4/16/26 O&A NYC REVIEW BY WALTER RUTLEDGE:  Cats: The Jellicle Ball

By Walter Rutledge

Cats: The Jellicle Ball made it’s Broadway debut on April 7that the Broadhurst Theater. The new production has replaced the London alley/junkyard with a New York City gay ball. Called a “radical reimagining” this reincarnation of Daniel Lloyd Webber iconic musical is a fun, raucous, high energy theatrical juggernaut. We give this clever remake “tens across the board”. Continue reading

4/12/26 O&A NYC THE WORD: John Legend -Gethsemane From Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert

Immerse yourself in an awe-inspiring performance as the legendary John Legend takes on the iconic role of Jesus Christ in the unforgettable live concert production of Jesus Christ Superstar. Witness a breathtaking rendition of Gethsemane (I Only Want to Say) as John Legend delivers an emotionally charged portrayal that will captivate your heart and soul. Continue reading

3/23/26 O&A NYC SONG OF THE DAY: Lena Horne – The Lady Is A Tramp

Lena Horne performed by The Lady Is a Tramp from the musical Babes in Arms (1937). The musical features music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart. Continue reading

3/2/26 O&A NYC HOLLYWOOD MONDAY: Stormy Weather- Lena Horne, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, Cab Calloway, Nicholas Brothers, Katherine Dunham and dancers

Stormy Weather is a 1943 film musical produced and released by 20th Century Fox. The movie is considered one of the best Hollywood musicals with an all African-American cast and serve to  showcase of some of the top African-American performers of the time. Continue reading

2/16/26 O&A NYC HOLLYWOOD MONDAY: St Louis Blues(1958) – Nat King Cole Eartha Kitt

St. Louis Blues is a 1958 film broadly based on the life of W.C. Handy, in which both Eartha Kitt and Nat King Cole starred. Nat King Cole played the leading role of W.C. Handy, while Eartha Kitt played the character Gogo Germaine, a glamorous nightclub singer. Continue reading

12/29/25 O&A NYC HOLLYWOOD MONDAY: Miracle In Harlem (1948)

Miracle in Harlem (1948) is a independent American film known as a race film, featuring an all-African American cast. is a murder mystery melodrama with musical elements, considered one of the better films of its genre from that era. The cast in the all black cast included  Sheila Guyse as Julie Weston, Hilda Offley as Aunt Hattie, William Greaves as Bert Hallam (Julie’s boyfriend), Stepin Fetchit as Swifty, the handyman, Laurence Criner as Albert Marshall, and  vocalists Savannah Churchill, Juanita Hall, and the Lynn Proctor Trio. Continue reading

11/27/25 O&A NYC THANKSGIVING THROWBACK: March of the Wooden Soldiers- Laurel & Hardy

Babes in Toyland is a Laurel and Hardy musical film released on March 10, 1934. The film is also known by its alternate titles Laurel and Hardy in Toyland, Revenge Is Sweet (the 1948 European reissue title), March of the Wooden Soldiers and Wooden Soldiers (in the United States). Continue reading

9/20/25 O&A NYC SATURDAY MORNING CONCERT: The Harlem Sandman

That’s Reelblack Entertainment brings us another classic scene of Black entertainment excellence from the 1943 The Harlem Sandman. The venerable cast included Nick Stewart, Count Basie, Jack Williams, Dorothy Dandridge, Ernest Morrison and Pops & Louie as featured in Hit Parade of 1943. Continue reading

4/22/25 O&A NYC REVIEW: Macbeth in Stride

By Walter Rutledge

For those of us that believe “Hell has no fury like a women scorned”. And for those of us who know firsthand you do not mess with a Black woman who “ain’t feeling it”. Leave your Elizabethan mindset at home and head to the Harvey Theater to experience MacBeth in Stride – Shakespeare from a sistah’s point of view. Written and performed by Obie- Award winner Whitney White the production takes Shakespeare and female empowerment to a new level. This soulful contemporary rendition of Shakespeare’s classic tragedy Macbeth runs for only five remaining performances through April 27 at the Harvey Theater located at 651 Futon Street in downtown Brooklyn. Continue reading

3/7/25 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Stormy Weather- Lena Horne, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, Cab Calloway, Nicholas Brothers, Katherine Dunham and dancers

Shall We Dance Friday

Stormy Weather is a 1943 film musical produced and released by 20th Century Fox. The movie is considered one of the best Hollywood musicals with an all African-American cast and serve to  showcase of some of the top African-American performers of the time. Continue reading