*Philadelphia, PA – Critics hailed it as “authentic and gritty,” “edgy and vibrant,” and “an action-laden epic about the rise and fall of an inner-city crack dealer.” The film was New Jack City.
Thirty years after its original release, theatrical hitmaker Je’Caryous Johnson resurrects the record-grossing crime thriller on stages across the country. Written, directed and produced by Johnson and presented by Je’Caryous Johnson Entertainment, the touring stage adaptation of the Warner Bros.’ cult classic kicks off its unprecedented run in Philadelphia, PA on November 4-5, 2022 at The Met.
The play will travel from coast to coast during its run, including stops in Philadelphia, PA, Baltimore, MD, Washington, DC, Detroit, MI, Charlotte, NC, Atlanta, GA, Brooklyn, NY, Houston, TX and Los Angeles, CA. More cities are slated to be added through Spring 2023. Tickets are ON SALE NOW for select markets. For the latest tour and cast information, tickets and more, visit www.jecaryous.com or www.newjackcitylive.com.
Johnson’s adaptation of NEW JACK CITY LIVE stars critically acclaimed actor Allen Payne, who will be reprising his role from the film, as “Gee Money,” legendary rapper and lead singer of the iconic rap group Naughty By Nature, “Treach” as “Nino Brown,” legendary rapper Big Daddy Kane as “Stone” and actor and star of one of TV’s classic hit shows One on One, Flex Alexander as “Pookie.”
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New Jack City premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 17, 1991 and was released nationally on March 8, 1991, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Earning more than $47 million domestically, the film was the highest-grossing indie film of the year. The film chronicles the rise and fall of the infamous Nino Brown (Wesley Snipes) and the Cash Money Brothers and is based upon an original story and screenplay written by Thomas Lee Wright. With appearances by Ice-T as New York City police detective “Scotty Appleton,” Allen Payne as “Gee Money” and Chris Rock as “Pookie,” the story not only created a cultural movement, but it also ignited our collective conscience, inspiring generations to come, and continuing to influence the culture that made it a success story.
NEW JACK CITY LIVE will be a mirror image of the emotion and grit that immediately turned New Jack City into instant, movie magic. It takes place in the same metropolis-Harlem, NY where drug kingpin Nino Brown takes over a housing project and transforms it into a fortress-like crack house. Nino and his gang, the Cash Money Brothers, will ply their trade with total impunity– one crime family will still be bonded by blood and forged together through friendship.
Set to the soundtrack of some of the most quintessential songs from the film, NEW JACK CITY LIVE will give audiences across the nation an opportunity to relive all their favorite, intense, heart-pounding moments from the blockbuster movie as they experience classic theater storytelling as shared through the culturally astute lens of four-time national championship playwright and NAACP Trailblazer Award recipient, Je’Caryous Johnson.
“In bringing New Jack City to the stage, I have the beautiful privilege of celebrating and paying homage to the black actors that excelled at their craft and created an unforgettable movie and characters that became classics to Black culture. I am delighted and excited to reunite these unforgettable characters with the fans that they’ve left their indelible mark on, and I am grateful to Warner Bros. for entrusting me to breathe new life into this cultural centerpiece. I look forward to the challenge of updating this classic story with a modern twist,” shares Johnson.
The stage adaptation will continue to build on the cultural legacy, the musical impact and the social relevancy that the movie so boldly brought to life, fusing the captivating thrill-a-minute storyline, the memorable lines everyone knows and loves, and the iconic musical soundtrack.
Building on the success of his 2020 stage version of the hit movie, Set It Off, which starred hip-hop phenom Da Brat and actresses LeToya Luckett, Kyla Pratt and Vanessa Simmons, NEW JACK CITY LIVE marks Johnson’s third adaption of a legendary urban hit movie into a stage play and is the second of three Warner Bros. Pictures’ movie titles licensed to Je’Caryous Johnson Entertainment for adaption for the stage. When it premieres, B.A.P.S. will mark the third feature film from the Warner Bros. Pictures’ vault that Johnson is slated to mount and adapt for the stage.
Follow @JeCaryous on Twitter and Instagram and @JeCaryousJohnson on Facebook. Fans should visit www.jecaryous.com to sign up for updates on upcoming shows, tour news and announcements.
source: It Is Done Communications
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