Stephanie J. Block, Brian d'Arcy James and The New York Pops Bring Holiday Cheer to Carnegie Hall Tonight

The New York Pops, led by Music Director Steven Reineke, will present an evening full of holiday cheer at Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage with help from Tony award nominees Stephanie J. Block and Brian d'Arcy James, set to make the season bright with a program of holiday favorites tonight and tomorrow, December 18 and 19, 2015 at 8:00PM. The orchestra will also be joined by Judith Clurman's Essential Voices USA.

"The New York Pops Holiday Concerts are some of my favorite concerts each season," said Music Director Steven Reineke. "It's always exciting to know that we are enriching the holiday season for over 5,000 New Yorkers. Stephanie and Brian are not only incredibly talented performers but two of the nicest artists we work with, and I know that the Carnegie Hall audiences will feel their electricity and chemistry when they're on stage. And what would a New York Pops holiday concert be without a visit from Santa and our good friends at Essential Voices USA helping to make the holidays bright? This year's shows are going to be great!"

"It's always a pleasure to work with The New York Pops and my good friend Steven Reineke," said Stephanie J. Block, "and I can't wait to join forces with Brian! We've put together a wonderful, heartwarming program that will really get people in the holiday spirit. It's going to be a tremendous show and I'm delighted to be a part of it!"

Brian d'Arcy James said, "I'm so thrilled to take part in the wonderful tradition of The New York Pops' annual Holiday Concerts! We are going to put on a great show that will be fun for everyone. The holiday season in New York is so magical. I am so glad Steven asked me and Stephanie to perform in this wonderful show."

In partnership with Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute, The New York Pops will perform a special holiday Family Concert on Sunday, December 20 at 3:00PM. Based on the iconic television special "A Charlie Brown Christmas," this fully-staged concert performance brings Charlie Brown and the Peanuts to life through original choreography by director/choreographer Liza Gennaro, as performed by dancers from New York Theatre Ballet. Broadway star John Bolton will narrate. Students from TADA! Youth Theater and Essential Voices USA will help The New York Pops to bring even more holiday cheer.

The orchestra's 33rd season continues on Friday, March 11, 2016, 8:00PM with 42nd on 57th: Broadway Today, an evening of theatre showstoppers. Guest artists Jeremy Jordan and Betsy Wolfe will join The New York Pops to bring the best of Broadway uptown.

ABOUT STEPHANIE J. BLOCK - Stephanie has established herself as one of Broadway's most versatile leading ladies. She has starred in Little Miss Sunshine (Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical); The Mystery of Edwin Drood (Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical and Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Musical); Anything Goes; By the Way, Meet Vera Stark; 9 to 5: The Musical (Drama Desk Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical); Wicked; The Pirate Queen; and The Boy From Oz. She starred in the First Nat'l Touring Company of Wicked as Elphaba (Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Actress, Carbonell Award for Best Actress in a Musical). Regional credits include Funny Girl (Robby Award Winner-Best Actress), Crazy For You (L.A. Ovation Award Nominee), Oliver! (Critics Award-Best Actress), James Joyce's The Dead, Triumph of Love, The Grass Harp, South Pacific, The Will Rogers Follies, and the world premiere of Wicked. Television credits include Orange is the New Black and Homeland. Stephanie has sung with numerous symphony orchestras around the U.S. Her solo concert has been critically acclaimed in NYC and London. Her voice can be heard on the original cast recordings of The Boy From Oz, The Pirate Queen, and 9 to 5: The Musical (Grammy nomination), and of course her own album, This Place I Know. She is a proud member of The Musical Theatre Guild and has been a member of Actors' Equity since 1995. Stephaniejblock.com

ABOUT BRIAN d'ARCY JAMES - Brian d'Arcy James is a three time Tony Award nominee, for his performance as Nick Bottom in the currently running hit musical Something Rotten, for his performance as Shrek in Shrek the Musical, (winner of the Outer Critics Circle Award and the Drama Desk Award for that role), and also as Sidney Falco in Sweet Smell of Success. Brian can currently be seen starring alongside Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel McAdams in the feature film Spotlight which opened to rave reviews this fall. He, alongside his costars, were most recently honored with the Gotham Jury Award for best ensemble. Brian originated the role of King George in Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda at the Public Theater. He is an OBIE Award winner for his portrayal of a hapless thug in Conor McPherson's The Good Thief. Other Broadway and Off-Broadway credits include Macbeth, Time Stands Still, Next to Normal, The Wild Party, Port Authority (Lucille Lortel Winner), The Lieutenant of Inishmore, The Apple Tree, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Titanic, Carousel, and Blood Brothers. Brian's film work includes Sisters, Time Out of Mind, Admission, Bird in a Box, The Fitzgerald Family Christmas, Game Change, Friends with Kids and Ghost Town. Audiences will recognize Brian from his role on Smash as Debra Messing's husband Frank. As a concert artist Brian has performed worldwide, large venues and small, some highlights being The White House, Madison Square Garden, and Carnegie Hall among a host of others. His show Under the Influence opened at 54 Below and Brian has performed it in many venues, most recently at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival in Australia. His solo debut album From Christmas Eve to Christmas Morn is a holiday favorite and features his original song "Michigan Christmas". He resides in New York City with his wife and daughter.

ABOUT JUDITH CLURMAN'S ESSENTIAL VOICES USA - Judith Clurman's Essential Voices USA (EVUSA) was recently featured under Judith's baton in the NBC 2014 telecast of Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular. The ensemble performs regularly at Carnegie Hall with The New York Pops and produces "The Composer Speaks" series at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music. EVUSA produced and performed on the critically acclaimed CD Celebrating the American Spirit (Sono Luminus), recorded Marvin Hamlisch's song "The Music in My Mind" for his children's book, was featured in the 2010 Leonard Bernstein Celebration at Symphony Space, and also performed on NBC's 2011 and 2012 national broadcasts of the Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting. EVUSA was thrilled to participate in the 2013 Presidential Inaugural activities: it performed in a community sing-along of the "Sing Out, Mr. President" song cycle at the Church of the Presidents in Washington, D.C, and had selections from Celebrating the American Spirit featured on NPR on Inauguration Day. Plans for the 2014-2015 season include several performances with The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall, "The Composer Speaks" programs of Bach (with commentary by Bach scholar Christoph Wolff) and Mozart (with participation by noted music librarian and editor Michael Ochs), the musical launch of Harvard University professor Carol J. Oja's book Bernstein Meets Broadway, and the release of its Sono Luminus recording Cherished Moments which includes "Songs of Freedom: A Celebration of Chanukah," "Set Me as a Seal" by Nico Muhly, and other traditional and new works of the Jewish musical tradition.

ABOUT THE NEW YORK POPS - The New York Pops is the largest independent pops orchestra in the United States, and the only professional symphonic orchestra in New York City specializing in popular music. Under the leadership of dynamic Music Director and Conductor Steven Reineke, The New York Pops continues to re-imagine orchestral pops music. The orchestra performs an annual subscription series and birthday gala at Carnegie Hall and a summer series at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, NY. The New York Pops is dedicated to lifelong learning, and collaborates with public schools, community organizations, children's hospitals and senior centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City. PopsEd allows thousands of New Yorkers of all ages and backgrounds to participate in fully customizable music programs that blend traditional education with pure fun. Visit www.newyorkpops.org for more information. Follow The New York Pops on Facebook (facebook.com/newyorkpops), Instagram (@thenewyorkpops), and Twitter (@newyorkpops).

Steven Reineke is the Music Director of The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall, Principal Pops Conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Principal Pops Conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and the Principal Pops Conductor Designate for the Houston Symphony, beginning in the 2017-2018 season. Mr. Reineke is a frequent guest conductor with The Philadelphia Orchestra and has been on the podium with the Boston Pops, The Cleveland Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at Ravinia. His extensive North American conducting appearances include San Francisco, Houston, Seattle, Edmonton and Pittsburgh. As the creator of more than one hundred orchestral arrangements for the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Mr. Reineke's work has been performed worldwide, and can be heard on numerous Cincinnati Pops Orchestra recordings on the Telarc label. His symphonic works Celebration Fanfare, Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Casey at the Bat are performed frequently in North America. His numerous wind ensemble compositions are published by the C.L. Barnhouse Company and are performed by concert bands around the world. A native of Ohio, Mr. Reineke is a graduate of Miami University of Ohio, where he earned bachelor of music degrees with honors in both trumpet performance and music composition. He currently resides in New York City with his husband, Eric Gabbard.

Tickets are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street, by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800, or by visiting the Carnegie Hall website, carnegiehall.org. Single tickets are priced $40-$122.

Photo Credtis: Steven Reineke by Michael Tammaro; Stephanie J. Block by Michael Rowe; Brian d'Arcy James by Jordan Matter.