Tom Wopat News

Janie Fricke, one of Country music's award-winning female artists of the 80's, is celebrating the 40th Anniversary of The Dukes of Hazzard, just like all the fans of the famed television show, except there is one catch. Janie Fricke practically gave birth to the General Lee!!

On this episode of West of Broadway, Will and Lara get to speak with two of the stars of the 36th Season of The Verdi Chorus Spring 2019 Concert L'Amore e la Vita (Love and Life), playing two performances only April 6-7, 2019 and First United Methodist Church, Santa Monica. Two of our guest soloists, Los Angeles Opera favorite Jamie Chamberlin and acclaimed tenor Nathan Granner, who are actually married in real life! In fact, Nathan proposed to Jamie onstage last fall at the conclusion of the Verdi Chorus 35th Anniversary concert!

MOTOWN: The Musical and Helen Hayes nominee N'Kenge, returned this season to Houston Symphony Orchestra for the Ella Fitzgerald Songbook Concert under the baton of Maestro Steven Reineke. The show celebrates the great jazz era showcasing some of the most timeless musical gems like Stormy Weather, One for my Baby, Come Rain Come Shine and more. To complete the dazzling cast were Broadway favorites Montego Glover and Capathia Jenkins.

On this day in 1999, an updated revival of the the classic musical Annie Get Your Gun opened at the Marquis Theatre!

On this episode of West of Broadway, Will and Lara sit down inside the Hollywood Pantages theater before the curtain rises on the National tour of Cats.

BroadwayWorld previously reported last year that an all-female production of David Mamet's play Glengarry Glen Ross was in the works.

Next week, FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club & Private Event Destination, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.54Below.com/Feinsteins or call (646) 476-3551.

Combine the time-honored skill of storytelling with the ageless art of music making, and the thrilling result is MASHUP-Stories Into Song, a show that explores great ideas with deeply-moving emotion in a way that's fresh, funny, heartwarming--and of course--hugely entertaining!

Songwriting team Jude Treder-Wolff and Wells Hanley return to The Duplex with their new collection of songs inspired by stories in MASHUP-Stories Into Song, Sunday, March 10 at 4:00 pm. MASHUP-Stories Into Song is an entirely unique show that brings an incredible line-up of storytellers and singers to the stage. Great stories have words, ideas, and an emotional energy which inspire music. Treder-Wolff and Hanley write songs inspired by stories told by some of New York's finest storytellers. With incredible arrangements by Wells Hanley, the story and song are performed as a pair, with the song performed by a singer matched to the style of the song. Stories in this performance will be told by:

Actress/Singer, Jennifer Roberts returns to New York with two encore appearances of 'Jennifer Roberts:She Loves...Sheldon!' at the Laurie Beechman Theater. Wednesday, January 30th and Today, February 5th @ 7:00 p.m. Appearing with Jennifer are Musical Director/Pianist Tedd Firth, with Phil Palombi on bass.

Singer/Actress, Jennifer Roberts, celebrates the work of Broadway icon Sheldon Harnick in She Loves…  Sheldon! with One More Show Only at The Laurie Beechman Theatre, Tuesday, February 5th at 7 PM. The show is directed by Lance Roberts, with music director/pianist, Tedd Firth, and Phil Palombi on bass.

In this episode of West of Broadway Will and Lara talk with FOX 11 Entertainment Reporter Amanda Salas about the opening night of Hello Dolly at the Pantages Theater now playing until Feb 17th.

Bay Area Cabaret welcomes back world-renowned guitarist and singer John Pizzarelli and singer Jessica Molaskey, a duo Time Magazine calls the "Astaire-Rodgers of the cabaret world." Bay Area Cabaret audiences will have the chance to see, or choose between, two varied programs:  The first, at 3:30 is a centennial tribute to Nat King Cole, a Venetian Room regular, whose work is celebrated on Mr. Pizzarelli's upcoming CD, Centenially Yours. The second show, American Stories, at 7:30, is a duo show by John and his talented wife Jessica that debuted at Cafe Carlyle and features an eclectic mix of music by George and Ira Gershwin, Johnny Mercer, Paul Simon, Stephen Sondheim, Stevie Nicks and the couple's signature mashups and medleys. Aligned both in their love of the American Songbook and their desire to expand and present it to new audiences, Bay Area Cabaret and John Pizzarelli and his wife Jessica enjoy a partnership that reaches back well over a decade.

Actress/Singer, Jennifer Roberts returns to New York with two encore appearances of 'Jennifer Roberts:She Loves...Sheldon!' at the Laurie Beechman Theater. Today, January 30th and Tuesday, February 5th @ 7:00 p.m. Appearing with Jennifer are Musical Director/Pianist Tedd Firth, with Phil Palombi on bass.

The Green Room 42 presents Roberto Araujo in DO YOU DREAM IN SPANISH? by Roberto Araujo with additional material by Michael Perrie Jr., March 15, 2019 at 9:30pm at The Green Room 42, 570 Tenth Avenue in New York City

In this special 'Mini Episode' of West of Broadway, Lara Scott talks with Bryce Charles who is starring as Sarah in Pasadena Playhouse's production of Ragtime. Bryce is ecstatic to be making her Pasadena Playhouse debut with Ragtime! She earned her BFA in Musical Theater from AMDA College and Conservatory. Regional Theater: Blues in the Night (dir. Sheldon Epps; The Wallis Annenberg). National Tour: The Book of Mormon (2nd National). TV: Encore, Blackish (ABC); Fuller House, Tales of the City (Netflix); Teachers (TV Land).

The Tedd Firth Trio started January 2019 off in true genius form with a week of performances for their debut at the Birdland Theater on West 44th St. in NYC. The show had Mr. Firth taking control of the mic and hosting an evening of exciting music featuring Tedd Firth on Piano, David Finck on Bass, and Mark McLean on Drums. Each of the 4 nights of performances also featured a different guest artist singing a few tunes from their repertoire...songs sung in their own solo shows so often accompanied by Mr. Firth.

Actress/Singer, Jennifer Roberts returns to New York with two encore appearances of 'Jennifer Roberts:She Loves...Sheldon!' at the Laurie Beechman Theater. Wednesday, January 30th and Tuesday, February 5th @ 7:00 p.m. Appearing with Jennifer are Musical Director/Pianist Tedd Firth, with Phil Palombi on bass.

It's our first show of 2019, an this is going to be another incredible year of musical theatre here in Southern California. We love that there are so many CLASSIC shows this season that a lot of us will get to see for the first time.

What good is sitting alone in your room this week? If you don't already have plans to see a Broadway show, come out to see your favorite Broadway stars in a cabaret act instead. Highlights this week include: Chita Rivera, Fra Fee, and a benefit concerts for A Thousand Oaks, California.