{"id":3777,"date":"2025-10-31T17:25:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-31T17:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/?p=3777"},"modified":"2026-07-06T17:28:39","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T17:28:39","slug":"award-winning-creative-team-behind-purple-rain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/2025\/10\/31\/award-winning-creative-team-behind-purple-rain\/","title":{"rendered":"Award-Winning Creative Team Behind Purple Rain"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When the lights fade and the stage glows purple, it feels like a homecoming. In Minneapolis, the city that shaped and was shaped by Prince, the magic of Purple Rain\u2122<\/em> has returned. The story that once electrified movie screens is now alive on stage at the State Theatre, pulsing with fresh energy and devotion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the heart of this pre-Broadway production are Ebony Williams, an Emmy Award-winning choreographer known for her bold, emotive storytelling through dance, and Jason Michael Webb, a Tony Award-winning music supervisor celebrated for his mastery of live orchestration and soul-rooted sound. Together, they are the creative pulse behind this revival, both translating Prince\u2019s genius into a living, breathing stage experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI mean, we wanted to do a tribute,\u201d said Williams, her tone both grounded and reverent. \u201cIn the middle of the show, when everything turns purple, people start crying. I met him once in Paris, and it was emotional. There\u2019s always been a real connection there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Webb nodded beside her. \u201cI wish I had known him personally,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve loved his music for so many years. I saw him twice in small clubs, sitting right at the edge of the stage, just in awe of what he was able to do. You love the music on the record, but when you see him live, he transforms it. That changed me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their conversation with Insight News<\/em> publisher Al McFarlane took place in the ornate lobby of the State Theatre, just steps away from the very streets where Prince once filmed scenes that would etch Minneapolis into music history. For Williams and Webb, being here is more than professional. It\u2019s spiritual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t really know Minneapolis,\u201d Williams admitted. \u201cEvery time I come, I\u2019m working. But I feel the energy here, the love, the history. You can sense why this place meant so much to him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That energy, McFarlane noted, is woven into the city\u2019s DNA. He shared his own Prince story from decades earlier, when Insight News<\/em>\u2019 offices sat just down the street from the legendary First Avenue nightclub. \u201cWhen they were filming Purple Rain<\/em>, one of the motorcycle scenes was shot right outside my window,\u201d he recalled. \u201cMy teenage daughters were watching through the glass when Prince rode by. The crew stopped filming because of the noise, but they ended up inviting the girls to the set. That\u2019s our family\u2019s Prince story.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked what audiences can expect from this new production, Webb spoke of transformation. \u201cIt\u2019s like the great hymns: you can rearrange them, but they still hold the same power,\u201d he said. \u201cEverything Prince created was rooted in love, liberty, and excellence. We want people to feel that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Williams agreed. \u201cI hope people walk away feeling alive,\u201d she said. \u201cI hope they dance, remember, and see themselves in this music. Prince built community through art. That\u2019s what we want to honor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And in the glow of the purple lights, as the city once again moves to Prince\u2019s rhythm, Minneapolis finds itself reflected back through sound, through movement, and through the artists carrying his spirit forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Purple Rain\u2122<\/em> runs through November 23, 2025, at the State Theatre. Tickets are available at hennepinarts.org\/events\/purple-rain-2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When the lights fade and the stage glows purple, it feels like a homecoming. In Minneapolis, the city that shaped and was shaped by Prince, the magic of Purple Rain\u2122 has returned. The story that once electrified movie screens is now alive on stage at the State Theatre, pulsing with fresh energy and devotion. At the heart […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3778,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[2507,2508,38,2506],"class_list":["post-3777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-ebony-williams","tag-jason-michael-webb","tag-minneapolis","tag-purple-rain","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Purple.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3777","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3777"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3777\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3779,"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3777\/revisions\/3779"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apexsamplework.com\/insightnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}