Linda Lee News

LOVE, LINDA: THE LIFE OF MRS. COLE PORTER had its Off-Broadway premiere in 2013 featuring music and lyrics by Cole Porter, with Book by Stevie Holland and Gary Wiliam Friedman. The show will have its Southwestern Regional Premiere October 16-24 at the 2nd Story Theatre in Hermosa Beach before moving October 30-31 to the Renaissance Performing Arts Center in Long Beach. Through song and story, Deborah Robin promises a tour-de-force performance as Mrs. Cole Porter. And as a fan of Cole Porter’s music but not knowing anything about his wife or their life together, I wanted to find out a bit more about the production, especially what led Deborah Robin to take on the role.

The Grammy-nominated Western Wind Vocal Sextet will present 'Certain Dragons & Other Beasts, Fearsome, Delightful, & Strange'on Saturday, October 9 at 7:00 PM at Church of St. Luke in the Field, 487 Hudson Street, NYC (West Village). 

MusicalFare will return to live performances with LOVE, LINDA: THE LIFE OF MRS. COLE PORTER. In this tour-de-force one-woman musical, Debbie Pappas plays Linda Lee Thomas (Mrs. Cole Porter), candidly recounting, through song and story, her life's journey with Cole Porter.

Cole Porter fans will be able to celebrate his birthday on June 9th in style this year with the world premiere on demand presentation of the Off-Broadway musical Love, Linda: The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter. With book by Stevie Holland with Gary William Friedman, music and lyrics by the legendary Cole Porter and arrangements and additional music by Mr. Friedman. The filmed presentation of this solo show stars the musical's co-creator and originator of the role Stevie Holland, as directed for the stage by Richard Maltby, Jr.*

Cole Porter fans will be able to celebrate his birthday in style this year with the world premiere on demand presentation of the Off-Broadway musical Love, Linda: The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter. With book by Stevie Holland with Gary William Friedman, music and lyrics by the legendary Cole Porter and arrangements and additional music by Mr. Friedman.

Cole Porter fans will be able to celebrate his June 9th Birthday in style this year with Love, Linda: The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter. A filmed presentation of the show will star the musical’s co-creator and originator of the role Stevie Holland, with stage direction by Richard Maltby, Jr.

In response to the growing need for in-home entertainment during this challenging time, segments from the November 2018 encore engagement of Love, Linda: The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter have been released on YouTube.

The Grammy-nominated Western Wind Vocal Sextet will present 'Of Dreams, Desires & Dragons: Music by Women from Hildegarde to Joni Mitchell' on Saturday, March 28 at 8:00 PM at Church of St. Luke in the Field, 487 Hudson Street, NYC (West Village).  The concert celebrates Women's History Month with a rich assortment of music by classical and modern women composers.

The Arts and Education Council announced today that Caren Vredenburgh, former senior director, creative services at Caleres, has been elected as the nonprofit's new board chair. Vredenburgh has served on the board for seven years. Four members of the board of directors have also been elected. Jeffrey D. Carter, M.D., Naretha Hopson, Janet Newcomb and Solomon Thurman, Jr. were each elected to a three-year term beginning January 1. Newly-elected Young Friends of the Arts President Alexandra Schenk, marketing director at Capes Sokol, also joined the board as an ex officio member.

Since 1969, the Grammy-nominated Western Wind has devoted itself to the special beauty and variety of a cappella music. The ensemble's repertoire reveals its diverse background, from Renaissance motets to Fifties rock'n'roll, medieval carols to Duke Ellington, complex works by avant-garde composers to the simplest folk melodies.

The Grammy-nominated Western Wind Vocal Sextet will present 'Home For The Holidays - from Darkness to Light' on Sunday, December 8 at 7:00 PM Church of St. Luke in the Field, 487 Hudson Street, NYC (West Village). The concert celebrates Christmas and Chanukah with a rich assortment of holiday music. It is the first NYC mainstage event for the sextet's 'new' ensemble, which includes three new members. Organized by themes such as 'The Coming of Light,' 'Miracles,' 'Holiday Messages' and 'Food & Fun,' the program explores the deeper meaning of the stories, rituals and festivities of these two winter holidays.

The Grammy-nominated Western Wind vocal sextet will present O Western Wind… celebrating the 50th Anniversary of The Western Wind Vocal Ensemble which began in 1969.  The 50th Anniversary Gala Concert will be Saturday, March 23 at 8:00 pm at Merkin Concert Hall (129 West 67th Street, New York City). A Gala Reception at the hall will follow the concert. The event will honor the 50-year career of founding member and countertenor William Zukof, who will be stepping down from his singing role in August 2019. Gala Tickets are available at WesternWind.org and concert tickets are available at KaufmanMusicCenter.org.

Max & Louie Productions has opened its 10th season with the St. Louis premier of the one-woman show Love, Linda at The Marcelle. Debby Lennon, a member of the St. Louis Symphony Chorus for 31 seasons, plays the elegant Linda Lee Thomas (aka Mrs. Cole Porter), whose devotion to her husband drove much of his career. She, a wealthy divorcee, begins by telling how she mistook a piano-playing Porter for the “hired help” at a wedding reception and invited him to entertain at a dinner party soon after. Despite the blunder, Porter showed up to play and their partnership blossomed.

Max & Louie proudly announce the first show of its tenth sensational season with the St. Louis premiere, "Love, Linda" the one woman musical tour de force about the life of the remarkable Linda Lee Thomas (Mrs. Cole Porter) and her dedication and love for a man whose creative genius she indisputably inspired. Music and Lyrics are by Cole Porter with a book by Stevie Holland, arrangements and additional music by Gary William Friedman.

The Western Wind vocal sextet will present Holiday Light - Joyous Music for the Holidays on Saturday, December 8 at 8:00 PM at Christ & St. Stephen's Church, 120 West 69th Street, in Manhattan.

The Board of The Arts & Cultural Council of Bucks County announces their pledge to help save Oscar Hammerstein's home, Highland Farm, in Doylestown, PA, the very place where Hammerstein did most of his writing for internationally celebrated works, including Oklahoma!,  Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and The Sound of Music.   Each year the A&CC selects an arts-related organization to help support, raise funds and awareness through their arts and marketing resources including the worldwide #GivingTuesday platform.

Bay Area favorite Maureen McVerry makes her Cinnabar debut as Linda Lee Porter, wife of Cole Porter, in this West Coast premiere. Interweaving the great songs of Cole Porter with captivating story-telling by his beautiful and glamorous wife, we peek behind the glitter of her sensational life to experience a unique, sometimes difficult but always love-filled marriage.

National Asian Artists Project and Prospect Theater Company presented a sold-out concert reading of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods at The TimesCenter in New York on October 20. Scroll down for photos of backstage, performance and the reception.

National Asian Artists Project and Prospect Theater Company presented a sold-out concert reading of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods at The TimesCenter in New York on October 20.