BATTER UP! “A PITCH FROM SATCHEL PAIGE” TO LEAD OFF BLACK HISTORY MONTH AT ZANKEL HALL AT CARNEGIE HALL ON MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2, Produced by Gene Fisch, Jr.

BATTER UP!
“A PITCH FROM SATCHEL PAIGE”
TO LEAD OFF BLACK HISTORY MONTH AT
ZANKEL HALL AT CARNEGIE HALL
ON MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2

New York, NY (Friday, December 5, 2025) – Producer Gene Fisch Jr announced that A
Pitch From Satchel Paige, the solo show about the life of one of the greatest baseball
pitchers of all time, will lead off Black History Month at Carnegie Hall. The one-night-only
special performance, starring Russell C. Holt as the legendary Paige, will take place at
Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall on Monday, February 2, at 7:30 p.m.
“We are in a time that pleads for a real superhero, a hero that can be appreciated by
everyone and who will inspire us to be awesome. Satchel is that hero,” said Gene Fisch Jr
“Leading his team to the World Series, pitching until the incredible age of 59, and doing it
all with distinction and class made him a legend – and in this moment of negativity and
strife in America, we need superheroes like him more than ever.”
“Many people know the uplifting story of Jackie Robinson crossing the color line, but fewer
know about the struggle of those that came before Jackie,” said playwright Jim Keller.
“Satchel’s story is that of hundreds of amazing black athletes who never got the chance to
show the world what they could do.”
Before there was a hit by Jackie Robinson, there was a Pitch from Satchel Paige. A Pitch
From Satchel Paige is a solo play by Loren and Jim Keller that brings the audience face
to-face with one of the greatest baseball pitchers of all time – and certainly one of the best
storytellers. Paige’s story is one of overcoming the hardships of poverty and bigotry
through talent, humor, and determination. “Satch” weaves a tale of challenge, inequality,
accomplishment, and change, using exciting baseball moments and historical events to
tell his story.
A Pitch From Satchel Paige previously made its world premiere for a limited engagement
in April 2024 at the Paul Robeson Theatre in Buffalo, New York, after garnering attention
with a 2018 launch at the New York New Works Theatre Festival.
P R O D U C T I O N C R E D I T S
A Pitch From Satchel Paige is produced by Gene Fisch Jr and directed by Verneice
Turner.
B I O G R A P H I E S
Russell C. Holt (Satchel Paige) is an actor from Lackawanna, NY and an MFA Acting
graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (2022). He holds a BA in
Media Studies (Video Production) with a Theatre minor from the University at Buffalo
(2014). Since beginning his career in 2016, Russell has performed in Black Bear
Island (Warren, Alleyway Theatre, 2025), A Pitch from Satchel Paige (Satchel Paige, Paul
Robeson Theatre, 2024), and The Homecoming (Lenny, Torn Space Theater, 2023). He
appears on screen in the Amazon Prime film Family Before Everything (Big Rick).
Verneice Turner (Director) Artie Awards (3) & Buffalo Spree Best Actress Award winner,
started out at the African American Cultural Center of Buffalo NY, and she continued her
study of the performing arts at SUNYAB. She has performed in productions in WNY &
beyond, including Off-Broadway (NFT & NEC) as well as directed. She was the Artistic
Director of The AACC ‘s Paul Robeson Theatre, from May 2023 to June 2024, mounting
several productions, including A Pitch From Satchel Paige.
Jim Keller (Playwright) is a professional communicator with a varied background. He
started as a city reporter in Upstate New York, then transitioned to sports marketing in
NYC where he worked with and wrote about some of the greatest athletes and sporting
events of recent generations. After serving as a spokesperson in Westchester County
government, he spent the bulk of his career with IBM communications. He has taught
writing courses at Marist College and Western Connecticut State University.
A Pitch from Satchel Paige was Jim’s first play and he also collaborated with his father,
Loren Keller, on a two-person drama, Whitman/Wilde. Jim is writing two musical
adaptations from film to the stage and working on an original comedic musical, tentatively
called That Senior Moment.
Gene Fisch Jr (Producer) has spent two decades advocating for underrepresented voices
to reach the stage and to provide exposure to the arts for those not typically given such
opportunities. He regularly takes students from the South Bronx to the MET, to NYC
theatre, and now to Carnegie Hall. He is a facilitator for LGBTQ shows reaching the stage,
has invested and helped bring dozens of shows written by women, people of color, and
those who could not afford to produce their work in an effort to literally change the
landscape of theater. CFO of Alpha Innovations, adjunct prof “Best Instructor” award at
Steven’s Institute of Technology, Flotilla Commander U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, certified
rescue diver, two-time Ironman, lectures at MIT on occasion, co-authored thesis producing
an automobile in India that gets 173mpg (out of MIT)— rounds out a wonderful set of
resources to better the arts community.
A B O U T C A R N E G I E H A L L
Since 1891, New York City’s Carnegie Hall has set the international standard for
excellence in performance. From Tchaikovsky, Dvořák, Mahler, and Bartók to George
Gershwin, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Judy Garland, and The
Beatles, music-making by a long list of artists representing the best of every genre has
filled Carnegie Hall over the years.
Today, the venue remains one of the world’s greatest concert halls and an active cultural
destination for artists and audiences with offerings including series curated by acclaimed
artists and composers, citywide festivals featuring collaborations with leading cultural
institutions, orchestral performances, chamber music, new music concerts, and recitals;
and the best in jazz, global, and popular music. Complementing hundreds of
performances on its stages each season, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute creates
extensive music education and social impact programs that serve hundreds of thousands
of people worldwide, playing a central role in Carnegie Hall’s commitment to making great
music accessible to as many people as possible. For more information, please visit
carnegiehall.org
T I C K E T I N F O R M A T I O N
Tickets for A Pitch For Satchel Paige are on sale now. Tickets may be purchased on the
Carnegie Hall website, carnegiehall.org, by calling (212) 247-7800, or by visiting the
Carnegie Hall Box Office at West 57th Street and Seventh Avenue. When purchased
through carnegiehall.org or by phone, a non-refundable convenience fee of $10 applies
per ticket. There is no convenience fee charged on any tickets purchased in person at the
Carnegie Hall Box Office. Artists, programs, and prices are subject to change.
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