Bayou City Concert Musicals to Present ALONE TOGETHER: THE SONGS OF ARTHUR SCHWARTZ, 5/6-20

Bayou City Concert Musicals continues its popular cabaret series with Alone Together: The Songs of Arthur Schwartz, on three consecutive Monday nights in May, beginning Monday, May 6, and continuing on May 13 and May 20 at 7:30 p.m. The evening of song will again be presented at the Performance Centre of the Ensemble Theatre, 3535 Main between Holman and Berry Street, in the heart of Midtown. (Entrance to The Performance Centre is located on the corner of Fannin and Berry directly behind the theatre and has convenient free parking, courtesy of the Houston Community College.)

While not a household name, Arthur Schwartz was a towering figure in American popular music. He wrote his first published song (Baltimore, MD, You're the Only Doctor for Me) in 1923 while studying to become a lawyer. With encouragement from Lorenz Hart and George Gershwin, Schwartz continued writing songs after he passed the bar. He abandoned his law practice entirely in 1928 to devote his life to music. It was, at least for American music lovers, a wise move. His first hit, I Guess I Have to Change My Plan, came in 1929 from a Broadway show he wrote with lyricist Howard Dietz, The Little Show. He continued to work on Broadway, but many of his greatest hits came from the songs he wrote for Hollywood films. He received two Academy Award nominations for They're Either Too Young or Too Old from the 1943 film Thank Your Lucky Stars and for A Gal in Calico from the 1946 film The Time, The Place and The Girl. Arthur Schwartz was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1972. In 1990 (six years after his death), his biggest hit, That's Entertainment, was named ASCAP's Most Performed Feature Film Standard.

BCCM's cabaret evening will feature Schwartz standards, including Dancing in the Dark, By Myself, You and The Night and The Music, I See Your Face Before Me, Alone Together and many others. In addition to performances by Houston's finest musical theatre talent, BCCM Artistic Director Paul Hope will provide commentary on the life and work of Arthur Schwartz.

Tickets are $25.00 and are available by calling 713-465-6484 or on line at bayoucityconcertmusicals.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the door, but reservations are recommended.

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