Nichelle Lewis and More to Perform at 54 Below Next Week

Next week, 54 BELOW will present some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond, including Nichelle Lewis, and many more. See the full lineup! 

YOUNG, GIFTED, & BROADWAY CELEBRATES BLACK HISTORY MONTH – FEBRUARY 17 AT 7PM

Young, Gifted & Broadway Presents: Lift Every Voice!

Let’s lift our voices and celebrate Black History Month with Broadway’s best and brightest young stars! Join us at 54 Below for an evening where you will hear great songs from Broadway and beyond, along with some historical facts you may have never known. Journey with us, as we lift the voices of great historical figures of Black History! Featuring current and recent Broadway youth performers from MJ The Musical, Gypsy, Disney’s The Lion King, and more!

Featuring Donovan Louis Bazemore, Jace Bently, Bryan H Chan, Annabel Cole, Summer Rae Daney, Mari Diop, Scarlett London Diviney, Austin Elle Fisher, Ayvah Johnson, Mehret Marsh, Davis Matthews, Austin Rankin, Grammy Award winner Walter Russell III, Nia Thompson, Kyleigh Vickers, and Julius-Raymond Weems IV.

Featuring special guest, Broadway legend Bonita Hamilton from Disney’s The Lion King and musical director Rashad McPherson. Come hear these gifted performers acknowledge the many Black Broadway performers whose shoulders we stand on and lift their voices as Broadway’s best and brightest young stars!

Produced by Angela Russell, Young, Gifted & Broadway Founder/Creative Director.

$62.50 cover charge (includes $7.50 in fees). $101 premium seating (includes $11 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

BLU: CONFESSIONS OF A LOVER BOY – FEBRUARY 17 AT 9:30PM

Blu (MJ The Musical, Titanique) makes his solo debut at 54 Below!

In Confessions of a Lover Boy, Blu will take the audience on a journey through the many faces of love, delivering a night of love songs with the smooth, captivating style of a modern crooner. With music from legends like Lauryn Hill, Chaka Khan, and Luther Vandross, with music direction by Deah Love Harriott and featuring an all female band, his smooth vocals and heartfelt delivery promise a captivating and unforgettable evening. Experience the magic of one of Broadway’s rising stars joined by a few surprise special guests.

Blu is a Chicago bred singer and actor. Currently you can catch him swinging on Broadway in MJ The Musical. He’s excited/terrified/relieved and every other feeling imaginable to be returning to 54 Below to debut his solo cabaret. He would like to thank his tribe for pushing him and believing in him. This one’s for Pat.

Featuring special guests Keirsten Hodgens (SIX), Naomi Latta, and Mariah Lyttle (The Wiz, Bad Cinderella).

$46 cover charge (includes $6 in fees). $73.50 premium seating (includes $8.50 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

William Michals: BROADWAY’S ROMANTIC BARITONE! – FEBRUARY 18 AT 7PM

The rich, robust, and lush baritone voice of William Michals is a throwback to another era. Nobody on Broadway sounds like Mr. Michals. He made his Broadway debut as The Beast in Disney’s Beauty and The Beast. He starred as Emile de Becque in the Lincoln Center production of South Pacific, and he played the romantic villain in the national tour of The Scarlet Pimpernel. He has performed on opera stages and with symphonies throughout the United States. And now he will be starring in this special concert event at 54 Below, singing the famous Broadway show tunes that never fail to make audiences swoon.

Producing and directing the show for William Michals will be NYC’s legendary impresario, Scott Siegel. He has created more than 500 major concert events all over the world, including producing, directing and writing shows for Michael Feinstein and creating the landmark Broadway by the Year series that was the signature series for New York’s Town Hall for 22 years.

Music direction by Michael Lavine. $57 cover charge (includes $7 in fees). $90 premium seating (includes $10 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

NEW WRITERS AT 54! Dionne McClain-Freeney – FEBRUARY 18 AT 9:30PM

This performance will also be livestreamed. For tickets and more information, click here.

Dionne McClain-Freeney is a composer, composer-lyricist, arranger, musical director, and teaching artist whose music for off-Broadway, children’s theatre, festivals, Gospel, and more, have earned accolades, including GLAAD Media Awards, AUDELCO, and Drama Desk. Whether big or small – stages AND ages, her music has taken audiences from the streets of Greenwich Village to downtown Newark, around the globe with children and talking parrots sampling rice & beans dishes, to Black fathers loving their sons, to an opulent ballroom for the “Black society event of the year.” After a feature in 54 Below’s Black Writer Showcase, join Dionne for a night of musical storytelling that will answer the question: Which theatre, TV, and movie megastar cried tears of joy after hearing one of her songs?

Featuring Kayla Coleman, Alvin Crawford, Madge Dietrich, Jared Wayne Gladly, Crystal Joy, Rebecca Vega-Romero, Kiara Wade, and Montria Walker.

New Writers At 54! is an ongoing series at 54 Below showcasing exciting work by today’s hottest emerging voices, curated by Assistant Programming Director Alexa Spiegel.

$40.50 cover charge (includes $5.50 in fees). $68 premium seating (includes $8 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

BACKSTAGE BABBLE: BEYOND THE WALLS OF Joe Allen RESTAURANT – FEBRUARY 19 AT 7PM

This performance will also be livestreamed. For tickets and more information, click here.

What do you think of when you think of Joe Allen? Maybe it’s the great food, or the star sightings any patron is likely to have. But most people associate the restaurant with its legendary “flop wall” featuring posters of Broadway’s shortest-running shows: Moose Murders, Scandalous, Rags, and more. Charles Kirsch, the host of theater podcast Backstage Babble, will take a deep dive into some of these under-appreciated shows as well as other Broadway misses that have yet to make it to the wall, with first hand accounts and performances by the performers who were there. Any die-hard Broadway fan won’t want to miss hearing these stories. Music direction and piano by Michael Lavine.

Featuring Ivy Austin representing Raggedy Ann, Tony Award® winner Len Cariou representing Dance a Little Closer, Philip Casnoff representing Rockabye Hamlet, Danielle Chambers representing Her First Roman, Donna Lynne Champlin representing By Jeeves, Alma Cuervo representing Is There Life After High School?, Natascia Diaz representing The Capeman, Drama Desk nominee Jerry Dixon representing Bright Lights, Big City, Emmy nominee Jill Eikenberry representing Onward Victoria, Luba Mason representing The Capeman, Jeff McCarthy representing Side Show, Cass Morgan representing The Human Comedy, Allen Lewis Rickman representing The People in the Picture, Jenna Lea Rosen representing Rachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don’t You Ever Forget It), and Stuart Zagnit representing The People in the Picture.

$62.50 cover charge (includes $7.50 in fees). $101 premium seating (includes $11 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

Lindsay Mendez AND Ryan Scott Oliver’S ACTOR THERAPY – FEBRUARY 19 AT 9:30PM

ACTOR THERAPY is back at 54 Below! Brought to you by Kleban Prize-winning composer-lyricist Ryan Scott Oliver(35mm, Mrs. Sharp, Party of the Century) and Tony Award®-winning Broadway actress Lindsay Mendez (Merrily We Roll Along, Carousel, Wicked), ACTOR THERAPY is a series of masterclasses for performers looking to improve their auditions, build a better book, and expand their understanding of what it means to be an actor and song interpreter in New York today.

Featuring an incredible cast of talented performers and a wide range of musical styles, from pop to Golden Age Broadway to contemporary musical theatre (and everything in between,) this memorable evening will be hosted by Actor Therapy‘s Managing Director Mathieu Whitman (he/him) with musical director Noah Turner at the piano.

Featuring Sarah Bennett, Elisa Bergomi, Zach Birdsall, Emma Christmann, Emma Claye, Samy Cordero, James Cunha, Marcellis Cutler, Michelle D’Amico, Ava Delaney, Francisco Gomez, Sofia Elena Gonzalez, Taylor Greny, Amber Jonas, Kelly Kudlik, Jimmy Lancaster, Lily Linaweaver, Mary Hope McDaniel, Adriana Napolitano, Harrison O’Callaghan, Andrew Oppmann, Natalia Rivera, and Courtney Naomi Walker.

$40.50 cover charge (includes $5.50 in fees). $68 premium seating (includes $8 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

Frances Mercanti-Anthony: FRANCES FLOATS – FEBRUARY 20 AT 7PM & 9:30PM

“Wendy Wasserstein 2.0. A game-changer for those for whom ‘weight’ is a constant adjective in their day-to-day lives.” Christine Merser, The Boothbay Register

Frances Mercanti-Anthony (Spring Awakening, Jerusalem) is a New Jersey native, who performed on  Broadway stages for about a decade. In 2018, at age 40, she fell in love with a divorced dad in Maine, moved to the rugged Midcoast, promptly had 2 children, and gained 110 pounds. She wrote a show about her journey from thin-ish Broadway actress to round country bumpkin, and the joy that she discovered along the way. Frances Floats is that story.

For the 7pm performance: $62.50 cover charge (includes $7.50 in fees). $101 premium seating (includes $11 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

For the 9:30pm performance: $51.50 cover charge (includes $6.50 in fees). $84.50 premium seating (includes $9.50 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

Nichelle Lewis – FEBRUARY 21 & 22 AT 7PM

Nichelle Lewis is thrilled to be making her New York City solo cabaret debut at 54 Below. Fresh off her acclaimed leading performance as Sarah in Ragtime at New York City Center Encores! and as Dorothy in The Wiz on Broadway, join her for an evening of music from her career, gospel and soul favorites, and some new original music.

$62.50 cover charge (includes $7.50 in fees). $106.50 premium seating (includes $11.50 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

LOVE IS A DRAG! – FEBRUARY 21 AT 9:30PM

This performance will also be livestreamed. For tickets and more information, click here.

Tara Bull and The Bad Judies are back! Whether you’re in love or you hate love, this group of drag queens will entertain you all night. Expect songs from “I Will Always Love You” to “All You Need Is Love” to “Love is The Drug.” Hosted by Tara Bull with The Bad Judies, this show features an all drag band: Lyra Vega on piano, WorshipHER on drums,Wesley on bass guitar, Mercy Be on saxophone and violin, and a new honorary member Tilda Watersclear on trombone. Each Queen will have their moment in the spotlight with plenty of chances to tip them! Love is a Drag will be a fun filled night to remember!

$40.50 cover charge (includes $5.50 in fees). $73.50 premium seating (includes $8.50 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

54 SINGS BROADWAY’S GREATEST HITS! – FEBRUARY 22 AT 9:30PM

Previous volumes of this Scott Siegel concert event hit 54 Below like lightning! This was the show that every musical theater-lover had been waiting for… and now we’re going to do it again, with a brand new line-up of 54 Sings Broadway’s Greatest Hits!

If you skip through cast albums just to hear the very best songs in each show, this is the nightclub concert event for you. If you love the classics of the Great White Way, come and hear the songs that made Broadway great, that made your heart soar, that you used to sing (maybe still do) in the shower! But at 54 Below, you will hear the greatest Broadway songs of all time performed by today’s greatest stars, singing them straight up, the way you want to hear them!

And who better to produce/direct/host this show than the creator of Town Hall’s critically acclaimed Broadway by the Year series, Scott Siegel, creator of more than 500 major concert events centered on Broadway music! 54 Sings Broadway’s Greatest Hits! will be a thrilling night that you won’t forget…

From October 2024-2025, we’ll be celebrating the the 10th anniversary of this acclaimed series! This landmark occasion will be honored with a year of very special performances, featuring, as always, a richly talented, starry cast.

Music direction by Evan Zavada.

Featuring Ally Bonino, John Cardea, Jr., John Easterlin, Melanie Puente Ervin, Alex Getlin, Jared Goodwin, Annika Stenstedt, and more stars to be announced!

$57 cover charge (includes $7 in fees). $95.50 premium seating (includes $10.50 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

Scott Siegel’S BROADWAY MUSICAL BRUNCH! – FEBRUARY 23 AT 1PM

Before you attend your weekend matinee, we’ll start your day by feeding both your and your soul with a pre-matinee concert overflowing with famous Broadway show tunes coupled with the best brunch in town. And what a concert it will be, with New York’s most talented musical theater, opera, and nightclub stars sharing their extraordinary joy and love of theater by giving their all on the stage.

And who better to host than NYC’s legendary impresario, Scott Siegel, who has created more than 500 major concert events all over the world. Among Scott’s impressive list of shows are 54 Belows critically acclaimed, record-breaking Broadway’s Greatest Hits series that has been regularly selling out the club since 2015 (and is fast-approaching 150 editions!), producing, directing, and writing concerts for Michael Feinstein, as well as creating more than 100 major concerts at New York’s historic 1,500 seat Town Hall.

Scott Siegel’s Broadway Musical Brunch: A Musical Mimosa that will make your weekend afternoon feel like a night out on the town!

Music direction by Evan Zavada.

Featuring Chris Collins-Pisano, Lianne Marie Dobbs, John Easterlin, Paul J. Hernandez, Clare Martin, Carolyn Montgomery, Jenny Lee Stern, and more stars to be announced!

A special Brunch menu has been created. It includes Chef James Klapak’s take on mouthwatering classics such as decadent PB&J Stuffed French Toast, sumptuous Chicken and Waffles, and warm and fluffy Cinnamon Rolls. The menu will be available a la carte. For the full brunch menu, click here.

$57 cover charge (includes $7 in fees). $90 premium seating (includes $10 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

SONDHEIM UNPLUGGED – FEBRUARY 23 AT 7PM

This performance will also be livestreamed. For tickets and more information, click here.

We’re Still Here! The Company of our celebrated, long-running series, Sondheim Unplugged, is thrilled to be Back in Business for season thirteen of our award-winning program. A celebrated New York event since 2010 (It’s a Hit!), Sondheim Unplugged features some of Broadway and cabaret’s most dynamic voices, accompanied by piano only, delving into the musical world of Broadway’s master composer. Hosted by Broadway wit Rob Maitner, with music direction from John Fischer, expect fun facts and tidbits about the original Broadway productions and an evening well spent with Old Friends. Because, God, That’s Good!

Starring special guest Ramona Mallory and Lucia Spina.

Featuring LaDonna Burns, Michael Di Liberto, Michelle Dowdy, Jon-Michael Reese, Lisa Sabin, Eric Ulloa, and Jordan Wolfe.

$62.50 cover charge (includes $7.50 in fees). $101 premium seating (includes $11 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

BACHELORETTE DUETS WITH JULIE BIANCHERI – FEBRUARY 23 AT 9:30PM

This performance will also be livestreamed. For tickets and more information, click here.

Julie Biancheri selects bachelors to sing her favorite musical duets, including The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Disney’s Frozen… and more. The audience votes for the final rose winner based on who has the best stage chemistry. From showmance to potential romance, don’t miss a night of bachelorette duets!

Music direction by Joshua Turchin (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” 13: The Musical on Netflix, “Schmigadoon”).

Featuring Julie Biancheri, RJ Christian, Eddie Datz, Nolan Donato, Will Dusek, Jake Goz, Malcolm Holmes, Cáleb Koval, Noah Lytle, John Henry Stamper, and Henry Thrasher.

$40.50 cover charge (includes $5.50 in fees). $68 premium seating (includes $8 in fees). $25 food & beverage minimum.

LIVE AT 54 BELOW

54 Below’s streaming series is designed to make more shows accessible to fans all over the world. “Live from 54 Below” will feature LIVE performances of current shows on the calendar, streamed directly from Broadway’s Living Room. Seven cameras will capture the excitement of being at the venue – all paired with the club’s dramatic lighting and award-winning sound design. To recreate the live experience, all shows will be presented exclusively at the time of performance with an in-house audience and will not be available on demand afterwards.

The following performances will be streamed live. For tickets, visit www.54Below.org/LIVE.

NEW WRITERS AT 54! Dionne McClain-Freeney February 18 at 9:45pm ET / Tickets $29 (includes $4 in fees.)

BACKSTAGE BABBLE: BEYOND THE WALLS OF Joe Allen RESTAURANT February 19 at 7pm ET / Tickets $29 (includes $4 in fees.)

LOVE IS A DRAG! February 21 at 9:45pm ET / Tickets $29 (includes $4 in fees.)

SONDHEIM UNPLUGGED February 23 at 7pm ET / Tickets $29 (includes $4 in fees.)

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