Lincoln Center’s acclaimed series American Songbook has returned to the Allen Room for its fourteenth season celebrating the diversity of American popular song. For 16 nights the series is exploring the best of the golden age of musical standards through to today’s most dynamic songwriting.
The series kicked off last night, January 11, with a concert by Lin-Manuel Miranda. In 2008 Miranda's hit Broadway musical, In The Heights swept the Tony Awards. The music was a fusion of his signature Latin, hip-hop and classic Broadway styles, and last night Miranda performed a sneak preview of new songs from an anticipated work-in-progress: The Hamilton Mixtape, a hip-hop song cycle about the life and death of Alexander Hamilton. Miranda first performed part of The Hamilton Mixtape for President Obama at the White House. This one-night-only performance was scheduled for Hamilton’s 255th birthday.
Below, BroadwayWorld brings you photos of the special event! CLICK HERE to watch a recap of his opening rendition of Jay-Z and Alicia Keys' "Empire State of Mind" with former In the Heights co-star Mandy Gonzalez!
Miranda was also joined onstage throughout the evening by Utkarsh Ambudkar, Gavin Creel, James Monroe Iglehart, Christopher Jackson, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Moeisha Mcgill, Jon Rua, and Chris “Shockwave” Sullivan. In The Heights collaborator Alex Lacamoire was featured on keyboard and provided arrangements and music direction. Additional musicians included Cian McCarthy on keyboard, Michael Aarons on guitar, Matt Rubano on bass, Sean McDaniel on drums, and Tim Keiper on percussion. In the Heights director Thomas Kail helmed the evening.
The American Songbook series will also feature theater favorites such as LaChanze, Michael Cerveris, Gavin Creel, Leslie Kritzer, Elaine Paige, and Laura Benanti, in additition to an impressive roster of additional talent. For a complete schedule, visit www.americansongbook.org.
Since it was launched in 1998, American Songbook has been dedicated to celebrating the extraordinary achievements of the popular American songwriter from the turn of the 20th century to the present day. Spanning all styles and genres from Tin Pan Alley and Broadway to the eclecticism of today’s songwriters working in pop, cabaret, rock, folk and country, American Songbook traces the history and charts the course of the American song from its past and current forms to its future direction.
Tickets can be purchased online at Lincoln Center’s website at www.AmericanSongbook.org, via CenterCharge at 212-721-6500, at the Alice Tully Hall, Avery Fisher Hall Box Office, or at the Frederick P. Rose Hall Box Office.
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Christopher Jackson
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Mandy Gonzalez
Utkarsh Ambudkar
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Rebecca Naomi Jones
Rebecca Naomi Jones
Gavin Creel
Christopher Jackson
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Utkarsh Ambudkar and James Monroe Iglehart
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Mandy Gonzalez
Lin-Manuel Miranda
