The Town Hall Presents BROADWAY BY THE YEAR, Featuring Howard McGillin, Lisa Brescia & More, Tonight

The Town Hall previously announced the season finale of Broadway by the Year featuring The Broadway Musicals of 1988, including The Phantom of the Opera, Chess, Legs Diamond, Romance Romance, Carrie, and More! Scott Siegel, the creator, writer, and host of Broadway by the Year has selected a half dozen performers to star in the concert, including Howard McGillin, who holds the record for playing "The Phantom" longer than any other actor in Broadway history. He will be joined by one of his Christines, Jennifer Hope Wills. Drama Desk Nominees Farah Alvin (The Marvelous Wonderettes) and Kevin Earley (Death Takes a Holiday) return toBroadway by the Year. Lisa Brescia, who starred on Broadway in Twyla Tharp's The Times They Are A-Changin', as Elphaba in Wicked, and as Donna in Mamma Mia! makes her Broadway by the Year debut and favorite Scott Coulter will direct and star in the concert. The cast will be joined by the Broadway by the Year Chorus.

In a statement, Scott Siegel said, "1988 is a remarkable year in Broadway history. In that single season, we had Broadway's biggest hit, The Phantom of the Opera, (which is still running!) plus one of Broadway's most famous failures, Carrie. The season also had a musical that contained one of contemporary Broadway's most beloved scores, Chess. Peter Allen was on Broadway with Legs Diamond, and a little musical titled Romance Romance was a genuine charmer in that memorable year. We've got the perfect cast to bring back the music first heard on Broadway a quarter century ago, led by one of Broadway's most accomplished and admired performers, Howard McGillinHoward McGillin">?. We hope you'll join us on Monday night for a very special concert."

Tickets are $55, $50 and $45, on sale through TicketMaster.com, (800) 982-2787, or The Town Hall Box Office (123 West 43 Street) between noon and 6 PM (except Sundays) at 212-840-2824.

In its 13th year, this critically-acclaimed series has blossomed into what Show Business Weekly deems, "...an invaluable and entertaining jewel in the cabaret crown of New York." The New York Times has called it, "Witty, breezily paced. . .informative. . .valuable. . .the right perspective of lighthearted nostalgia... a reasonably priced alternative to City Center's Encore Series."

Author/critic Scott Siegel created the series for The Town Hall, which he writes and hosts. Siegel takes audiences of all ages on a musical tour of the Great White Way, offering an entertaining verbal account of Broadway's history. Each evening celebrates the songs from Broadway shows of a selected year, sung by a cast of talented cabaret and Broadway performers. This marvelous program not only highlights favorite show-stopping numbers, it also features lesser-known gems. Past stars include: Sutton Foster, Ann Harada, Cheyenne Jackson, Brian d'Arcy James, Marc Kudish, Tonya Pinkins, Elizabeth Stanley, and many more!

Built in 1921 by a group of suffragettes, The Town Hall began as a lecture hall and public debate forum and grew to be a landmark institution for arts, culture and education. Over the decades, Eleanor Roosevelt, Margaret Sanger, Billie Holiday, Igor Stravinsky, Bob Dylan and MiLes Davis have graced the stage. Today the Hall boasts the hottest acts in rock, pop, folk, cabaret, world music, comedy and dance, including Elvis Costello, Nick Offerman, Rodriguez, Pat Metheny, Norah Jones, Brandi Carlile, Joe Jackson, Pink Martini, Regina Spektor, Bryan Adams, Lang Lang and Dawn Upshaw. For over twenty-five years, The Town Hall has hosted live broadcasts of Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion, and produced a number of new and critically acclaimed musical series, including the Century of Change, Not Just Jazz, Broadway by the Year, Broadway Cabaret Festival and the Spring Series.