Randy Graff, Alysha Umphress, Elizabeth Stanley & MoreSet for Barrington Stage's Mr. Finn's Cabaret This Summer

Barrington Stage Company (BSC), the award-winning theatre in Downtown Pittsfield, MA, under the leadership of Artistic Director Julianne Boyd and Managing Director Tristan Wilson, is proud to announce the 2015 season of performances at Mr. Finn's Cabaret, located on the lower level of the Sydelle and Lee Blatt Performing Arts Center, 36 Linden Street, Pittsfield.

Named for William Finn, the two-time Tony Award-winning composer/lyricist of Falsettos and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and Artistic Producer of BSC's Musical Theatre Lab, Mr. Finn's Cabaret celebrates its third season with an eclectic mix of performers from May through October as part of Barrington Stage Company's 2015 Season.

May 17 -18
SESSION AMERICANA. May 17 and May 18 at 8pm. Tickets: $25. Described as "A rock band in a tea-cup, or possibly a folk band in a whiskey bottle", this collective of talented musicians craft a musical experience unlike any other. Blending a vintage suitcase recast as a kick drum, an old Estey field organ, a pre-war parlor guitar, and many other assorted instruments, this is a freewheeling, anything-could-happen hootenanny that you don't want to miss!

May 31
TWO SIDES OF ARGENTINA. May 31 at 8pm. Tickets: $30. Two Sides of Argentina: The Music of Carlos Gardel and Mercedes Sosa. Featuring members of the La Voz de Tres: Chilean vocalist Natalia Bernal and seven-string guitarist Jason Ennis, with special guest Grammy nominated composer and pianist Emilio Solla, blend the infectious rhythms of Latin America to bring you Argentina's hottest musical tradition, the Tango!

June 1
BOLERO AND BOSSA NOVA. June 1 at 8PM. Tickets: $30. Boleros and Bossa Novas: featuring members of La Voz de Tres: Natalia Bernal and Jason Ennis with keyboardist Mike Eckroth. Enjoy the spicy flare of world class musicians Jason Ennis and Mike Eckroth along with amazing vocalist Natalia Bernal as they takes you on a musical journey through Latin America. La Voz de Tres travels to Cuba and Brazil to sway to the infectious rhythms of Boleros and Bossa Nova.

June 8
WANDA HOUSTON T'aint Nobody's Bizzness If I Do.....and other songs in the key of Life! June 8 at 8pm. Tickets: $25. An evening with Wanda Houston and friends! Back by popular demand, powerhouse performer Wanda Houston returns to take us on a soulful walk through the blues, jazz, and gospel songs that reflect her love affair with life and love.

June 23
BROADWAY TO THE BERKSHIRES featuring BSC's Musical Theatre Conservatory (MTC) brings Broadway to the Berkshires. Tickets: $15. Enjoy the outstanding talents of our 2015 MTC Ensemble as they bring Broadway to the Berkshires! This one-night only tribute to the best of Broadway will feature classic Broadway songs as well as songs from the hottest shows currently on the great white way.

June 28-29
NIKO TSAKALAKOS - INTO THE WILD June 28 and 29 at 8pm. Tickets: $25. Join Singer/Songwriter and BSC favorite Niko Tsakalakos as he presents songs from his brand new modern folk/rock musical Into The Wild, (music and lyrics by Niko Tsaklalakos; book and lyrics by Janet Allard), based on the best-selling book by Jon Krakauer. Follow the true story of Christopher McCandless, a young man who leaves behind his conventional lifestyle and parents to set out on an Odyssey across the country, ultimately headed for Alaska.

July 5-6
SONGWRITERS CABARET July 5 and 6 at 8pm. Tickets: $25. Composers Kate Chadwick and John Blaylock lend their remarkable talents to an evening featuring their brand new work. Accompanied by a dynamite cast of actors, Kate Chadwick will charm you with Turn Out, a musical look at the life of a ballet dancer. John Blaylock will captivate you with his humorous look at the humorous, hectic and heartwarming Holidays. See the best of tomorrow today.

July 20
ALYSHA UMPHRESS - I'VE BEEN PLAYED with special guest Cody Williams and Adam Wachter on piano. July 20 at 8pm. Tickets: $45. You know Alysha from her fabulous portrayal as Hildy, the boisterous taxi cab driver, in On the Town but do you know her as asultry, dynamitecabaret singer. Alysha will be performing songs from her new album "I've Been Played." She'll sing (and swing!) the songs of Jeff Blumenkrantz with fellow On the Town cast member and her real life boyfriend Cody Williams. Jazzy goodness. "Boasting a brassy, sassy, dramatic-mezzo, Umphress has one of those rare instruments that can conquer any genre of music...with an insouciant ease that's as disarming as it is dazzling." - New York Arts Review

July 25
MUSICAL SHORTS. July 25 at 10pm and July 26 at 8pm. Tickets: $15. Featuring some of the best and brightest emerging new composers & songwriters show off their talents with an evening of short musicals, performed by our Musical Theatre Conservatory Ensemble.

August 2-3
SALLY WILFERT - FRESH AND FANCY FREE. August 2and 3 at 8pm. Tickets: $35. Join the brilliant song stylist, Sally Wilfert, as she offers up a plate of ripe and ready tunes by exciting new and emerging artists. Sally invites you to experience the hilarious & heartbreaking stories of life, from a new generation of artists who tell their tales in fresh, new musical voices.

August 10
ELIZABETH STANLEY-I GET CARRIED AWAY Monday, August 10 at 8pm. Tickets: $45. Inspired by her current role as Claire De Loone in the Broadway revival of On the Town, leading lady Elizabeth Stanley pays homage to the witty and poignant songbook of the show's creators and original stars, Betty Comden and Adolph Green. Ms. Stanley explores some of the legendary duo's unforgettable hits ("Just in Time," "Make Someone Happy") and celebrates their collaborations with some of the greatest American theatre composers. Ben Brantley of The New York Times said of Ms. Stanley: "a paradigm of refined comic exaggeration...her singing voice slides between operatic trills and lowdown purrs."

August 14-17
WILLIAM FINN & DEBORAH ABRAMSON - YOU'RE STANDING IN MY WAY: A NEW SONG CYCLE. August 14 at 9:30pm, August 15 at 9:30pm, August 16 at 8pm, August 17 at 8pm. You're Standing In My Way: A Song Cycle What are two-time Tony Award winner William Finn and composer extraordinaire Deb Abramson up to these days? Bill has written some knock-down fabulous lyrics to Deb's thrilling music. The results: Funny harangues and skewed portraits in this new bunch of songs.

August 23-24
RANDY GRAFF - MADE IN BROOKLYN...BOUND FOR BROADWAY. August 23 and 24 at 8pm. Tickets: $45. Tony Award-winner Randy Graff's new solo show will pull at your heartstrings in a musical celebration of the songwriters and artists we know and love who hail from her hometown of Brooklyn, New York. With great wit and poignancy, Randy takes you on a nostalgic journey in story and song with the music of the Gershwins, Comden and Green, Marvin Hamlisch, Carole King, Neil Sedaka and more. Like your new best friend with a voice to knock your socks off, you'll be rooting for Randy as she sings her way from the street corners of Brooklyn to her star turn on Broadway.

August 30-31
DAVID LUTKEN AND FRIENDS - FOLK SONGS FROM WOODY GUTHRIE TO DAVID BYRNE. August 30 and 31 at 8pm. Tickets: $35. You first saw David as the musical virtuoso in Southern Comfort. Along with Andy Teirstein and Helen J. Russell, two other multi-talented musicians, this trio will rock the cabaret with some of the best 20thCentury folk music. "Rehearsing is cheating" is the mantra of this banjo-stringing, harmonica-playing trio. Join us afterward for an informal roof-raising hootenanny.

September 4-6
JOE ICONIS AND FAMILY: OUTCAST SUPERSTARS. September 4, 5 and 6 at 8pm. Tickets: $30. Back by popular demand! Musical theater rabble rouser Joe Iconis (The Black Suits) is back with his unique mash-up of show tune, cabaret and rock-and-roll jamboree! Come celebrate Labor Day right with Joe & his band! Grease up your kazoo, fill your whiskey glass, and stay for a while - it's going to be a helluva night!

All cabaret performances will take place at Mr. Finn's Cabaret, located on the lower level of the Sydelle and Lee Blatt Performing Arts Center, 36 Linden Street, Pittsfield. Barrington Stage offers reserved seating for all cabaret performances at Mr. Finn's Cabaret. To purchase tickets or for more information, call the Barrington Stage Box Office at 413-236-8888 or visitwww.barringtonstageco.org.