The Roundtable with Robert Bannon

La'Trez Anderson is here!

With millions of followers of his comedy on Tik Tok, IG, and more- he is now a full blown viral STAR! He is hitting the road on a comedy tour around the country and selling out some of the most famous clubs in the country! He is coming to NY! He is coming to Detroit! He is coming to take over the comedic world so get ready!

How did this happen? What has it been like? What advice does he have? His story is inspiring about having a dream and making things happen! Even if they do not look like the way you imagined, they are still coming true! We find out all this and more! Do not miss it!

For More Info follow him on IG- @latrezanderson

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We have such love for L Morgan Lee! She has been a guest of our show. We saw her star turn in "Strange Loop." We have followed that voice and that career! She is putting both to use with her hosting the Maestra Amplify Gala this year with Kate Baldwin!

Maestra Amplify 2025 is set to be a remarkable celebration of women and nonbinary musicians in musical theatre. 

Event Details:

Hosts and Special Guests:

Purpose and Mission: Amplify 2025 aims to honor and showcase the talents of women and nonbinary musicians in the musical theatre industry. The event aligns with Women's History Month, emphasizing the importance of representation, creativity, and collaboration in the performing arts. Proceeds will support Maestra Music's mission to provide support, visibility, and community for these artists.

Program Highlights:

Amplify 2025 promises to be an inspiring evening, celebrating the contributions of women and nonbinary individuals to musical theatre. It's an opportunity to experience exceptional performances while supporting a vital cause in the arts community.

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Creators connect on TikTok, friends connect on Facebook, and business professionals connect on LinkedIn. Now, at last, theater people have an online community of their own: www.spectra.theater (not dot.com, but dot.theater). The new online community is the new digital front door for American theater-makers, and it’s a game-changer. For the first time, the American Theater Community can connect on a single online platform that puts live theater at the forefront, encouraging exploration of past and currently running productions, fostering collaboration, and fueling the next generation of theatrical work.

It’s more than a resource, more than a library, and more than just theater.

Spectra.Theater invites users to explore the incredibly rich tapestry of theater productions and the artists that have contributed to them. A virtual watering hole for all corners of the theater community, www.spectra.theater is where theater-makers can engage with all past and present theatrical work, inspiring artists new and seasoned to create for the future. Veteran Broadway artists, aspiring performers, regional theater creators, student thespians, and every kind of theater-maker in between are invited to engage with the largest resource for American Theater data, register their current and upcoming projects, expand their network, and become an early adopter of this innovative technology.

An invaluable resource, www.spectra.theater is already the most comprehensive resource for data about American Theater, directly connecting past, current and upcoming Broadway and Off-Broadway productions to communities that have licensed the same play.  www.spectra.theater is an expansive, online hub that serves all kinds of theater-makers across America.  For more information visit www.Spectra.Theater. MORE ABOUT THE FAMILY BEHIND SPECTRA:

Spectra was founded in 2022 by the Saunders, a family of Broadway artists, musicians, educators, directors, producers, and technologists. The founding team includes siblings Heath Saunders (Great Comet, Company) Claire Saunders (Sweeney Todd), Trent Saunders (Hadestown, Disney’s Aladdin, Dead Outlaw), Alanna Saunders (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), and advisor Blake Saunders (high school music teacher/music director). Leading the team is the mother of the Saunders siblings, Kim Saunders, CEO, a technology executive, author, musician, and producer with 35 years of cross-industry experience._______________________________________________________________

Check out "The Roundtable with Robert Bannon" here on BPN on the daily, on YouTube, Broadway World, and on social media! Like, comment, share, & subscribe!

For more info on Robert- www.RobertBannon.com

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The next generation of Hollywood has arrived! Isaac Krasner took critics by storm in Big Boy with nominations and acclaim! He is here to tell us all about it!

BIG BOYS, 2x Independent Spirit Award nominated feature for Best Breakthrough Performance (lead actor Isaac Krasner) & the John Cassavetes Award. The film, written & directed by Corey Sherman, stars Krasner alongside Dora Madison, David Johnson III, Taj Cross & Emily Deschanel. 

BIG BOYS is Corey Sherman's hilarious and heartfelt examination of first crushes and the queer experience, encouraging viewers to "expand their idea of what it means to be a man and celebrate themselves as they truly are.”  Isaac Krasner stars as Jamie, a teenage boy whose unexpected crush turns a camping trip into a weekend of self-discovery in this heartwarming coming-of-age comedy. 

Isaac Krasner is set to co-star in the upcoming Nicole Kidman film Holland, Michigan. He has performed in television shows Power Book III and New Amsterdam, and the film The Truth About Santa Claus with Gilbert Gottfried and Judah Friedlander, in addition to a handful of short films. As an actor and a musician, he recently enrolled in Regional Center for the Arts, a half day school performing arts program where he is studying drumming, music theory, composition, and filmmaking four days a week. Isaac is a junior in high school and he aims to make a career in the performing arts.

The best is truly yet to come for Isaac!

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For more info on Robert- www.RobertBannon.com

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We are all set, dressed up, and ready for the Vineyard Theatre's 2025 Gala. The Gala honors Emmy® Award-winning actor and longtime Vineyard artist Joe Morton and we are there!

Tony Goldwyn and Bellamy Young stop by to tell us all about their "scandalous" time with Joe Morton! Plus we talk to Billy Crudup, Brandon Victor Dixon, James Monroe Iglehart, Craig Bierko, Rolonda Watts, and many more!

Joe Morton is best known for his Emmy® Award-winning role as Rowan / Eli Pope in

Shonda Rhimes' groundbreaking series “Scandal.” He made his Broadway debut in

Hair, earned a Tony Award nomination for the musical Raisin, and most recently

portrayed the activist and comedian Dick Gregory to great acclaim in the play Turn Me

Loose, for which he won the Lucille Lortel Award, among many others, including the

NAACP Theatre Lifetime Achievement Award.

He has appeared in more than 70 films including The Brother From Another Planet (as

The Brother), Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Speed, Of Mice and Men, Batman v.

Superman and Justice League.

About Vineyard Theatre

Vineyard Theatre is dedicated to developing and producing new plays and musicals that

push the boundaries of what theatre can be and do, and to nurturing a community of

fearless theatre makers whose work expands the form, the field, and the larger culture.The Vineyard has transferred 11 shows to Broadway, seven directly after their acclaimed Vineyard premieres.

Over 41 years, The Vineyard’s work has been recognized with the industry’s highest

honors, including Pulitzer Prizes, Tony Awards, a special Drama Desk, Obie, and Lucille

Lortel Awards for artistic excellence and support of artists.

For More Information:  www.vineyardtheatre.org  

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Check out "The Roundtable with Robert Bannon" here on BPN on the daily, on YouTube, Broadway World, and on social media! Like, comment, share, & subscribe!

For more info on Robert- www.RobertBannon.com

Follow Him on IG- @RobertMBannon

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A cult classic is the strain of the day! Creators & Writers Dan Studney & Kevin Murphy are here to tell us all about Reefer Madness!

Reefer Madness: New Los Angeles Cast Recording, featuring the full cast from its critically acclaimed 25th Anniversary Los Angeles revival, is available today!. The CD edition feature two bonus tracks – “Kindergarten Teacher” and “Cautionary Tale,” both cut from the show – that are not on the digital version. The CD features a 30-page booklet with color production photography, complete lyrics, a synopsis, and liner notes from Angelina Jolie and the show’s producer Kristen Bell. A vinyl edition will be released late spring.

Fans can get links to stream or download the album, or order the CD, at https://soulspazm.ffm.to/rmnlacr

With music by Dan Studney and lyrics by Kevin Murphy, the album brings the irreverent humor and raw energy of the stage production directly to your playlist. This revival, directed and choreographed by Spencer Liff, and substantially revised from the original, has garnered rave reviews for its innovative approach and infectious performances. The album is produced by Michael Croiter, Kevin Murphy, and Dan Studney, with the production’s music director David Lamoureux serving as co-producer.

Reefer Madness: New Los Angeles Cast Recording showcases the vibrant, immersive energy of the Los Angeles production, which has captivated audiences since its debut at the historic Hollywood venue, The Whitley. Fans can look forward to hearing the electrifying performances of the talented cast, including Nicole Parker as Mae Coleman, alongside Thomas Dekker as Ralph Wiley, Anthony Norman as Jimmy Harper, Darcy Rose Byrnes as Mary Lane, J. Elaine Marcos as Sally De Bain, Bryan Daniel Porter as Lecturer/Jack/Jesus, and many more.

The album captures the essence of this uproarious musical comedy, which has been a cultural touchstone since it first exploded onto the Los Angeles stage in the late 1990s. The show, inspired by the 1936 exploitation film Reefer Madness, takes a satirical and wildly fun look at the dangers of marijuana, with its bold music, hilarious lyrics, and unforgettable characters.

The first three tracks being released are “Reefer Madness,” the iconic opening number that sets the tone for the raucous ride ahead; “The Stuff,” a haunting, yet comedic ballad, performed by Nicole Parker as Mae Coleman; and “Mary Jane/Mary Lane,” sung with zest by Anthony Norman and Darcy Rose Byrnes.”

Reefer Madness The Musical premiered in 1999, winning multiple Ovation, Garland, and L.A. Drama Critics Circle awards. The musical gained a cult following for its satirical take on the 1936 anti-marijuana propaganda film, transforming it into a high-energy, comedic, and music-driven theatrical event. Studney and Murphy won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Music and Lyrics for the Showtime movie version.

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Check out "The Roundtable with Robert Bannon" here on BPN on the daily, on YouTube, Broadway World, and on social media! Like, comment, share, & subscribe!

For more info on Robert- www.RobertBannon.com

Follow Him on IG- @RobertMBannon

TikTok-@RobertMBannon

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Up-and-comer Abubakr Ali, who stars in the world premiere of Manhattan Theatre Club’s Dakar 2000, by Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph joins us on The Roundtable today! He is the next big thing! Just you wait! Dakar 2000 is now playing performances Off-Broadway at New York City Center Stage I.

Abubakr is blazing a trail as an Egyptian-born leading man. Since receiving his MFA from the prestigious Yale School of Drama (amongst the likes of Louisa Jacobson and Jeremy O. Harris), he’s starred in Billy Porter’s Anything’s Possible and was the titular role in Netflix’s series, “Grendel,” where he became the first Arab Muslim to lead a comic book adaptation. He’s racked up a number of theatre credits, as well, hitting all of New York’s Off-Broadway stalwarts, from Atlantic Theatre Company to The Public. Whether a love-interest, an action star, or comic relief, Abubakr is a charismatic and arresting performer.

Dakar 2000 is a serpentine amalgam of espionage, memory play, and romance. Set in Senegal on the eve of Y2K, the play follows the relationship between Boubs (Ali), a young Peace Corps volunteer, and Dina (Mia Barron), an enigmatic State Department operative, as they negotiate what could be the start of a computer-based apocalypse. Abubakr proves himself incredibly agile, flipping seamlessly between humor, tenderness, and tension. In this high-stakes game of cat and mouse, Abubakr is a worthy adversary.

For Ticket & Info: www.manhattantheatreclub.com

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Check out "The Roundtable with Robert Bannon" here on BPN on the daily, on YouTube, Broadway World, and on social media! Like, comment, share, & subscribe!

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Well the word Icon & Legend are used all the time, but in this case it is deserved and more! The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Legend Herself, Mrs. Darlene Love is here! She is Christmas. She is Rock & Roll. She is a Broadway Star. She is a Movie Star! She hangs out with people named Bruce, Cher, and Bette, and she is telling us all about it!

From iconic hits like "Da Doo Ron Ron," "Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home,)" "Today I Met The Boy I'm Gonna Marry," "He's A Rebel," "All Alone On Christmas," and many more, she has sung them all. She has done thousands of sessions and sung on massive hits with Elvis and Sinatra to the The Monster Mash! Her work with Stevie Van Zandt, Marc Shaiman, and Paul Schaffer is stuff of legend, and she went from Letterman to Jimmy Fallon to sing her classic trademark. We cover all this and more! Plus do not forger Broadway, Lethal Weapon, an upcoming documentary... I am tired just thinking about it!

With so much to cover, we zip through music history right before our eyes. This one is special and should not be missed!

Follow Darlene Love on IG- @darlenelovesings or see her upcoming tour dates at www.darleneloveworld.com.

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We are talking new work! A new drama inspired by real life events written by Tom Diriwachter about family, fog, and a road trip gone horribly wrong to be exact!

Following a desperate phone call, Tim arrives by bus at the Hound Dog Motel, a by-the-hour hellhole outside Memphis, Tennessee, with the purpose of rescuing his parents from a 1996 road trip to Graceland gone horribly wrong. As the mystery of how they became stranded unravels, Father tells of hitting a fog bank, leading to his having an emotional breakdown. Stuck in a purgatory overseen by a black velvet painting of Elvis, Fog and Filthy Air is an intense drama that finds humor in the worst of circumstances. Ultimately, it is a love story.

For tickets & info: https://theaterforthenewcity.net

Tom Diriwachter (playwright) – Fog and Filthy Air is Tom’s eighth full-length play produced in Manhattan, and fourth at Theater for the New City. In addition, he has had numerous one-acts produced at various theaters and festivals in New York and Los Angeles, including the Strawberry Festival, the Turnip Festival, Love Creek, Ensemble Studio Theatre, and West Coast Ensemble. He has been a featured artist in the LES Festival for the past decade. His play Great Kills starred Joe Pantoliano. Asterisk, his play about the baseball steroid crisis, was archived by the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. Recently, he completed his first novel, Good Money After Bad.

Jonathan Weber (director) – As Director, credits include: Great Kills (featuring Emmy Award-winner Joe Pantoliano), A Healthy House, Age Out, Guaranteed to Never Lose Suction, Shock Therapy, Bear!, The Professor and the Whore, and The Irish Goodbye, all by Tom Diriwachter; Thelonious!, and Two Alone/Too Together by Peter Welch; two plays by Oliver Thrun and six by Walter Corwin. He was Assistant Director for TNC’s award-winning Summer Street Theater tour for 11 years, under the direction of Crystal Field. Jonathan is Managing Director for Theater for the New City. He has held this position since 2018 and previously from 2009 through 2014. His association with Theater for the New City goes back to 2002.

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Check out "The Roundtable with Robert Bannon" here on BPN on the daily, on YouTube, Broadway World, and on social media! Like, comment, share, & subscribe!

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THIS IS A MUST LISTEN/WATCH ROUNDTABLE FAMILY!

The entertainment world is on the brink of a transformation with the launch of Je’Caryous Johnson Studios (JJS), a visionary 360-degree entertainment powerhouse created by acclaimed writer, director, promoter, and producer Je’Caryous Johnson.

At the helm of this historic venture is the visionary Johnson, a prolific producer and promoter whose live productions have drawn over 3 million fans to a Je’Caryous Johnson experience, and reshaped cultural conversations. Known for critically acclaimed works like Married But Single, Redemption of a Dogg (starring Snoop Dogg), Set It Off Live, and New Jack City Live, Johnson has solidified his reputation as a creative titan with an unparalleled ability to connect with audiences.

JJS wants to be an incubation hub for talent and will offer artists an unparalleled opportunity to become part of a groundbreaking multi-vertical approach to building their personal empire. By signing a comprehensive multi-vertical deal with the company, artists will unlock the chance to showcase their talents across a diverse range of platforms. This includes starring in films, captivating audiences through podcasts, commanding the stage in theater and live performances, and much more. JJS’ innovative model empowers artists to expand their reach, amplify their voice, and cultivate a legacy that spans multiple creative domains all under one cohesive and visionary partnership.

On the narrative feature side, JJS plans to produce, finance and develop a slate of high-concept projects, with production slated to begin on the first film, THE PARALEGAL, in late March. The studio’s bold lineup will underscore its commitment to pushing creative boundaries while staying rooted in authentic Black storytelling. THE PARALEGAL is written and will be directed by Je’Caryous F. Johnson marking his feature film debut. The film follows a lawyer who finds himself being blackmailed by a deranged paralegal determined to take everything he has—except his wife.

To commemorate the launch of Je’Caryous Johnson Studios, the company will debut its newest live production, Jason’s Lyric Live, in February 2025. Adapted from Bobby Smith, Jr.’s iconic screenplay, this 22-city national tour reintroduces the powerful, poetic love story to a new generation of theatergoers.

Featuring an all-star cast including Allen Payne, Treach, Eva Marcille, K. Michelle, Tyrin Turner, Lawrence Hilton Jacobs, and Victoria Rowell, Jason’s Lyric Live promises to deliver an unforgettable experience, blending the raw emotion of the film with the immersive magic of live theater.

About Je’Caryous Johnson:

 Je’Caryous Johnson is a creative trailblazer whose live productions have captivated millions of fans and redefined the American stage. From Married But Single to Set It Off Live and beyond, Johnson’s works have consistently blended humor, heart, and cultural relevance. His commitment to honoring Black stories has made him a revered cultural leader, and his latest venture, Je’Caryous Johnson Studios, cements his legacy as a premiere entertainment icon.

For More Information: https://jecaryous.com/

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Check out "The Roundtable with Robert Bannon" here on BPN on the daily, on YouTube, Broadway World, and on social media! Like, comment, share, & subscribe!

For more info on Robert- www.RobertBannon.com

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