Will Friedwald News

Orlando Shakespeare Theater in Partnership with UCF presents a musical cabaret created and performed by award-winning vocalist, Marilyn Maye in the Margeson Theater on Friday, April 29, 2016 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets ($300 - VIP; $50 - A Level; $30 - B Level; $20 - C Level) are available now by calling (407) 447-1700 ext. 1, visiting www.orlandoshakes.org, or in person at the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center (812 East Rollins Street).

The award-winning composer and special guests perform selections from his catalog of stage and screen favorites like 'Magic to Do' from Pippin; 'When You Believe' from the DreamWorks' animated feature, The Prince of Egypt; 'Day By Day' from Godspell and several selections from the Broadway hit Wicked, including 'Defying Gravity.'

The life, career and legacy of the late Mark Murphy, whom the Washington Post described as "a daringly original jazz singer whose unchained improvisational style made him a cult favorite and a powerful influence on a generation of younger performers," will be celebrated with music and reminiscences on Monday, March 14, 2016 at St Peter's Church in Manhattan.

James Naughton hosted, wrote & directed the current offering of the 92Y Lyrics & Lyricists presentation titled Battle of The Airwaves! When The Songbook Met Rock & Country. BroadwayWorld was there for Sunday afternoon's performance. The cast included Everett Bradley, Kevin Osborne, Solange Prat, and Vaneese Thomas. John Oddo was music director and Keira Naughton, co-stage manager. Deborah Grace Winer is the series artistic director.

Broadway mainstay Christine Andreas showcased her impeccable vocal abilities in her new show Cafe Society last night and Broadwayworld was there. Check out photos here!

Last night, having won critical praise for his previous Cafe Carlyle residencies, Tony Award-winner John Lloyd Young returned with an all-new show titled Yours Truly, and BroadwayWorld was there. After seeing his first appearance at the storied venue, where he performed selections from his debut album My Turn, Stephen Holden of The New York Times said Young 'has a disciplined one-in-a-million high tenor shading into falsetto that he can direct through the stratosphere.' Upon his second residency, Mr. Holden praised Young for '[tapping] into the raw feelings and intensity of a teenage romantic dreaming out loud.' Yours Truly, his first engagement back in NYC since starring in Clint Eastwood's Jersey Boys film, will feature a fresh set of lushly romantic '60s-era R&B ballads and a few brand new songwriting collaborations. Performances will take place Tuesday through Saturday. Reservations made by phone at 212.744.1600 are $85 ($135 for premium seating, $55 for bar seating) Tuesday-Thursday; and $95 ($150 for premium seating, $65 for bar seating) on Friday and Saturday. Cafe Carlyle is located in The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel (35 East 76th Street, at Madison Avenue).

He has performed with rave reviews in New York City, Paris and London. It is our pleasure to announce Eric Yves Garcia will come to Ten Chimneys for the first time Saturday, March 19th at 7 p.m.

Ten-time Tony winner Tommy Tune returned to Cafe Carlyle last night January 12, and BroadwayWorld was on hand to capture the performance! Check out photos below!

In a prelude to their upcoming January 18th NYC concert at the Highline Ballroom the Nunziata brothers performed a show for a 'jury of their peers' at the legendary Friars Club last night and BroadwayWorld was there.   Check out the photos below.  

NJTV, New Jersey's public television network, and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) announced that the 3rd Season of the award-winning American Songbook at NJPAC series will be broadcast on NJTV beginning tonight, January 6, 2016 (check local listings).

NJTV, New Jersey's public television network, and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) announced that the 3rd Season of the award-winning American Songbook at NJPAC series will be broadcast on NJTV beginning January 6, 2016 (check local listings).

Ticket holders attending Michael Feinstein: Sinatra Cennetinel Celebration at NJPAC today, December 12, are invited to a 'Frank' discussion with arts journalist and author Will Friedwald, author Charles L. Granata and four-time Emmy award-winning TV host and producer, Bill Boggs. The talk begins at 6:30 in the Chase Room.

New Jersey Performing Arts Center NJPAC located at 1 Center Avenue in Newark, New Jersey will celebrate Frank Sinatra's Centennial on the exact date of Sinatra's birth of December 12th! Michael Feinstein will perform with a swinging 17-piece band on Saturday, December 12th at 8pm. Feinstein known as 'The Ambassador of the Great American Songbook,' this multi-platinum-selling singer and pianist bases a very special evening on his popular releases The Sinatra Project and The Sinatra Project, Vol. II: The Good Life. Recognized as one of the world's leading interpreters of Sinatra's repertoire, Feinstein landed a 2009 Grammy nomination for The Sinatra Project and a 2012 Emmy nod for his TV special, The Sinatra Legacy.

Ticket holders attending Michael Feinstein: Sinatra Cennetinel Celebration at NJPAC on Saturday, December 12, are invited to a "Frank" discussion with arts journalist and author Will Friedwald, author Charles L. Granata and four-time Emmy award-winning TV host and producer, Bill Boggs. The talk begins at 6:30 in the Chase Room.

Last night Cafe Carlyle welcomed back GRAMMY Award-winner Steve Tyrell for a four-week engagement and BroadwayWorld was there for opening night. The renowned singer returns with a new show, One More For The Road, featuring a full set of Sinatra favorites in celebration of Ol' Blue Eyes' 100th birthday. It's a fitting tribute since it was actually a Sinatra song, 'The Way You Look Tonight,' that Tyrell sang in the 1991 movie, Father of the Bride, which launched his career as a singer. Years later, the Sinatra family handpicked Tyrell to perform 'Fly Me To The Moon' at the Hollywood Bowl, with Quincy Jones conducting the orchestra, when the Chairman was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2005. Tyrell's ties to the Sinatra family remain tight as he was once again asked to host a three-hour celebration on Siriusly Sinatra on Frank's actual birthday, December 12. He will be live from Patsy's for Sirius XM radio, just as he did in 2014.

Kat Gang, recently nominated as "Best Jazz Singer" for the 2015 BroadwayWorld New York Cabaret Awards, is performing every Wednesday night at The Plaza Hotel from 8:30-11:30 pm. With her quartet of Matthew Fries on piano, Phil Palombi on bass and Tim Bulkley on drums, Kat Gang brings her unique vocal style described as a 'musical breath of fresh air' to the stunning Rose Club at the Plaza Hotel, the iconic landmark (at 768 Fifth Avenue at 59th Street).

Celebrate Frank Sinatra's centennial in style when five-time Grammy nominee Michael Feinstein pays tribute to the Chairman of the Board in an evening of greatest hits. at New Jersey Performing Arts Center 1 Center Street, Newark NJ Doors at 7:30pm; Performance at 8:00pm Tickets Start at $49.

'Folks, you ain't heard nothin' yet!' That is the iconic quote of the legendary Al Jolson, who was called 'The World's Greatest Entertainer' through the first half of the 20th century and was arguably the first American pop superstar. When Jolson's career was all but over in the mid-1940s, Columbia Pictures decided to film the story of his life, which became the 1947 classic, The Jolson Story (followed in 1949 by a successful sequel, Jolson Sings Again). The film not only became one of the most successful biopics in movie history, it revived Jolie's career and established him once again as an entertainment superstar.

This November, FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW presents an exciting lineup of the brightest talent from Broadway and beyond. Located just below the legendary Studio 54 at 254 West 54th Street.

Last night in a Long Island star studded event The Gold Coast International Film Festival and Arts Center held it's 2015 Gala at the Tilles Center. The Gold Coast Arts Center's honorees this year were, Vince Giordano, Artist of Distinction - Music, Actor Navid Negahban, Artist of Distinction, Film, and Director Patricia Riggen, Director, Woman of Influence Award.  The evening's presenters were Will Friedwald, author & music editor, Michael Cuesta, Screenwriter, director of Showtime's "Homeland" and Lou Diamond Phillips, Actor Director and the star of the upcoming fiom "The 33" The Gala Emcee was Award winning WABC correspondent Kristin Thorne.  Regina Keller Gil is founder & executive director of The Gold Coast Arts Center and Caroline Sorokoff is an associate director of the Gold Coast Arts Center and Director of the Gold Coast International Film Festival.  The festival will run November 9-15th.