Harold Arlen News

54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents MARCUS GOLDHABER in 'FREE & EASY: LIVIN' ON SWING STREET' TONIGHT, JULY 25 AT 9:30 p.m.

FSCJ Artist Series and the Nathan H. Wilson Center for the Arts are proud to present the 10th Annual High School Summer Musical Theatre Experience!  This program provides theatre opportunities to 7th-12th graders in the First Coast area and allows them to work hands-on with some of the highest recognized local and regional theatre professionals. 

The Coachella Valley Repertory Theatre (CVRep) is proud to present FINDING HOME: An Evening With Chad Hilligus - stories from life on the road, life on the stage and life on the journey.

Near the end of his exceptional new show, Very Good Years: The Intimate Sinatra at the Metropolitan Room, Richard Malavet recalls famed radio personality William B. Williams who once said: "Frank Sinatra is the most imitated, most listened to, most recognized voice of the 20th century." Williams did not exaggerate. Consequently, in this centennial year of Sinatra's birth, there will be many observations of the man known as "The Voice." For his tribute to Sinatra, Malavet did his homework. In this meticulously researched, respectful homage, he turns his talents to the more personalized aspects of the pop star's recording years, from 1939-1968, when musically, Sinatra became synonymous with songs of heartache and loneliness.

A jazzy new musical revue tribute to the man Sinatra called 'the greatest singer in the world,' Tony Bennett. Go wild over the four decades of music that Bennett recorded, from his early top-40 hits, jazz recordings with Basie, Stan Getz, and Bill Evans, to his torch songs, film scores, all the way to his now infamous MTV unplugged, which introduced him to a whole new generation of listeners.

Last December, Texas treasure Holland Vavra made her 54 Below debut in Cuz We're F#cking Talented, a concert where a handful of artists showed off their skills. Last night, she made a special trip from Houston to premiere her tribute to Frank Sinatra, Holland at the Sands: My Blue Eyed Sinatra. With her own brand of lovable, quirky humor and her golden instrument, Vavra made her solo cabaret debut a delightful spectacle.

Rebekah Lowin is a pretty, personable young woman with a voice that, at its best, can be ethereal. A recent Columbia University grad, Lowin first made an impression on cabaret audiences in October 2013 with an appearance at the Cabaret Convention and a show at 54 Below. Her new offering at the Metropolitan Room, I Know You By Heart, is built around the songs of Eva Cassidy, who inspired Lowin's devotion when she was in the sixth grade and held steadfast for five years of repeated listening. Virtually unknown outside Washington, DC during her lifetime, Cassidy's posthumous compilation Songbird topped the charts in 1998. (Ms. Cassidy died of cancer in 1996.) Lowin looks rather like her subject and appears to have similar range, if a less mature voice.

FSCJ Artist Series and the Nathan H. Wilson Center for the Arts are proud to present the 10th Annual High School Summer Musical Theatre Experience!  This program provides theatre opportunities to 7th-12th graders in the First Coast area and allows them to work hands-on with some of the highest recognized local and regional theatre professionals. 

WALNUT CREEK, CA (July 7, 2015) – The California Symphony presents the beloved classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, and performs the complete, live orchestral accompaniment as the movie is shown on a giant screen at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, Friday, August 21 at 8:30 pm. Conductor Sarah Hicks leads the orchestra in some of the best-loved movie songs and music of all time, including Harold Arlen and E.Y. “Yip” Harburg's “Over the Rainbow,” “We're Off to See the Wizard,” “If I Only Had a Brain,” “Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead,” “The Merry Old Land of Oz,” and many more, as well as the underscore by composer Herbert Stothart. Judy Garland and the other actors' original vocal performances are preserved and enhanced, so they can be fully heard and enjoyed as the orchestra plays. The film's restored images are accompanied by the orchestra playing entirely new transcriptions of Harold Arlen's brilliant lost scores. The production is by Emmy Award-winning producer John Goberman (Live from Lincoln Center). Tickets for The Wizard of Oz are $25 to $75 for adults and $10 for students 18 years old and younger, and are on sale now at www.californiasymphony.org/oz.

THE LAST SHIP's Sally Ann Triplett will perform at the Crazy Coqs at Brasserie Zedel in London, beginning tonight, July 7, 2015.

The Coachella Valley Repertory Theatre (CVRep) is proud to present FINDING HOME: An Evening With Chad Hilligus - stories from life on the road, life on the stage and life on the journey.

Ken Greves, performing music from his new CD, will appear at Cafe Noctambulo on Thursday, July 2nd at 8pm with Frank Ponzio (piano), Saadi Zain (bass) and Jacob Melchior (drums). 

Monday night at the upstairs library at The Player's Club, young actor/vocalist Evan Stern collaborated with one of cabaret's treasures, the veteran pianist/arranger/vocalist Steve Ross on a show illuminating the influence of a southern upbringing on the work of iconic songwriter and Savannah, Georgia native Johnny Mercer. The piece was beautifully put together with Stern's intermittent repartee (never dropping a musical stitch), reflecting his skills as an actor as well as a writer.

Danny Bacher has the performance ease of an artist who's spent twice his years on the circuit. His preternatural feel for swing delivers scrupulous control, hip, unfussy phrasing, nuanced inflection, and the kind of fluent, savory scat “wordless vocables” I haven't heard from a man in some time, certainly not one so young. His soprano saxophone and singing are so like one another in attitude and energy, Bacher epitomizes the musician whose instrument acts as solid manifestation of voice. His new CD release celebration show at the Metropolitan Room, Swing That Music (last performance of a four-show run today at 4 pm) is a jazz tribute to the three Louis: Louis Armstrong--Satchmo (1901-1971), Louis Prima--The King of Swing before Benny Goodman came along (1910-1978), and Louis Jordan--King of the Jukebox (1908-1975.) Musical numbers get along like the old friends they are, brushing shoulders, poking one another in the ribs, slapping backs. The show is well paced with next to no patter. Danny Bacher is the real deal; a musician to watch.

54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents MARCUS GOLDHABER in "FREE & EASY: LIVIN' ON SWING STREET" on SATURDAY, JULY 25 AT 9:30 p.m.

An evening with - the only - six-time Tony Award recipient Audra McDonald is more than listening to her rich, versatile voice sing both older and more recent treasures. Ms. McDonald chooses songs that have strong stories both for her and within the song itself. Her ability to capture these narratives through her voice is one of the many reasons Ms. McDonald is such a brilliant actress and singer. The opportunity to see Ms. McDonald work her magic live is enchanting, to say the least.

ILENE GRAFF, Grammy-nominated recording artist, television, and Broadway star, along with her husband, ASCAP-Award winning Musical Director BEN LANZARONE, present their big band show: 'IT'S BETTER WITH A BAND!' tonight, June 24, 2015 at 8:30 P.M. at Hollywood's premiere live music venue, Catalina's Jazz Club ( 6275 Sunset Blvd.).

Orange County, Calif.-June 18, 2015-Inspired by the creative minds and unique backgrounds of its musicians, Pacific Symphony and its Board of Directors awarded four orchestra members with a "Musician Innovation Grant" totaling $20,000 to fund new artistic projects. The grant's purpose is to give musicians the opportunity for original expression, creativity and experimentation, with the goal of serving new communities and developing new or deeper interest in classical music. These four chamber music performances explore such diverse themes as obsession, synesthesia, suppressed musical treasures of the 20th century, as well as classical and Broadway music. Taking place from June through next season, each of the events is free or low-cost to attend and features a chamber ensemble of Symphony musicians and outside artistic collaborators. For more about these projects and Pacific Symphony, call (714) 755-5799 or visit www.PacificSymphony.org.

According to the Daily Mail, THE LAST SHIP's Sally Ann Triplett will perform at the Crazy Coqs at Brasserie Zedel in London, beginning July 7, 2015.

Hotel Nikko San Francisco and Michael Feinstein announced today that Tony Award-winning actress, Faith Prince, will bring her acclaimed show, Have a Little Faith, to Feinstein's at the Nikko for two performances only - tonight, June 19 (8 p.m.) and Saturday, June 20 (7 p.m.). Have a Little Faith features a 'smorgasbord' of Faith Prince: past, present and future. From her memorable Broadway triumphs to tales and songs from her early Off-Broadway gems to her latest Broadway roles, the evening sparkles with doses of Faith's quirky trademark humor as well as touching moments filled with pathos. As hostess of this musical evening, Faith Prince guarantees that the best is yet to come! Tickets for Faith Prince range in price from $40-$55 and are available by calling 866-663-1063 or visiting www.ticketweb.com.