Carrie Manolakos News

October 2013 has been an exciting month for the rock musical LIZZIE. The first large production of the musical was mounted by Theater Under the Stars' newest venture TUTS Undergound, a theatre series promising no revivals, no dead authors, and no boundaries. Likewise, on October 8, 2013, LIZZIE's theatrical concept double album was released, garnering glowing and positive reviews from critics. While they were in Houston performing in LIZZIE, I spoke with two of LIZZIE's hard rocking stars, Carrie Manolakos and Carrie Cimma, about their experiences recording the exceptionally fun and alluring album.

Earlier this summer, Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) surprised us with the announcement of their newest endeavor TUTS Underground. With that announcement came the promise of 'No revivals - No dead authors - No boundaries,' and ultimately a cutting edge brand of theatre for Houston audiences. Kicking off TUTS Underground's inaugural season, the Houston premiere of LIZZIE, a musical about the axe wielding double-murderess Lizzie Borden, proves to be the perfect opener for a season of bold theatre.

TUTS Underground is a new venture and legacy for TUTS, Houston's largest nonprofit musical theatre company. Forged from the guidelines of "No revivals - No dead authors - No boundaries," TUTS Underground features productions that are edgy, captivating, rockin' and occasionally a bit risque.

I can't pinpoint the date that the musical LIZZIE first made a bleep on my radar, but I do know that by June 16, 2013, I was dying to hear the album. Living in Houston, Texas, I missed the LIZZIE pre-release listening party at Bowery Electric. Feeling as though Andrew Borden himself were locking me away from the album, my anticipation of the anachronistic hard-rock score left me dreaming of bloody axes and Victorian ladies turned punk-rock goddesses singing their hearts out. Luckily, after roughly four months of anticipation, I finally got my hands on LIZZIE, a theatrical concept double album, and I couldn't be more blown away.

Broadway Records is proud to announce the release of LIZZIE, a theatrical concept double album, due for release onOctober 8, 2013. It is available for pre-order at http://amzn.com/B00CIIFKAM.

This past summer, Theatre Under the Stars finally gave us the news that many had eagerly been anticipating. In July, TUTS announced their newest endeavor and introduced us to TUTS Underground, a brand of theatre that is edgy and features innovative and modern works. Utilizing the intimate Zilkha Hall in the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, TUTS Underground is unleashing an electric 2013-2014 season that is sure to be a new theatre experience for Houston audiences. Opening the inaugural season for TUTS Underground is LIZZIE, a rock musical about the infamous murderess Lizzie Borden. I was really excited when Carrie Manolakos, singer-songwriter and actress, generously agreed to take time out of her busy schedule to let me know about her experience playing the axe-wielding Lizzie Borden, and a little bit about what Houston audiences can expect from this TUTS Underground show.

TUTS Underground reveals the rock maven quartet to stage TUTS Underground's season opener and 'killer' rock musical Lizzie. Carrie Manolakos, Carrie Cimma, Natalie Charle Ellis and Courtney Markowitz headline the blood soaked retelling of the legend of Victorian girl and leading double murder suspect Lizzie Borden. The show runs Oct. 10 - 20 in Hobby Center's Zilkha Hall.

Transcendence Theatre's Broadway Under The Stars in Jack London State Park 2013 season completes on August 30th and 31st with the Gala Celebration.

Back in February, when Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) announced their 2013-2014 season, Bruce Lumpkin, TUTS' Artistic Director, gave BroadwayWorld an exclusive heads up about an exciting development that was occurring within the organization. Now TUTS is ready to announce their exhilarating new project, an invigorating and diverse season of fresh, edgy musical theatre called TUTS Underground. This season will run in The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts' intimate Zilkha Hall and feature innovative modern works. According to Bruce Lumpkin, the intended audience for this line up is "a contemporary minded audience, an audience looking for something new, something different than what's been offered." The inaugural season for TUTS Underground will feature four fresh shows that are "not only new, newly done, but newly done for our audiences here."

According to a Tweet by Frankie Grande, he and Liz Gillies are set to star in JAWBREAKER when the show comes to Broadway.

The Transcendence Artist Series, is a collection of one night concerts with individual artists in a variety of remarkable settings throughout Wine Country. From wine caves and vineyards back to the Jack London Park ruins, these performances will each create an intimate atmosphere for inspiration and transcendence.

Transcendence Theatre Company (TTC), producing company of the award-winning Broadway Under the Stars concerts in Sonoma's Jack London State Park, introduces the Transcendence Artist Series, featuring Tony winner Sutton Foster.

Day one- we had an orientation of Jack London State Park, which is where Transcendence Theatre Co. is housed during their summer performances. Everyone showed up with smiles on their faces ready to do whatever was necessary to get the job done. We circled up, as Artistic Director Amy Miller read inspiring quotes to gear us up for the journey ahead.

The closer it got came to my departure from the 'iron jungle' the more excited I became. I knew I was on my way into a 3wk makeover in Sonoma, CA. BLISS! I couldn't wait. A six hour flight from JFK to San Francisco was nothin'. Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge was stunning. The flight went by pretty fast actually. I had the pleasure of traveling with another cast member, Carrie Manolakos. Carrie and I did a reading of The First Wives Club some years ago and I was an immediate fan. I'm honored to have the privilege to work with her again.

Transcendence Theatre's Broadway Under The Stars in Jack London State Park opens tonight, June 28th with the first concert of the summer season entitled Fly Me To The Moon.

Transcendence Theatre's Broadway Under The Stars in Jack London State Park opens on June 28th with the first concert of the summer season entitled Fly Me To The Moon.

Magical things really can happen when Broadway talents converge, as is proven on Kait Kerrigan and Brian Lowdermilk's sophomore album KERRIGAN-LOWDERMILK LIVE. The album exists because the duo raised an impressive and record-breaking $35,000 in their debut album's Kickstarter campaign. With the extra $25,000 they funded a concert tour, 2011's 'You Made This Tour,' and a live album, KERRIGAN-LOWDERMILK LIVE. As a singer-songwriter duo that also writes for theatre, there is a prominent and fascinating indie vibe that inhabits every track. As Kait Kerrigan states on one of the tracks, there is simply no denying that this album fabulously showcases talents are the 'future of theater and music in general.'

The New York Civil Liberties Union (the New York State affiliate of the ACLU) today announced a star-studded lineup of award-winning performers for 'Broadway Stands Up for Freedom,' its annual benefit show, to be held Monday, July 22 at the NYU Skirball Center for Performing Arts.