The show universally applauded for its originality, deep emotional resonance, and powerful, high-octane score, makes its broadcast debut on THIRTEEN’S Great Performances on PBS. Passing Strange, the Spike Lee-directed film featuring the award-winning Broadway rock musical of the same title, will air in primetime on Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 9 p.m. EST (check local listings).
Watch a preview:
Passing Strange is the semi-autobiographical story of a young black man who leaves behind his middle-class, church-ruled upbringing in mid-1970s Los Angeles to travel to Europe in search of his artistic and personal identity, or what he calls “the real.” There he finds he can exploit a “South Central” persona, playing the cool, black expatriate-musician who speaks for his people. Picaresque misadventures with sex, drugs, politics and art find him in a far-out Amsterdam and a hyper-militant Berlin. But in the end, he discovers that cultural complexity—and hypocrisy—are not limited to middle-class African American life, and that while to him art may be more real than life, only love is truly more than real. Co-starring with Stew as ‘Narrator’ is an extraordinarily talented ensemble cast, featuring DeAdre Aziza, Eisa Davis, Colman Domingo, Chad Goodridge, Rebecca Naomi Jones, and Daniel Breaker as the story’s central character, ‘Youth.’
The Broadway show won a 2008 Tony Award for “Best Book of a Musical,” and in total, it received seven Tony nominations, including “Best Musical.” The show also won a Drama Desk Award, a New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award and two Obie Awards. The highly-acclaimed score does not stand apart from the action as in some rock musicals, but advances the narrative through a sophisticated libretto. Charles Isherwood of The New York Times raves: “Passing Strange is bursting at the seams with melodic songs, and it features a handful of theatrical performances to treasure. Call it a rock concert with a story to tell, trimmed with a lot of great jokes. Or call it a sprawling work of performance art, complete with angry rants and scary drag queens. Call it whatever you want, really. I’ll just call it wonderful.”
Passing Strange was originally created and workshopped at the Sundance Theatre Lab in Utah in 2004 by Stew, his long-time musical partner Heidi Rodewald, and Annie Dorsen, who collaborated on the creation of the show and directed it as well. It was performed at Berkeley Rep in California before coming to New York City’s Public Theater in 2007. The production then moved to Broadway and opened to critical acclaim in February 2008 at the Belasco Theatre. Spike Lee, who had seen the show, was contacted by producer Steve Klein, who was interested in making a film of the stage production. “When I saw the play I was knocked out,” says Lee. “The story, its musicianship and the acting was a revelation. Unlike recent translations of theater onto the big screen, the film doesn’t alter any of the cast, staging or production. This is a hybrid.”
Lee, working with cinematographer Matthew Libatique (“Miracle at St. Anna,” “Iron Man,” “Inside Man”) shot two performances of the Broadway show before its close, including the final performance. Lee then filmed the production without the audience, enabling dynamic close-ups, dolly shots, crane shots and other cinematic coverage. Lee’s long-time editor, Barry Brown, edited the final film.
A 40 Acres & a Mule Filmworks and Apple Core Holdings production in association with Thirteen for WNET.ORG, Passing Strange was produced by Steve Klein, with Klein, Kenneth Greif, Laurence Horn, and William Kohane serving as executive producers.
Great Performances is funded by the Irene Diamond Fund, Vivian Milstein, LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, public television viewers and PBS. For Great Performances, Bill O’Donnell is series producer and David Horn is executive producer.
Just kind of stumbled across this on PBS tonight, and I did not touch the remote once after I began watching. ABsolutely Riveting!Brilliant band,
Great performances,and some sly spoofs of Punk And German rock.One of the few Broadway shows in recent memory to capture the REAL energy of a Live Rock Band. MOST Excellent -
can’t wait to see where Stew & Heidi go next!
I was so happy when I turned on the TV tonight and saw this come on! I love Rebecca…I have seen her in American Idiot and I was so happy to see her on TV and brought smiles and tears to my eyes! it is such a fantasitc Musical! thankyou from the deep of my heart for you showing this tonight!
i’m sitting in my bedroom after watching the final performance on tbs. it’s 3:47 in the morning and i can’t go to sleep because i have witnessed one of the most moving performances i have ever seen. i want to share this experience with everyone. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!
THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!
Bless you, Spike Lee and Great Performances, for bringing this to us. Stew won the Tony for Best Book the same year as Lin Manuel-Miranda won Best Score for “In the Heights”. There was definitely a new energy on Broadway. Absolutely brilliant! So many quotable lyrics. A masterpiece. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I have seen several musical plays this year live, I wish I had the opportunity to see this one. Excellent Performances by all!! Thanks Stew and Heidi. We just stumbled upon this viewing………I am now looking for the next viewing.
Loved it…I will be buying the DVD.
Wow! If you switch the male lead for a female, the mother with a dad, and Europe for British Columbia, then you have very creatively shown my youthful life in your stage play. Total kismet that I stumbled on this one. Please play it again, often. I lost sleep thinking about its themes, and crave the wonderful music. How come I have never heard of Stew before this performance? His voice is so familiar- would I know him from a previous incarnation?
I watched this last night and it was so amazing. The performances were outstanding, and Spike Lee’s filming of it was innovative and unobtrusive. Spike – thanks so much for recording this and sharing it for free! As awesome as it was on screen, I would love to see this live!
We were immobile for the entire performance! Love it!!! We would have never known about it and would have loved to seen it live. Every part and performance was magnificent! Truly magnificent! Thanks Spike Lee, and PBS. This is what PBS is all about!
Work of modern art. Full stop
Wow. I watched a performance that I blew my mind. Passing Strange! I{ have not heard of this show till now. love to watch PBS and i saw the title of the show and did not give it a thought to watch. but after scanning through I stopped on PBS at 8 PM CST and just want to check it out. I was mesmerized but the music that… came through. Through out the show I felt as if I was in the theater and on stage with the performers. The stage set was simple but for the lights behind the stage. The actors or performers (how ever you wish to call them) created the scenery with their personas. I felt I was in an Amsterdam coffee shop and in Berlin. The Music not only entertained but it invoked feelings i have suppressed. I was captivated through out the whole show and can’t wait to own the DVD. Thank you PBS for bringing this show to us.
Totally captivating performance. This is the kind of material I want to introduce and perform at my hometown theatre. Fabulous! Brilliant! Awesome!
I have no words to describe the emotion and power I experienced from this fantastic collection of artist. I cried like I haven’t ever cried before.
now that was some entertaining shit. bring more of that pbs
Was just surfing channels and came upon this .. this musical, had to keep watching! .. outstanding would be putting it mildly!
I have to admit that I’m casual PBS watcher but, the channel is always in my list for browsing when looking for something to watch. Last night, I ate dinner and watched Mercy and Law & Order: SVU on NBC. Tempted to go to bed after SVU, I realized that I wasn’t quite ready and was really feeling unsettled. Flipped thru the menu guide, scroll down to PBS: “Hmm… what’s “Passing Strange” directed by Spike Lee?” Flip to the channel. Laugh a little. Laugh a lot. Feel a little. Emotions growing, this is too much but, I love it. I can’t stop watching. I move from the sofa to a chair closer to the television. All of a sudden, I’m standing. I can’t take my eyes off the television. I’m hooked. Absolutely amazing.
My entire work day has gone to searching the web about “Passing Strange.” Bought the DVD at Amazon, watched more clips here on PBS’s website and at http://www.passingstrangemovie.com/, searched for Eisa Davis (I knew she looked familiar – she had a role on HBO’s “The Wire,” looked up the other cast members, found the cast on Facebook, posted a link on my Facebook page, showed clips to people in the office – I just can’t get enough of “Passing Strange.”
Words cannot express my gratitude for this musical. I wish I could see it in person. Those who have have been doubly blessed.
awesome loved it…..this was the shit….like im blown away…
I saw the preview for this episode of Great Performances on WETA and vowed not to miss it. I didn’t and I had the foresight to tape it. What a journey. Stew’s narration is dead-on and the rest of the cast/musicians, can play, sing, and act their you-know-what off. All I can really say after watching this is, only after you make peace with the choices you make can it be alright. Thanks Stew, keep rocking.
I hate musicals and have since girlhood but, I was completely unprepared for this one. Surfing around, I found myself watching something very alien. I was not sure what the heck it was. I could not change the channel. I was mesmerized watching “Passing Strange.” One scene after another, so comical and rich with innuendo that poked fun on so many levels. The comedy, the tragedy; the singing and the gyrations. It was incredible to see something as sublime as this that seemed as though it would never end but then, the ending was just completely over the top. On and on and on it went even after the interview, we had one last fabulous chorus. It is in these instances that we, as viewers, as audiences get to experience the culmination of a group effort that produce a very high level of theatrical art and creative genius, something rare and transcendent before our very eyes. In a word “Passing Strange” is, sublime. I only wish I could have seen it live but, aside from this musical, I wouldn’t be caught watching live musical theatre, under any other circumstance. It was said that Opera also would not translate vis-à-vis the TV but those naysayers were wrong too. What if this production could be taken further, serialized in some form or fashion? Why not? Writers and fine artists create in series all the time. Spike, you and your people should do it again. Congratulations and thank you so much for a spellbinding work of art with the unique and lovely stamp of “Made in America,” all over it.
Simply wonderful! Moving! It started to FEEL REAL! I so enjoyed the performances of all and your messages of life, art, constructs, and our perceptions of what is real informed and enlighten me. Yes worthy of my tears. Thank you!
I stumbled on this musical and it spoke to me at my rock bottom deepest level. It seemed someone far wiser than me had offered a glimpse of The Real. The singing, acting, and music, coupled with universality of the message could move the stoniest heart. BRAVO!
Move over Jesus Christ Superstar,Hair,Tommy,Joseph and his dreamcoat… at least for Ethiopian Americans.Hendrix is very proud as am I. Look at what happens when people get together and art wraps around their spirit!
Stew, Heidi & Co – Your semi-autobiographical journey took me on a magic carpet ride through my joyous youth, my lovely single days of hotness, my middle aged years of reflection, regret and betrayal of self and by others….while giving me a peek into the changes, the passings, yet to come. You shook me and brought me back to the choir, the alter, the mirror, the anger, the reasons, the beginning, the truth…the love. Thank you for the laughter and the unbelievable number of spontaneous tears that interrupted yet complimented my joy. Like others here in this confessional, I couldn’t fall asleep. I woke up exhausted but with a smile. Yet, revisiting this trip again tonight, I must admit – I am still haunted and it feels so good.
I get the music, appreciate the powerful lyrics, creative staging, the actors are extremely gifted but Stew’s voice after a while is a bit much. Guess I would like a deeper voice in that part, although clearly he is excellent as the keeper of the word. Some of the musical numbers seem too harsh, too busy, almost pushing, forcing: but maybe that’s the whole point. Like labor, you must push to be born.
I love that PBS will air this type of performance, I remember more then thirty-five years ago when I watched Bill Bixey in only a bath towel,bringing a changing sexuality thru theater. Yes PBS has been keeping it real, for the arts, for a very long time. Congrats to all.
I awoke by chance at 4am only to see this incredible production running on my screen. OMG!!! It is THE most fresh music, acting, Story, and Love I have ever seen. Bravo to all involved. I only hope it airs again at a more popular hour so I can share the experience with friends to enjoy. Really appreciated this in these hard times y’all.
…EXCELLENT, SPELL BOUNDING…..I UNDERSTAND MY SON, NOW…PEACE AND LOVE…
I saw part of this show last night and I am ordering it and letting all of my friends know from the “heavy 1960’s” who would read philosophy, love art and love life. What an inspiration for the soul this wonderful performance is!
Aaaaaa – I missed it! Please air it again!
Thank you Stew, Spike, PBS for making this possible for all of us who love live theatre but can’t afford it.