BWW Feature: A Year Gone … OKC Rep's Beloved Michael Jones Remembered and Celebrated
by Ronn Burton - Mar 1, 2021
Oklahoma City Repertory Theatre remembers and celebrates one of their founding members MICHAEL JONES, who passed away a year ago. An Emmy winner and recipient of the Oklahoma Governor’s Arts Award, Michael was a co-founder and Artistic Associate at OKC Rep. While Michael was a pillar of the OKC theatre community, he also worked all over the country. Michael touched the lives and hearts of so many he worked with. The OKC theatre community remembers Michael Jones.
DRIVING MISS DAISY, ANYONE CAN WHISTLE and More Announced in Third Avenue Playhouse 2020 Season
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Mar 6, 2020
The Third Avenue Playhouse, located in historic downtown Sturgeon Bay, announces its lineup of six plays for the upcoming 2020 season. The plays include an early career work from playwright David Mamet, a 1964 musical by the legendary composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim, a multi-award winning classic about the unlikely friendship between an elderly lady and her driver, the story of an unconventional advice columnist, and a farcical take on the making of Gone With The Wind.
IVANKA 2020, Salty Brine and More Head to Joe's Pub This Week
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Feb 19, 2020
Joe's Pub ends this week on a more chill note with Gary Lucas; Justin Vivian Bond's new show inspired by a Marianne Faithfull song; charismatic performer Susan Werner; country stars Bobby Pinson and RaeLynn as part of the Bob DiPiero Songwriters Series; and swinging, electrifying music, featuring Bernard Purdie along with entertaining stories retold by David Haney. Next week, the volume cranks up with Ryan Raftery's latest hilarious satire IVANKA 2020; the annual celebration of the intersection art and mental health Love is EleMental; Joe's Pub Working Group 2020 member Salty Brine continues their dazzling exploration of pop music with Living Record Collection - THESE ARE THE CONTENTS OF MY HEAD: The Annie Lennox Show; the third in a five-part concert series exploring Shakespeare's women, black female ambition, and music, Whitney White: Think, And Die; the Joe's Pub performance of the tour of MICHA Música In Transit; a concert from multi-award-winning platinum-selling musician Sarah Harmer with opener Chris Pureka; the fascinating coming of age story of a young woman growing up in New York City with Kelli Sae: Disco, Dicks And Dykes!; and BlackIssuesISSUES, an event that is as much a serenade and celebration of Blackness as it is an indictment of a system and society that is so toxic, it renders Blackness a burden.
The Aspen Music Festival and School and Theatre Aspen to Present THE SOUND OF MUSIC: IN CONCERT
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Feb 6, 2020
The Aspen Music Festival and School (Alan Fletcher, President and CEO) and Theatre Aspen (Jed Bernstein, Producing Director) announced today that this summer their organizations will again collaborate to present a very special one-night-only concert production of The Rodgers and Hammerstein classic musical The Sound of Music on Monday, August 3 at 7:30 pm in the Benedict Music Tent. This evening builds on the success of the sold-out production of South Pacific last year and will be presented by special arrangement with The Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization.
San Francisco Opera Center And Merola Opera Program Present Second Schwabacher Recital
by Stephi Wild - Feb 4, 2020
The 37th Schwabacher Recital Series continues on Wednesday, March 4, with its second performance of 2020. San Francisco Opera Adler Fellows Simone McIntosh and Zhengyi Bai take the stage at San Francisco's Dianne and Tad Taube Atrium Theater for a musical exploration of love and heartbreak, accompanied by Robert Mollicone on the piano. Their program will spotlight Olivier Messiaen's rarely performed Harawi, Richard Strauss' beloved Opus 27 songs and selections from Vincenzo Bellini's Sei Ariette da Camera.
Feinstein's/54 Below Presents First-Time Ever NYC Concert Event Featuring the Songs From TAKING MY TURN
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Nov 21, 2019
FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents a first-time ever NYC concert event featuring the songs from Taking My Turn! The score from the Outer Critics Circle Award-winning musical will be celebrated in what's sure to be an extraordinary and memorable evening. The concert will feature Brenda Braxton (Smokey Joe's Café, Chicago), Robert Cuccioli (Jekyll & Hyde, Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark), George Dvorsky (Scarlet Pimpernel, Passion), Nina Hennessey (Cats, Dreamgirls), Sally Mayes (She Loves Me, Closer Than Ever), Alan Wager (Beauty and the Beast), Andre Ward (Escape To Margaritaville, Rock of Ages), and Karen Ziemba (Bullets Over Broadway, Chicago).
AN EXTRAORDINARILY ORDINARY LIFE Comes to Alexander Upstairs
by Stephi Wild - Nov 20, 2019
From famous to homeless to fearless! Jervis is a former MD of EMI's South African Music label, (where he looked after careers as diverse as Brenda Fassie and Steve Hofmeyr), winner of SABC's 1983 National Television Talent Show Follow that Star with his group The Soft Shoes and his self-penned hit Elvis Astaire, writer of the musicals Scribble, which was nomination for 5 Naledi Theatre awards and A Town called Fokol-Lutho (amongst others) and more importantly, a talented dog whisperer! In between all this writing activity, Jervis also wrote off a few cars, resulting in a three week coma in one and a severe head injury in another. These conspired to derail him for almost two decades. Now safely back on track, this show tells his story (thus far). And in it Jervis delivers a truly original performance. Since it's sold out and extended run here in February the show has enjoyed successful outings at The Market Theatre in Johannesburg and The Hilton Arts Festival. He is a superb storyteller, a world class songwriter with a very unusual razor sharp wit. The reviews tell it like it is! So don't miss it
Birdland Releases Decemeber Schedule
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Nov 15, 2019
Birdland's December 2019 schedule will feature The Joe Lovano Nonet, Stacey Kent, Monty Alexander, A Swinging Birdland Christmas, Freddy Cole Quartet, Gunhild Carling, Julius Rodriguez, Veronica Swift Holiday Show, 'Season's Swingin' Greetings!a??, Marta Sanchez Quintet, Darius de Haas, Marilyn Maye New Years Eve Extravaganza, The Lineup with Susie Mosher, Jim Caruso's Cast Party, and MORE!
BWW Previews: Tony Award Winner Jay Johnson Will Headline 'Jay Johnson & Friends (Real And Imaginary)' at The Moss Theatre
by Valerie-Jean Miller - Nov 1, 2019
One Performance Only! This Sunday, November 3, 2019!
Long ago but not far away at all, there were many TV Variety Shows, Award Ceremonies, Music Centers and Theatre abounding with live Musical Performances, all with massive budgets; and dancers in this town, Los Angeles, made a darn good living, albeit having to work their asses off to do so, but it was a good and plentiful, fulfilling life. Besides myself, there was a plethora of working, professional dancers who ended up bonding together pretty easily, as a dancer's life is one of a nomad, or gypsy, going from one job to another, but in doing so, finding kindred spirits and lifelong connections.
Jay Johnson, husband of one of these dancers and artistically gifted himself, was part of the artistic community, as was his wife, Sandi, and, typical with dancers, became close friends and comrades with other dancers, choreographers, and like-minded performers.
As Jay was earning international fame as a ventriloquist, actor and comedian, and starring on the hit TV Series 'Soap,' us dancers were slaving away, happy to be able to make a living doing what we loved.
Jay is best known for his role on ' Soap' as Chuck Campbell, a ventriloquist who believed his puppet Bob was real and demanded everyone treat Bob as human.