Signature Theatre Company has announced a one-week extension of The First Breeze of Summer, its first offering in a season devoted to works from the Negro Ensemble Company. The revival of Leslie Lee's family drama, starring Leslie Uggams and directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, will now play through October 5 at the Peter Norton Space. The off-Broadway production began performances on August 5.
In addition to Uggams, the cast includes Quincy Dunn Baker Romeo and Juliet, Harvey Blanks Tabletop, Broadway.com Fresh Face Yaya DaCosta Honeydripper, Sandra Daley Defying Gravity, Crystal Anne Dickinson Tyler Perry's House of Payne, Brandon Dirden Prelude to a Kiss, Jason Dirden Two Trains Running, Marva Hicks Caroline, or Change, John Earl Jelks Radio Golf, Tuck Milligan Book of Days, Gilbert Owuor The Brothers Size, Brenda Pressley Dreamgirls and Keith Randolph Smith Come Back, Little Sheba.
The First Breeze of Summer received a 1975 Tony Award nomination for Best Play during its original Broadway run at the Palace Theatre. Leslie Lee won an Obie Award for the play, which takes place over the course of one sweltering weekend in June as three generations of the Edwards family collide with their past and confront the choices that will define their future.
