Juliet Ewing: Simply ’S Wonderful, The Magic of Gershwin at Chelsea Table + Stage

Juliet Ewing

Juliet Ewing has performed in New York City at Birdland, 54 Below, Laurie Beechman Theatre, Triad Theater, Tavern on the Green, and The Duplex. She made her solo cabaret debut at Don’t Tell Mama on April 11, 2024, in Rise Up Singing - The Music of George Gershwin, directed by Lina Koutrakos, with musical direction by Drotos. Ewing has appeared on Broadway and in the first US National Tour of the hit musical Footloose. She has enjoyed leading roles in the European tours of Gershwin’s Crazy For You and the tap-dancing blockbuster 42nd Street, as well as numerous regional theater productions. More info: julietewing.com

Ron Drotos

Ron Drotos is a jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. Drotos received a Bachelor’s degree in Music Composition from The University of Connecticut. He studied jazz piano with Dr. Billy Taylor, Walter Bishop, Jr., Harold Danko, and Ellen Rowe, and worked as assistant to the baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan. In New York City, he served as Associate Music Director and created orchestrations for the Broadway musical Swinging On A Star, which received a Tony Award® nomination for Best Musical in 1995. Additional Broadway credits include Smokey Joe’s Café, The Life, and Fosse. Drotos has orchestrated for the New York Pops Orchestra, with whom he has appeared several times at Carnegie Hall. He has been featured as Music Director on the 92nd St. Y’s famed Lyrics and Lyricists series, and has performed with vocalists Julius LaRosa, Judy Collins, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Nell Carter, Giacomo Gates and Juliet Ewing. In addition, he has taught in Alaska at the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival annually since 1999, and has been inducted into the festival’s Hall of Fame.

Michael O'Brien

Bassist Michael O'Brien holds a B.A from the University of Minnesota with a major in the Spanish language. He has been performing and composing internationally for over a decade with such notables as Harry Connick Jr., Ruben Blades, Toninho Horta, Gil Goldstein, The Merce Cunningham Dance Co., Gene Pitney, Christine Ebersole, Dave Samuels, Pablo Ziegler, Steve Wilson, Veronica Swift, Dave King, Matt Wilson, Victor Lewis, Gene Jackson, Alex Sipiagin, Portinho, Sachal Vasandani, and Ted Nash, to name a few. O'Brien has performed at festivals throughout the world, including the UNESCO International Jazz Day, Lincoln Center Festival, JEN (Jazz Educators Network), IAJE (International Jazz Educators conference), PASIC (Percussive Arts Societies International Convention), and American Composers Forums' Sonic Circuits Festival. His string quartet work "Pine" was performed at the Kennedy Center by the acclaimed string quartet Ethel. O'Brien has taught clinics and performed master classes throughout the world, and has held clinics in Mauritania, D.R Congo, and Angola via the State Departments’ African Regional Services.

Eric Halvorson

Drummer Eric Halvorson, based in Brooklyn, NY, has been active on the New York City music scene for over 20 years. He has performed with artists such as John Fedchock, Dave Liebman, Bob Sheppard, Dave Stryker, Steve Slagle, Vic Juris, Adam Rogers, Joe Locke, Bruce Barth, Marilyn Maye, Fred Hersch, Mark Murphy, James Moody, and Bill Henderson; Broadway stars Christine Ebersole and Sherie Rene Scott; songwriter and pianist Marvin Hamlisch; soul singer Ben E. King; blues artist George Kilby Jr. and the legendary Pinetop Perkins to name a few. He has toured internationally with vocalist Ute Lemper and also works with many big bands including Josh Shneider's 'Love Speaks Orchestra', the Bill Warfield Repertory Big Band, and the George Gee Big Band. He has performed at New York City's top venues including Lincoln Center, Town Hall, Radio City Music Hall, City Center and jazz venues Iridium, Blue Note, Smalls, Smoke and Birdland. He has performed for the Kennedy Center Honors in 2008 and 2010 and at numerous festivals including the Monterey Jazz Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Norwich Music Festival (UK), Silda Jazz (Norway), Radio Classica (Chile), Cork Jazz Festival (Ireland), Festival de Jazz (Colombia), Kaunas Jazz Festival (Lithuania), and the Iowa City Jazz Festival. He’s in demand on Broadway and was the drummer for the 2015 revival of Gigi. He has played in the orchestras of Wicked, Pippin, On the Town, West Side Story, Sister Act, How to Succeed in Business, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Mary Poppins, Cinderella, Shrek, Xanadu, and many others. He played the Los Angeles production of Follies in 2012. He is sought after by a variety of performers because of his rock and pop sensibilities.

Lina Koutrakos

Lina Koutrakos is a multi-awarded singer songwriter and director based in New York City. Both an Oscar and Grammy nominated performer, she has turned her skills and attention toward directing other solo performers and teaching performance classes all over the world. As a director, her talented clients have garnered multiple MAC awards and New York City’s Bistro awards. Through her “boutique” performance workshops - from the weeklong learning experience on the Greek island of Mykonos to the advanced Saturday morning workshop in New York City to her newly added specialized recording workshops - Koutrakos continues to share her expertise and passion for the art of being solo in the spotlight with many other singers. linasings.com