Leslie Bricusse News

The thing that always strikes me about Euan Morton, from his New York debut in Taboo to his Obie-winning stint in Measure For Pleasure and various other plays, musicals, concerts and cabarets, is that the guy seems incapable of expressing a dishonest emotion.  While some performers may dazzle you with their creativity or their exceptional craft, Morton draws you in with a comforting safety that makes artistry out of sincerity.  He opens his four-week run at The Oak Room (through March 29th), titled Here and Now, with Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley's 'Pure Imagination,' glowing with a naturally boyish earnestness and a gentle smile.

Village Theatre KIDSTAGE Ensemble produces Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka, Jr., running on select dates, February 14-21, 2009 at the Everett Performing Arts Center. Come on a fantasy ride to a world of pure imagination. Roald Dahl's timeless story of the world-famous candy man and his quest to find an heir comes to life in this stage adaptation of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory. Songs by Leslie Bricusse (Jekyll & Hyde, Doctor Dolittle) and Anthony Newley from the classic family film Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory, including 'The Candy Man' and 'Pure Imagination' are included in this memorable score. Willy Wonka is a scrumdidilyumptious show guaranteed to delight everyone's sweet tooth. This particular KIDSTAGE production of Willy Wonka, Jr. will celebrate elements of the original Roald Dahl novel, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The musical tells the story through the character Charlie's eyes, and the audience will experience this through projections of crayon drawings. 'As Charlie imagines what working in the factory must be like, from his Grandpa Joe's description, the audience will see his crayon drawings of those daydreams projected on the stage. All the drawings are being created by the ensemble throughout the rehearsal process,' Loni Kappus, KIDSTAGE program manager explains. Another fascinating and original element of this KIDSTAGE production is the vision for the Oompa Loompas. 'Our Oompa Loompas harken back to some of Roald Dahl's original descriptions. They are from previously undiscovered Loompaland, which Willy Wonka traveled to, and are represented by all ages of students in the cast. Most productions of this script would probably only use the youngest cast members as Oompa Loompas, but since they are an entirely different culture, it only makes sense that we would see as much age and size diversity within the Oompa Loompas as we would with the rest of the characters,' Kappus comments.

NATALIE TORO most recently received accolades for her portrayal of Madame Therese Defarge on Broadway in 'A TALE OF TWO CITIES' a role for which she won Sarasota Magazine's Best Supporting Actress Award when the show played its pre-Broadway run at the Asolo Repertory Theatre. BROADWAY: Les Mis?rables, A Christmas Carol. OFF-B'WAY: Zombie Prom. NATIONAL TOURS: Evita (Jeff Award nomination), Cats, Jesus Christ Superstar. REGIONAL: The Fix, Everything's Ducky, Francis of Guernica, Blood Brothers, Zorba. TELEVISION: 'Law & Order,' 'Law & Order: SVU,' 'Santa Baby.' FEATURED SOLOIST: Carnegie Hall, National Concert Hall in Dublin, Kentucky and Buffalo Symphonies. Natalie's new CD, entitled Natalie Toro, will be released nationally on Monday, November 24th. She is being honored tonight by the Bronx Borough president, Adolfo Carrion, Jr. as part of PUERTO RICAN HERITAGE MONTH.

NATALIE TORO most recently received accolades for her portrayal of Madame Therese Defarge on Broadway in 'A TALE OF TWO CITIES' a role for which she won Sarasota Magazine's Best Supporting Actress Award when the show played its pre-Broadway run at the Asolo Repertory Theatre. BROADWAY: Les Mis?rables, A Christmas Carol. OFF-B'WAY: Zombie Prom. NATIONAL TOURS: Evita (Jeff Award nomination), Cats, Jesus Christ Superstar. REGIONAL: The Fix, Everything's Ducky, Francis of Guernica, Blood Brothers, Zorba. TELEVISION: 'Law & Order,' 'Law & Order: SVU,' 'Santa Baby.' FEATURED SOLOIST: Carnegie Hall, National Concert Hall in Dublin, Kentucky and Buffalo Symphonies. Natalie's new CD, entitled Natalie Toro, will be released nationally on Monday, November 24th. She is being honored tonight by the Bronx Borough president, Adolfo Carrion, Jr. as part of PUERTO RICAN HERITAGE MONTH.

Award winning singer Maria Friedman will honor the works of British composers with her show 'MARIA FRIEDMAN CELEBRATES THE GREAT BRITISH SONGBOOK' at the Shaw Theater. Her performances will take place February 5-7th.

A wave of cocktail culture from the West Coast is about to pour through the Metropolitan Room's doors as Terese Genecco, Russ Lorenson and Corky Hale come to town, while Baby Jane Dexter and a number of other local notables like Klea Blackhurst and Billy Stritch stand up for the Eastern seaboard.

On September 23rd, 2008 Elaine Paige, the iconic star of Evita, Cats and Sunset Boulevard celebrates 40 years on the stage in Memories, a revealing insight into a dazzling life. The platform will be followed by a book signing.

Andrea Marcovicci returns to 'Lyrics & Lyricists'™ with an evening of gems from the post-1965 repertoire to refute the notion that rock 'n' roll killed the art of songwriting. At the final 'Lyrics & Lyricists' of the 2009 season - Did the American Songbook Really End in 1965?

BoHo will present a complete reconceptualization of this gothic tale presenting the power of Wildhorn's music and Bricusse's lyrics and book…

The Leading Men III concert was performed on Monday, April 21, 2008 at 7:00pm to a sold out audience, as part of the long-running concert series Broadway at Birdland. The concert was a benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

PS CLASSICS, the label dedicated to the heritage of Broadway and American popular song, will commence recording of Jason Danieley and The Frontier Heroes on Thursday, April 10 in a New York studio. The group's critically acclaimed concert, 'Love: A Work in Progress' was most recently performed at New York's famed Birdland Jazz Club in February 2008, and will now make its way to disc.

Jekyll & Hyde will never be a perfect musical, but with a terrific cast and in this first-rate production, it is well worth a visit...

A few weeks back, BroadwayWorld.com's international sources tipped us off to the fact that composer Frank Wildhorn was having quite the European adventure this past summer, with new productions of Dracula, Jekyll & Hyde, The Scarlet Pimpernel and Rudolf, taking the continent of Europe by storm in Germany, Italy, Austria, Hungary and more. In addition, a musical theatre festival named after him as well as word that the Far East is joining in the Wildhorn fever as well.

Cherry Lane Music Publishing Co. Inc, whose Broadway roster includes Maury Yeston (Nine, Titanic), Jason Howland (Little Women) and the team of Matt Sklar and Chad Begulin (The Wedding Singer), has announced the renewal of an exclusive, worldwide administration agreement with veteran songwriter, lyricist and librettist Leslie Bricusse for his Stage & Screen Music catalog