Clay Aiken News

Clay Aiken will hit the stage for a special one night only concert at Memorial Auditorium in his hometown, Raleigh, NC on Friday, March 12.

Tonight episode of 'American Idol' brought the always-entertaining group auditions. The remaining contestants form groups of three to five people, choose from a select list of songs, and choreograph the number to perform in front of the judges. Group auditions always provide for an excellent episode, as it is the only time in the show when contestants are forced to depend on others in their performance.

The first round of Hollywood auditions on 'American Idol' brought the welcome addition of Ellen DeGeneres to the judging panel. Ellen replaced Paula Abdul, after Paula was not hired back for 'Idol's' ninth season. Ellen was a refreshing change to panel, being brutally honest to the contestants, as well as providing several amusing comments about the performances.

'Idol' closed out its fourth week of auditions with a 'Best of the Rest' episode, containing singers from each of the seven audition cities. In typical 'Idol' fashion, some of the singers were quite talented, while others were simply pitiful. Very few standouts were seen in this last episode; however, one of the more interesting stories to take place thus far on 'Idol' was featured.

The 'American Idol' auditions made their last stop tonight, visiting Denver, the home to one of the biggest rock stars to come from 'Idol,' Daughtry. Since season five when Daughtry appeared on the show, the number of auditions to be the next 'American Idol' more than doubled, bringing the total number of contestants in Denver to over 9,000. Guest judge Victoria Beckham was back on the judging panel, bookending the auditions after joining the show on its first stop in Boston.

'American Idol' made its way back to the location of its season one winner, visiting the city of Dallas and home of pop superstar Kelly Clarkson. The guest judges joining 'Idol' in the state of Texas were teen heartthrob Joe Jonas and television and Broadway star and Tony Award host Neil Patrick Harris. Dallas brought some excellent singers into the mix and some will definitely make a splash in Hollywood.

The fifth stop on the audition tour of 'American Idol' landed in 'Idol's' own backyard, Los Angeles. Joining Simon, Randy, and Kara were two young pop stars themselves, Avril Lavigne on the first day and Katy Perry on the second day. Lavigne was rarely seen on screen and did not seem to add much to the judging panel; Perry, however, was one of the few guest judges to truly understand the competition. Instead of joining Kara as the 'feel-good-judge' and sending people to Hollywood if they came in with a good story, Perry only voted 'Yes' to singers who she felt would actually have the chance to win the competition. A welcome change to the judging panel, Katy was more reminiscent of Simon and made her decision based purely on talent.

Day 4 of 'American Idol' kicked off in Orlando tonight with guest judge and Broadway star Kristin Chenoweth. Many remember Chenoweth's show-stealing, Tony-winning performance in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown and her triumphant star turn when she originated the role of Glinda (or Galinda) in Wicked, which earned her a Tony Award nomination. Chenoweth most recently starred in the ABC series Pushing Daisies, for which she just won the Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She'll next be seen back on Broadway in the revival of Promises, Promises. Although Chenoweth was only available for half the episode (one day in Orlando), her presence was welcome to 'Idol' and Broadway fans alike.

After two very successful audition dates in Boston and Atlanta, 'American Idol' made its way to the Windy City. With the largest attendances as yet, 'Idol' came to Chicago with high expectations. 5-time Grammy winner Shania Twain served as guest judge for the 12,000 hopefuls and Chicago looked to be a promising stop on the long road to Hollywood.

Alley Theatre presents the world premiere of the new musical Wonderland about Alice, a children's book writer in Manhattan who is suffering through a creative block, estranged from her husband and alienated from her daughter. It takes a trip to a strange-yet-familiar Wonderland for her to regain her life's balance and again find the love and everyday magic that reside in us all - if we know how to look. With a book by Alley Theatre Artistic Director Gregory Boyd and Jack Murphy (The Civil War), lyrics by Jack Murphy, music by Frank Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde, The Scarlett Pimpernel, The Civil War), and directed by Gregory Boyd, Wonderland begins previews Friday, January 15, opens officially Wednesday, January 20 and runs through Sunday, February 14.

AMERICAN IDOL hopeful Mike Davis may have the most interesting day job of any other contestant on the show: he is an actor on a speedboat. As he tells during his Golden Ticket interview, Davis is part of the 'Codzilla' speedboat experience, a tourism attraction with a theatrical flair.

Contestant Ashley Rodriguez who was singled out by judge Simon Cowell for having the 'it' factor, talks about the time she sang in front of Smokey Robertson at the Berkeley Commencement Concert. See video of Ashley's Golden Ticket interview below, as well as her audition from the show.

AMERICAN IDOL's Amanda Shectman who is a seasoned musical theatre performer and trained opera singer recalls the daunting task of having to perform an Italian aria at the mere age of 7 years old. Watch the video of her interview with AMERICAN IDOL below.

North Carolina native Noel Reese, now proud owner of an AMERICAN IDOL Golden Ticket, recalls in this interview her early start in the arts, as an admittedly nervous 7-year old, performing songs from Rodgers and Hammerstein's 'The King and I' and 'The Sound of Music'.

AMERICAN IDOL hopeful Liz Rooney is an Army girl and 911 Dispatcher. Her roots in music came at an early age, starring as 'Simba' in a school production of THE LION KING when she was just 10 years old. See her Golden Ticket interview below.

AMERICAN IDOL's Golden Ticket Interviews features 19-year-old student Carmen Turner who hails from Baxley, Georgia. In the interview piece, Turner speaks about her own idol, Kelly Clarkson, and her role as Dance Captain for her high school's show choir. Turner auditioned for AMERICAN IDOL with a friend, both hopeful to make it past the first audition, but it was Turner who eventually wowed the judges and landed a Golden Ticket.

Day two of the hit reality TV show 'American Idol' continued tonight, moving the audition phase to Atlanta, Georgia, with guest judge Mary J. Blige. Atlanta proved rather comparable to last night's Boston auditions for the less-than-stellar singers, but, for a city that has featured the likes of Fantasia Barrino and Jennifer Hudson (both who held their initial audition in Atlanta), seemed to lack some of the more extraordinary performers. Although there were several good singers in the mix, the more colorful performances stole the show.

Another season of the hit reality TV show 'American Idol' kicked off its ninth season last night, bringing the familiar faces of Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell, and Kara DioGuardio as America's favorite judging panel back to the silver screen. The show that has brought talent such as Kelly Clarkson and Clay Aiken takes talent from across the country and lets America choose who will be the next 'Idol.' Now in its ninth season, 'American Idol' has been one of the biggest reality TV show hits of the decade and has taken the country by storm.

Alley Theatre presents the world premiere of the new musical Wonderland about Alice, a children's book writer in Manhattan who is suffering through a creative block, estranged from her husband and alienated from her daughter. It takes a trip to a strange-yet-familiar Wonderland for her to regain her life's balance and again find the love and everyday magic that reside in us all - if we know how to look. With a book by Alley Theatre Artistic Director Gregory Boyd and Jack Murphy (The Civil War), lyrics by Jack Murphy, music by Frank Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde, The Scarlett Pimpernel, The Civil War), and directed by Gregory Boyd, Wonderland begins previews Friday, January 15, opens officially Wednesday, January 20 and runs through Sunday, February 14.

The Chelsea Symphony has announced its Fourth Annual Winter Concert on Friday, December 11 at 8 PM, at St. Paul's Church. The program will feature actor/playwright and drag legend Charles Busch in Aaron Dai's holiday favorite, the Night Before Christmas, following a tradition of celebrated guest narrators: Ana Gasteyer, David Hyde Pierce and Richard Kind. New York Times lauded flautist Jesse Schiffman will perform Mozart's First Flute Concerto and the program will be rounded out with the overture to the Marriage of Figaro and the Nutcracker Suite. The concert will be performed without intermission and will feature four conductors rotating from positions within the orchestra to the podium and back: Music Director Miguel Campos Neto, Ankush Kumar Bahl, Kyunghun Kim and Mark Seto.