM
WEDNESDAY & SATURDAY @ 2 PM
SUNDAY @ 3 PM
BroadwayMusical
Show Notes: 1 Intermission
Age Guidance: 10
Audience Advisory: Cynthia Erivo will not perform on Thursday - August 11, Sunday - September 11, Thursday - September 29, Saturday matinee and evening - October 1, and Sunday - November 6. Heather Headley will not perform August 16 - 18.

TDF Tickets Offers:

TDF Member tickets:

Not currently available for this show

Listed at

Never

Full-price tickets:

$59.00 - $145.00

Lottery & Rush

A limited number of rush tickets are available for purchase in-person for $35 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre box office beginning at 10am (12pm on Sundays) for that day's performance(s) only. Maximum two tickets per person. Rush tickets are subject to availability and may not be offered at all performances. Rush seating locations will be determined at the discretion of the box office. Standing Room: $30.00 - Available at the Box Office only on the day of the performance - Limit 2 tickets per customer - Only sold when the performance is sold out. Subject to availability.

Video

Reviews

  • How can deprivation become joy? That’s not only the animating question of The Color Purple, the 1982 Alice Walker novel made into a musical in 2005, but also the operating principle behind John Doyle’s triumphant revival of that musical, starring the stupendous Cynthia Erivo in her Broadway debut. For once, the word “revival” is apt: Doyle’s intervention amounts to a kind of theatrical CPR, restarting the heart of a show that, in its original production, seemed to die before your eyes. 
    Now we can see that that the problem was a bad fit of content and style. Like the novel, to which it is mostly faithful, The Color Purple covers some 40 years in the life of a poor black woman named Celie, barely surviving in the Jim Crow South of the early 20th century. It is not, for most of the action, a happy life... 

    ------New York Magazine
  • Cynthia Erivo, a Brit who’s unknown in New York, is spectacular as the beleaguered Celie, who loses her innocence, self-esteem and all else thanks to men in her life. Reprising a role she originated two years ago at the Menier Chocolate Factory in London, she sings with such clear, honest openness that you feel everything she’s feeling — and she feels a lot.
    Matching her is “Dreamgirls” Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson, who’s in great voice and whose Hollywood glamour gives her smaller role of the sexually omnivorous club singer Shug Avery just the right added oomph. Danielle Brooks is outstanding as the defiant and unbreakable Sophia. Isaiah Johnson, Joaquina Kalukango and Kyle Scatliffe lend fine support as Celie’s abusive husband, her sister, and Sophia’s spouse.

    -----New York Daily News
  • Considering that the original Broadway run only closed in 2008 (after a respectable 910 performances), it seems almost too soon to revive The Color Purple, the musical based on Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and Steven Spielberg's subsequent motion picture. Yet that's exactly what an army of producers (including Oprah Winfrey, who starred in the 1985 film and produced the initial Broadway run) have done by bringing a new mounting from London's Menier Chocolate Factory to the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. After seeing the show again, this seemingly premature return makes sense: It's a sheer delight to hear Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray's soulful score on a Broadway stage, performed by immensely talented vocalists. Also, John Doyle's stripped-down staging better serves Marsha Norman's efficient book than the original did. Lushly melodic shows like this, featuring a big story and even bigger heart, are always a welcome sight on the Great White Way.

    ----TheaterMania
  • How can deprivation become joy? That’s not only the animating question of The Color Purple, the 1982 Alice Walker novel made into a musical in 2005, but also the operating principle behind John Doyle’s triumphant revival of that musical, starring the stupendous Cynthia Erivo in her Broadway debut. For once, the word “revival” is apt: Doyle’s intervention amounts to a kind of theatrical CPR, restarting the heart of a show that, in its original production, seemed to die before your eyes. 
    Now we can see that that the problem was a bad fit of content and style. Like the novel, to which it is mostly faithful, The Color Purple covers some 40 years in the life of a poor black woman named Celie, barely surviving in the Jim Crow South of the early 20th century. It is not, for most of the action, a happy life... 

    ------New York Magazine

Accessibility

  • Box Office

    The box office is in the lobby which is street level. The counter is wheelchair accessible.
  • Restroom

    Restroom: Wheelchair accessible (unisex) restroom located on the Orchestra level. Additional restrooms (not wheelchair accessible) are also located down 1 flight of stairs.
  • Seating

    Orchestra section: The seating is accessible to all parts of the Orchestra without steps. There are no steps to the designated wheelchair seating locations.Mezzanine sectionLocated on the 2nd level, up 3 short flights of stairs (29 steps). Once on the Mezzanine or Balcony level, there are approximately 2 steps per row.
  • Elevator/Escalator

    There are no elevators or escalators at this theatre.
  • Telephone

    Pay Phone located in the ticket lobby. Accessible at 54".
  • Folding Armrests

    Sixteen (16) seats with folding armrests. Ask box office for mobility seats for these locations.
  • Water Fountain

    Located in the restrooms.
  • Assisted Listening System

    Reservations are not necessary. Drivers license or ID with printed address required as a deposit. Please call: (212) 582-7678 to reserve in advance. Copper Induction Loop also available.
  • Wheelchair Info

    Wheelchair seating available. Theatre is not completely wheelchair accessible. There are no steps to the designated wheelchair seating location.

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