N'Kenge Set for 54: THE MUSICAL 'Funk-Raiser' at Axelrod Performing Arts Center This Week

Broadway and Symphony Pop Siren N'Kenge joins the All Star Cast at the Axelrod Performing Arts Center (APAC) which will host a Funk-Raising evening to benefit the development of 54: the musical, the first project selected for its new works initiative. The evening, featuring selections from 54, will be held June 17 at 8 PM at The House of Independents (HOI) in Asbury Park, NJ. Directed by Rachel Klein with choreography by Liz Piccoli, 54:the musical features a book by playwright and actress Renée Bang Allen.

N'Kenge will reprise the role of the smokin' heartless Tonya Love after a successful reading of the show in March, 2014 at TADA! Theater by Emerging Artists Theatre. Born and raised in the Bronx and Brooklyn and currently a resident of NJ, N'Kenge is happy to bring this musical experience to her home town. NY post calls this Broadway Diva "Electrifying" in the role of Mary Wells that she originated in Broadway's Smash Hit Motown: The Musical. N'Kenge made her Broadway debut in Sondheim on Sondheim singing alongside Vanessa Williams, Barbara Cook, Tom Wopat, and Norm Lewis. Anyone who has witnessed a performance by singer N'Kenge is not only amazed by the incredible power and range of her voice, they are often surprised at the sheer range of credits and accolades she has accumulated in a very short time. These include the White House where she sang for President Bill Clinton and for the Commander-in-Chief Ball for President Obama, London's West End at the Theatre Royal in a tribute to the late great Ray Charles, solo engagements in New York at Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center, even a worldwide broadcast by NPR from the Library of Congress in Washington, DC highlight the extent to which her star has risen.

N'Kenge recently returns from singing in the Star-studded cast of Hairspray with the Baltimore Symphony and John Waters as the Narrator. Asbury Park residents will get a chance to hear for themselves why Baltimore Sun raved of N'Kenge... "delivering blazing vocalism". Franke Grande, Ace Young, Terence Archie and Renée Bang Allen complete this exciting cast. 54:The Musical is described as a "combination of a book musical, environmental/immersive theater event and juke box show." "In my opinion, 54 - the musical reinvents the musical genre...it's a completely new twist on a dance musical," says company general manager Bob Angelini, the founding Board President and former artistic director of Revision Theater in Asbury Park. "This new show is revolutionary in many ways: it's not only an engaging story with a familiar, authentic, 'funky' score, it's also an immersive audience event that engages and encourages real participation ...unlike traditional outside-looking-in theatre."

The new musical is described as such: "Picture yourself standing outside the doors of the most infamous discotheque of all time, Studio 54. The red velvet rope teases your legs as a supercilious and intimidating bouncer points to you, beckoning you into a place only a select few are lucky enough to explore. You brush past the unlucky ones and enter into a world of glamour and excess. The disco beat vibrates through your body like a tribal rhythm as you approach the dance floor where the club's chanteuse, Coco de Grand Prix, sits on a giant crescent moon suspended from the ceiling delivering her signature song.

You are escorted to a seat in the shadows where you sit, unnoticed, to follow the story of Robyn Connors, a privileged divorcée and one-hit wonder, whose dream is to return to the spotlight and headline the hottest club of all time, Studio 54. When she bumps into Cliff Knight, front man for the funk band The Black Knights, she finds herself falling in love with someone who is on the other side not only of the music scene but also of the racial divide. When Cliff's frustrated ex-girlfriend Tonya Love learns of their affair, she arranges for Robyn's rock 'n' roll brother Brian Cherry to play in the band-one of several attempts to see that Cliff and Robyn never lay hands on each other again. As the characters' desires and problems escalate, the room suddenly explodes as our ensemble erupts into a chicly choreographed hustle on the dance floor which now opens to the audience, allowing you to either become part of the action or just continue to drink in the sights and sounds surrounding you."

For more information on N'Kenge, visit www.nkengemusic.com. For more info on the show, visit www.54themusical.com

For "Funk-raiser" tickets, which cost $54 per person, call the Axelrod box office at 732-531-9106 or visit axelrodartscenter.com. Sponsorship tables of four also are available. VIP experiences will be up for bid at a silent auction throughout the evening, in addition to an exclusive VIP room.