John Pizzarelli News

Norm Lewis' amiable charm immediately makes him the best friend, next-door neighbor type. As he opened an evening of song at Sunday's Bay Area Cabaret concert, the Tony Award nominated performer endeared himself to his audience with appropriate selections of "The Best is Yet To Come" and "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."

Bay Area Cabaret presents Tony Award nominee Norm Lewis in his West Coast concert debut. A commanding yet affable presence, Lewis took Broadway by storm, starring opposite Audra McDonald in the highly-acclaimed The Gershwin's Porgy and Bess. His performance brought the singer/actor critical praise, as well as Best Leading Actor nominations for the Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle Awards.

54 Below, Broadway's Supper Club, presents Cabaret and Broadway favorites Jeff Harnar, Linda Hart, Nicolas King and Jennifer Sheehan in 'COME FLY WITH ME' on November 21, 2013. The evening is a centenary celebration of the lyrics of Sammy Cahn and the music of Jimmy Van Heusen and was conceived and directed by Grammy and Emmy Award winner, John McDaniel, during his first season as artistic director of the O'Neill Theater Center's Cabaret and Performance conference. Mr. McDaniel makes his New York directorial debut with this show.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra opens the 2013.14 Pops season with Ella, Louis, and All That Jazz tonight, October 11-13, 2013 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. Guest conductor Jeff Tyzik leads the orchestra, featuring Byron Stripling, trumpet; Marva Hicks, vocalist; and Robert Breithaupt, drums. In tribute to Ella, Satchmo, and Fats Waller, the concerts include favorites such as S'Wonderful, It Don't Mean a Thing, What a Wonderful World, and selections from Gershwin's Porgy & Bess.

Continuing its 10th Anniversary Season, Bay Area Cabaret presents America's Romantic Piano Sensation, Jim Brickman in concert. Making his first San Francisco appearance in nearly ten years, Mr. Brickman will perform solo at 8pm, and with special guest Broadway tenor David Burnham at 5pm, Sunday, November 10, at the historic Venetian Room of the Fairmont San Francisco, 950 Mason Street. Tickets ($43-$48) are available at www.bayareacabaret.org or by phone at City Box Office(415) 392-4400.

The Lied Center for Performing Arts at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln has announced its 24th season of world-class performing artists. The season includes 51 performances of 31 shows from a wide range of genres including Broadway, classical music, dance, theater, world music and jazz, comedy, holiday performances, folk music and shows for families.

Bay Area Cabaret, devoted to presenting audiences with top performers who expand the definition of cabaret, enters its 10th season this fall with a gala series at the Fairmont San Francisco's historic Venetian Room. To celebrate this significant milestone, Bay Area Cabaret presents a star-studded lineup of performers making their Bay Area Cabaret debuts, as well as the return of a few favorites from the past decade. Opening the seas tonight, September 21, 2013 with a bang is Broadway's Megan Hilty, known to millions as the powerhouse 'Bombshell' on NBC's television program Smash. The season continues October 20, 2013 with Tony nominee Norm Lewis (The Gershwin's Porgy and Bess) and November 10, 2013 with 'America's romantic piano sensation,' multi-platinum selling recording artist Jim Brickman, joined by special guest Broadway heartthrob David Burnham.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra opens the 2013.14 Pops season with Ella, Louis, and All That Jazz on October 11-13, 2013 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. Guest conductor Jeff Tyzik leads the orchestra, featuring Byron Stripling, trumpet; Marva Hicks, vocalist; and Robert Breithaupt, drums. In tribute to Ella, Satchmo, and Fats Waller, the concerts include favorites such as S'Wonderful, It Don't Mean a Thing, What a Wonderful World, and selections from Gershwin's Porgy & Bess.

The Harvard Department of Music and the Office for the Arts at Harvard have announced the appointment of Jason Robert Brown as Blodgett Artist-in-Residence during the spring of 2014. A celebrated American composer, Brown has been hailed as 'one of Broadway's smartest and most sophisticated songwriters since Stephen Sondheim' (Philadelphia Inquirer). He is known best as the award-winning composer and lyricist of the musical The Last 5 Years, and the Tony-award winning composer of Parade.

Continuing its 10th Anniversary Season, Bay Area Cabaret presents Tony Award-nominated Broadway star Norm Lewis. Mr. Lewis comes to the Bay Area for this special one-night-only engagement 5:00pm, Sunday, October 20, at the historic Venetian Room of the Fairmont San Francisco, 950 Mason Street. Tickets ($43-$48) are available at www.bayareacabaret.org or by phone at City Box Office (415) 392-4400.

Lois Braverman, President & CEO, Ackerman Institute for the Family, announced today the honorees and host for The Moving Families Forward Gala which will take place at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel at 301 Park Avenue on Monday, October 21st in New York City.

'Our audiences have diverse tastes when it comes to programming so we do our best to satisfy those tastes with a wide variety of events,' says Palace Theatre Executive Director, Michael E. Moran, Jr. 'Comedy, music, dance, family events - we have it all this season, and we will continue adding shows as opportunities arise.'

Due to a scheduling conflict, jazz vocalist Hilary Kole will replace Cyrille Aimee at the November 13th performance with Freddy Cole. The performance is a part of the Courtyard by Marriott Stamford Broadway/Cabaret/Jazz series "Perfect Pairs at The Palace," which is also being sponsored by Norman Drubner.

'Our audiences have diverse tastes when it comes to programming so we do our best to satisfy those tastes with a wide variety of events,' says Palace Theatre Executive Director, Michael E. Moran, Jr. 'Comedy, music, dance, family events - we have it all this season, and we will continue adding shows as opportunities arise.'

On August 18th at 9:30, Broadway cellist Mairi Dorman-Phaneuf will bring a thrilling evening of music to 54 Below, featuring veteran Broadway stars; renown jazz vocalist, Jessica Molaskey (Sunday in the Park with George, Parade, Tommy) and star of CBS's The Good Wife, Mary Beth Peil (Follies, Sunday in the Park with George, Nine, The King and I.)

The Broadway at Birdland concert series welcomed Broadway's Clarke Thorell in Songs I Wish I'd Written for one night only, Monday, August 5 at 7pm. The concert featured songs by Harry Nilsson, Paul McCartney, Adam Guettel, Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, Elvis Costello, Chris Thile, and Sting. Joining Clarke were Musical Director/pianist Dan Lipton, along with singers Brian d'Arcy James, Cortes Alexander, Haven Burton and Jim Caruso. The band also included Simon Kafka on guitar & other strings, Mark Vanderpoel on bass and Shannon Ford on drums. Scroll down for photos!

The Broadway at Birdland concert series is proud to present the club's debut of Clarke Thorell in Songs I Wish I'd Written for one night only, Monday, August 5 at 7pm. Broadway's Brian D'Arcy James will duet with Thorell.

The Coachella Valley's premiere theatrical venue, The McCallum Theatre, has added an exciting new array of offerings to its' already jam-packed upcoming seaon. Comedy, jazz, world music, country royalty, pop icons and first ladies of American song have been added to the roster of McCallum Theatre's 2013-2014 season. 'We are always looking to add performances with the broadest appeal to Valley audiences,' said Mitch Gershenfeld, President & CEO of the McCallum. 'We are pleased that several terrific shows became available after our subscription brochure went to press and delighted to add them to what is already an exciting and diverse season of world-class entertainment.'

Thorell recently chatted with BroadwayWorld about the upcoming concert and you can check out what he had to say below!

Jazz Vocalist Hilary Kole returns to the Cooperstown Summer Music Festival to sing a selection of classic standards and contemporary songs about love, loss, and the journey to find one's true heart. The concert will feature songs from Cole Porter, Elvis Costello, Irving Berlin, Paul Simon, and more.