Laura Pietropinto News

Hey, CEC fans! This week's featured composer is Drew Gasparini. And we have a summer treat for you: two Gasparinis for the price of one! Drew and his sister Kasie perform his song 'Two Little Lines' in the video below. Don't miss Drew's star-studded concert at Joe's Pub on July 29th at 9:30pm to celebrate his album 'I Could Use a Drink,' with Krysta Rodriguez, Jason Gotay and more!

Tony Award-winner Alice Ripley and HAIR's Kacie Sheik and Andrew Kober will join Meghann Fahy (NBC's 'Chicago Fire'), Preston Sadleir (Next to NormalTour), Krista Pioppi (Spring Awakening Tour), and Taylor Noble (A Lasting Impression) tonight, June 29th at 7pm at Joe's Pub for a concert of Zoe Sarnak's A Lasting Impression. The concert will be directed by Laura Pietropinto and presented by Cutting-Edge Composers in association with Hope Lights Partners.

Cutting-Edge Composers is particularly excited about this week's composer, Zoe Sarnak, because we are presenting a concert of her musical, A Lasting Impression, this Saturday night at Joe's Pub!

This week at Joe's Pub at the Public, June 24 through June 30, 2013, will feature: 2G: Sixteen Going on Seventeen, Nellie McKay, Philippe Quint, Michael Bacon: Downtown Express, The Gonzalo Gergara Quartet, The Impossible Girl, Global Noize: Sly Reimagined, JP Jofre Quintet, Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino, Slavic Soul Party, NY Theremin Society, Ryan Amador, No BS! Brass Band, Zoe Sarnak: A Lasting Impression, Davell Crawford, Brown Girls Burlesque, John Kelly: Rebel Songs, and Symphonic Sundays with Mother Falcon. Details below!

Happy Summer, everyone! In honor of the solstice, CEC is pleased to bring you this video of 'Boy of My Own' by Charlie Sohne and Tim Rosser from our concert at Joe's Pub:

Cutting-Edge Composers is in the studio with Eli Bolin exclusively on Broadwayworld.com. We caught up with Eli to find out about his upcoming productions of Found at NY Stage and Film, and Volleygirls, starring Susan Blackwell, at NYMF. Check out the video below for insight into Eli's writing process, and a sneak peek at two songs from two of his latest musicals! You might even see a surprise guest performance from Volleygirls cast member Jennifer Johnson.

Tony Award-winner Alice Ripley and HAIR's Kacie Sheik and Andrew Kober will join Meghann Fahy (NBC's 'Chicago Fire'), Preston Sadleir (Next to NormalTour), Krista Pioppi (Spring Awakening Tour), and Taylor Noble (A Lasting Impression) on June 29th at 7pm at Joe's Pub for a concert of Zoe Sarnak's A Lasting Impression. The concert will be directed by Laura Pietropinto and presented by Cutting-Edge Composers in association with Hope Lights Partners.

Welcome to our first edition of "Cutting-Edge Composers In the Studio" exclusively on Broadwayworld.com! Today, we are in the studio with Joe Iconis, and his collaborators Jason Sweettooth Williams and Lance Rubin. You can hear Joe discuss his inspiration for writing, his experience with SMASH, what it's like to work with the Joe Iconis Family, and his upcoming projects. These talented gentlemen also shared a live performance of the song "Outlaw" from their show Bloodsong of Love and a song from their new musical in progress entitled Annie Golden: Bounty Hunter, Yo! Joe sent us this synopsis for his latest creative endeavor: What if musical theater legend Annie Golden starred in a show as a bad-ass action hero?' That was the idea that led to this musical, Annie Golden: Bounty Hunter, Yo, which uses the conventions---both theatrical and musical---of 70's blaxploitation films to tell the story of a widowed down-on-her-luck theatre actress who becomes a bounty hunter and goes on a journey of self-discovery and serious ass-kicking.

Cutting-Edge Composers in association with Hope Lights Partners will present A Lasting Impression, a contemporary new musical by up-and-coming songwriter Zoe Sarnak, in concert on June 29th at 7pm at Joe's Pub.

This week's featured composer is Benjamin Velez. Benjamin Velez is a composer/lyricist and recent Columbia University graduate where he studied film and wrote the 114th Annual Varsity Show. He is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater workshop where he was named the Jerry Harrington award winner for the 2nd year workshop. His work has been featured as part of AWOL's 8 Minute Musicals at NYMF, The Platform concert series, and in last year's NEO concert. He is currently workshopping his original musical Afterland with collaborator Kathryn Hathaway, and recently premiered the title song at Joe's Pub as part of the latest CEC concert. While originally from Miami, he is now happy to call New York home sweet home.

The Song 'Ordinary Day' is by extraordinary writers Paul Loesel (Music) and Scott Burkell (book and lyrics). We are thrilled to share their Cutting-Edge Composers video starring Donna Vivino (Wicked), Eric Michael Krop (Godspell), Blake Daniel (Spring Awakening), and Maddy Trumble (Mary Poppins)!

Here's 'Brooklyn's Union Hall' by Joel Waggoner and Eric Price. 'The inspiration for the song was to write about the moment it was announced that Barack Obama had won the 2008 Presidential Election,' said Price. Zachary Prince (the Last Five Years) stars in this video from our most recent concert at Joe's Pub.

Our featured composer of the week is Jonathan Reid Gealt. Here is an exclusive video of powerhouse performer Katie Thompson, who recently starred in the musical Giant at the Public Theater, singing Jonathan's song 'No Reason at All' at our Cutting-Edge Composers concert at the Canal Room.

This week's feature is 'Seeing You There' by Adam Gwon. Tony-nominee Josh Young (Jesus Christ Superstar), who happens to be a co-founder of Cutting-Edge Composers, sang this at our first concert at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.

Our featured composer this week is Ryan Scott Oliver. Here is his song "Halfway" sung by Morgan Karr (Spring Awakening) and Jay Armstrong Johnson (Hands on a Hardbody) at our Cutting-Edge Composers concert at the Canal Room. We asked Ryan where he got the inspiration for the song and this was his reply:

BroadwayWorld.com, the largest theatre web site on the net, is thrilled to announce the latest addition to its unmatched line-up of exclusive, engaging TV programs. Launching today, CUTTING-EDGE COMPOSERS CORNER is a newly minted weekly series showcasing the up and coming 'next generation' of Broadway songwriters. Each episode will delight audiences with great songs from upcoming musicals performed by distinguished stars, enlightening interviews, and fresh perspectives from tomorrow's marquee talent.

This week at Joe's Pub at The Public Theater, February 4-10, 2013, features Cutting Edge Composers, Richard Thompson, Diane Cluck, Losers Lounge, Lady Rizo, Nora York and Joey Arias.

After sold out shows at the Canal Room, the Laurie Beechman, and NYMF, Cutting-Edge Composers will be presented at Joe's Pub on Monday, February 4th at 7:00pm. $25 tickets can be purchased at www.joespub.com.