Feature: 5th Sunday Cabaret To Present TEN PAN ALLEY

5th Sunday Cabaret celebrates 10 years and will present "Ten" Pan Alley, a concert featuring a decade of Great Performances by 10 fantastic Las Vegas performers at Community Lutheran Church (CLC) on March 23.

The concert, set in the 600-seat sanctuary, will feature music from the golden age of Tin Pan Alley, which commemorates the birthplace of American popular music and the modern music industry, which formed on West 28th Street in New York City in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The audience will enjoy the powerful music and storytelling of the songwriters, music publishers, performers, and songs from that era.

“Tin Pan Alley was the heart of the music industry in New York City in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It was the center for songwriters and music publishers who created what is now known as the great American songbook. Our show is called Ten Pan Alley to celebrate our 10th-anniversary show and a play on ’tin’ pan alley. We asked our performers to focus on the great composers from this era, including Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Scott Joplin, Cole Porter, and Harold Arlen,” said pianist Philip Fortenberry, one of the founders of 5th Sunday, who is also performing in the show.

“All of our audiences have the opportunity to experience the high quality and variety of music and performances to which they’ve become accustomed over the years. We are so lucky to have a rich resource in the number of artists we’ve come to know from having been involved in the Las Vegas entertainment industry.”

Performers will include Broadway sensation Brent Barrett, R&B vocalist Paul Bradley, singer Bruce Ewing (Forever Plaid, Phantom - the Las Vegas Spectacular), singer-songwriter Cheri Evans, David Kancsar (Forever Plaid), Broadway veteran Rebecca Spencer, Broadway vocalist Julie Waldman-Stiel, composer-music director Keith Thompson (The Composers Showcase, Jersey Boys) and singing sensation Kelly Vohnn. 

The audience can expect songs such as "Stormy Weather," "Happy Days Are Here Again," "Georgia On My Mind," "The Maple Leaf Rag," "Blue Skies," and a really fun rendition of "Hard Hearted Hannah," among many others.

5th Sunday was established in February 2015 by the church’s music team leaders Bruce Ewing and Philip.

“In the spring of 2014, I worked on the Broadway musical Rocky in New York City. I had taken a leave of absence from my position as organist at CLC. Bruce Ewing, worship leader and choir director at CLC, was my colleague whom I met in Las Vegas when he was performing in Phantom at the Venetian. We were always planning music for services, including other church events. Our grand ideas were sometimes quite costly, so we devised a plan to raise our funds to afford these crazy schemes without having to depend on the church's general operating budget. I shared with Bruce that in the deep south, where I came from, anytime there was a 5th Sunday in a month, which is usually four to five times a year, all the little country churches would get together and have an all-music program featuring choirs, soloists, and instrumentalists from each church. Bruce and I decided to use this concept and create a cabaret show in our church's fellowship hall, drawing from our talent pool of artists we had known from doing shows on the Strip. Our 5th Sunday would be a ticketed event, and we hoped we might sell 100 tickets. We always have a theme for the shows, which gives our guest artists a direction regarding their musical offerings,” explained Philip.

“As much as anything, I feel deep gratitude and pride for what we’ve created and sustained for so long. What began as an idea that took root immediately, continues to succeed, and even exceeds its original mission is very moving for me.”

5th Sunday has grown to an average audience of 250 to 500, depending on the event and performance space used (fellowship hall or sanctuary). Its success has enabled the support of music programs.

Fifth Sunday Cabaret Series celebrates its 10th anniversary and also presents a monthly Spotlight Cabaret Series, founded in 2023. Both initiatives help fund and support CLC’s music program. The series produces concerts and special events and allows the church to hire orchestras and guest vocalists to enhance its outreach through live music and online streaming. Tickets are $15 per person or live stream. For more information, visit communitylv.org.

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