Life On The Stage: Ron Howard

Join The Actors Fund and the Jacob Burns Film Center for an evening with playwright and director of theater and film, George C. Wolfe, in a virtual conversation about his film Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Joined in a panel are actors of the band Michael Potts, Colman Domingo and Glynn Turman.

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is a 2020 American drama film directed by George C. Wolfe and written by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, based on the play of the same name by August Wilson. Produced by Denzel Washington, Todd Black, and Dany Wolf, the film stars Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman, with Glynn Turman, Colman Domingo, and Michael Potts in supporting roles. The film, and its source play, focus on Ma Rainey, an influential blues singer, and dramatizes a recording session in 1927 Chicago.

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is currently available to watch on Netflix. Watch the film at your convenience, then join us for a conversation.

Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC) is a nonprofit five-screen cinema and education center located in Pleasantville, NY. One of the most successful suburban art houses in the country, the Jacob Burns celebrates film as a vehicle for entertainment, education, and inspiration.

This event is part of Life on the Stage: Conversation and Film, presented in partnership with The Actors Fund, a national human services organization that fosters stability and resiliency, and provides a safety net for performing arts and entertainment professionals over their lifespan. Since March 18, The Fund has distributed more than $16 million in emergency financial assistance to more than 13,500 people in need—more than eight times the funds normally provided in a year. Through offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Fund serves everyone in film, theater, television, music, opera, radio and dance with programs including social services and emergency financial assistance, health care and insurance counseling, housing, and secondary employment and training services.

Presented in partnership with the Broadway Podcast Network.

Join The Actors Fund and the Jacob Burns Film Center for an evening with filmmaker RON HOWARD in a live virtual conversation about his film Frost/Nixon (2008). Frost/Nixon is a cinematic adaptation of the play that premiered in London in August 2006 and opened on Broadway in April 2007, featuring subject matter that is just as timely now as when it first opened.

In 1977, three years after the Watergate scandal that ended his presidency, Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) selects British TV personality David Frost (Michael Sheen) to conduct an exclusive, one-on-one interview. Though Nixon believes it will be easy to mislead Frost, and the latter’s own team doubts that he can stand up to the former president, what actually unfolds is an unexpectedly candid and revealing interview that plays out before the court of public opinion.

Frost/Nixon is currently available to watch on Netflix. Watch the film at your convenience, then join us for a conversation.

RON HOWARD is one of this generation’s most popular directors. From the critically acclaimed dramas Cinderella Man and Apollo 13 to the hit comedies Parenthood and Splash, he has created some of Hollywood’s most memorable films. Howard directed and produced A Beautiful Mind, which earned Howard an Oscar for Best Director and also won awards for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actress. Howard’s more recent films include The Da Vinci Code, Angels & Demons, Frost/Nixon, The Dilemma, The Beatles: Eight Days a Week, Pavarotti, and Rebuilding Paradise.

Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC) is a nonprofit five-screen cinema and education center located in Pleasantville, NY. One of the most successful suburban art houses in the country, the Jacob Burns celebrates film as a vehicle for entertainment, education, and inspiration. RON HOWARD serves on the JBFC Board of Directors. 

This event is part of Life on the Stage: Conversation and Film, presented in partnership with The Actors Fund, a national human services organization that fosters stability and resiliency, and provides a safety net for performing arts and entertainment professionals over their lifespan. Since March 18, The Fund has distributed more than $16 million in emergency financial assistance to more than 13,500 people in need—more than eight times the funds normally provided in a year. Through offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Fund serves everyone in film, theater, television, music, opera, radio and dance with programs including social services and emergency financial assistance, health care and insurance counseling, housing, and secondary employment and training services.

Presented in partnership with the Broadway Podcast Network.