Ben West News

Aziza Miller will bring 'From Brooklyn to Broadway!' to The Iridium (1650 Broadway & 51st Street, NYC 10019) on Thursday, October 6th at 8 PM.

AMERICAN PSYCHO, the American premiere of a new musical based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis -- which celebrates the 25th anniversary of its publication this March -- began performances on Broadway at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (236 West 45th Street) on Thursday, March 24, 2016. Opening night is tonight, April 21, 2016. Scroll down to learn more about the company and watch highlights from the show!

Well-Strung, the popular string quartet that is also a boy band, launched their second album POPssical with a CD Release Concert at Feinstein's/54 Below. The show was a reworked version of their cabaret revue titled POPssical, and included new surprises mixed in with the familiar favorites. As always with the gifted group, the guys played their instruments with virtuosic integrity and provided stirring vocals, especially during melodious harmonies.

The boys of Well-Strung are back with their thrilling sophomore album, POPssical. With a track listing inspired by their acclaimed cabaret show by the same title, this follow-up to their self-titled debut album avoids the treacherous waters of the dreaded sophomore slump and gifts fans and newcomers with a vibrantly bodacious new record that improves on their original and alluring concept.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) will continue its 2014 Unsung concert series at 54 Below with Unsung Bob Merrill and Unsung Carolyn Leigh, Vol. 2, following its recent sold-out, critically acclaimed Unsung Carolyn Leigh concert for Lincoln Center's American Songbook. The two all-new evenings are created and directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, At Home Abroad) with musical direction and arrangements by Fran Minarik (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, At Home Abroad).

For its fall offering, the New England Regional Theatre Company mounted an ambitious and stirring production of Man of La Mancha at the Orion Performing Arts Center in Topsham, Maine. The sixteen-person cast and twelve-musician ensemble invested this touching revival with passion and intelligence. Directed by John Willey, the 1965 Dale Wasserman-Mitch Leigh-Joe Darrion musical based on Miguel de Cervantes' epic novel, Don Quixote still burns with intensity, idealism, and a much-needed antidote in a chaotic modern world - the courage and hope to 'fight for the right' and follow the quest. Willey strikes the right balance between comedy and drama, and he handles the musical's framing device - that of Cervantes recounting his tale in a prison of the Inquisition - with visual and theatrical aplomb. He keeps the entire cast on stage for the duration and uses the exceptionally wide Orion space inventively, so that the action flows naturally and his musical staging is completely organic. Moreover, he elicits from his actors a fervent luminosity that proves inspiring.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) will present Unsung Carolyn Leigh, Vol. 2 at 54 Below on Thursday, November 20 at 7 PM and 9:30 PM. The evening, showcasing songs by the Tony- and Grammy-nominated lyricist of Peter Pan, Little Me, and How Now Dow Jones, is created and directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling).

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) will present Unsung Bob Merrill hosted by three-time Tony Award nominee Marc Kudisch (9 to 5, Assassins, Millie). Created and directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, Make Mine Manhattan), the intimate evening will play 54 Below tonight, August 5 at 9:30 PM.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) will present Unsung Bob Merrill hosted by three-time Tony Award nominee Marc Kudisch (9 to 5, Assassins, Millie). Created and directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, Make Mine Manhattan), the intimate evening will play 54 Below on Tuesday, August 5 at 9:30 PM.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) continues its 2014 developmental reading series at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center with a special presentation of I Had a Ball, the 1964 Coney Island musical comedy with a book by Tony Award winner Jerome Chodorov (Wonderful Town) and a score by Stan Freeman & Jack Lawrence. The reading, directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, Make Mine Manhattan), will be held today, July 24 at 2:30 PM in the Bruno Walter Auditorium.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) continues its 2014 developmental reading series at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center with a special presentation of I Had a Ball, the 1964 Coney Island musical comedy with a book by Tony Award winner Jerome Chodorov (Wonderful Town) and a score by Stan Freeman & Jack Lawrence. The reading, directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, Make Mine Manhattan), was held earlier this week in the Bruno Walter Auditorium. BroadwayWorld brings you photos from inside the reading below!

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) continues its 2014 developmental reading series at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center with a special presentation of I Had a Ball, the 1964 Coney Island musical comedy with a book by Tony Award winner Jerome Chodorov (Wonderful Town) and a score by Stan Freeman & Jack Lawrence. The reading, directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, Make Mine Manhattan), will be held Thursday, July 24 at 2:30 PM in the Bruno Walter Auditorium.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) continues its 2014 developmental reading series at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center with a special presentation of I Had a Ball, the 1964 Coney Island musical comedy with a book by Tony Award winner Jerome Chodorov (Wonderful Town) and a score by Stan Freeman & Jack Lawrence. The reading, directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, Make Mine Manhattan), will be held Thursday, July 24 at 2:30 PM in the Bruno Walter Auditorium.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) is proud to present a special workshop production of the all-new musical revue The Passing Show for five performances only this weekend, June 26-29 at MTC Creative Center.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) is proud to present a special workshop production of the all-new musical revue The Passing Show for five performances only June 26-29 at MTC Creative Center.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) will continue its 2014 Unsung concert series at 54 Below with Unsung Bob Merrill and Unsung Carolyn Leigh, Vol. 2, following its recent sold-out, critically acclaimed Unsung Carolyn Leigh concert for Lincoln Center's American Songbook. The two all-new evenings are created and directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, At Home Abroad) with musical direction and arrangements by Fran Minarik (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, At Home Abroad).

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) will launch its 2014 developmental reading series at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts with a special presentation of Peggy-Ann, the hit 1926 musical comedy with a book by Tony Award winner Herbert Fields (Annie Get Your Gun) and a score by the legendary songwriting team of Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart (Pal Joey, On Your Toes). The reading, directed by Ben West (Unsung Carolyn Leigh, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, At Home Abroad), will be held Thursday, May 22 at 2:30 PM in the Bruno Walter Auditorium.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) is proud to present Unsung Carolyn Leigh, a special concert produced for Lincoln Center's American Songbook at the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse tonight, April 5 at 8 PM. The evening, showcasing songs by the Tony- and Grammy-nominated lyricist of Peter Pan, Little Me and How Now Dow Jones, is created and directed by Ben West (The Fig Leaves Are Falling, At Home Abroad, Make Mine Manhattan).

Max von Essen, Erin Davie, Alli Mauzey and other Bway stars will sing lesser-known tunes by the lyricist of 'Peter Pan' and 'Little Me'.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) is proud to present Unsung Carolyn Leigh, a special concert produced for Lincoln Center's American Songbook at the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse on Saturday, April 5 at 8 PM. The evening, showcasing songs by the Tony- and Grammy-nominated lyricist of Peter Pan, Little Me and How Now Dow Jones, is created and directed by Ben West (The Fig Leaves Are Falling, At Home Abroad, Make Mine Manhattan).