Carmen
Jones
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Jason
returned to the New York
stage in early 2001 to play Joe in a
concert presentation of Oscar
Hammerstein II's 1943 musical Carmen
Jones, presented as part of the
York Theatre Company's Musicals
in Mufti
series. Carmen Jones
reimagines Georges
Bizet's opera Carmen among African
Americans in
the American South, pairing Bizet's
original music with a book and
lyrics by Hammerstein. Mufti's
concert production played
January 26-28, 2001, at the York
Theatre/Theatre at St. Peter's.
The Rodgers
& Hammerstein Organization
summarizes the plot as follows: "In a
Southern town during World War
II,
Joe, an army
corporal, is stationed near a parachute
factory where Carmen Jones is
employed. This reputed hussy soon
manages to steal Joe away from his
fiancée, and the army as well,
and they run off to Chicago
together. But the fickle Carmen loses
interest in Joe when she meets
and successfully woos Husky Miller, a
prize fighter on his way to the
top. Mad with jealousy, Joe waits for
Carmen outside the stadium the
night of Husky's big fight to make a
last desperate plea for her love.
When she denies him resolutely, he stabs
her to death in a rage of
passion to the eerie accompaniment of
the crowd inside the stadium
cheering Husky's victory."
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Musicals in Mufti is
dedicated to presenting
rarely-seen musicals, and their
production of Carmen
Jones marked the first
time
the show had been seen in New York
in decades. In a TheaterMania
feature, York Theatre
Artistic Director Jim Morgan said,
"We're
privileged and incredibly excited
to be doing Carmen
Jones. It's a legendary
classic of American musical
theater, and a landmark in Mr.
Hammerstein's career."
As Joe, Jason's songs included "You Talk Jus' Like My
Maw," "Dere's
A
Cafe
On
De
Corner," "Dis Flower," and "If You Would Only Come
Away." The cast also featured
Suzzanne Douglas (best known for
her
role on TV's The
Parent 'Hood)
and
Anika
Noni
Rose,
who
later
won
a
Tony
Award
for Caroline,
or
Change and played
Lorrell in the film Dreamgirls.
Friends of The Raize Resource
submitted the following reviews:
- Tracy:
"Considering they only
received their scripts this
Monday and went out to give
their first
performance Friday, I'm truly
impressed. They are [all]
extremely
talented individuals to pull
it off so well."
- Tess:
"I was thoroughly impressed
with Jason's vocal ability,
since I'd only heard him sing
pop music,
and what an opportunity this
was for him to show his even
broader
range. I'm talking operatic
here, people! All along, I
kept thinking,
'I can't believe he can sing
like that.' I was completely
mesmerized by
the sound of his voice, that
he could have sung the
alphabet and made
me cry."
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originally
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