Bob Marley
The New Victory Theater Presents: Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds
Based on the story by Cedella Marley Featuring the music and lyrics of Bob Marley
From Adventure Theatre MTC
New Musical Celebrates Marley’s Music and Legacy with NY Premiere February 7 – 23, 2014
A jammin’ new musical with live accompaniment featuring the timeless music and lyrics of Bob Marley, Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds shares the legendary reggae artist’s message of peace and love with a new generation of songbirds. Opening the day after what would have been the singer and songwriter’s 69th birthday, Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds performs at The New Victory Theater on 42nd Street in Times Square from February 7 – 23, 2014.
In Cattawood Springs, a small village on the island of Jamaica, three little birds sing their sweet songs to Ziggy, a very shy child who prefers to see the world from the television in his room. But with the help of his feathered friends and his nagging neighbor Nansi, Ziggy is reminded in soothing six-part harmony that “every little thing gonna be alright.” Inspired by a picture book written by Cedella Marley and Gerald Hausman about the Bob Marley song of the same name, Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds is a collaborative creation between the Marley family and Adventure Theatre MTC, who premiered the production as part of the theater’s African-American Adventure series. With its tie to the cultural heritage of Jamaica, the musical now makes its New York premiere during Black History Month.
“I wanted to find a work that celebrates culture without making race a plot point and discovered ‘Three Little Birds,’” says Adventure Theatre MTC producing artistic director Michael J. Bobbitt, who worked closely with Ms. Marley to weave story, song and dance into a new musical for kids. “Even though Jamaica is not an American province, Bob Marley and reggae has influenced a lot of African American culture, and plus, kids love the music!”
In addition to the title song, Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds includes the hits “Jamming,” “One Love,” “Roots Rock Reggae,” “I Shot the Sheriff,” “Natural Mystic,” “So Much Trouble in the World,” “Lively Up Yourself,” “Is This Love,” “Please Don’t Rock My Boat,” “Riding High,” “I Know,” “Running Away,” “Duppy Conqueror” and the West Indies children’s song “Brown Girl in the Ring.”
“Dad had so many kid-friendly songs,” agrees Ms. Marley, who began writing about ten years ago and has written three other books for children. A mother of three, she hopes that her story can help kids look past whatever fears they may have; as her character Mother Cedella tells Ziggy, “There may be dangers outside, but you cannot be so scared you don’t enjoy the world.”
The multi-talented cast of Talibah-Aquil (Female Swing), S. Lewis Feemster (Duppy), Ayanna Hardy (Cedella), David Little (Doctor Bird), Michael J. Mainwaring (Ziggy Understudy), Jobari Parker-Namdar (Ziggy), Tara Lynn Yates-Reeves (Tacoomah), Jade Wheeler (Nansi Understudy), Brittany N. Williams (Nansi) and Galen J. Williams (Male Swing) bring the lyrics and messages of Bob Marley’s original tunes to life and Bobbitt adds to the creative team as the producing artistic director, choreographer and playwright. Arrangements, orchestrations and additional music and lyrics are by John L. Cornelius, II, Nick Olcott is show director, Adi Stein is assistant director and Darius Smith is music director and keyboardist. Set design is by Jos. B. Musumeci, Jr., with props design by Andrea “Dre” Moore, lighting design by Brian S. Allard and costume design by Kendra Rai. Martita Slayden is production manager and stage manager, and Will Richardson is assistant stage manager.
Watch a trailer of Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds on the New Victory website.
Performance Schedule: 17 performances
Friday 2/7 7pm
Saturday 2/8 12pm and 5pm
Sunday 2/9 12pm and 5pm
Saturday 2/15 12pm and 5pm
Sunday 2/16 12pm and 5pm
Monday 2/17 2pm
Wednesday 2/19 2pm
Thursday 2/20 2pm
Friday 2/21 2pm
Saturday 2/22 12pm and 5pm
Sunday 2/23 12pm and 5pm
Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds has a running time of 55 minutes with no intermission, and is recommended for everyone ages five and older.
General Ticket Information
Tickets for Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds at The New Victory Theater (209 West 42nd Street) are $25, $18, $12 and $9 for Members based on seat locations, with full price tickets starting at $14.
Theater-goers who buy tickets for three or more New Victory shows qualify for free Membership, with benefits including 35-percent savings on tickets all season long and unlimited free ticket exchanges. Purchase tickets online or by phone at 646-223-3010. The New Victory Theater box office (209 West 42nd Street) is open Sunday and Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm. For more information, visit the New Victory website.
Adventure Theatre (founded in 1951) and Musical Theater Center (founded in 1986) merged into one organization called Adventure Theatre MTC (ATMTC) in 2012. Now located in Glen Echo Park in Glen Echo, Maryland, and The Wintergreen Plaza in Rockville, Maryland, ATMTC cultivates new generations of artists and life-long audiences by creating memorable theatrical productions and by providing young people with the highest quality training in theater and musical theater. The ATMTC Academy offerings complement the National and Maryland State Fine Arts Standards of Learning, providing a challenging outlet for students to develop the skills necessary to be successful performers—including self-discipline, teamwork, problem solving and self-confidence—and ATMTC Academy Alumni have numerous Broadway, national tour, TV and film credits. ATMTC is a multi-time recipient of Washington’s Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Production, Theatre for Young Audiences.
The New Victory Theater introduces extraordinary performing artists from around the world to extraordinary audiences in New York City, bringing kids to the arts and arts to kids. Created in 1995 for young New Yorkers, their families and schoolmates, The New Victory Theater presents a diverse season of international companies at low ticket prices year after year. Through the theater’s award-winning education programs, The New Victory continues to provide access to schools and communities of New York City who seek to experience and engage with the work on our stages, often for the very first time. The theater’s contributions to the cultural landscape of the city were celebrated by the prestigious New York critics’ organization, The Drama Desk, which presented The New Victory Theater with a 2012 Special Award for “providing enchanting, sophisticated children’s theater that appeals to the child in all of us, and for nurturing a love of theater in young people.”
Building on the foundation of seven historic theaters, The New 42nd Street leads the dynamic evolution of the reinvented 42nd Street, cultivating a unique New York City cultural and entertainment destination through its three projects: The New Victory Theater, a performing arts theater devoted to kids and families; the New 42nd Street Studios, a state-of-the-art, 10-story performing arts complex for rehearsal, performance and arts administration; and The Duke on 42nd Street, an intimate black-box theater. An independent, nonprofit organization, The New 42nd Street is committed to the transformational power of the arts.
