Megan Hilty to Join Cincinnati Pops at Music Hall, 1/24-26

Megan Hilty lends her powerhouse vocals to the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra at Music Hall on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, January 24-26, 2014 with a program consisting of Broadway favorites, and songs from Ms. Hilty's new album. The star of the NBC hit television series Smash and Sean Saves the World, and Pops conductor, John Morris Russell, team up for an unforgettable evening of music and excitement. Ms. Hilty made her Pops debut in 2009, stepping in at a moment's notice for an ailing Kristin Chenoweth. Audiences were blown away and her return has been eagerly anticipated ever since.

Tickets for Megan Hilty are available starting at $25, and can be purchased via the Pops Box Office by calling (513) 381-3300 or visiting www.cincinnatipops.org.

The Pops Series Presenting Sponsor is PNC. The Cincinnati Pops is grateful to the David A. Millett Inc., performance sponsor. The Pops Artist Series Sponsor is The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation, and Artist Sponsor, Towers Watson. The ArtsWave partner company for this performance is Enquirer Media.

Hilty currently stars alongside Sean Hayes in NBC's comedy "Sean Saves the World". Hilty most recently starred as the seasoned triple-threat Ivy Lynn in NBC's musical drama "Smash" for two seasons. In 2012, Hilty signed with Sony Music in a partnership between Sony Masterworks and Columbia Records and released her album, "It Happens All the Time," in early 2013. It includes fresh interpretations of compositions by contemporary songwriters and producers.

This summer, Hilty participated in a reading of a new Broadway-bound production of Cole Porter's Can-Can. She previously starred as Lorelei Lee, the diamond-loving blonde made famous by Carol Channing, in the Encores! production of "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," to which she earned rave reviews. Additionally, her voice was featured as Rosetta in Disney's "Tinker Bell: Secret of the Wings." She's previously recorded vocals in Disney's "The Secret Life of Magic Gourd," "Phineas & Ferb," "Glenn Martin DDS," "American Dad," "Tinker Bell and the Pixie Hollow Games," "Robot & Monster" as well as singing as Snow White in the film "Shrek the Third." Hilty recently wrapped production on Summertime Entertainment's animated film "Dorothy of Oz" with Kelsey Grammer, Hugh Dancy and Lea Michele, slated for release in 2013. She can also be heard alongside Placido Domingo on the opera star's duet album.

A native of Seattle, Hilty moved to New York City after graduating from the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University, and quickly made her Broadway debut as Glinda in "Wicked." She went on to perform the role in both the national tour and in Los Angeles.

After receiving critical acclaim for her portrayal of Doralee Rhodes in Broadway's "9 to 5: The Musical," Hilty was honored with nominations for Lead Actress in a Musical at the Drama Desk Awards, Outer Critics Circle Awards, the Drama League Awards and L.A. Stage Alliance Ovation Awards. Hilty has previously performed with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center, the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center and with the Cincinnati Symphony. She was also featured at TNT's 2012 Christmas in Washington special and continues to perform at prestigious venues nationwide.

Her television credits include guest-starring roles in "Melissa & Joey," "Bones," "The Closer," "Desperate Housewives," "CSI," "Shark," "Ugly Betty," "Eli Stone" and "The Suite Life of Zach & Cody."

Among Hilty's film credits are "The Bitter Feast" and the short film "The Happiest Man Alive," opposite Justin Chambers.

Consistently winning international praise for his extraordinary music making and visionary leadership, John Morris Russell began his tenure as Conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra in September of 2011. JMR "has shown a new generation the strength and versatility of symphonic pops" raved the Cincinnati Enquirer, while he continues to build upon the legacy of Pops founder and conductor Erich Kunzel.

JMR has worked with many of North America's most distinguished ensembles, including the orchestras of Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Toronto and Vancouver, as well as Miami's New World Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic and The Cleveland Orchestra. In 1999 he replaced an ailing Maestro Kunzel at the famed Musikverein in Vienna, in a concert featuring the Harlem Boychoir, the Vienna Choir Boys and the actor Gregory Peck. The performance was recorded on CD and DVD and continues to be televised throughout Europe, Japan and in the U.S. on PBS

Widely considered one of North America's leaders in orchestral educational programming, JMR champions music-making of all kinds in schools and communities throughout the U.S. and Canada. For 12 years he conducted "LinkUP!" concerts at Carnegie Hall, the oldest and most celebrated series of its kind, created by Walter Damrosch in 1891 and made famous by Leonard Bernstein. As Associate Conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestra (1995-2006), he created the "Classical Roots" series, celebrating the music of African-American composers, as well as the "Sound Discoveries" series, which remains a leading model for educational concerts across the continent.

John Morris Russell also serves as Music Director of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra in South

Carolina and is Conductor Laureate of the Windsor Symphony Orchestra in Ontario, Canada, where he was Music Director between 2001 and 2012. JMR studied at the University of Southern California, Williams College, the Cleveland Institute of Music, the Aspen Music Festival, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and the Pierre Monteux School for Conductors in Hancock, ME. He received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Windsor in 2011.

Tickets start at $25 and are available by phone at (513) 381-3300, on the Internet at www.cincinnatipops.org, or in person at:

· CSO Box Office at Music Hall, 1241 Elm Street, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

· Student Tickets for Pops concerts are $20 and are available the week of the concert in person at the CSO Sales Office, over the phone at 513-381-3300, or online at www.cincinnatipops.org (limit two tickets per valid student ID).

· Child Tickets are just $20.