New Songs From Alan Menken, Ahrens & Flaherty, and More Will Be Featured on New Benefit Album 'Artists in Residence'
By: Stephi Wild May. 06, 2020
Broadway Records and producer Andrew Gerle will be releasing an album of original songs to benefit the Actors Fund and the Dramatists Guild, two organizations doing essential work supporting theatre artists during the economic shutdown.
Entitled "Artists in Residence," the album will include new works by renowned film and Broadway favorites Alan Menken, David Zippel, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, as well as multiple award-winning theatre writers Todd Almond, Sean Barry and Jenny Giering, Carmel Dean, Andrew Gerle, Adam Gwon, Peter Mills, Ryan Scott Oliver, Eric Price and Will Reynolds, Ben Wexler, Jake Wildhorn, and David and Joseph Zellnik. All tracks will be the products of collaborations and recordings done from the artists' homes.
Gerle's inspiration for the project came the morning after Broadway's closure. "I wanted a way to help people in the industry who I knew were going to be out of work for a long time, but also to show the world that we can continue to create art, even when separated. With everyone these days having some kind of recording device, be it a phone, a podcast mic, or a more sophisticated setup, I knew it wouldn't be too difficult to put together from a technical standpoint. And I was sure the fantastic writers I knew would be excited to write something - I gave them the loose topic of the changes we've all experienced from the quarantine and let them take it from there."
Van Dean, Tony and Grammy Award-winning president of Broadway Records, was quick to come on board. "The Broadway community is always so generous with their time and talent, and we are beyond grateful to all of the writers and performers taking part in this benefit album. We look forward to the Broadway fans, who are all missing the theater experience as much as we are, being able to enjoy this collection of wonderful new songs speaking directly to the challenging and unusual times we are all facing, written by top musical theatre writers and performed by top Broadway talent."
Performers for "Artists in Residence" will be announced shortly; the album will be available on all major platforms on Friday, June 26th, 2020.
Broadway Records (Van Dean, President) is the Grammy winning record label dedicated to preserving musical theatre and theatre vocalists. Recent releases include the Grammy and Tony Award-winning The Color Purple (2015 revival), the Grammy nominated Matilda The Musical and Fiddler on the Roof (2015 revival), the Tony Award winning revival of Once On This Island, Anastasia, Bandstand, My Fair Lady, Groundhog Day, The Lightning Thief and NBC's television events, "The Wiz Live!" and "Peter Pan Live!". The label's critically-acclaimed "Live at Feinstein's/54 Below" series features top Broadway stars including Patti LuPone, Aaron Tveit, Annaleigh Ashford, Norbert Leo Butz, Sierra Boggess, Laura Benanti, Emily Skinner & Alice Ripley, Adam Pascal & Anthony Rapp, Micky Dolenz and many others. Broadway Records launched the Broadway for Orlando initiative (in partnership with creators Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley) culminating in the all-star benefit single, "What the World Needs Now is Love," which leaped to #1 on iTunes with no radio airplay. Broadway Records philanthropic endeavors also include the From Broadway With Love benefit concerts for Sandy Hook, Orlando (Emmy Award for Sound) and Parkland. To learn more, visit BroadwayRecords.com.
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