The Drama Desk Awards are decided by a committee of theater critics, writers and editors, and every year the honor excellence in New York theatre. This year, the committee made it quite clear that Debbie Allen's groundbreaking, all-black production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was not so excellent, despite its box office success. Neither the play nor its cast were nominated in any categories. [BV]

Will the Great White Way need to change it's name soon? With plays like The Color Purple, A Raisin in the Sun, and, most recently, the all-black production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, black theatergoers are hitting the ticket offices in droves.

Last week alone, Cat sold $700,000 in tickets, a large number for a non-musical, and the audience is about 75 percent black. Stephen C. Byrd, the producer behind the show, sees dollar signs. Next up, he has plans for a multiracial version A Streetcar Named Desire and Death of a Salesman and an stage adaptation of James Baldwin's Giovanni's Room. Just five years ago, industry insiders doubted that anything would bring a major black audience to Broadway. No one should ever doubt how hungry diverse entertainment options.

'Twas the opening of director Debbie Allen's production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof last night. As you surely know, this show and its all-black cast have been points of interest for Stereohyped for weeks now, and the crowd that buzzed and twittered in last evening's "Will Call" line assured us others have been equally as interested.

The press area, staged in a row along the sidewalk and facing the theater, was sweaty and cramped, and cameramen towered over the whole affair on risers placed behind the interviewers. "Jesus Christ," Allen exclaimed to her entourage as she made her way into the gauntlet. We agreed. And then the flashbulbs were blinding.

After the jump, the celebrity attendants, our favorite of whom is Eartha Kitt.

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SCRATCH THAT Barack and Michelle Obama will not be attending tomorrow night's opening of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof on Broadway, as was previously reported. My guess? Obama's got some 'paigning to do!

Depending on how things go today in Texas and Ohio, Barack Obama might be the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee by Thursday, when he and Michelle attend the official opening night of Broadway's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. This should do nothing for the opening night jitters of the cast, which includes Terrence Howard, Anika Noni Rose, Phylicia Rashad, and James Earl Jones. Although they've been performing for audiences for about a month, having a possible future president in the audience probably ups the pressure a bit.

Also planning to attend the opening night show are Denzel and Pauletta, Will and Jada, and, of course, Camille and Bill. Date night! [NYDN]

I'm a musical girl. Give me a song and dance number, and I'm quite content. As a result of this, though, I miss out on a lot of good Broadway drama. A quick search through the archives will show you that I was more than willing to make Debbie Allen's production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof a notable exception. I caught a preview (more like a formal dress rehearsal) of the show Sunday night, and I didn't long for a song or a dance break. Not even once.

Tennessee Williams' play was not written with an all-black cast in mind, but someone who hadn't known that going in probably wouldn't guess it. The play covers one night in the life of a rich Southern family, the members of whom are in conflict over the sorts of things rich people are often in conflict over — power, sex, money, and mendacity, to name three. The action centers around Big Daddy's (James Earl Jones) 65th birthday and the entire play takes place in the bedroom of Brick (Terrence Howard) an alcoholic ex-football player with a broken ankle who won't have sex with his wife Maggie (Anika Noni Rose), who desperately wants to have sex with her husband. The two of them do an amazing job capturing the sexual tension, resentment, and hatred that poisons their relationship and keeps it alive at the same time.

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I've had many unprofessional moments in my years as a working woman. There was the time during my (brief) newspaper career that I fainted (I had forgotten to eat breakfast) while conducting an interview at the modest home of a just-returned-from-Iraq soldier and awoke reclining in the family's threadbare La-Z-Boy, where I was force fed a couple of pieces of Wonder bread and a glass of orange juice. Then there was the time, when I was an intern at Jane, that I got rained on so severely during my lunch break that my tank top — which, when dry, was totally safe to wear without a bra — became completely see-through. Completely. And for some reason, it took about 4 hours to become opaque again. I had no jacket, and the size-zero samples in the fashion closet wouldn't even fit over my head. Luckily, they liked that sort of thing at Jane (R.I.P.).

Yesterday was one of those unprofessional days. Why? Well, yesterday, Jossip Initiatives boss-man David Hauslaib and I went to a press event for Debbie Allen's all-black production of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Terrence Howard was there (whatevs — he had on a hat and a man-purse the whole time), as was Anika Noni Rose (very cute and pleasantly sassy), James Earl Jones (!), Giancarlo Esposito, Mr. Gaines, Debbie Allen, and…Phylicia Rashad.

Phylicia Rashad was where the unprofessional bit came in.

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