Shreveport, LA - Robinson Film Center and Stage Center are partnering to host a screening of the film The Color Purple on December 18th at 5pm, as a precursor to the musical adaptation of the beloved classic which will run from January 5th-8th, 2023. The screening will feature an introduction by play director Zhailon Levingston with a musical performance by cast members of the Stage Center show.

“We’re so excited to host a screening of the Steven Spielberg classic at RFC as a primer for the local stage production,” said Wendell Riley, Executive Director of RFC. “When we sat down with Stage Center to discuss collaboration opportunities, this seemed like a no-brainer.”

The Tony Award winning play will be helmed by Levingston, who is from Shreveport and is also the youngest black director to have a show play on Broadway. His directing credits include: “Neptune” (Dixon Place, Provincetown theatre), “The Years That Went Wrong” (Lark, MCC), “The Exonerated” (Columbia Law School), “Chariot Part 2” (Soho Rep., for The Movement Theatre Company), “Mother of Pearl” (LaGuardia Performing Arts Center). He is the co-director of “Reconstruction” with Tony Award-winner Rachel Chavkin. Zhailon is the resident director at “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical” on Broadway and the associate director of “Hadestown” in South Korea.

"Stage Center is thrilled to be partnering with RFC for this unique crossover event, giving SBC audiences the opportunity to see how a story evolves during adaptations; in this case adapting for a realism in film, versus abstraction for the musical stage,” said Jared Watson, Artistic Director of Stage Center. “We hope audiences will take in both, prompting exciting discussion with friends and family!"

Tickets to the screening are available to the public at http://robinsonfilmcenter.org/ or by calling the box office at (318) 459-4122. Tickets for the Stage Show production are on sale at https://www.stagecenterla.com/thecolorpurple/.