Janet Aldrich, Stephen Bogardus & More to Star in OTHER LIVES: THE STORY SONGS OF MICHAEL COLBY at Urban Stages

 

Other Lives: The Story Songs of Michael Colby, a mélange of melody and tour de force performances featuring lyrics by Michael Colby, will be presented as part of Urban Stages 2022 "Winter Rhythms" series, produced by Tom Toce and Sue Matsuki, on Sunday, December 11 at 3pm and Tuesday, December 13, 2022 at 7pm at Urban Stages Theater (259 West 30th Street - between 7th & 8th Avenues). Tickets are is a $30 and may be obtained here.

When live performances were stymied by the outbreak of COVID and in anticipation of better times, musical theatre writer Michael Colby (Charlotte Sweet, The Algonquin Kid) tailored an evening of story songs to spotlight both established theatre favorites and exciting up-and- coming performers seen on New York stages.

The cast of Other Lives: The Story Songs of Michael Colby features veterans Janet Aldrich (Annie, Forbidden Broadway - Helen Hayes Award), Bethe Austin (Whoopee!, Olympus On My Mind, Noises Off - Drama Desk Award), Ari Axelrod (Bistro Award winner), Klea Blackhurst (Bistro Award winner, Everything The Traffic Will Allow, The Nutty Professor), Stephen Bogardus (Love! Valor! Compassion! - Tony nomination; original "Whizzer" in Falsettos; Bright Star), Le Donna Burns (RENT, Broadway Inspirational Voices), David Edwards (By Jeeves, The Producers), Sarah Rice (original "Johanna" in Sweeney Todd; MAC and Bistro winner), Luke Nephat (Ludlow Ladd In Concert), Jane Seaman (Anything Goes, Secret Garden), Jake David Smith (Between The Lines), Megan Styrna (Ludlow Ladd In Concert), Marianne Tatum (Theater World Award winner as original "Jenny Lind" in Barnum; Drama Desk Award nominee, The Three Musketeers), Maureen Taylor (The Phantom Of The Opera; MAC Award nominee for Cosmic Connections: The Lyrics Of Michael Colby), Deborah Jean Templin (Annie), Deborah Tranelli (Multiple Bistro Awards; "Phyllis" on TV's "Dallas"), Joshua Turchin (the only teen to originate an edition of Forbidden Broadway, The Early Night Show, "Akiva Bergman" on "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel"), Stuart Zagnit (Caroline, or Change, "The Wizard" in Wicked - National Tour) and newcomers Lauren Baker, Talia Cutulle, and Heeya Kim.

The evening will showcase composers: Andrea Colby, Ned Paul Ginsburg, Larry Hochman, Paul Katz, Gerald Jay Markoe, Peter Millrose, Alex Rybeck, Steven Silverstein, Joseph Thalken, and Herman Yaboloff.

The evening will be directed by Sara Louise Lazarus with Musical Direction by Michael Lavine.

Other Lives: The Story Songs of Michael Colby plays Urban Stages Theater (259 West 30th Street - between 7th & 8th Avenues) on Sunday, December 11th at 3pm and Tuesday, December 11 @ 7pm. Tickets are $30 and are available for purchase here. For more information, visit www.urbanstages.org.

BIOS

Michael Colby

is the lyricist/librettist of such musicals as Charlotte Sweet (Drama Desk Award nomination), Tales of Tinseltown (Jay Records), North Atlantic (Show Business Award), Slay It With Music (Off-Broadway & London), Delphi Or Bust (Amas), and They Chose Me!, (originated at TADA!). Recent: Mrs. McThing (benefit for TADA! Youth Theater) and Ludlow Ladd In Concert (Winter Rhythms). Cosmic Connections: The Lyrics of Michael Colby, a MAC Award nominated show with Maureen Taylor, is now an album on Brainstorm Records. Among those for whom Mr. Colby has written: Angela Lansbury, Linda Lavin, Tony Yazbeck, Andrea McArdle, Robert Cuccioli, Savion Glover, Susan Stroman, Cicely Tyson, and Michael Feinstein. A member of BMI, NY songwriters Alliance, and The Dramatist Guild, and TRU, Colby wrote the popular book, The Algonquin Kid.

Sara Louise Lazarus

has received MAC and several Bistro Awards as Outstanding Director. Carried Away: Jeff Harnar Sings Comden and Green, which Sara directed, was named "Best Show" of 2020 from BroadwayWorld. Sara has taught Lady Gaga, and in theatre she directed such luminaries as Carolee Carmello, Melissa Errico and Jimmy Smits. Sara has taught at PaperMill Playhouse and co-directed their New Voices Concerts. Theatrical productions include The Rink, She Loves Me, Private Lives, Cabaret and Gigi. Sara is on the faculty of Circle in the Square Theatre School, where she teaches and developed the Musical Theatre curriculum from its beginnings. Sara's students have played leading roles in Funny Girl, Wicked, Book of Mormon, My Fair Lady at Lincoln Center, and many more. Sara is delighted to be working again with Michael Colby and Michael Lavine, with whom she collaborated as Director on all productions of Ludlow Ladd, including a previous version featuring Kristin Chenoweth, and the successful Winter Rhythms run at Urban Stages last year.

Michael Lavine

has worked as a musical director, pianist, vocal coach and singer all over the world. He gives master classes on auditioning in New York, Los Angeles, Moscow, Bangkok, Australia, Singapore, Manila, Martha's Vineyard, and other locations. He has accompanied Broadway and television star Bryan Batt in New Orleans, San Francisco, Australia, Hollywood and at 54 Below, Feinstein's, and the Metropolitan Room in New York. Michael has conducted orchestras in a number of cities around the country. He musically directed the Comden and Green musical Billion Dollar Baby at the York Theatre in New York City starring Kristin Chenoweth, Marc Kudisch and Debbie Gravitte. He shared the stage with Mimi Hines and Peter Howard (his mentor) at the Kennedy Center in a Rodgers and Hart revue, This Funny World. A graduate of Columbia University, Michael owns one of the larger privately held sheet music collections in the world. More details can be found at Michael's website, www.michaellavine.net. He can be reached at Broadwaymhl@aol.com.

URBAN STAGES WINTER RHYTHMS 2022

marks the 14th year that Urban Stages welcomes noted musical artists to its stage during the holiday period. Our annual festival has received a Bistro Award for Outstanding Series and the Ruth Kurtzman Benefit Series MAC Award amongst other accolades. Turning Urban Stages theater into an intimate music venue, WINTER RHYTHMS brings the talents of well-known and up-and-coming singers, musicians, lyricists, and composers to the attention of the New York theater community. All proceeds go to Urban Stages' Outreach, a city-wide program that tours and makes available online free plays and art programming for all ages. Outreach is a key part of Urban Stages' mission to champion diverse artists and make art, theater, and education available for all.

 

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