THE LEGEND OF BUSTER NEAL Returns for Encore NY Performances

In honor of being selected for mainstage performance at the National Black Theatre Festival, the Billie Holiday Theatre will present encore performances of The Legend of Buster Neal, written and directed by Jackie Alexander. The original cast, Charles Anthony Burks, Sidiki Fofana, Stephen Hill, Dennis Johnson, Patrick Mitchell, and Nathan Purdee, will return for all performances.

Brooklyn encore performances will run July 21-30 at the 200-seat Billie Holiday Theatre, Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn; Thursdays - Saturdays at 8:00pm, Saturdays at 3:00pm, and Sundays at 4:00pm, with tickets $15 - $25, available at zerve.com/BHolidayInc/Buster. The National Black Theatre Festival runs August 1-6 in Winston-Salem, NC.

Billie Holiday Theatre producing director Marjorie Moon presented the world premiere of The Legend of Buster Neal, which opened March 3, 2011, and ran through March 29. Commissioned for Black History Month, when preview performances occurred, Jackie Alexander wrote the play in keeping with the Billie Holiday Theatre's mission of presenting work relevant to African-American audiences.

The Legend of Buster Neal is the story of five generations of African-American men and their challenges. A powerful drama dealing with legacy, family, and how manhood is defined, the play opens with a flashback to the civil rights era, when Buster Neal is faced with a life-or-death confrontation that becomes a local legend. Flashing forward to present day, his 17-year-old great-great grandson Marcus is dealing with modern urban issues - drugs, peer pressure, a broken family - while his father and grandfather disagree on the best way to raise him. When a bad decision creates consequences that Marcus can't handle, Buster Neal arrives as a mysterious visitor to give his descendants a second chance.

Now in its 39th season, the AUDELCO and Obie Award-winning Billie Holiday Theatre serves over 30,000 people annually and has garnered a well-earned reputation for providing outstanding professional Theater Productions at affordable prices. Under the leadership of Marjorie Moon, the 200-seat theater has a 40-week season dedicated to producing work relevant to African-American experience. A training ground for performing artists, notable alumni include Samuel L. Jackson, Debbie Allen, Samm-Art Williams, Weldon Irvine, Tichina Arnold, and more. www.thebillieholiday.org

National Black Theatre Festival is the international outreach program of the North Carolina Black Repertory Company, founded by the late Larry Leon Hamlin. The Festival has been held biennially since 1989 and attracts thousands of national and international patrons, theatre professionals and scholars to Winston-Salem, N.C. The National Black Theatre Festival® was named "A 2011 Top 20 Event by the Southeast Tourism Society". www.nbtf.org

July 21-30, 2011 at The Billie Holiday Theatre
Thursday-Saturday at 8:00pm; Saturday at 3:00pm, Sunday at 4:00pm (*no 8pm performance on July 30)

August 5-6, 2011 at the National Black Theatre Festival
Friday and Saturday at 3:00pm and 8:00pm

The Billie Holiday Theatre
Restoration Plaza | 1368 Fulton Street | Brooklyn, NY
A train to Nostrand Avenue; off-street parking available
Tickets $15-$25; Students & Seniors: $12 matinees and $15 evenings
On sale now at www.zerve.com/BHolidayInc/Buster or call 212-209-3370
Box Office: Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn NY
www.thebillieholiday.org

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