Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens Perform at 92YTribeca 4/19

Casting is set for the debut of Lyrics & Lyricists Downtown, the new L&L^TM series at 92YTribeca, the 92nd Street Y's downtown arts and culture venue. The premiere one-night-only performance and conversation on Monday, April 19 features the Tony Award-winning songwriting team of Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty. The duo talks about their craft and their experiences in musical theater with Flaherty at the piano, joined by vocalists Michael Arden, Quentin Earl Darrington, Kecia Lewis Evans, and Christiane Noll.

The evening is moderated by playwright Terrence McNally, who worked on the books for Ragtime and A Man of No Importance. Other cast members have also worked with Ahrens and Flaherty; Noll and Darrington recently starred in the recent Broadway revival of Ragtime; Evans was one of the original stars of both Once On This Island (Broadway) and Dessa Rose (Lincoln Center Theater); and Arden starred in the Broadway revival of Big River and Broadway's The Times They Are A-Changin.'

In addition to winning the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Ragtime, Ahrens and Flaherty received Tony nominations for Once on This Island, and Grammy nominations for Ragtime and Seussical, one of the most frequently-performed shows in America. The Kennedy Center revival of Ragtime (which moved to Broadway last fall) just garnered six Helen Hayes Award nominations; and their 2002 musical A Man of No Importance (with book by their Ragtime collaborator Terrence McNally), is set to make its West End debut in London next month. Ahrens and Flaherty are also two-time Academy Award nominees for the movie musical Anastasia.

Lyrics & Lyricists Downtown features intimate, informal conversations with songwriters working in today's musical theater, all in a nightclub setting (complete with full bar).

About 92nd Street Y
92YTribeca is the 92nd Street Y's downtown arts and culture venue in New York City. Opened in October 2008, 92YTribeca presents music, comedy, film, theater, talks, classes, family events, and Jewish community and holiday programs in a versatile, street-level, modern space at 200 Hudson Street. For more information, visit www.92YTribeca.org.

Since launching its concert series in 1934, what is now the 92nd Street Y Tisch Center for the Arts, which produces Lyrics and Lyricists^TM, has presented acclaimed classical musicians and exciting newcomers; it is also home to 92Y's winter and summer jazz series, guitar series, family concerts and the renowned Unterberg Poetry Center.

Founded in 1874 by a group of visionary Jewish leaders, the 92nd Street Y has grown into a wide-ranging cultural, educational and community center serving about 300,000 people of all ages, races, faiths and backgrounds each year. For more information, please visit www.92Y.org.

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