Steve Barnes is reporting for the Times Union the drama, "Ella the Ungovernable," by Hudson resident David McDonald will receive a virtual staged reading next week with a cast participating from around the country. The play tells the story of the time jazz artist Ella Fitzgerald spent as a teen at the New York Training School for Girls in Hudson. The work had its world premiere in February at the Valatie Community Theatre. Plans to bring the production to other theaters in the Capital Region, as well as New York City, were ended by the shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, it is being presented as part of the Theater for The New City's "On the Air" program of staged readings created via the Zoom videoconferencing platform. McDonald said actors will be connected from locations in Chicago; New York City; Princeton, N.J.; Fort Worth, Texas; as well as Chatham theater veteran Eddie Allen and WGXC-FM's Philip Grant. Grant is the only cast member returning from the February production. McDonald chose to fictionalize the story because little is known about the time Fitzgerald spent at the Training School. Fitzgerald, who died in 1996, refused to discuss the matter. "Ella the Ungovernable" will be performed live at 7 p.m. Thu., May 28, and may be viewed on TNC's website and YouTube channel. Read the full story in the Times Union.