Welcome! This year the Anthony Bean Community Theater and Acting School celebrates15 years of excellence in the performing arts.

The Anthony Bean Community Theater (ABCT) was established in Spring 2000 to meet the growing demands of New Orleans area residents seeking a quality, culturally diverse, performing arts venue. The theater also met the needs of individuals seeking to learn the art of acting, set design and theatre management. In recent years, ABCT has become a vehicle to enter New Orleans' booming "Hollywood South" film industry.

ABCT is unique in that it is not only a major theater production company, but a year-round, open enrollment acting school serving both adults and children with an eclectic group of courses designed to meet the basic needs of individuals seeking careers in stage and screen acting, set design and theatre management.  

ABCT believes that the arts have the power to transform people's lives. Our Mission is simple: "to inspire those we serve through the magic of the arts."  The Hallmark of ABCT and that which separates us from "all the rest" is - diversity.  ABCT proudly presents the most diverse theater schedule in the New Orleans area.  Our programing fare includes, the classics; Shakespeare, August Wilson and Tennessee Williams as well as popular drama (Reflections and Misery), comedy (Jar the Floor, Steal Away), and musicals (The Color Purple, Simply Irma and The Phyllis Hyman Story). Most importantly, ABCT mounts original plays such as I'd Rather Be Rich and Say Amen, and showcases our talented kids in perennial favorites: Cats, The Wiz, High School Musical and 504.  

The goal of the ABCT Acting School is to provide an intense, high quality learning and performing opportunity in an atmosphere where young people are encouraged to set goals, take risks and view mistakes as an avenue for learning. ABCT opens students up to the greatness that lies within them and creates an awareness that the Arts are a constructive vehicle of personal expression.

Anthony Bean Community Theater boasts a full professional portfolio including video DVD Productions and an ABCT clothing line. In addition to children and adult acting classes, ABCT offers a youth theater, an after-school program, and the Anthony Bean Community Theater City Choir.  During the summer months, working in conjunction with the New Orleans Recreation Department Commission - ABCT also operates a summer day camp.

We at ABCT wish to express our sincere gratitude for your ongoing support over the past 15 years and we urge you to purchase your PASS for the upcoming season. Thank you for your ongoing support. We look forward to seeing you at our next production.

Come and celebrate our Anniversary and you will agree.

"ABCT IS MORE THAN THEATER

IT'S CULTURE!"

Back ABCT! Be a part of the Anthony Bean Community Theater and Acting School! ABCT is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and all contributions are tax deductible. Donate today and keep the arts alive and exciting in our community!

2015-03-06 00:00:00.0

A play by William Shakespeare and Interpeted and Directed by Frederick Mead. The creative team includes: Dane Rhodes (scenic), Vic Woodward (scenic and lighting), Ms. B Veteran Performer, Adella Gautier (costumes), Staci Tolliver, stage manager.

In celebration of our 15th season and a recent Community Arts Award, Anthony Bean Community Theater (the only ongoing African American theater producing company in New Orleans) presents our first-ever Shakespeare play, "Measure for Measure" from Actors (L) DC PauL, Karel Sloane-Boekbinder, Clara Masako and Martin "Bats" Bradford March 6 to 22. Under the direction of Frederick Mead, "Measure for Measure" features a racially-diverse cast that includes stage veteran Adella Gautier (as elder statesman, Escalus), up-and-coming TV and stage actor Martin "Bats" Bradford (as the Duke of Vienna), and ingénue Christy Williams (as Isabella). Frederick Mead himself appears in the delightfully comic role of Lucio.

With "Measure for Measure", ABCT introduces Shakespeare to a new generation of African American youth and adults. Our audience has never seen Shakespeare on this stage (and some perhaps never at all.) We have chosen this play because its themes of social justice, abuse of governmental power, and the need for genuine spirituality are timely topics that will speak clearly and resonate with the experiences of many African Americans in our audience. To help decode the lofty Elizabethan language and to clarify the play's themes, Director Frederick Mead has chosen 2 unique devices. First, the costumes are drawn from the whole of Western culture, such as the Golden Age of Hollywood, opera, and the Bible. These iconic "types" will help our audiences understand-on sight-what each character means in the context of the play. For example, Mistress Director Frederick Mead with Anthony Bean Overdone (who owns brothels) is costumed as Mae West. The costumes are clever, instructive, and will be a topic of much conversation afterwards. The second device is to film Act 5, the final act. The Duke of Vienna (played by Martin "Bats" Bradford") is an old-time movie director (a la Otto Preminger) who moves behind the scenes, filming other actors and pushing the plot forward. Act 5 is the movie the Duke has made. A screen will descend, and the audience will watch the Duke's movie as the conclusion of the play.

Other members of the cast include: DC PauL (as Claudio), Marie Becnel (as Angelo, the Deputy), Tracy Norwood (as Mistress Overdone and Sister Francisca), Nike Di Bauchery (as Pompey, the Clown), Matthew Rigdon (as Froth the Fop and Abhorson the Executioner), Karel Sloane-Boekbinder (as the Provost), James Patrick (as Barnardine, the prisoner), Clara Masako Fernandez (as Juliet and Mariana), Sam Ryan (as Constable Elbow), and Frederick Mead (as Lucio, a fantastic)

Starring