After receiving rave reviews following his walk-on role in the musical MEMPHIS, Mayor Sylvester Turner has agreed to an encore performance and hopes his participation will inspire others to support Houston’s performing arts and theater scene.
Last month, Mayor Turner joined Theatre Under the Stars on opening night to play the part of a choir director in the number “Make Me Stronger.” Dressed in a choir robe and shaking a tambourine, the mayor sang and danced on stage along with the dynamic cast.
“MEMPHIS is an incredible show with an incredible cast, and I am very proud of everyone in the show,” Mayor Turner said. “Whatever I can do to support the arts, I’m going to do. Especially after Harvey when the arts in the city of Houston were impacted,” Mayor Turner said. “Whatever I can do to encourage other people to be supportive of the arts, to participate, to play whatever small role they can play that’s exactly what I intend to do."
Mayor Turner will appear in the final afternoon performance of MEMPHIS at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 4 Hobby Center - Sarofim Hall. Media are welcome to bring cameras and capture photos or video of Mayor Turner’s stage performance. Contact Lisa Holmes, Manager of Public Relations at TUTS to make arrangements. 713-249-2491, [email protected].
"We are so grateful to have a Mayor who believes in the importance of the arts in our community and supports the work of Houston based organizations like Theatre Under The Stars by making his theatrical debut in our production of MEMPHIS," said Hillary Hart, Executive Director of Theatre Under The Stars.
Houston’s Theater District suffered catastrophic flooding, with no theater untouched by flood water because of Hurricane Harvey. But the show must go on, and thousands of actors, producers, writers, stage personnel and others are creating amazing shows for the public to enjoy almost nightly.
As a reminder, people can donate to help the theater district recover http://helphoustonstheaterdistrict.org/. Purchasing tickets to various performances would also show a commitment to the City’s creative industry.
“The arts community represents our soul; it reflects who we are. There’s so much talent and to see so many young people, students that are on the stage,” Mayor Turner said. “It speaks well about where we are in this city and the direction in which we are going. I want to do my part to nurture, encourage, and invest in the arts and encourage other people in the city to do the same.”