Since its founding in 2001, Uptown Players has put a heavy emphasis on relationships—not only with its patrons, the majority of whom identify as LGBTQ+, but also with its performers, musicians, crew, artistic and administrative staff, and playwrights and composers.
One such performer is Lee Walter, whose alter ego is the drag diva Jada Pinkett Fox. The statuesque Walter starred in their very own tinsel-tinged revue, Jada Bells–A Holiday Extravaganza, in December. Written and directed by B.J. Cleveland and with music direction by Gary Adler, the festive romp followed Fox and friends as they anxiously awaited the results of the Miss Merry Dragmas pageant. It put theatrical twists on songs such as Sia’s “Ho Ho Ho” and Dolly Parton’s “Hard Candy Christmas,” plus a clever Christmas interpretation of Gypsy’s “You Gotta Get a Gimmick,” and was equal parts raunchy and sentimental.
Several Uptown Players favorites shared the stage with Fox, and co-founder Craig Lynch reveals that some of these performers will be returning for a new spring cabaret series produced with local cabaret queen Denise Lee.
Lynch is hopeful this diva cabaret will become an Uptown Players staple. Uptown audiences traditionally connect to the community they find there and feel as though they’ve watched “their” performers grow and succeed onstage over the years.
But Uptown isn’t against shaking things up from time to time. From March 7-17, 2024, the company will present Terrence McNally’s Fire and Air in the Studio Theatre at the AT&T Performing Arts Center. This departure from the Kalita Humphreys Theater is the first of many exploratory performance spaces on deck, says Lynch, though the remaining shows in the season will be at the Kalita.
“We had a strong relationship with Terrence and his husband,” says Lynch. “They’ve come to see a show here and were open to direct correspondence about casting and text changes. This play has just undergone revisions from its 2018 premiere and is rumored to be going to Broadway sometime soon under a different title.”
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Uptown Players Co-Founders and Executive Producers Craig Lynch and Jeff Rane. Photo courtesy of Uptown Players.
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Lee Walter in the Uptown Players production of Jada Bells. Photo by Mike Morgan.
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Micah Greene, Sammy Swim and Isaiah Harris in the Uptown Players production of Jada Bells. Photo by Mike Morgan.
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Brett Warner, Sara Shelby-Martin, Presley Duyck, Lee Walter, Peter DiCesare, Jacob Hemsath, Seth Paden and David Lugo in the Uptown Players production of Jada Bells. Photo by Mike Morgan.
Following the popular original revue Broadway Our Way May 2-5, 2024, and the newly announced cabaret series the weekend following, Dallas gets a jolt of energy with the regional premiere of The Prom, directed by Penny Maas, with music direction by Vonda K. Bowling and choreography by Evor Wright.
“A lot of people know it from Broadway and the movie,” says Lynch. “The Prom has such great messaging about love and acceptance, and we’ve already had calls asking about group rates to come see it.”
The Prom follows high-school student Emma, who wants to take her girlfriend to the prom. However, when the school’s conservative PTA board cancels the prom to avoid controversy, a group of eccentric Broadway actors decides to rally behind Emma and travel to her small town to help her fight for inclusion. Lynch estimates at least 300 local performers auditioned for the production, with taped submissions from people all over the nation.
Set in New York City, The Boys in the Band takes us into the apartment of Michael, a witty and sharp-tongued host who throws a birthday party for his friend Harold. As the evening unfolds, a group of diverse gay friends gathers and the celebrations quickly become a rollercoaster of emotions, revealing hidden desires, unresolved conflicts, and the complexities of their individual journeys.
—LINDSEY WILSON
