Birth Place: Detroit, MI, USA
MOTOWN is not just a company. It is an icon. This was the soundtrack of decades of change in America and still serves as the inspiration for current innovators in music. So it only seems inevitable that someone would see that this needed to be adapted for the musical theatre stage.
Motown the Musical lands on the Manchester Opera House Stage from 26 February - 23rd March 2019 and producers from the hit West End show recently held open auditions at the Opera House Manchester to find talented child and adult performers to play iconic Motown artists in the touring production.
Matt Manuel was born and raised in Detroit, MI, 'the heart of Motown.' He got his start as a competitive gymnast. When he was 13, he had to quit gymnastics, which he says broke his heart. His mother convinced him to try a piano lesson while his brother took a voice lesson. The teacher accidentally switched their lessons, which made Manuel realize he could sing. He studied theatre in high school, but once in college, focused more on vocal performance, so he would be classically trained. He was a contestant on season 13 of AMERICAN IDOL, which jump started his career. Since then, he has never stopped working. Manuel plays Marvin Gaye in MOTOWN THE MUSICAL. I had the chance to speak with him while MOTOWN recently had a tour stop in Boston, MA.
Motown the Musical today releases over 450,000 new tickets for sale, taking bookings for the hit West End show at the Shaftesbury Theatre to 2 November 2019. With music and lyrics from the Motown catalogue and book by Motown founder Berry Gordy, Motown the Musical tells the story behind the legendary classic hits, directed by Charles Randolph-Wright.
Hologram USA Networks Inc. today announced the date for the launch of its new hologram stage show, Higher & Higher: The Jackie Wilson Story. The show, from the leader of hologram technology founded by Greek billionaire Alki David, tracks the wild life of the R&B star, dubbed Mr. Excitement, all the way to the end when Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley paid his hospital bills. In the same 30-minute narrative format that Hologram USA pioneered with its successful show, Billie Holiday Alive!, the new show Higher & Higher dramatizes scenes from the legend's life--including the sex, drugs and rock & roll-- in addition to presenting his stage presence in all its glory.
Work Light Productions has announced that single tickets for MOTOWN THE MUSICAL will go on Monday, November 27th. MOTOWN THE MUSICAL will play at the Princess of Wales Theatre, May 22 - June 3, 2018.
This autumn, Motown the Musical will embark on its first ever UK and Ireland Tour whilst the show continues to play at Shaftesbury Theatre in London's West End.
Some of Broadway's best performers will grace the stage for Disney's Tony Award-winning musical 'NEWSIES,' at the Axelrod Performing Arts Center June 1 - 17. The acclaimed musical, which had its start at New Jersey's Paper Mill Playhouse before heading to Broadway and a national tour, is finally returning to its roots in New Jersey.
Work Light Productions and Broadway In Detroit, are proud to announce that MOTOWN THE MUSICAL will return to the Fisher Theatre for the Broadway tour's final Detroit engagement June 5-10, 2018.Tickets start at $45 and are on sale now online at Broadwayindetroit.com and Ticketmaster.com, as well as charge by phone (800) 982-2787 and in person at the Fisher Theatre Box Office.
After playing over 120 cities across the nation in four years, the record breaking smash hit production, MOTOWN THE MUSICAL, will conclude its national tour in the nation's Capital, playing the Filene Center at Wolf Trap at the end of June 2018. Over five million people will have experienced this critical and audience favorite between the first performance on Broadway until the final tour performance this June.
I always felt that the Beatles' songS of peace and love had as much to do with the fall of communism as much as Pres. Reagan's 1987 Berlin prouncement, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall".
BroadwayWorld UK were lucky enough to go backstage and talk to Natalie Kassanga and Jay Perry about joining the smash hit musical Motown, currently playing at Shaftesbury Theatre in the West End.
The Wallis production of BLUES IN THE NIGHT, conceived and directed by Sheldon Epps, starts performances next week in the intimate Lovelace Theater! Artistic Director Paul Crewes snuck into rehearsal to chat with cast members Yvette Cason, Bryce Charles, Chester Gregory, and Paulette Ivory about this exciting new production.
Hot off the heels of his triumphant performance as Judas in NBC's Jesus Christ Superstar Live, Tony Award nominee BRANDON VICTOR DIXON will be the headliner at TDF's 50th Anniversary Gala on Monday, June 18 at Manhattan's historic Gotham Hall (1356 Broadway @ 36th Street, NYC).
MOTOWN THE MUSICAL presented by Worklight Productions is coming to the Palace Theater May 11 - 13 for four performances. Tickets can be purchased online at www.palacetheaterct.org, by phone at 203-346-2000, or in person at the Box Office, 100 East Main St.
Aside from the joy of living one's dream with a national tour, MOTOWN: THE MUSICAL is a production of historical consequence. The actors in the present touring production landing at The Playhouse May 1 understand its significance and the honor bestowed upon them.
MOTOWN THE MUSICAL presented by Worklight Productions is coming to the Palace Theater May 11 - 13 for four performances.
Catch MOTOWN THE MUSICAL before it races away from the Hippodrome in Baltimore. If you missed it in 2016, flag it down before it's gone. If you caught it before, it's had a tuneup and is plenty worth watching again. Surely someone you love should see it with you.
Work Light Productions and The Playhouse on Rodney Square present MOTOWN THE MUSICAL for eight performances Tuesday, May 1 through Sunday, May 6.
Videos
