Blackstone! 1980 - Articles Page 16.2

Popular choreographer Al Blackstone, known for his Broadway style routines on So You Think You Can Dance, is excited to be returning for his third season at the Fire Island Dance Festival. Blackstone will be presenting an excerpt from his new work, Freddie Falls In Love, which recently had its premiere at The Pershing Square Signature Center in New York City. The show was also a benefit performance for DRA and Blackstone figured it would be a perfect fit for this year's festival.

Khori Petinaud was more of an athlete as a child yet she still sashayed around her house in tutus, tiaras, and dance slippers. She didn't actually start formal ballet classes until she was thirteen. Having been bitten by the 'ballet bug' was, in a word, transformative. Given her age, the young Petinaud was not one to waste time. She attended the summer program at Dance Theatre of Harlem that very same year. Eventually she discovered her love of modern dance while studying at Alvin Ailey and subsequently attended Tisch School of the Arts where she received her BFA in dance. Her foray into musical theatre was with the national tour of The Color Purple.

The June release from Class Act Books publishing is The Sunday Man, book 5 in the McCoys family saga. This entry tells of Liam McCoy, son of Colin, whose story was narrated in The Good McCoy Lad, book 2 in the series. Liam McCoy was brought to Nebraska from Ireland as a child when his father decided to join his older brother and become a cattle rancher. Like his uncle Padraig, Liam is considered the black sheep of the current generation. Unlike his uncle, he doesn't plan to change. Having a hand in various unsavory businesses in McCoy's Crossing doesn't bother him, since his handsome charm makes the townspeople like him in spite of his reputation. A letter from his father, demanding he return to Ireland changes things, however. In Tipperary, Liam is forced to again become the gentleman he was raised to be. A devastating illness and a spirited Irish lass are destined to make even more of a difference in the determined rogue's life. The McCoys series, debuting in March with the novel, The Honest Rake, chronicles the lives and adventures of the three McCoy sons and their sister Brigid, as well as their children. The last novel in the series is scheduled for release in August. The entries are: The Honest Rake (Book 1: Donal) The Good McCoy Lad (Colin) The Man from Tipperary (Padraig) The Cattle Baron's Kid (Quill) The Sunday Man (Liam) The Lost Sons (Fox and Quinn) The Determined Bride (Brigid) Combining English Regency Romance with the spirited freedom of the Old West, the series has been well-received with several 4 and 5-star reviews. Author Toni V. Sweeney currently has 52 novels in print, with the McCoys saga being her fourth series published by Class Act Books. Three more series in the fantasy genre have been contracted to be released in the near future. The Three Moon novels, written under the pseudonym Icy Snow Blackstone, were named one of the the best SF/Fantasy series of 2013 and 2014 by the Paranormal Romance Guild's Reviewer's Choice awards. Class Act Books came under new ownership in 2013 and is now enjoying its third year of publishing all genres. It features both international and US authors in its lists, many of whom have garnered awards and recognition for their writing.

Broadway legend Stephen Schwartz (Oscar, Grammy and Tony winning composer of Wicked, Godspell and Pippin) and Princess Cruises just gave a workshop presentation to introduce the second musical production show curated inside of this industry-first partnership.  

Broadway legend Stephen Schwartz (Oscar, Grammy and Tony winning composer of Wicked, Godspell and Pippin) and Princess Cruises just gave a workshop presentation to introduce the second musical production show curated inside of this industry-first partnership.

From the bestselling author who brought you the award-winning Extinction Cycle series, comes an all new vision of the apocalypse and the future of humanity. HELL DIVERS [Blackstone Publishing; July 19, 2016] is a thrilling post-apocalyptic work of speculative fiction and the first installment in The Hell Divers trilogy by Nicholas Sansbury Smith.

This year's Fire Island Dance Festival, one of the most talked about cultural and charitable events of the Fire Island summer, will return to dazzle, excite and captivate audiences on July 15-17, 2016. It will be hosted by Broadway and TV favorite Tituss Burgess.

Casting is announced today for Music Theatre Wichita's 45th Season, which includes Disney's "Beauty and the Beast," Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Oklahoma!," "Jesus Christ Superstar," and the regional premieres of "Nice Work If You Can Get It" and "Mamma Mia!"  

Life really began for country music superstar Keith Urban after marrying actress Nicole Kidman a decade ago, he tells John Blackstone in a heartfelt interview for CBS SUNDAY MORNING, to be broadcast Sunday, May 8 (9:00 AM, ET) on the CBS Television Network.

Life really began for country music superstar Keith Urban after marrying actress Nicole Kidman a decade ago, he tells John Blackstone in a heartfelt interview for CBS SUNDAY MORNING, to be broadcast Sunday, May 8 (9:00 AM, ET) on the CBS Television Network.

Fire Island Dance Festival, the most talked-about cultural and charitable event of the summer on Fire Island, will once again present three eclectic performances July 15-17, 2016 that include Ballet Contemporaneo de Camaguey Cuba's first performance outside of Cuba, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Gallim Dance, KEIGWIN + COMPANY, Madboots Dance and choreography by Al Blackstone and Adbul Latif.

FREDDIE FALLS IN LOVE, a dance narrative by Al Blackstone, will take place on June 6th and June 13th at The Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036, benefiting Dancers Responding to AIDS, a program of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Tickets now on sale and can be purchased through Ticket Central via www.ticketcentral.com, by calling 212-279-4200, or in person at 416 W. 42nd Street (12-8pm daily).

The Steps Beyond Foundation, Steps on Broadway's non-profit arm committed to connecting artists and the community through dialogue, performance, and artistic collaboration, announces a 3-day weekend performance celebration May 6-8, 2016 at Ailey Citigroup Theater. The weekend will commence May 6 with the Steps Repertory and Guests Benefit, featuring performances by American Dance Machine, Jon Ole Olstad, choreography by Al Blackstone and the staging of a Swan Lake variation by Elena Kunikova to be danced by a student at Steps. Audiences will also enjoy performances by students of the Steps Conservatory Program and pre-professional students at The School at Steps, with staging by the legendary Leslie Browne. May 7-8, Steps Repertory Ensemble will present a full evening of works by Artistic Director Bradley Shelver and leading choreographers Lar Lubovitch, Sidra Bell, Julia Ehrstrand, and Jae Man Joo.

'You're a menace, Padraig, an' I see no hope o' you changin'. Is there?' Quinton McCoy paused, giving his son a gimlet stare out of eyes as green as the serpentine in Connemara marble. 'Is there?' Padraig pretended to think, then shook his head. 'No, Da, I don't believe there is. I'm enjoyin' it too much.' 'Ah!' Quinton threw up his hands, then recovered. He stalked back around his desk but didn't sit. 'I'm afraid you leave me no choice.' Briefly his anger fell away. His gaze wavered, then he appeared to force himself to speak. 'Padraig, lad...I'm turnin' you out.' 'You...you're disownin' me?' Padraig's voice trembled. 'Ah, I'd ne'er do that.' Quinton said. 'What I'm sayin' is...I want you t' leave this house, indeed this country, an' ne'er come back.' Thus begins the story of Padraig Aloysius McCoy, third son and bad seed of Tipperary's branch of the McCoy clan. Unlike Books 1 and 2, set in Regency England and Ireland, The Man from Tipperary ranges from the gracious homes of landed gentry in Tipperary to an isolated cattle ranch in the American West in the years prior to and including the War Between the States. Settling in Nebraska, the misplaced young Irishman learns the hardship and heartache of being a cowboy in the mid-19th century, as well as the adventure of living in a time of social transition. He sees the Nebraska Territory gain statehood and discovers Love when it steps off a Wells Fargo stage. Full of history, humor, and romance, Padraig's story embodies the traits of many who went West and fought for their destinies instead of waiting for Life to hand it to them. The Man from Tipperary is author Toni V. Sweeney's fifty-third novel published by Class Act Books. Since the publication of her first novel in 1989, Ms. Sweeney divides her time between writing SF/Fantasy under her own name and romances under her pseudonym Icy Snow Blackstone. She has reviewed books for Two Lips Reviews and recently join the review staff of the New York Journal of Books and also the Paranormal Romance Guild. She is an amazon reviewer with over 570 reviews listed on the American amazon website, a professional reader for Netgalley, and is in the 1% of reviewers for Goodreads. Her Western novel NEBRASKA: Walk the Shadow Trail was award 1st Place in Historical Romance for 2015 by the Paranormal Romance Guild's Reviewers Choice, and also was voted #2 in General Genre by the Preditors & Editors Readers Poll for 2015. She has two new scifi/space opera series upcoming for 2016-2017. In 2013, Class Act Books came under new ownership. Based in Port Townsend, Washing, their goal is to supply quality fiction in all genres for the discerning reader. Their novels are available in paperback and electronic form on amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and on the publisher's website.

Fire Island Dance Festival, one of the most talked-about summer events on Fire Island, will return to dazzle, excite and captivate audiences on July 15-17, 2016. Tickets for the festival are on sale now at dradance.org or by phone at 212.840.0770, ext. 268.

At the 2016 edition of BROADWAY BACKWARDS, Jay Armstrong Johnson let his inner Marilyn Monroe fly in a glittery rendition of 'Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend' from GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES. Click below to watch the full performance!

At the 2016 edition of BROADWAY BACKWARDS, Broadway legend Chita Rivera brought her own brand of 'razzle-dazzle' to Kander and Ebb's 'All I Care About is Love' from CHICAGO. The actress delivered an unforgettable take on swarmy lawyer Billy Flynn, surrounded by a bevy of feathery beauties, many from the original 1996 CHICAGO revival cast, including Nili Bassman, Mindy Cooper, Mamie Duncan-Gibbs, Gabriela Garcia, Mary Ann Lamb, Dana Moore and Solange Sandy. Click below to watch the full number!

The sold-out audience at Broadway's Al Hirschfeld Theatre was dazzled last night, March 21, 2016, by this year's stirring edition of Broadway Backwards. The annual celebration, where men sing songs originally written for women and vice versa offering this audience the chance to see LGBT stories told through the great songs of musical theatre, set a new fundraising record. The evening raised an incredible $480,287 to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center in New York City. Scroll down for stunning shots from the evening!

The sold-out audience at Broadway's Al Hirschfeld Theatre was dazzled Monday, March 21, 2016, by this year's stirring edition of BROADWAY BACKWARDS. The annual celebration, where men sing songs originally written for women and vice versa offering this audience the chance to see LGBT stories told through the great songs of musical theatre, set a new fundraising record. The evening raised an incredible $480,287 to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center in New York City. BroadwayWorld has highlights, featuring performers Tony Yazbeck, Chita Rivera, Danielle Brooks and more, below!

This year's BROADWAY BACKWARDS (#broadwaybackwards) took the stage last night at Broadway's Al Hirschfeld Theatre (302 West 45th Street, NYC), home to the Tony Award-winning Best Musical Kinky Boots. The evening is produced by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and benefits BC/EFA and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center of New York. BroadwayWorld was there to celebrate with the theatre community on the big night and you can check out photos below!

Broadway legend and two-time Tony Award winner Chita Rivera, Tony nominees Stephanie J. Block and Tony Sheldon, Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple, 'Orange is the New Black'), and Laura Michelle Kelly (Finding Neverland) are among those joining the stunning cast of this year's BROADWAY BACKWARDS, a one-night-only musical celebration, custom-made for the LGBT community, our friends and families. Tony winner Julie White, a longtime supporter of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, will host this year's 11th edition.

Once again, the art of magic is alive and thriving at the Harris Center for the Arts.

Fire Island Dance Festival, one of the most talked-about summer events on Fire Island, will return to dazzle, excite and captivate audiences on July 15-17, 2016.

Broadway legend and two-time Tony Award winner Chita Rivera, Tony nominees Stephanie J. Block and Tony Sheldon, Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple, 'Orange is the New Black'), and Laura Michelle Kelly (Finding Neverland) are among those joining the stunning cast of this year's Broadway Backwards, a one-night-only musical celebration, custom-made for the LGBT community, our friends and families. In addition, it was announced that Tony winner Julie White, a longtime supporter of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, will host this year's 11th edition.

February is Romance Month, and in keeping with that, Class Act Books is releasing the first entries in two new romance series. The series The McCoys, by veteran author Toni V. Sweeney, deals with the adventures of the three sons of Quinton McCoy: Donal, Colin, and Padraig. Beginning in 19th century County Tipperary and crossing the ocean to the United States Nebraska Territory, each novel will be a standalone but also a continuation of the family saga. The first novel in the series is The Honest Rake, Book 1: Donal. Living in Regency London after his graduation from Cambridge, Donal McCoy has found his niche in life...as a genteel young gentleman by day but a rake by night. His father's demand that he marry and produce an heir makes a problem Donal thinks can be easily solved...until Love gets in the way. Though Ms Sweeney's main genre is sci-fi/fantasy, she has written several romance novels which have been well-received by the reading public. Her romantic suspense novel 'Tuesday's Child,' written as Icy Snow Blackstone, won first place in Contemporary Romance from Paranormal Romance Guild's 2015 Reviewers Choice awards. Sherry Derr-Wille's Never Too Late for Love is a mature romance dealing with a former WAC who returns to her home town after her husband's death. There the widow meets the man who was her armed services recruiter during World War II. As much as Adam Welter was glad to help Luella enlist, he wasn't glad to see her leave for basic training. When she returns fifty years later, he makes a determined attempt to renew the short but romantic acquaintance they both had as much younger people. There's only one problem: Luella feels she should remain faithful to her husband's memory. Never Too Late for Love is the first entry in the Mature Love series and is also a standalone novel. Ms. Derr-Wille is noted for her Rhonda Pohs mystery series, a police procedural concerning a Wisconsin policewoman and her high school coach husband. It is also published by Class Act Books, with seven entries in the series. Class Act Books went under new ownership in 2012 and in the past two years has gathered many talented authors under its logo. Publishing in genres from Romance to Horror, its writers and their novels are listed on amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, and Smashwords. In the past four years, their authors have garnered many awards from the yearly Paranormal Romance Guild Reviewers Awards, and also the Preditors & Editors Annual Readers Poll. Besides having authors honored in the above contests, one of their cover artists was voted one of the ten outstanding artists of 2014.