Odds & Ends: Ashanti & Ja Rule's Hamilton Mixtape Track, Danielle Brooks Set for CSC & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you may have missed today.

Ashanti & Ja Rule's Hamilton Mixtape Track
We're mesmerized by this! We have another track, below, from the Hamilton Mixtape, Ashanti and Ja Rule's collaboration on "Helpless." It's fitting, as Lin-Manuel Miranda recently admitted on Conan: “When I was writing that song, I was picturing it as Ashanti and Ja Rule. Eliza’s Ashanti, Hamilton’s Ja Rule.” The full album is scheduled to drop on December 2 and that's not the only seasonal cheer for Miranda. According to Variety, the certified genius' collaboration with Disney, Moana, was the top film over the Thanksgiving holiday, bringing in a massive $81.1 million, just shy of Frozen's record-breaking totals.


Danielle Brooks Set for CSC's The Amen Corner
Orange Is The New Black’s Danielle Brooks will perform in a one-night-only reading of James Baldwin’s The Amen Corner as part of Classic Stage Company’s First Look Festival on November 28. Directed by Liesl Tommy, the cast will also be joined by Adeola Role, Mirirai Sithole, Phumzile Sithole, Christina Redd, Brandon Jones, Curtiss Cook Jr, Kevin Mambo, Cristina Pitter and Folami Williams. It's only natural Brooks is on board for the project—CSC’s artistic director is John Doyle, who helmed her Tony-nominated performance in The Color Purple.

Director Marianne Elliott to Take on Company
Interesting. Marianne Elliott, who won Tonys for her work on The Curious Incident and War Horse, is leaving her position as associate director at the U.K.’s National Theatre to form her own new theater company. Its first production, the U.K. debut of Broadway’s Heisenberg, will be followed by an all-female London revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s Company. According to the New York Times, Rosalie Craig will lead the production, which the legendary composer is set to be involved in. We will keep you posted as dates and further details are announced.

New Trailer for Denzel Washington’s Fences
We now have a second, more extensive trailer for Denzel Washington’s film adaptation of August Wilson's Fences, which is heavily-tipped for awards season success. The piece won the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award in 1987, and the 2010 revival won Tonys for both Washington and Viola Davis, who reprise their roles on the big screen. Fences in slated to hit movie theaters on Christmas Day.


P.S. Jimmy Fallon and Jonathan Groff recently chatted about the aforementioned Mixtape, on which the late night host sang the Tony nominee's track, "You'll Be Back." Hysterical.