Laura Nyro News

This April, May and June at 54 BELOW presents an exciting lineup of the brightest talent from Broadway and beyond. Located just below the legendary Studio 54 at 254 West 54thStreet. For a detailed schedule of upcoming performances at 54 Below and to purchase tickets, visit www.54Below.com.

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were established hit makers when they teamed up to make a musical about cowboys and farmers. What follows was a miracle-Oklahoma!, then Carousel and South Pacific; the list of extraordinary hits goes on. On April 5, 6 and 7 get to know these legends even better at Getting to Know You: Rodgers & Hammerstein, Lyrics & Lyricists first look at the two songwriters as a team. Guest artistic director, writer and host Ted Chapin, head of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization, shares an insider's perspective on the pair, gleaned from his years with the Rodgers and Hammerstein families; joined by vocalists Lewis Cleale, Mandy Gonzalez, Jonathan Groff, Rebecca Luker, and Phillipa Soo.

Erica Saleh's plays have been produced and developed by theaters including Ensemble Studio Theatre, The 52nd Street Project, Studio 42, 3 Graces and The Claque. She is the recipient of a Michener Fellowship and commissions from the EST/SLOAN project and Dramatics Magazine. Erica is a member of the Ars Nova Play Group, the Ensemble Studio Theatre, and an alumna of Youngblood. She is a graduate of the Michener Center at the University of Texas and Brown University.

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were established hit makers when they teamed up to make a musical about cowboys and farmers. What follows was a miracle—Oklahoma!, then Carousel and South Pacific; the list of extraordinary hits goes on. On April 5, 6 and 7 get to know these legends even better at Getting to Know You: Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lyrics & Lyricists first look at the two songwriters as a team. Guest artistic director, writer and host Ted Chapin, head of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization, shares an insider's perspective on the pair, gleaned from his years with the Rodgers and Hammerstein families; joined by vocalists Brandon Victor Dixon, Mandy Gonzalez, Jonathan Groff, Rebecca Luker, and Phillipa Soo.

Welcome to BWW's exclusive talk show, BACKSTAGE WITH Richard Ridge. Follow Richard as he visits the theater's best and brightest in their dressing rooms, on their stages and favorite hang outs to talk about their lives, careers and all of the things you don't know, but want to know. In the special interview below, 'The Beast' herself, Mandy Gonzalez, who will soon return to 54 Below, shares stories from her time in In the Heights, Dance of the Vampires, Aida, Lennon, Wicked and more! Check out the full interview below!

Broadway's Mandy Gonzalez (Wicked, In the Heights, Dance of the Vampires, Lennon) has joined the cast of The Amanda McBroom Project, set for tonight, March 14, 15, and 17 at 7pm at the Laurie Beechman Theatre, 407 W. 42 Street (Between 9 and 10 Avenues.)

Broadway's Mandy Gonzalez (Wicked, In the Heights, Dance of the Vampires, Lennon) has joined the cast of The Amanda McBroom Project, set for March 14, 15, and 17 at 7pm at the Laurie Beechman Theatre, 407 W. 42 Street (Between 9 and 10 Avenues.) For Reservations: 212.695.6909Music charge $20. Food/drink minimum $15

This March, April and May at 54 BELOW presents a lineup of the brightest talent from Broadway and beyond. Located just below the legendary Studio 54 at 254 West 54th Street. For a detailed schedule of upcoming performances at 54 Below and to purchase tickets, visit www.54Below.com.

“Life Is...” marks the international debut of Belgian singer/pianist Susan Clynes, on New York based MoonJune Records. This release was compiled from three live concerts done at two different locations, each one with a unique band configuration.

The Wallis has announced that Tony nominee Judy Kuhn (She Loves Me, Chess and Les Miserables) and Tony winner and five-time Emmy nominee John Glover (Love! Valour! Compassion!, 'Smallville') will star in Love, Noel: The Letters and Songs of Noel Coward, devised and written by Coward authority Barry Day, and directed by Jeanie Hackett, who over saw The Antaeus Theatre production of Noel Coward's Tonight at 8:30 and the three-year development of the Antaeus production of Coward's Peace in Our Time. The musical direction and piano accompaniment is by David O. Due to popular demand, additional performances have been added and Love, Noel will now be performed February 14 through 23 in the Lovelace Studio Theater.

The Show Goes On Productions (TSGO) will present an Off-Broadway sized club venue dedicated to both live music and theatre: THE HYBRID. The LAUNCH PARTY will be tonight, February 1st, from 6 - 10pm, followed by a dance party upstairs in the Culture Club. Musical guests include Maximus England Shaban, the dudes from Bromance, the Dudesical, and Mimi Cohen from A Celebration of Laura Nyro - To Carry On.

Colt Coeur's Play Hotel reading series will present a free staged reading of She Rode Horses Like the Stock Exchange by Amelia Roper, directed by Adrienne Campbell-Holt, January 28th at 7pm at SoHo House in Manhattan. The cast for the reading includes McCaleb Burnett (Scarcity, Rattlestick), Katya Campbell (How to Make Friends and then Kill Them, Rattlestick), Zuzanna Szadkowski ('Gossip Girl'), and Matt Stadelmann (The Grown-Up, Humana). The event is hosted by Sam Goldberg and Julia Jones.

Lauren Fox, one of the more multifaceted and ambitious young stars of the New York cabaret scene, seems intent on redefining what is already a pretty open-ended art form. The recent run of her new duo show at Stage 72 with bass player Ritt Henn, Ghosts of Love: Songs from the Reel World of David Lynch (January 9, 18, 23, and 24) was the most recent example of Ms. Fox's unconventional approach to a 70-80 minute nightclub show and the result was operatic film noir--cabaret style.

A dream cabaret pairing comes to Segerstrom Center for the Arts when Grammy® Award-winning artist Jimmy Webb and Grammy and Drama Desk-nominated vocalist Maureen McGovern perform three concerts in their Cabaret Series debuts April 11 - 13 in Samueli Theater. This will also be Webb's Center debut, while McGovern appeared at the Center during the 2004 - 2005 Broadway Series as Marmee in the national tour of Little Women. The New York Times proclaims McGovern as "blessed with a vocal technique second to none" and says that Webb is "at the top of his game."

The Show Goes On Productions (TSGO) will present an Off-Broadway sized club venue dedicated to both live music and theatre: THE HYBRID. The LAUNCH PARTY will be Saturday, February 1st, from 6 - 10pm, followed by a dance party upstairs in the Culture Club. Musical guests include Maximus England Shaban, the dudes from Bromance, the Dudesical, and Mimi Cohen from A Celebration of Laura Nyro - To Carry On. A surprise host is to be announced. The Hybrid is located at 22 W. 39th Street, between 5th & 6th Ave., with parking across the street. Doors open at 6pm and performances will begin at 7:30pm. Tickets are $10 and available at www.ShowGoesOnProductions.com, 646-380-8749.

Choreographer Henning Rubsam and his company SENSEDANCE showcase four contrasting duets that explore different kinds of relationships this week at the upcoming presenter's conference (APAP) in New York City. Represented by River City Artists Management, SENSEDANCE will perform at City Center Theater's Studio 4, 130 West 56th Street (bet 6th & 7th Ave) on Friday, January 10, 2014 at 9:45pm. The showing is 25 minutes and is preceded and followed by other artists of RCAM.

In 1969, at age 16, Bronx-born Karen Wyman became a singing sensation appearing on TV with Dean Martin, The Ed Sullivan Show, and The Tonight Show, and cutting two albums. A few years later she suddenly quit singing professionally to raise a family. Now, she's back and as she proved with her new show at the Metropolitan Room, she's as good as ever.

Jay is an enormous fan of Broadway and all its denizens and has done many Broadway Cast Albums, but he has also worked with every great star of our time in every category of music.