Contact: Jim Weiss, Gospel Music Channel; 770-692-4579

ATLANTA, Nov. 11 /Christian Newswire/ -- Robert Townsend, multi-talented producer, director, writer and star of motion pictures, television and online series as Hollywood Shuffle, A Soldier's Story and The Five Heartbeats, will return to Gospel Music Channel (www.gospelmusicchannel.com) for a second Robert Townsend Presents The Musical Theater of Hope special, it was announced today.
 
A unique combination of drama, storytelling and music, the newest Robert Townsend Presents The Musical Theater of Hope will world premiere on GMC on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 9:00 pm (ET) and will be followed by an encore of the highly-acclaimed first Musical Theater of Hope special at 9:30 pm. The specials are produced in tandem with BellTown Productions. Townsend serves as producer, director, writer and host.

The first two Robert Townsend Presents The Musical Theater of Hope specials will also be seen back-to-back on GMC Sun. Nov. 15 at 1:00/1:30 am ET (10:00/10:30 pm PT) and on Thanksgiving night, Thurs. Nov. 26 at 11:00/11:30 pm ET (8:00/8:30 pm PT).

Robert Townsend Presents The Musical Theater of Hope tells three individual stories through characters dealing with the challenges of Life. Dramatic vocal performances, delivered with an unexpected plot twist, climax each tale of ultimate triumph. The special is designed to capture a theatre-like quality and was shot in front of a live studio audience.

In each of the vignettes, a story is told through moving and compelling acting which climaxes in a powerful musical performance. In "Buster Jenkins Graduates Today," a former drug dealer and gang-member (played by Andre Washington) graduates as the valedictorian of his college class; what will his message be? "God's DNA" tells the tale of a man (Louis Price) who served 25 years for a crime he didn't commit and who must now learn to live again; Faith sustained him in prison will it hold up in the outside world? The third story called "A Heart That Forgives" sees basketball star Morris Christian and his wife Kimberly (Petrina Smith) in divorce court because of adultery and drug abuse. Morris has changed, but has his change come too late? Kimberly understands that there's more at stake than finances, but does her heart?

BellTown Productions is a creative film, television, internet, and mobile device company that provides programming content for the entire family. This Atlanta based company established in early 2009 is collaboration between filmmaker and Hollywood Icon Robert Townsend and Bishop Eddie L. Long, Senior Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. Long and Townsend determined that their partnership was needed to combat the negative programming that was prevalent in much of the film and television industries. Bishop Long commented, "We believe we can impact the world with a message of hope."

Gospel Music Channel (GMC) is the fastest-growing network in television and can be seen in 45 million homes on various cable systems around the country, on DIRECTV on channel 338 and on Verizon FiOS on channel 224.