General Director and CEO Deborah Sandler today announced the selection of the inaugural class of the Resident Artists Program. They include: soprano April Martin, mezzo-soprano Samantha Gossard, tenor Casey Candebat, baritone John Viscardi and pianist Kyle Naig. They will perform in various roles throughout the 2016-17 season on the mainstage at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts as well as at community outreach and education events. The artists were selected after a rigorous national audition of more than 100 singers. Led by Vinson Cole, UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance faculty member and one of the leading artists of his generation, Resident Artists Program signals the creation of the first-ever Resident Company for the Lyric Opera of Kansas City.
For the second production in their 45th anniversary season of professional summer theatre, Cortland Repertory Theatre presents the world renowned American musical West Side Story, with a book by Arthur Laurents, based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, and music byLeonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!
On the heels of the release of her critically debut solo venture Fire via Don Giovanni Records, lauded poet and songwriter Amy Klein has kicked off a national tour which includes a special album release show at Silent Barn in Brooklyn tomorrow night.
The Huntington Theatre Company will open its 2016-2017 season with the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park with George, Stephen Sondheim's stunning masterpiece about love, inspiration, and "the art of making art." Huntington Artistic Director Peter DuBois (A Little Night Music) will direct. Performances will run September 9 - October 16, 2016 at the Avenue of the Arts / BU Theatre. Tickets are now on sale to the general public.
Maine State Music Theatre continues its impressive 2016 lineup of shows with two performances on June 20, 2016, of A Grand Night for Singing, a musical revue conceived by Walter Bobbie to showcase the glorious songs of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Directed and choreographed by Curt Dale Clark with tap choreography by Raymond Marc Dumont, the revue features a sixteen-member cast of young professionals drawn from the intern company and local Maine performers, who turn in a performance that offers not only grand singing and dancing, but also speaks to the huge reservoirs of talent that MSMT is proud to possess.
The original 1993 twenty-seven song revue skillfully weaves together a wide range of Rodgers and Hammerstein's works in arrangements by Fred Wells (and lovely orchestrations by Michael Gibson and Jonathan Tunick) from both their smash hits like Oklahoma, Carousel, South Pacific, The Sound of Music, The King and I, and Cinderella, as well as gems from lesser-known shows like Allegro, State Fair, Flower Drum Song, and Pipe Dream. Patrick Fanning serves as MSMT's Music Director, conducting the wealth of melodic material with elan, delicious detail, and nuance and eliciting from the young cast lyrical and idiomatic renditions of beloved sings such as 'We Kiss in a Shadow,' 'Maria,' 'If I Loved You,' and 'This Nearly Was Mine' or upbeat numbers like 'Honey Bun' and 'Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!'
The dynamically staged and imaginatively choreographed production by MSMT's Artistic Director Curt Dale Clark - with a dazzling, intricate tap number created by Raymond Marc Dumont for 'Kansas City' - is brimming with class, warmth, and humor. Clark inspires the cast to bring to their music and vignettes an infectious and embracing energy, an eloquence of emotion spiced with mischievous moments. His pacing is brisk, and he effectively builds a lively sense of character and communication among the cast members, who share their enthusiasm with the public, even interacting on several occasions with the audience in the house. By retooling the contexts of many of the songs, he is able to add a contemporary and universal touch to their appeal. Most of all, he helps these young artists find and share the timeless heart in this treasure trove of American musical theatre. Using the bare bones of the Ghost set makes for a minimal but attractive decor. The characterful casual and subsequently elegantly formal costumes by Travis S. Grant are carefully chosen for their complementary pastel hues; the kinetic lighting by Heather Reynolds and a well-balanced sound design by Nate Dickson contribute to making this revue offers a feast for eyes and ears.
Working seamlessly as an ensemble, the youthful cast gives their all both in the big production numbers and in focused solos, amply illustrating the meaning of the musical theatre term 'triple threat.' They sing beautifully; they dance with technical aplomb, and they act with irresistible charm. Moreover, each and every one of them knows how to interpret a song - to make it more than a lyrical moment. Each has several occasions to shine, and Clark and Dumont have skillfully mined their individual strengths. Among the many highlights are a perky rendition of 'Surrey with the Fringe on Top' (Eric Berry-Sandelin, Katie Whittemore, Cameron Wright, Rachel Grindle, Hugh Cipparone, Berkley Jones), inspired vocal interpretations of 'If I Loved You (Jennifer Kennedy), 'It Might As Well Be Spring' (Berkely Jones)'This Nearly Was Mine,'(Matthew LaBerge), a smoldering account of 'Maria' (Alex Drost), a romantic 'We Kiss in a Shadow' (Giovanni DiGabrieli), a winsome 'All At Once' (Marty Lauter, Cipparone), and a single verse in 'Love Look Away' to bring tears to the eyes (Lauter), a feisty 'Stepsisters' Lament,' (Ali Sarnacchiaro, Haley Ostir, Megan Flynn), a spirited 'I Can't Say No' (Molly Keane-Dreyer, Kennedy), and a witty 'The Gentleman Is A Dope' (Alex Drost, Kyle Laing, Ostir, DiGabrieli, Lauter). The numerous ensemble numbers are enhanced by the strong camaraderie and chemistry among the players, making for some memorable comic and romantic moments such as the women's septet in sunny 'Wash That Man' and the men's octet in a plaintive 'Love Look Away.' The choreography is expressive, lyrical, and catchy by turns - ranging from ballet and modern to jazz and tap - with such numbers as the sweeping polka of 'Shall We Dance?' or the dueling tap in 'Kansas City' garnering special attention. Special mention to Berkely Jones, Marty Lauter, and Kyle Laing for their dance solos and impressive technique.
To spend an evening with these magnificent Rodgers and Hammerstein classics makes it impossible not to take away a renewed appreciation for their geniuses and a love of their legacy. But A Grand Night for Singing does something else as well. It proves to be one more piece of evidence that MSMT is truly, as its catchphrase promises, 'Bringing Broadway to Brunswick.'
Photos courtesy of MSMT, Roger S.Duncan, potographer
Evita which begins on June 29 - July 16 at the Pickard Theater, 1 Bath Rd., Brunswick, ME, on Monday, June 20 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. For tickets call box office at 207-725-8769 or visit online at www.msmt.org
APOTHEOSIS OPERA has announced their second production will be a fully-staged English-language production of GIACOMO PUCCINI'S masterpiece LA FANCIULLA DEL WEST (The Girl of the Golden West) on Friday July 22 at 7:30pm and Sunday July 24 at 3pm at the theatre of El Museo del Barrio (1230 5th Avenue).
Multi-platinum-selling country artist Sara Evans, ukulele phenomenon Jake Shimabukuro, Grammy-nominated folk singer-songwriter Iris DeMent, Blues Hall of Famer Robert Cray, and the Nashville assemblage of high-dollar studio musicians The Time Jumpers, featuring Vince Gill, Kenny Sears, Ranger Doug Green, and Paul Franklin, are just a few of the artists set to appear at the Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts at Pepperdine University during its 2016-2017 season.
Mikey Erg has played in a LOT of bands. Many fans of DIY punk rock and basement shows will know him from his namesake band, The Ergs!, but he's contributed to countless projects.
Ehrenkranz Artistic Director Jane Moss today announced the schedule for Lincoln Center's seventh White Light Festival, running from October 16 through November 16, 2016. The international multidisciplinary festival, which takes its name from a quotation by the Estonian composer Arvo Part, is an annual exploration of the power of art to illuminate our interior and communal lives. 'I could compare my music to white light which contains all colors. Only a prism can divide the colors and make them appear; this prism could be the spirit of the listener.' - Arvo Part
Iconic punk rock feminist, author, educator and musician Alice Bag will release her self-titled solo debut album Alice Bag, June 24 on Don Giovanni Records.
For the second production in their 45th anniversary season of professional summer theatre, Cortland Repertory Theatre presents the world renowned American musical West Side Story, with a book by Arthur Laurents, based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, and music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Performances of this stirring and exciting show will run from June 22 - July 9 with evening performances at 7:30.
MTV's hit matchmaking experiment, ARE YOU THE ONE? (AYTO), returns on an all-new night, Monday, June 13 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT. Meet the cast now on the new, official 'Are You The One?' Snapchat account: AREYOUTHE1.
Critically lauded poet and songwriter from New Jersey, Amy Klein, releases her debut solo venture Fire today, June 10 via Don Giovanni Records. With one foot firmly rooted in perfect punk prose and the other in lush melody, Klein has cut her teeth in fantastic bands such as Titus Andronicus, Leda and Hilly Eye.
Maine State Music Theatre presents Rodgers & Hammerstein's A GRAND NIGHT FOR SINGING appearing on the Pickard stage for one day only: Monday, June 20, 2016 at 2 PM and 7:30 PM. Taste and imagination, the two key ingredients for a first-rate revue, abound in this fresh take on the Rodgers & Hammerstein canon. This revue, with innovative musical arrangements including a sultry Andrews Sisters-esque 'I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Out-a My Hair,' a swingin' 'Honeybun' worthy of the Modernaires, and a jazzy 'Kansas City', leaves no question about how terrifically up to date the remarkable songs of R&H remain.
It's finally summer in Minnesota, and that means lakes, parks, camping, hiking, and best of all - summer theater! You can't spend every moment of the summer outdoors, because you wouldn't want to get a sunburn, and also sometimes it rains. So take a break from outdoor activities to see some great theater this summer (or watch theater outdoors!). Here are a few of your choices for summer theater playing on stages and in parks around Minneapolis, St. Paul, and the surrounding area.
