Stevie Wonder News

Actor and musician Darren Criss, star of television's 'Glee,' has been confirmed to participate in the 2013 Opening Night at the Hollywood Bowl, Saturday, June 22, at 8 pm. Before introducing Music Director Gustavo Dudamel's Youth Orchestra LA (YOLA), a program inspired by Venezuela's revolutionary El Sistema, the versatile and sought-after Criss will perform a song, joined by the John Burroughs High School Powerhouse Show Choir. Following the introduction by Criss, a group of 65 to 70 of the top YOLA students across its two sites will perform the conclusion of Stravinsky's Firebird, conducted by Thomas Wilkins.

BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge was thrilled to sit down and speak with nearly all of this year's Tony Award nominees at the official Tonys Meet & Greet on May 1, 2013, and we will be bringing you special coverage on all of them throughout the awards season. Today we bring you Valisia LeKae, a nominee for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical for Motown. Check out what she had to say below!

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL stars Brandon Victor Dixon and Valisia LeKae and director Charles Randolph Wright visited MSNBC's acclaimed nationally syndicated live weekly show 'Melissa Harris-Perry' this week. Now watch both the roundtable interview and the performance below.

Versatile television director Leon Knoles will serve as director for CBS Television Distribution's syndicated late-night talk show THE ARSENIO HALL SHOW, it was announced today by Executive Producers Arsenio Hall, John Ferriter and Neal Kendall.

Judith Hill will give her original song 'Desperation' its television debut tonight, when she performs on 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.'

Antonio Adolfo with special guest Hendrick Meurkens will appear at Jazz at Kitano, 66 Park Ave, NYC (at 38th St), on Thursday, Aug. 15th, with two shows - 8 and 10 p.m.

Billboard.com reports that Berry Gordy's memoir TO BE LOVED, which inspired the Broadway hit 'Motown: The Musical' will be reissued as an e-book.

The 46th edition of Festival d'ete de Quebec, Canada's largest outdoor music event, will take place in the historic and breathtaking Quebec City from July 4 to 14, 2013. Presenting more than 1,000 artists and offering more than 300 performances spread over twelve outdoor and indoor venues, the eleven-day Festival is one of North America's most important summer celebrations. The Festival features some of the most notable names in the international music scene, provides a chance to discover rising stars and new talents, and showcases a wide range of genres including rock, pop, hip-hop, French song, electro, jazz, classical music and world music.

Broadway In Chicago is thrilled to announce that MOTOWN THE MUSICAL has chosen Chicago as the first stop on its national tour. The hit Broadway musical features music and lyrics from the legendary Motown catalogue and a book by Berry Gordy. Crowned the biggest box office hit of the season by the New York Times, MOTOWNwill launch its national tour at Chicago's Oriental Theatre (24 West Randolph) from April 22 to July 13, 2014. Since it began performances on Broadway in April 2013, the show has sold every single ticket available and grossed over one million dollars every week.

Below, check out Hunter Hayes' latest "For The Love Of Music" webisode, in which the singer reveals that he would happily become a race car driver if "the music thing doesn't work out!"

Platinum selling country star Hunter Hayes will headline the CMT on Tour: Hunter Hayes' Let's Be Crazy tour this Fall which will be making a Nov. 9 stop at PlayhouseSquare's State Theatre for one 7:30 pm show. Tickets go on sale Fri., June 21 at 11 am at playhousesquare.org, 216-241-6000 or the Ticket Office priced at $39.50 & $32.50.

MUSE/IQUE, known for its counter-conventional performances that feel more like parties than formal concerts, launches 'Summer of Sound' 2013 with 'Lost in the Stars with Patti Austin,' featuring the Grammy Award-winning legend, on Saturday, June 29, 2013, 7:30 pm, outdoors at Caltech's Beckman Mall in Pasadena.

Judith Hill will give her original song 'Desperation' its television debut this Friday, June 7, when she performs on 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.' The track is featured on 20 Feet From Stardom: Music From The Motion Picture (Columbia Records), the soundtrack from the compelling new film from award-winning director Morgan Neville, which opens in select theatres on June 14 before expanding in the weeks to follow.

Electric Youth (EY), the international touring ensemble of talented singer-dancers trained at the Franklin School for the Performing Arts (FSPA), will take the stage at Showcase Live at Patriot Place in Foxboro on Sunday, June 16 at 6 p.m. FSPA is pleased to offer prospective students a complimentary ticket to the concert as part of the school's new All Access Pass program. (Children ages 14 and younger must be accompanied by an adult at Showcase Live.) The concert provides students with the chance to experience the fun and excitement of the arts and live performance opportunities. Those interested in complimentary tickets should contact FSPA for more information and to schedule a free trial class or tour of the main facility in Franklin or satellite location in downtown Hudson.

Just as Motown The Musical is taking Broadway by storm, Bridgeport's Downtown Cabaret Theatre is offeringForever Motown featuring a fabulous cast of four male and three female vocalists, backed by a band of incredible musicians, represents Motown Royalty when they take the stage of Bridgeport's Downtown Cabaret Theatre stage for two performances only at 5pm and 8pm on Saturday, June 15(2013).

Platinum selling country star Hunter Hayes will headline the CMT on Tour: Hunter Hayes' Let's Be Crazy tour this Fall which kicks off October 10 in Knoxville, TN. With 24 shows in 21 cities

The original Broadway cast recording of 'MOTOWN THE MUSICAL,' a show nominated for four TONY Awards, is released today, June 4, 2013, by Motown/Universal Music Enterprises (UMe).

Bay Area Cabaret will conclude its 2012-2013 season by honoring the memory and legendary career of composer Marvin Hamlisch. Selections from his work (A Chorus Line, The Way We Were, They're Playing Our Song) will be performed by special guests including Broadway stars Lisa Vroman (The Phantom of the Opera, Sweeney Todd) and Karen Mason (Mamma Mia!, Sunset Boulevard), Grammy Award winner Billy Stritch, 2012 Bay Area Teen Idol winner Bobby Conte Thornton, Academy Award-winning songwriters Alan and Marilyn Bergman, and other guest artists to be announced. Having performed with Bay Area Cabaret for the grand re-opening of the Venetian Room in 2010, Mr. Hamlisch will always hold a special place in Bay Area Cabaret's history. This tribute to his legacy will take place on the late composer's 69th birthday, tonight, June 2, 2013, at 8pm in the historic Venetian Room of the Fairmont San Francisco (950 Mason Street). Tickets ($75 - $100) are available at www.bayareacabaret.org or by phone at City Box Office (415) 392-4400.

It's Saturday, and that means it's time for BroadwayWorld's 'Saturday Intermission Pics' round-up. Today's photos feature a first intermission pic from the stars of Paper Mill Playhouse's THE LITTLE MERMAID getting sudsy, THE FANTASTICKS celebrating June, the cast of KINKY BOOTS sweating it out and photos from MATILDA and THE BOOK OF MORMON on Broadway and across the pond, NICE WORK, THE LION KING, MOTOWN, ANYTHING GOES, WAR HORSE, LES MISERABLES, 42ND STREET at Pittsburgh CLO and more!

Hosted by Robert Wagner, this first-time ever archival PBS special includes all the original artists performing Bacharach's hits with rare footage and clips from the 1960s -1980s. MY MUSIC: BURT BACHARACH'S BEST premieres on PBS stations beginning tonight,June 1, 2013 (check local listings).