The revue was first presented at the Chatelet Theatre in
Paris in 1985. The revue included
Sandra Reaves-Phillips. The
Broadway production opened on January 26, 1989, at the
Minskoff Theatre and closed on January 20, 1991, after 829 performances and 32 previews. Directed by Orezzoli and Segovia and choreographed by
Henry LeTang,
Cholly Atkins,
Frankie Manning, and
Fayard Nicholas the cast of forty-one singers, dancers, and musicians included
Ruth Brown,
Linda Hopkins,
Carrie Smith,
Savion Glover,
Claude Williams,
Roland Hanna,
Grady Tate,
Jimmy Slyde,
Bill Easley,
Buster Brown (tap dancer),Jimmy "Preacher" Robbins, Lon Chaney (the jazz tap dancer, not the actor) and
Bunny Briggs.
Dianne Walker was the show's curator and sustainer of the choreography and stage direction, as well as a featured dancer. In 1990,
LaVern Baker made her Broadway debut, replacing Ruth Brown for the last eight months of the run. The score included "St. Louis Blues," "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," "In a Sentimental Mood," "Am I Blue?," "Stompin' at the Savoy," and the title tune. The
original cast recording won a
Grammy Award. Following the Broadway engagement,
Mel Howard took
Black and Blue on two
Europe tours, performing at such venues as The Chatelet Theater in Paris, The Thalia in
Hamburg, Theater des Westens in
Berlin, The Deutsches Theater in
Munich, and The Carre Theater in
Amsterdam. A television production directed by
Robert Altman aired on
PBS'
Great Performances in 1993. The
Variety reviewer wrote:"'Black and Blue' never looked as good on Broadway as it does in Robert Altman's keenly observed, briskly paced small-screen version of the rhythm and blues revue. This is a slightly reduced edition of Altman's February 1991 taping at the Minskoff Theater, sold as a pay-per-view in Japan." ==Awards and nominations==