Graae, Blankenship To Guest At The After Party 2/20

The Laurie Beechman Theatre, located within The West Bank Café (407 West 42nd St.), is pleased to continue our Friday night soiree, THE AFTER PARTY. Now going strong it's third, THE AFTER PARTY is billed as "a weekly schmoozefest for the theatrically inclined." Every Friday from 10:30 pm until the wee hours, pros from Broadway and aspiring stars alike belt it out on the stage of The Laurie Beechman Theatre. Join hosts Brandon Cutrell (Bistor, MAC and Nightlife Award winner) and Alysha Umphress (Make Me A Song) with Ray Fellman (Bistro Award winner) at the piano for this weekly party in the theatre district. There is no cover charge for this event. Come and sing yourself as the mic is always open, or sit back and enjoy a cocktail with friends. Located just blocks from the Great White Way, you never know who might drop in.

Friday, February 20th, we're pleased to to welcome the cast of Cashino: The Multimedia Musical Show, including Broadway and TV's Drama Desk Award nominee Jason Graae and Beth Blankenship. Both will be on hand to greet fans and perform a few numbers as only they can.

The Laurie Beechman Theatre is located downstairs, within The West Bank Café, 407 West 42nd St. at 9th Avenue . There is a full bar and bar menu available, and reservations are not necessary for this event. THE AFTER PARTY highly recommends audience members arrive early. Seating is first come, first serve. Priority seating may be given to those who wish to order from the menu and/or the bar.

Jason Graae has starred on and off-Broadway in A Grand Night For Singing, Falsettos, Stardust, Snoopy!, Do Black Patent Leather Shows Really Reflect Up?, Forever Plaid, Olympus on My Mind, All in the Timing, Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (Drama Desk Nomination- Best Actor in a Musical) and many more.

Jason Made his Metropolitan Opera House debut as featured vocalist in Twyla Tharp's Everlast with American Ballet Theatre. Jason has performed his one-man show all over the country, including Rainbow and Stars and Birdland in NYC, Caramoor Music Festival, Wolf Trap, Feinstein's in L.A., and The Plush Room in San Francisco, to name a few. He has received the New York Nightlife Award, 4 Bistros a
nd was listed in TimeOut NY's Top 10 Cabaret shows of 2006.

In Los Angeles, he just won his second L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award - the 2008 Joel Hirschorn Award for Oustanding Achievement in Musical Theatre. He won an Ovation Award for Forbidden Broadway Y2KLA!, an Artistic Director's Achievement Award for Fully Committed and a Santa Barbara Indie Award for High Button Shoes. Jason originated the role of "Houdini" in the L.A. production of Ragtime at the Shubert Theatre. Other L.A. credits include "Marcellus" in The Music Man at the Hollywood Bowl, many shows at Reprise!, and Grand Hotel and The Grand Tour at The Colony.

On television, Jason has appeared on many shows including "Six Feet Under", "Rude Awakening", "Friends", "Frasier", "Sabrina the Teenage Witch", "Living Single", "Caroline in the City", "Providence", etc. On PBS, he was a guest soloist twice with the Boston Pops and once with Marvin Hamlisch and the National Symphony on "Holiday for the Troops at The Kennedy Center" and recently in "Words and Music by Jerry Herman".

Movie appearances include the title role in Sunshine Barry and the Disco Worms (2008 Toronto and London Film Festivals), Disney's Home on the Range, On Edge, Gepetto, The Dukes of Hazzard in Hollywood, and the upcoming Awakening of Spring (produced by HERE). He has been heard on many cartoons and for five years he was the voice of "Lucky, the Leprechaun" for Lucky Charms Cerea
l, a balanced part of your complete breakfast.

He made his Los Angeles Opera debut as "Njegus" in The Merry Widow, repeating the role with Dallas Opera, Houston Grand Opera and Ne w Orleans Opera. Also with L.A. Opera he was featured as "Offenbach" in The Grand Duchess, directed by Garry Marshall. He played "Frosch" in Die Fledermaus with Washington National and San Francisco Operas.

Jason has recorded over forty CDs, including original cast albums, concerts, compilations, and his two solo CDs, "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile - Jason Graae Sings Charles Strouse", and "Jason Graae LIVE at The Cinegrill" (Fynsworth Alley).

Beth Blankenship has sung back-up for Faith Hill and Amy Grant, among others. She is a featured voice in Disney's MULAN II. She sings the radio spot for The Christmas Show at Radio City. Beth has done regional theater work and many NY workshops/readings of shows including the very first reading of Rent.

Brandon Cutrell is a Nightlife Award, Bistro Award and two-time MAC Award winner. New York credits: Broadway By The Year at Town Hall, The 2nd Annual Broadway Unplugged at Town Hall, Pippin (with Ben Vereen and Rosie O'Donnell), La Gioconda at TheatreSource, David Friedman's King Island Christmas, and Liz Swados' Waiting For Lefty. National: Theatre of the Stars, Goodspeed Musicals, the Human Race Theatre and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra. For nearly two years, Brandon was the
original host of the MAC Award nominated show, Mostly Sondheim. In December of 2005, Brandon made his debut in the world-famous Oak Room at The Algonquin Hotel. In June of 2006, Brandon made his solo debut at Feinstein's, New York's legendary nightclub on Park Avenue. Currently, Brandon can be seen every Friday night at The Laurie Beechman Theatre on 42nd Street as the host of The After Party, a weekly open-mic, musical theatre soiree. Brandon's self-titled debut cd was released on June 4th, 2007 at Feinstein's and is now available on iTunes and at www.BrandonCutrell.com.

Alysha Umphress, a graduate of The Boston Conservatory, most recently appeared in the Off-Broadway's Make Me A Song. Upon her arrival to New York, Alysha made a splash at the Chelsea bar, XL, winning their American Idol-type competition, XL Star. She has opened for Diana Krall at the Fujitsu Jazz Festival, soloed along side Carlos Santana at San Francisco's Fillmore Auditorium and performed with the Boston Pops. Regional roles include the Witch in Into the Woods, Trina in Falsettos and Winnifred in Once Upon a Mattress. Alysha is the recipient of two Bay Area Theatre Critics Awards for her work in Rags and FAB! She has belted out the National Anthem for The Oakland A's, San Francisco Giants, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings and San Jose Sharks.

Bistro Award winner Ray Fellman recently made his Off-Broadway debut when20he was handpicked by Stephen Schwartz to musical direct his off-Broadway musical, Captain Louie. Other Musical Director credits include The Tutor by Wood/Gerle (59 E. 59th), Reluctant Pilgrim (The Barrow Group), Blood Drive: A Musical Triptych by Sheinkin/Derfner (workshop at the O'Neill Theater Center) and Amahl and the Night Visitors (national tour directed by David Aiken). Ray has been seen behind the piano in The Storefront Theatre's New Mondays (with Bill Russell and Emily Skinner), No Reservations (starring Brandon Cutrell with special guests Karen Mason and Shoshana Bean), Broadway Downtown (with Kristy Cates) and We Miss Nancy: The Storefront Sings Lamott (with Liz McCartney). He has also served as accompanist for Utah Festival Opera Company, The Opera Company of Brooklyn , Mid America Productions at Carnegie Hall (with John Rutter) and A Yuletide Celebration with the Indianapolis Symphony starring Judy Kaye. As a singer, Ray has sung with some of the finest opera companies in the country, including Florida Grand, Glimmerglass and New Orleans operas. Ray holds degrees in piano and voice from the Indiana University School of Music.

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