The NoHo Arts District is being put on the "Broadway" map by one of NoHo's best production companies, MB Artists which is lead by Kevin Bailey and James Mellon.
We all know what great work they do at the NoHo Arts Center and now Kevin Bailey has returned to Broadway with the production of Ann. The play is a no-holds-barred portrait of Ann Richards, the legendary Governor of Texas. This inspiring and hilarious new play brings us face to face with a complex, colorful and captivating character bigger than the state from which she hailed. Written and performed by Emmy® Award winner Holland Taylor (“Two and a Half Men"), ANN takes a revealing look at the impassioned woman who enriched the lives of her followers, friends and family.
Since 2010, Kevin Bailey with James Mellon and their production company, MB Artists, has produced and have been spearheading the production of Ann, which recently opened on Broadway (March 7th) at Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater to great reviews. After developing the production with Holland Taylor and rehearsing at their home theater, The NoHo Arts Center, they first fully-mounted the play in Galveston, Texas is the spring of 2010. After mounting the show in several additional Texas cities, they attracted the attention of Tony Award Winning producer, Bob Boyett (War Horse, South Pacific) and Harriet Leve (Stomp, Nice Work If You Can Get It). In 2011, under Mr. Boyett's guidance the production then moved on to Chicago and the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, playing to sold-out audiences. The success of those productions put Broadway squarely in their sights. After waiting a year for a theater opening in New York, they received the news that Ann would make its Broadway home at Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater. As part of the producing team, Kevin presently serves as the Broadway production's Executive Producer. The limited run is set to play through June, but plans are already being made for an extension. For more information on Ann, please go to the production website at: www.theannrichardsplay.com
On March 12, this photo was taken backstage at Lincoln Center immediately following the performance, which they had all just seen.
The picture in order: President Bill Clinton, actress Meryl Streep, former Sec. of State and first lady Hillary Clinton, actress Holland Taylor (in costume as Texas Governor Ann Richards), Kevin Bailey (Ann Executive Producer, in back), congresswoman Gabby Giffords, her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, Don Gummer (sculptor and husband of Meryl Streep), Harriet Leve (Ann Producer) and Ann Director, Benjamin Klein.