Kerry Ellis News

In this week's edition of Around BWW: Regional Highlights of the Week', we bring you the most-read stories for the week of October 8! From reviews to interviews, videos and photos, catch up on all the latest regional happenings around the Broadway World!

Judy Kuhn, known on Broadway for her role in Chess and Les Misérables (and by 90s Disney fans as the singing voice of the animated Pocahontas), is performing a week-long cabaret run at the Hippodrome Casino's Matcham Room

The Calendar Girls will launch Seasons of Love, a unique celebration of words, music and film at the Royal Albert Hall, tonight, 7 October 2012, at 4pm and 8pm. The gala show will have contributions from the City of London Philharmonic, the West End Chorus, Stephen Disley and the Grand Organ of the Royal Albert Hall together with some of the VIPs and stars of the stage and screen The Calendar Girls have met along the way.

Kerry Ellis, best known for leading lady stints in Wicked, Oliver and We Will Rock You, has been in 'solo artist' territory for some time now, recording and touring with legendary guitarist and mentor Brian May. In the new Hippodrome Casino's sexy, purple-hued cabaret venue, The Matcham Room, she seems to be having a great time performing her week-long residency, with a very talented band and backing vocalists in tow

These special intimate concerts provide a chance to see Ellis and May close-up, and are being especially performed to raise awareness of the work of the Born Free Foundation, the global organisation which works to protect and conserve threatened species, particularly Africa's magnificent lions, which across much of Africa, are now in serious decline.

The 6th Sunflower Jam, Rock & Roll Music Event 2012 will be tonight, 16th September 2012 at the Royal Albert Hall, London. The evening, hosted by Actor Jeremy Irons, will consist of many very special performances from confirmed artists such as Bruce Dickinson, Ian Paice, Mark King, Alfie Boe, Brian May and Kerry Ellis and John Paul Jones.

GWB Entertainment and Shanghai Culture Square Theatre are excited to announce a return season of Ultimate Broadway 2012. The concert series opened the Shanghai Culture Square Theatre last year and starred Eden Espinosa, Lea Salonga, Ria Jones, Kevin Kern and Brad Little. Due to the major success of the concerts, a return season is on sale for October 2012. The multi-million dollar venue has been developed as both a producing and receiving house specializing in Musical Theatre.

The 6th Sunflower Jam, Rock & Roll Music Event 2012 will be on Sunday 16th September 2012 at the Royal Albert Hall, London. The evening, hosted by Actor Jeremy Irons, will consist of many very special performances from confirmed artists such as Bruce Dickinson, Ian Paice, Mark King, Alfie Boe, Brian May and Kerry Ellis and John Paul Jones.

Today we are talking to a multi-talented performer who has performed on Broadway in everything from BROOKLYN to WICKED who made her most recent Broadway bows standing by in both ON A CLEAR DAY YOU CAN SEE FOREVER and PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT - the dynamic and compelling Julie Reiber. Talking all about her new solo album, LOVE TRAVELS, and its various inspirations as well as casting a look back at her many Broadway, touring and regional roles thus far in her eclectic career - ALL SHOOK UP, SWEENEY TODD and many more included - Reiber and I attempt to illustrate her unique place on Broadway and what she would like to pursue in the future, both on the stage and in the recording studio. Additionally, Reiber opens up about her exhaustive song selection process for LOVE TRAVELS and shares candid stories of the recording process of her solo debut, including providing some background on the songs that did not make the cut, how the sterling arrangements arose out of the material and the process of becoming a singer-songwriter in her own right over the project's three-year-long creation. Also, Reiber outlines her experiences performing in the out-of-town tryout of the new musical adaptation of Armistead Maupin's TALES OF THE CITY penned by rock super group Scissor Sisters and expresses her desire to continue with future iterations of the 70s-set Broadway-bound tuner as she looks ahead to her new roles of recording artist, and, also, she is happy to announce, mother. Plus, Julie offers details on her role in the heretofore little-known Meat Loaf-inspired movie musical ECLIPSE OF THE HEART (hopefully released some red moon soon), expresses her thoughts on GLEE and SMASH, compared Broadway now versus a decade ago - and much, much more!

Tonight, 8th August 2012, Live at the Hippodrome presents an evening with five-time Grammy Award-winning singing legend Dionne Warwick. During her 50 years in the music industry, the international icon has achieved more than 60 charted hit songs and sold over 100 million records. Known for hits such as Do You Know The Way To San Jose?, Say A Little Prayer and I'll Never Fall in Love Again, Warwick will perform accompanied by a five-piece band at The Matcham Room, permanent home to Live at the Hippodrome.

On 14th October 2012 Mercury Musical Developments will be celebrating its 20th Anniversary with a Gala Concert celebrating British musical theatre past, present and future, for one night only, at the Novello Theatre.

On 8th August 2012, Live at the Hippodrome is proud to present an evening with five-time Grammy Award-winning singing legend Dionne Warwick. During her 50 years in the music industry, the international icon has achieved more than 60 charted hit songs and sold over 100 million records. Known for hits such as Do You Know The Way To San Jose?, Say A Little Prayer and I'll Never Fall in Love Again, Warwick will perform accompanied by a five-piece band at The Matcham Room, permanent home to Live at the Hippodrome. Tickets are on sale starting today, Wednesday 25th July.

Pentatonix sing 'Love, Love, Love' from Scott Alan's new album LIVE, recorded in April 2012 at Birdland. Pentatonix's debut album PTX VOLUME 1 just reached Billboard's Top 20. Watch the video below!

Lee Mead, Matt Rawle and Stephen Rahman-Hughes, who have starred in some of the West End's biggest and most successful musicals in recent years, will come together with live musicians and a full choir, in a sharp and sexy musical theatre concert driven by astonishing voices and formidable musicianship, directed by Mitch Sebastian. The West End Men will get its world premiere at GLive, Guildford, tonght, 18 July.

The X Factor meets London's West End in the finale of a Twitter talent show to find the musical theatre stars of the future.

Scott Alan's newest CD, which was recorded live in April at Birdland, has been released today, June 26 on a two-disc recording, which is simply titled 'Live.' The album can be purchased via iTunes, CDbaby, Amazon, Dress Circle and everywhere digital music is available.

A CD version of the concept album for new musical The In-Between is being released by Dress Circle today, Saturday 23 June 2012. The album will be launched with an in-store signing from 11am to 12 noon, with cast members just announced to attend including West End stars Sabrina Aloueche, Daniel Boys, Dianne Pilkington and Lauren Samuels.

Singer, actor and Radio 2 presenter Aled Jones is to host #searchforatwitterstar LIVE, the West End final of the online talent competition being run by the Twitter phenomenon @westendproducer.

Lee Mead, Matt Rawle and Stephen Rahman-Hughes, who have starred in some of the West End's biggest and most successful musicals in recent years, will come together with live musicians and a full choir, in a sharp and sexy musical theatre concert driven by astonishing voices and formidable musicianship, directed by Mitch Sebastian. The West End Men will get its world premiere at GLive, Guildford, on Wednesday 18 July. Further UK?dates will be announced very soon.

West End stars Sabrina Aloueche, Hannah Jane Fox, Scott Garnham and Lauren Samuels will be performing songs from new musical The In-Between at this year's West End Live in Trafalgar Square, with sets at 3pm Saturday 23 June and 4.40pm Sunday 24 June. Scott Garnham and Lauren Samuels will be performing on the Saturday, with Sabrina Aloueche and Hannah Jane Fox joining Samuels for the Sunday set.