Alex Timbers to Helm Jonathan Groff's 'Lyrics & Lyricists' Season Opener at 92Y

Award-winning director and two-time Tony Award nominee Alex Timbers is on board as director for The Bobby Darin Story, the opening show of 92Y's American Songbook series Lyrics & Lyricists.

Tony nominee Jonathan Groff portrays the multi-talented entertainer born blocks from 92Y whose dramatic life - from a rock 'n' roller to Brill Building songwriter and major American Songbook interpreter to Oscar -nominated actor - was cut short at the age of 37. Billy Stritch and Andy Einhorn are co-music directors.

"As a fan of the Lyrics and Lyricists series, I feel incredibly honored to be asked by Ted Chapin to participate in its programming. Equally exciting is the chance to collaborate with the brilliant Jonathan Groff on bringing Bobby Darin's remarkable life and songs to the stage."

Alex Timbers' Broadway credits include Peter and the Starcatcher (Drama Desk winner; Tony nominee); Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (Tony nominee); Rocky (Drama Desk nominee); Oh, Hello on Broadway; and The Pee-Wee Herman Show. Off-Broadway he's best known for Here Lies Love (Lucille Lortel winner); and Gutenberg! The Musical (Drama Desk nominee). He is co-creator of the Golden Globe-winning Amazon series "Mozart in the Jungle" and serves as Artistic Director of the New York-based company Les Freres Corbusier. Alex is currently directing the stage version of Moulin Rouge! The Musical, which begins performances in Boston this June.

L&L Producer Ted Chapin is working with some of Broadway's top talent - including Jonathan Groff, Rob Fisher and Amanda Green, Lynn Ahrens, David Loud, Jason Danieley and Noah Racey - to create shows exploring the works of such songwriters as Leonard Bernstein, Frank Loesser, Irving Berlin, Bobby Darin and Lynn Ahrens herself.

Tickets, starting at $65 are available at 92Y.org/Lyrics. Shows are: Saturday at 8 pm; Sunday at 2 pm & 7 pm; Monday at 2 pm & 7:30 pm.

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Lyrics & Lyricists 2018 Season

Jan 20, 21, 22

The Bobby Darin Story

Featuring Jonathan Groff

Alex Timbers: Director

Billy Stritch: Co-Music Director

Andy Einhorn: Co-Music Director

Additional cast TBA

The songs of Darin in the key of Groff. Join us as two-time Tony nominee Jonathan Groff captures the magic of Bobby Darin. Bobby Darin was the most captivating and versatile entertainer of his time. His too short but extraordinary life took him from his birthplace (blocks from 92Y) to the Brill Building, to stage and screen, through politics and pacifism, and more. Rock and roller, nightclub singer, prolific songwriter, dazzling entertainer ... "Splish Splash" ... "Dream Lover" ... "Mack the Knife" ... Jonathan Groff will conjure it all.

Feb 24, 25, 26

Lenny's Lyricists

Rob Fisher & Amanda Green: Co-Artistic Directors

Gary Griffin: Director

Darius de Haas; Jay Armstrong Johnson: Vocals

Additional cast TBA

"Somewhere" ... "New York, New York" ... "Make Our Garden Grow" ... Bernstein's music wouldn't be Bernstein's songs without the lyrics. Join us for a fascinating inside look at his lyric collaborations. Amanda Green, Tony Award-nominated songwriter, performer and daughter of legendary lyricist and book writer, Adolph Green, joins Rob Fisher for an examination of Bernstein's extraordinary lyric collaborations. The Greens and the Bernsteins were lifelong friends. Get Amanda Green's personal view and behind-the-scenes stories about Bernstein's groundbreaking shows with her father and Betty Comden, his work with the young Stephen Sondheim, the (many!) lyricists for Candide and more.

Mar 24, 25, 26

Irving Berlin: American

Noah Racey: Artistic Director

Aaron Gandy: Music Director

Holly Butler; Stephen DeRosa; Danny Gardner: Vocals

Additional artists TBA

The essentially American "God Bless America" was written by a Russian immigrant. Join us as we examine the resonance of Berlin's essentially American journey. Irving Berlin's life and achievements represent the quintessential immigrant story. On the occasion of the centenary of the writing of our nation's "other anthem," we'll explore how the five-year-old boy who arrived A. Ellis Island speaking no English came to create songs that epitomize American music, and how he became the spokesman in song for the country that allowed him to flourish.

May 5, 6, 7

Lynn Ahrens: A Lyric Life

Jason Danieley: Artistic Director

Mary-Mitchell Campbell: Music Director

Nikki Renée Daniels; Hannah Elless, David Harris, Brandon Uranowitz, Alton Fitzgerald White: Vocals

Special Guest TBA

Ragtime. Anastasia. Once on This Island. Schoolhouse Rock! Get a close-up and personal look at Lynn Ahrens' extraordinary life in lyrics. Lynn Ahrens' lyrics are so smart, imaginative, tender and clever, they earned her the "triple crown" of Broadway awards - Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle. Under the direction of L&L favorite Jason Danieley, we'll celebrate Ahrens in song, and she'll share stories about how Schoolhouse Rock! launched her career, and about being a lyricist in a world where few women have thrived.

Jun 2, 3, 4

Frank Loesser: Lyricist

David Loud: Artistic Director

Cast TBA

Before lighting up Broadway, Loesser was a Hollywood lyricist. David Loud guides us through the early work with Hoagy Carmichael and other songwriting greats. David Loud's unique way of getting inside a song's lyrics promises unforgettable reimaginings of some of Loesser's greatest gems. We'll shine a rare spotlight on his Hollywood collaborations with Carmichael, Jule Styne, Burton Lane and Jimmy McHugh, and offer a fresh look at songs from Guys and Dolls and Loesser's Broadway best, as we celebrate the versatile genius of this most inimitable fella.

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Ted Chapin adds his new role to his current position as President & Chief Creative Officer of Rodgers and Hammerstein. During Chapin's tenure at R&H, he has overseen major productions on Broadway (seven Tony Awards for Best Revival), in London, and around the world, and has encouraged newly created shows including the recent Holiday Inn, Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella, State Fair, and Irving Berlin's White Christmas. He has curated three programs at Lyrics & Lyricists, was the co-founder of the Encores! series at City Center, and served as chairman of the American Theater Wing. His book Everything Was Possible: The Birth of the Musical "Follies," was published by Knopf in 2003. His career began as production assistant for the Broadway productions of Follies, The Rothschilds, and The Unknown Soldier and His Wife, and associate to director Alan Arkin on the original Broadway production of Neil Simon's The Sunshine Boys and the CBS-TV production of Twigs with Carol Burnett. He is a visiting lecturer at many universities including Pace, NYU, Duke and Yale.

Since 1970, Lyrics & Lyricists, the pioneering American Songbook series, and one of 92Y's signature series, has celebrated the work of songwriters like Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, Dorothy Fields, Betty Comden & Adolph Green, Sheldon Harnick, and David Zippel with champions and interpreters of the American Songbook including Rob Fisher, Kathleen Marshall, Billy Stritch, John Pizzarelli, Ted Chapin, and Mark Lamos. 92Y Lyrics & Lyricists receives support from Gilda and Henry z"l Block; The Hite Foundation, Inc.; The Harold W. and Ida L. Goldstein Lecture Fund through the Estate of Sanford Goldstein; The Edythe Kenner Foundation; The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation; Howard and Eleanor Morgan; and The Henry Nias Foundation, courtesy of Dr. Stanley Edelman z"l.

92nd Street Y is a world-class, nonprofit cultural and community center that fosters the mental, physical and spiritual health of people throughout their lives, offering: wide-ranging conversations with the world's best minds; an outstanding range of programming in the performing, visual and literary arts; fitness and sports programs; and activities for children and families. 92Y is reimagining what it means to be a community center in the digital age with initiatives like the award-winning #GivingTuesday, launched by 92Y in 2012 and now recognized across the US and in a growing number of regions worldwide as a day to celebrate and promote giving. These kinds of initiatives are transforming the way people share ideas and translate them into action both locally and around the world. More than 300,000 people visit 92Y annually; millions more participate in 92Y's digital and online initiatives. A proudly Jewish organization since its founding in 1874, 92Y embraces its heritage and welcomes people of all backgrounds and perspectives. For more information, visit www.92Y.org.