Sutton Foster and Kelli O'Hara Will Join the New York Pops For One Night Only at Carnegie Hall in November

The New York Pops will be joined by Tony Award winners Sutton Foster and Kelli O'Hara for a one night only concert on Friday, November 17, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall.

Together with Steven Reineke, Sutton Foster and Kelli O’Hara have put together a unique program which pays homage to earlier icons of stage and screen who teamed up for memorable concerts.

Sutton Foster most recently appeared on Broadway in the leading role of Marian Paroo in The Music Man and previously starred as Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes and the title role in Thoroughly Modern Millie, among many other productions. She most recently appeared with The New York Pops in August 2015, launching the orchestra’s summer concert series at Forest Hills Stadium. 

Kelli O’Hara will star on Broadway this winter in the recently announced Days of Wine and Roses and previously starred as Anna Leonowens in The King and I and Kate/Lilli Vanessi in Kiss Me Kate, in addition to many other appearances. Kelli most recently joined The New York Pops for holiday concerts in December 2021. 

"Sutton and Kelli’s past appearances with The New York Pops have been milestone events for our orchestra and audience members,” said Music Director and Conductor Steven Reineke. “It’s a dream realized to bring these two leading ladies of Broadway and incredible talents together on the Carnegie Hall stage with our fantastic orchestra.”

Additional upcoming performances for The New York Pops’ 2023-24 season of performances in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall include 21st Century Broadway on Friday, October 27, 2023 featuring Hailey Kilgore, Derek Klena, Javier Muñoz, and Ali Stroker; The Best Christmas of All with Norm Lewis on Friday, December 22 and Saturday, December 23, 2023; Gershwin: A Century of Rhapsody in Blue on Friday, February 9, 2024 featuring Montego Glover and Lee Musiker; and Hitsville: Celebrating Motown on Friday, March 15, 2024 featuring Bryan Terrell Clark and Valisia LeKae.

Tickets are available for purchase at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, at 57th and Seventh, or can be charged to major credit cards by calling CarnegieCharge at (212) 247-7800 or by visiting the Carnegie Hall website at carnegiehall.org.

About the Artists

The New York Pops is the largest independent pops orchestra in the United States and the only professional symphonic orchestra in New York City specializing in popular music. Led by Music Director and Conductor Steven Reineke, the orchestra performs an annual subscription series at Carnegie Hall, and is among the venue’s most presented ensembles. Now in its 41st season, The New York Pops’ annual birthday gala is celebrated each spring, raising funds for the orchestra and its education programs. The New York Pops performs annually in Queens, NY at Forest Hills Stadium, a 14,000-seat historic concert venue. 

The New York Pops celebrates the diversity of popular music’s evolving songbook. Every concert is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, with influences ranging from Broadway melodies to film scores, jazz, rock, pop, and everything in between. Under Reineke’s dynamic leadership, The New York Pops continues to re-imagine orchestral pops music.

Through its PopsEd music education programs, The New York Pops fulfills its dedication to lifelong learning by collaborating with public schools, community organizations, and senior centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City. PopsEd allows thousands of New Yorkers of all ages and backgrounds to participate in fully customizable music programs that blend traditional education with pure fun.

The New York Pops is committed to serving all members of the community. Through its Kids in the Balcony and Kids in the Stadium programs, thousands of children and their parents have had an opportunity to see The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall and Forest Hills Stadium free of charge. 

The New York Pops was founded by Ruth and Skitch Henderson in 1983 with a mission to create greater public awareness and appreciation of America’s rich musical heritage through presentation of concerts and education programs of the highest quality. The New York Pops is a non-profit organization supported solely through the generosity of individual donations, institutional grants, corporate sponsorships, and concert income.

Steven Reineke is one of North America's leading conductors of popular music and is in his second decade as Music Director of The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall.  Additionally, he is Principal Pops Conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and Principal Pops Conductor of the Houston and Toronto Symphony Orchestras.

Reineke is a frequent guest conductor and can be seen on the podium with the Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, San Francisco and Detroit Symphony Orchestras.

On stage, Mr. Reineke creates and collaborates with a range of leading artists from the worlds hip-hop, R & B, Broadway, television and rock including: Maxwell, Common, Kendrick Lamar, Nas, Ne-Yo, Barry Manilow, Cynthia Erivo, Ben Rector, Cody Fry, Sutton Foster, Kelli O’Hara, Amos Lee, Dispatch, Jason Mraz, and Ben Folds, amongst others.  In 2017 he was featured on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" leading the National Symphony Orchestra - in a first for the show's 45-year history - performing live music excerpts in between news segments.  In 2018 Reineke led the National Symphony Orchestra with hip-hop legend Nas performing his seminal album "Illmatic" on PBS's Great Performances.

As the creator of hundreds of orchestral arrangements, Reineke’s work is performed worldwide and can be heard on numerous Cincinnati Pops Orchestra recordings. His symphonic works Celebration Fanfare, Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Casey at the Bat are performed frequently in North America, including performances by the New York Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic. His Sun Valley Festival Fanfare was used to commemorate the Sun Valley Summer Symphony’s pavilion, and his Festival Te Deum and Swan’s Island Sojourn were debuted by the Cincinnati Symphony and Cincinnati Pops Orchestras. His numerous wind ensemble compositions are published by the C.L. Barnhouse Company and are performed by concert bands perennially.

A native of Ohio, Mr. Reineke is a graduate of Miami University of Ohio (2020 Alumnus Distinguished Achievement Medal), where he earned bachelor of music degrees with honors in both trumpet performance and music composition. He currently resides in New York City with his husband Eric Gabbard.

Sutton Foster is a Tony Award winning American actress and singer who was most recently seen on the Broadway stage starring in an acclaimed turn as Marian Paroo in the Broadway revival of The Music Man, opposite Hugh Jackman at The Winter Garden Theatre. Her performance earned her seventh Tony award nomination as well as the coveted 2022 Drama League Distinguished Performance Award.

In the summer of 2021, Sutton reprised one of her most notable roles as Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes at the Barbican Theatre in London in which she earned an Oliver Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. A cinematic version of the show had a subsequent limited release in US and Australia theaters. Her original performance in the Roundabout Theatre Company’s revival at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre earned her a 2011 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.

The two-time Tony winning actress starred as The Baker’s Wife in the Hollywood Bowl’s sold-out summer 2019 production of Into the Woods. Previously, she appeared in the title role of The New Group’s 50th anniversary revival of Sweet Charity and in Jeanine Tesori and Brian Crawley’s Tony-nominated Broadway revival, Violet. Sutton also appeared on stage as Queenie in New York City Center Encores! Off-Center’s production of The Wild Party in July 2015.

Under the direction of Michael Mayer, Sutton starred as Millie Dillmount in the 2002 Broadway production of Thoroughly Modern Millie at the Marquis Theatre. Originating the role, she established herself as one of the greatest talents in the industry and earned her first Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical. Foster has originated numerous notable roles, including Princess Fiona in Jeanine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire’s Shrek The Musical at The Broadway Theatre, as well as Inga in Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan’s parody of the horror film genre, Young Frankenstein, at Foxwoods Theatre.

Sutton’s performance as Janet Van De Graaff in Casey Nicholaw’s The Drowsy Chaperone at the Marquis Theatre in 2006 earned her Tony Award, Drama Desk, Drama League, Outer Critics Circle, and Ovation Award nominations. Among her other theater credits include: Les Miserables, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Annie and Grease.  In addition, Foster made her Off-Broadway debut as Prudence in Paul Weitz's comedy, Trust which showed at Second Stage Theatre and starred Zach Braff, Bobby Cannavale, and Ari Graynor.

On television, Sutton led the critically acclaimed TV Land series, “Younger.” Created by "Sex in the City's" Darren Star and styled by the iconic Pat Field, the seventh and final season of series premiered in April 2021, making it the longest running original series in TV Land history. Last fall, Sutton added author to her list of credits with the release of her memoir Hooked: How Crafting Saved My Life.

Previously on television, Foster starred as Michelle Simms in Amy Sherman-Palladino’s beloved ABC Family series, “Bunheads,” she also reunited with Amy Sherman-Palladino for a guest starring role in the Netflix revival of “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.” Foster’s additional on-screen credits include ABC’s “A Million Little Things,” CBS drama “Instinct,” HBO’s comedy series “Flight of the Conchords,” USA Network’s “Royal Pains,” “Law & Order: SUV,” “Elementary” and guest appearances on the well-known children series Disney’s “Johnny and the Sprites,” and PBS’s “Sesame Street.” In 2014, Sutton made her feature film debut in Phil Alden Robinson’s The Angriest Man in Brooklyn and she appeared as Kerry in James Roday’s Halloween American comedy horror film Gravy.

As a solo artist, Sutton has toured the country with her hit solo concert which featured songs from her debut solo CD “Wish” as well as her follow up CD, “An Evening with Sutton Foster: Live at the Cafe Carlyle.” She has also graced the stages of Carnegie Hall, Feinstein's, Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series and many others. Sutton released her third solo album, “Take Me to the World,” through Ghostlight Deluxe, June 1, 2018.

Sutton Foster holds an honorary doctorate from Ball State University, where she also teaches.

Kelli O'Hara, star of stage and screen, has established herself as one of Broadway's greatest leading ladies. The Tony Award winner, Emmy and Grammy-nominated actress has appeared in eleven Broadway shows for which she has garnered seven Tony Award Nominations.

She won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical, along with Grammy, Drama League and Outer Critics nominations for her portrayal of Anna Leonowens in The King and I. She then reprised the role while making her West End debut garnering a prestigious Olivier Nomination for her performance and then performed a limited engagement at Tokyo's Orb Theatre.

O’Hara received an Emmy Award nomination for her portrayal of Katie Bonner in Topic's hit web series, “The Accidental Wolf”, and can currently be seen as Aurora Fane on HBO’s critically acclaimed series, “The Gilded Age”.

She has had several recurring television roles such as Showtime's “Master of Sex”, “13 Reasons Why”, “Blue Bloods’, and “All My Children”. Additional Film and Television credits include “All the Bright Places”, “Peter Pan Live!”, “Sex & The City 2”, Martin Scorsese's “The Key to Reserva”, “The Good Fight”, “N3mbers”, and the animated series “Car Talk”.

O’Hara’s other Broadway credits include Kiss Me Kate (Tony, Drama League, OCC nominations), The Bridges of Madison County (Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, OCC nominations), Nice Work if You Can Get It (Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, OCC nominations), South Pacific (Tony, Drama Desk, OCC nominations), The Pajama Game (Tony, Drama Desk, OCC nominations), The Light in the Piazza (Tony, Drama Desk nominations), Sweet Smell of Success, Follies, Dracula and Jekyll & Hyde.

The Times has hailed her as “Broadway musical’s undisputed queen”.

O’Hara was awarded the prestigious Drama League's Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theatre Award in 2019. 

In 2015, she made history as the first artist to make the crossover from Broadway to Opera when she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in Lehar's The Merry Widow opposite Renee Fleming and in 2018 returned as Despina in Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte. She was last seen at The Metropolitan Opera in the world premiere of Kevin Puts’, The Hours, as Laura Brown. 

Her concerts have gained international acclaim, spanning from Carnegie Hall to Tokyo. She is a frequent performer on PBS's live telecasts, The Kennedy Center Honors, and performs often alongside The New York Philharmonic and The New York Pops.

Along with her two Grammy nominations, her solo albums, Always and Wonder in the World, are available on Ghostlight. 

Season 3 of “The Accidental Wolf” is now streaming on Topic. Upcoming, season 2 of “The Gilded Age” on HBO. 

In 2024, O'Hara will return to Broadway in The New York Times ‘Critics Pick’, new musical, Days Of Wine And Roses. This production, which garnered rave reviews during its Off-Broadway run at The Atlantic Theatre Company last summer, has been a labor of love for O'Hara and composer Adam Guettel, who dedicated the last 21 years to its development.

Photo Credits: Sutton Foster by Jenny Anderson; Kelli O’Hara by Spencer Heyfron

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