Esparza and Chenoweth Perform With NY Philharmonic

 Multi-award-winning composer Marvin Hamlisch will make his New York Philharmonic debut as conductor and host of Broadway's Greatest Showstoppers, featuring songs from Les Misérables, Carousel, My Fair Lady, and his own Pulitzer Prize-winning score for A Chorus Line, among others, Tuesday, May 20, 2008, at 7:30 p.m. Joining Mr. Hamlisch will be two of Broadway's brightest stars, Kristin Chenoweth and Raúl Esparza, in his Philharmonic debut.

As a composer, Marvin Hamlisch has won virtually every major award — three Oscars, four Grammys, four Emmys, a Tony, and three Golden Globe Awards. His ground-breaking musical, A Chorus Line, received the Pulitzer Prize. Other Broadway credits include They're Playing Our Song, The Goodbye Girl, Sweet Smell of Success, and Imaginary Friends. Mr. Hamlisch is also the composer of more than 40 motion picture scores, including his Oscar-winning score and song for The Way We Were, and his adaptation of Scott Joplin's music for The Sting, for which he received a third Oscar. His prolific output of film scores includes original compositions and/or musical adaptations for Sophie's Choice, Ordinary People, The Swimmer, Three Men and a Baby, Ice Castles, Take the Money and Run, Bananas, and Save the Tiger. Marvin Hamlisch is principal pops conductor for the National Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, and San Diego Symphony. He was musical director and arranger of Barbra Streisand's 1994 concert tour of the U.S. and England, as well as of the television special, Barbra Streisand: The Concert (for which he received two of his Emmys). He served in the same capacities for her Millennium concerts.
Mr. Hamlisch is a graduate of The Juilliard School's Pre-College Division and Queens College, where he earned a bachelor of arts degree. This concert represents his New York Philharmonic debut.

Kristin Chenoweth is well known for her appearances on stage, television, and in film. Her upcoming projects include the comedy Four Christmases, with Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn, and the comedy-animated adventure, Space Chimps, co-starring Cheryl Hines. She also appears in the ABC series, Pushing Daisies. Last year Ms. Chenoweth starred in Stairway to Paradise, an original City Center Encores production; the limited engagement of The Apple Tree at the Roundabout Theatre Company's Studio 54; and performed a sold-out solo concert at The Metropolitan Opera House. Ms. Chenoweth received a Tony Award for her performance in You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, and originated the role of Glinda the Good Witch in Wicked (Tony Award nomination). She performed in the Broadway comedy, Epic Proportions, and in the Kander and Ebb musical, Steel Pier (Theatre World Award). Ms. Chenoweth also performed in an Off-Broadway production of Moliere's Scapin for the Roundabout. On television, Ms. Chenoweth has appeared as Annabeth Schott on The West Wing; the librarian, Marian Paroo, in ABC's movie version of Meredith Willson's The Music Man; and Lily St. Regis in the television adaptation of Annie. She also starred in her own series, Kristin, on NBC, and was seen in the season finale of Ugly Betty. Her theatrical releases include Deck the Halls with Danny DeVito and Matthew Broderick; RV with Robin Williams; Bewitched with Nicole Kidman; Running with Scissors with Annette Bening; and The Pink Panther with Steve Martin. Ms. Chenoweth is currently developing a feature film based on the life of Dusty Springfield, and is scheduled to make her Metropolitan Opera debut in March 2010 as Samira in John Corigliano's The Ghosts of Versailles. Ms. Chenoweth performs solo concerts nationwide and collaborates with various orchestras. She made her New York Philharmonic debut singing selections from Bernstein's Candide at a New York Philharmonic Concert in the Parks in July 2001, and starred in the Orchestra's semi-staged production of Candide in

Raúl Esparza recently starred as Lenny in The Homecoming on Broadway. His other Broadway credits include Robert in Company (for which he received a Tony nomination, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award); Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; The Rocky Horror Show (Theatre World Award); Cabaret; and Taboo (Tony nomination, Drama Desk Award). His Off-Broadway credits include The Normal Heart (Drama League honoree); The Comedians (Drama League honoree); and tick, tick…BOOM! (Obie Award, Drama Desk nomination). He played Che in the national tour of Evita, and appeared in Sunday in the Park with George (Helen Hayes Award nomination for
Outstanding Actor in a Musical) and Merrily We Roll Along, both at the Kennedy Center/Sondheim Celebration.Regionally Mr. Esparza has appeared in Company (Cincinnati Playhouse); The Green Violin (Barrymore Award/Prince Music Theater); Slaughterhouse 5 and Fur (Steppenwolf Theater Co.); Cry, the Beloved Country; Richard II and A Christmas Carol (Goodman Theatre); The Washington–Sarajevo Talks (Victory Gardens); Arcadia and Broadway's Greatest Showstoppers/3, What the Butler Saw (Meadowbrook Theatre); Messiah (National Jewish Theater); Grease (Drury Lane Oakbrook); and Mixed Blessings (Coconut Grove Playhouse). His film and television work has included Pushing Daisies; Sidney Lumet's Find Me Guilty; South Beach; and Guadalupe. Mr. Esparza, who is the recipient of the HOLA José Ferrer Acting Award, received his bachelor of fine arts degree from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. He is making his New York Philharmonic debut in this concert.

Single tickets for these performances go on sale for subscribers on Monday, March 24, 2008, and to the general public on March 31. The prices are $29 to $99. All tickets may be purchased online at nyphil.org or by calling (212) 875-5656, 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. daily. Tickets may also be purchased at the Avery Fisher Hall Box Office, Lincoln Center, Broadway at 65th Street. The Box Office opens at 10:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday, and at noon on Sunday. On performance evenings, the Box Office closes one-half hour after performance time; other evenings it closes at 6:00 p.m. To determine ticket availability, call the Philharmonic's Customer Relations Department at (212) 875-5656.
The Philharmonic's 24-hour hotline, (212) 875-5709, provides information on this and other New York Philharmonic programs. For press tickets, call Lanore Carr in the New York Philharmonic Public Relations Department at (212) 875-5714, or e-mail her at carrl@nyphil.org.