Broadway legend Andrea McArdle has two new albums set for release on Broadway Records. The first, "70s and Sunny: Live At 54 BELOW", was recorded during her triumphant debut at the new Broadway hotspot 54 BELOW and will be released today, December 11, 2012. The second recording, "Calendar Dream", is an exciting new project that teams Andrea up with a stellar array of Broadway's most awarded writers to journey though a year of a woman's life.
"We are thrilled to be working with
Andrea McArdle on these two very different but equally memorable album projects,” stated
Van Dean, co-founder of Broadway Records. “The first album gives her fans an opportunity to experience her outstanding 54 BELOW live show any time they want. The second album consists of all new material from many of Broadway’s best established and emerging writers.”
"70s and Sunny" debuted to sold-out houses at 54 BELOW in the summer of 2012.
Andrea McArdle, Broadway's original ANNIE, the voice that helped define the seventies for many, revisits the music that defined that era for her and helped influence the artist she became. From
Peter Allen to
Stephen Schwartz, from
Billy Joel to Broadway, from
Jerry Herman to
Marvin Hamlisch, "70s and Sunny" rewards listeners with fresh takes on music heard on stages, on screens and on the radio. "70s and Sunny" kicks off the new partnership between Broadway Records and 54 BELOW. Other albums in the series include the previously announced recordings by
Patti LuPone (release date: today, December 11, 2012) and
Norbert Leo Butz (release date: January 15, 2013).
"Calendar Dream" boasts brilliant new material from a Who's Who of Pulitzer Prize, Academy Award, Tony Award, Emmy Award, Grammy Award and Golden Globe Award winning and nominated writers, including:
Amanda Green,
Carol Hall,
Rupert Holmes,
John Kander,
Tom Kitt &
Brian Yorkey,
Henry Krieger &
Scott Logsdon,
Alan Menken &
David Zippel,
Benj Pasek &
Justin Paul,
Tim Rice &
Alan Menken, Dana Rowe &
Maribeth Graham and
Maury Yeston.
"Calendar Dream" is an anagram for Andrea's name and will feature 13 new songs, one for each month of the year and one about a year in the life of a woman facing a new and unexpected adventure. Andrea will explore what it is like to be newly single and starting the next chapter in her life in a CD of all new material written just for her.
"When my friend and collaborator
Scott Logsdon told me about this idea he had for a new CD, I never dreamed that I would be given the gift of new material from some of the greatest writers in the history of Broadway," said Andrea. "It's so exciting and humbling to be collaborating with people who thrill and entertain me. As I face new challenges and experiences as a newly single woman starting over, this is a great way to reconnect with my fans and the public and let them know who I am today."
Some of the shows from Andrea's new collaborator's include: Aida, Beauty and the Beast, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Bring It On, Cabaret, Chess, Chicago, A Christmas Story, City of Angels, Dreamgirls, Evita, The Fix, Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Kiss of the Spiderwoman, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, Little Shop of Horrors, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Next to Normal, Nine, Side Show, Titanic, The Witches of Eastwick and Zorba.
"
Andrea McArdle: 70s and Sunny - Live At 54 BELOW" will be released today, December 11, 2012. "Calendar Dream" is slated for release sometime in 2013.
54 BELOW is located at 254 W. 54th Street. Tickets and additional information are available at
www.54Below.com.
Andrea McArdle first captured the hearts of theatergoers in 1977 when she originated the title role in the mega-musical hit Broadway musical ANNIE, based upon the popular
Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie. Since then, she has starred in several Broadway musicals as well playing many leading roles on stages the world over. Andrea has brought her award-winning vocal talents to national and international concert halls from
Carnegie Hall to the Las Vegas Hilton to the Hong Kong Philharmonic as well as several remarkable television appearances through the years. Ms. McArdle has sung for each American President from Gerald Ford to
Bill Clinton. She honed her craft by working with some of the legends of the entertainment industry such as
Ethel Merman,
Liza Minnelli,
Julie Andrews,
Bob Hope, Liberace,
Frank Sinatra,
Steve Martin,
Martin Short,
Stephen Schwartz,
Tim Rice,
Trisha Yearwood and
Elton John to name just a few. As Annie she became the youngest performer ever to be nominated for a Tony Award as Best Lead Actress in a Musical. She also received the Theater World and Outer Critics' Circle Awards for the girl with the red hair and big voice. She subsequently conquered London with her portrayal of Little Orphan Annie in the West End. Andrea was then tapped to portray
Judy Garland in the acclaimed NBC television movie “Rainbow”. She appeared in the 1999
Rob Marshall-directed TV version of “Annie”, singing the "Star To Be" segment of the song "N.Y.C." The stage has continued to welcome Andrea “home” throughout the years, she starred in the
Jerry Herman musical Jerry’s Girls alongside
Carol Channing and
Leslie Uggams as herself; as Fantine in the original Broadway run of Les Miserables; as the sassy Smoking Car, Ashley, in the original Broadway cast of
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express; as Belle in Broadway’s Beauty And The Beast and as the original Margy Frake in Broadway’s State Fair. Andrea was lauded for her portrayal of Sally Bowles in both the US National and International tours of the Tony Award winning revival of Cabaret and also toured as Eponine in Les Miserables. Other notable roles include: Mrs. Johnston in Blood Brothers; Eva Peron, in Evita; Nancy in Oliver; Sandy in Grease; the Narrator in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; Miss Hannigan in Annie; Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun, Rose in Gypsy; Esther (the
Judy Garland role) in Meet Me In St Louis; Sonia in They’re Playing Our Song; as Peter Pan and appeared as herself in Off-Broadway’s The Vagina Monologues. Andrea is a much in demand vocalist and has performed in the showrooms of many of the Las Vegas and Atlantic City’s top hotels and casinos, and in cabarets and nightclubs such as New York City’s renowned Joe’s Pub at
The Public Theatre, Feinstein's at the Regency Hotel, among many others. She can be heard on the Grammy Winning, Platinum selling Original Broadway Cast recording of Annie, as well as the cast recordings of Jerry’s Girls, State Fair, the television soundtrack of
Rob Marshall’s “Annie”, as well as her own solo CD titled “
Andrea McArdle: On Broadway”.
Andrea McArdle recently won a 2011 NYMF award for Outstanding Individual Performance for her role in Greenwood The Musical.
BROADWAY RECORDS is a new label dedicated to Broadway and Off Broadway-related recordings and is a division of the theatrical production and investment company, The Broadway Consortium. The Broadway Consortium (winner of Best Revival of a Musical Tony® Award in 2012) was co-founded by
Van Dean and
Kenny Howard. Broadway Records releases include the Original Broadway Cast Recordings of Bonnie & Clyde and Lysistrata Jones, “
Nick Jonas: Songs from How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying”, “
Laura Osnes: Dream A Little Dream – Live at the Café Carlyle” and Jekyll & Hyde 2012 Concept Recording. The Broadway Consortium’s Broadway producing credits include Chinglish, Bonnie & Clyde,
Gore Vidal’s The Best Man, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Evita (2012) and Cinderella. West End: Master Class (2012). Together, Kenny and Van executive produced the Grammy® nominated 2011 Broadway Cast Recording of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying with
Daniel Radcliffe and
John Larroquette. The general counsel for Broadway Records and The Broadway Consortium is
Barry Miller. For more information, go to
www.BroadwayConsortium.com or
www.BroadwayRecords.com.
54 BELOW is located at 254 West 54th Street. Tickets and information are available at
www.54Below.com.
