John Hart News

There's a reason - a simple one - that Second City can fill an auditorium on a cold, windy evening in late March in Naples, when the sun is shining and the million distractions of a coastal resort town beckon. These guys are good. Very, very good.

American Ballet Theatre's 2013 season at the Metropolitan Opera House, May 13-July 6 will be highlighted by the World Premiere of a three-part work set to music by Dmitri Shostakovich and choreographed by Alexei Ratmansky, the Company Premiere of Sir Frederick Ashton's A Month in the Country and a new production of Le Corsaire. Tickets for ABT's Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House are on sale now at the box office

La Jolla Playhouse brings back the hilarious The Second City for a return engagement tonight, March 20 - 23, 2013 in The Playhouse's specially-designed cabaret-style performance space in the Sheila and Hughes Potiker Theatre.

Lyric Opera of Chicago announces a special performance of Andre Previn's A Streetcar Named Desire for high-school and college students with tickets for only $20. The operatic version of the Tennessee Williams classic will be seen in a semi-staged presentation with the Lyric Opera Orchestra onstage, with singers Beverly O' Regan Thiele (Blanche), Kiera Duffy (Stella), David Adam Moore (Stanley), and Scott Ramsay (Mitch). Evan Rogister conducts this presentation, which is directed by Brad Dalton.

A sparkling evening of entertainment will be had at Riverside Theatre when The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation presents a fundraiser for their organization tonight, March 12 at 8pm.

A sparkling evening of entertainment will be had at Riverside Theatre when The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation presents a fundraiser for their organization on Tuesday, March 12 at 8pm.

Club Helsinki in association with SHOWSTOPPERS NY presents some of Broadway's top performers on Sunday nights at seven in a new series called HELSINKI ON BROADWAY. Linda Lavin & Billy Stritch were featured in last night's show and you can check out photos of him in action below!

Porchlight Music Theatre has announced the return of BEST MUSICAL! A Completely Improvised Musical Comedy, conceived by Second City veteran Matthew Loren Cohen, at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave, tonight, February 6 - March 6, Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.

The latest in unauthorized gossip and buzz from the heart of Chicago's showtune video bars, and musical theater news from Chicago to New York. Upcoming productions of 'See What I Wanna See' and 'Little Women,' a unique 'Joseph...,' four world premieres, including 'Under A Rainbow Flag,' plus a whole bunch of special cabaret evenings, the return of 'Best Musical!' at Stage 773, and world premiere choreography by Ann Reinking!

Porchlight Music Theatre has announced the return of BEST MUSICAL! A Completely Improvised Musical Comedy, conceived by Second City veteran Matthew Loren Cohen, at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave, February 6 - March 6, Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. Single tickets are $15, student discounts are $10 and group discounts available. All tickets are available at stage773.com, porchlightmusictheatre.org or by phone at 773.327.5252.

BroadwayWorld.com, the largest theatre site on the Internet, is thrilled to announce a new feature to its comprehensive regional coverage - the Featured Regional Dance Company of the Week! Today, it's all about Ballet West in Salt Lake, Utah!

There's a new girl in town this January when Tony and Golden Globe winner Linda Lavin takes to our stage for four encore performances of Now, the show she debuted on our stage in September that had audiences demanding more! New York audiences remember her from It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman, Last of the Red Hot Lovers, Broadway Bound, Collected Stories, The Diary of Anne Frank, Gypsy, The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, and many others, and the world over knows her as Alice Hyatt in the long-running hit TV series Alice. A veteran of the cabaret stage, Linda began her career playing such NYC nightspots as The Showplace in Greenwich Village and midtown's Downstairs at the Upstairs. Recently, Linda released her very first CD, Possibilities. This January, she'll be joined at 54 Below by Musical Director Billy Stritch, John Hart on guitar, and special guest violinist, Aaron Weinstein, playing Linda Lavin, Jan. 11 & 12 at 8:30PM & Jan. 10 at 7PM:. Cover charge $40-50. $25 food & beverage minimum.

Coming up this week, 54 BELOW, the performance venue located just below the legendary Studio 54 at 254 West 54th Street, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz and beyond, featuring Tony Award and Golden Globe winner Linda Lavin, BACKSTAGE, Tony nominee Sally Mayes and award-winning jazz singer/songwriter Mark Winkler, award-winning singer Amber Martin, Sondheim Unplugged, musical legend Darlene Love, The Broadway Boys, Broadway star Morgan James and Night of Stars!

This past week, Klea Blackhurst, Jim Caruso and Billy Stritch brought holiday cheer to the iconic music room Birdland, with their "Swinging Birdland Christmas." For the third year in a row, the performers were accompanied by John Hart on guitar, Carmen Intorre on drums and Paul Gill on bass, along with special guest jazz violinist/comedian Aaron Weinstein.

JAZZ at the Turning Point Café in Piermont, N.Y., within minutes of NYC, NJ, Westchester, CT, Orange in Rockland, has announced its December 2012 shows.

Birdland has announced the third year of "A Swinging Birdland Christmas," starring Birdland regulars Klea Blackhurst, Jim Caruso and Billy Stritch. This will be a limited engagement of 6 performances, Friday, December 21 through Tuesday, December 25. All shows are at 6pm, except for the Monday and Tuesday, with 7pm and 10pm shows.

JERRY THE MOVIE is being built around Leo's interview with Garcia at the height of his charm, brilliance and success. Drawing from this intimate interview as well as new interviews with Jerry's contemporaries, photographs and concert footage, Leo is creating a singular portrait of an American icon that graced our lives through music, art and the counter-culture of the sixties.

JERRY THE MOVIE is being built around Leo's interview with Garcia at the height of his charm, brilliance and success. Drawing from this intimate interview as well as new interviews with Jerry's contemporaries, photographs and concert footage, Leo is creating a singular portrait of an American icon that graced our lives through music, art and the counter-culture of the sixties.

Birdland hosts a CD release party for David Bixler's latest project The NEAREST EXIT MAY BE INSIDE YOUR HEAD tonight, October 18th at 6pm. In conjunction with Zoho Music ZM 201206, the Street Date for the project was August 14, 2012 and it features Bixler on alto sax, John Hart on guitar, Scott Wendholdt on trumpet, Ugonna Okegwo on drums, and Andy Watson on bass.