Los Angeles, CA (NBC Television) - Triple threat� entertainer Jamie Foxx, the red hot comedian, Oscar winning actor and chart topping recording artist has tapped the equally versatile playwright, author and director
David E. Talbert to helm his upcoming one hour television special:
Jamie Foxx - Unpredictable: A Musical
Journey airing Wednesday, January 25, 2006.
I was in the middle of doing rewrites on a script I was working on when I got a call from Marcus King, Jamie's manager, saying that he wanted me to fuse the music from Jamie's new album to scripted vignettes based on his life, to the magic of live theatre for an NBC television special. I couldn't pass it up because it was something that hadn't been done before, especially on network television, Talbert says.
The next thing I know, I'm in Miami with Jamie Foxx on the set of Miami Vice and making it happen. We hit it off and we got back here in L.A. and just started cranking. The ball started rolling from there. Really it's Jamie's story, my job was to take what was in his head and make it theatrical,� Talbert says.
Talbert wrote, co-produced, and staged this sensational, hour-long, prime time world event television special, which will premiere on NBC networks on Wednesday, January 25 (check local listings) with a rebroadcast on Friday, January 27. This special is part stage play and part music concert. The musical performances are based on Foxx's chart topping new CD Unpredictable on Clive Davis's J Records imprint.
Currently at number one on Billboard's R&B charts, Unpredictable blends old school R&B with hip-hop flavor and bounce. The special, like the CD, will feature Jamie Foxx performing with an all-star lineup, including: Mary J. Blige, Snoop Dogg, The Game, Angie Stone and Common. As an added bonus, there will be a special performance by Foxx with the legendary Stevie Wonder.
What separates this television special from any other in recent memory is the ingenious inclusion of dramatic sketches that seamlessly stitches Foxx's personal story together with the stories that Foxx tells in song on the CD. The special will trace Foxx's journey from his roots in Terrell, Texas, through the eyes of some of the people who were most influential in his life, foremost of whom was his grandmother, who is powerfully portrayed in a profoundly emotional performance by the actress BeBe Drake. So set your Tivo, program the VCR or just watch it the old fashioned way at 8:00 PM me on NBC next Wednesday, the 25th and Friday, the 27th. Because � Jamie Foxx - Unpredictable: A Musical Journey promises to be a night of unforgettable television.
About David E. Talbert Multi award winning playwright and best selling author David E. Talbert is best known for his 12 nationally touring blockbuster stage plays and with the broadcast of Jamie Foxx - Unpredictable: A Musical Journey, Talbert has now added ground breaking work in television to his repertoire. Now, on the heels of having pioneered the medium of inspirational plays on DVD, Talbert is currently in preproduction on his feature film directorial debut , a heist comedy for Sony/Screen Gems. Talbert's debut novel, Baggage Claim, followed by last year's Love On Layaway, both published by Simon & Schuster, climbed to the top of several booksellers lists adding yet another credit to Talbert's achievements.
