Odds & Ends: A Strange Loop Garners Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Drama & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you might have missed recently.

Michael R. Jackson Wins Lambda Literary Award for A Strange Loop
A Strange Loop just won Michael R. Jackson another accolade. In addition to the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Off-Broadway Alliance Award, Outer Critics Circle Award honor and the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Musical, its scribe has scooped up the Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Drama. Winners were selected from a pool of over a thousand submissions by a panel of literary professionals; the full list of recipients can be found here. As previously reported, A Strange Loop's fall engagement at Washington, D.C.'s Woolly Mammoth Theatre has been postponed to the summer of 2021 due to the coronavirus crisis. The musical explores the thoughts of Usher (played off-Broadway by Larry Owens), a black, queer writer working as a Broadway usher while writing his original musical: a piece about a black, queer writer working as a Broadway usher while writing his original musical. Watch Jackson's acceptance speech below!

Hairspray Creators to Require Characters to Be Cast as Written
In the wake of challenging discussions about inclusivity in the theater and in response to a recent post by OnStage Blog Founder Chris Peterson, Hairspray composer and co-lyricist Marc Shaiman shared that Music Theatre International, which represents and licenses the show, will now require groups to cast the show to reflect the characters as written. "A show that specifically addresses one aspect of the black experience during the civil rights battles of the early 1960s deserves to have its characters accurately and appropriately portrayed on stage," he wrote on Instagram. "I am very, very happy to be able to communicate this news." Though the creators have never encouraged non-diverse productions of the Tony-winning musical, this amendment has closed any potential casting loopholes. 

The Kennedy Center to Dim Lights to Honor George Floyd
The killing of George Floyd has sparked widespread protests, frank conversations and theatrical organizations coming together in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. In Washington, D.C., the lights that normally illuminate the Kennedy Center will be dimmed for nine nights in honor of George Floyd, marking the final nine minutes of his life. Kennedy Center Vice President and Artistic Director of Social Impact Marc Bamuthi Joseph said in a video,"Dimming the lights is a symbol. It is not the solution." Watch it in full below.

Broadway Alum Chris Trousdale Dies at 34
Chris Trousdale, who sang in the popular early 2000s boy band Dream Street and got his start on Broadway, has died at the age of 34. Former bandmate Jesse McCartney shared that Trousdale passed away due to complications from COVID-19 on Instagram. Born in New Port Richey, Florida, Trousdale began performing as Gavroche at the age of eight on the national tour of Les Misérables; he then joined the Broadway production, which also featured Lea Michele. He also appeared as Friedrich von Trapp in the 1998 revival of The Sound of Music, starring Rebecca Luker.

Be More Chill Cancels Remaining London Performances
As previously reported, the fan-favorite musical Be More Chill had been playing at The Other Palace Theatre in London since February 12, when London theaters shuttered as a result of the coronavirus crisis. An announcement posted on the production's Facebook page announced the further cancellation. The show had been scheduled to play through June 14, which would have made it the longest-running show at the Other Palace. "Hopefully, we'll be back in London soon," the post reads.