The Ziegfeld Society to Present Josh Ellis's CALL MY PUBLICIST!
By: BWW News Desk Oct. 18, 2016
Billed as "An Insider's View of the Theatre's Glamour and Folly," the autobiographical play with music is written and performed by Josh Ellis, directed by Gretchen Cryer, with musical direction and arrangements by Mark York, on Saturday, October 29th. The event will take place at Lang Recital Hall, Hunter College (68th Street between Park and Lexington Avenue), at 3:00pm.
CALL MY PUBLICIST! is a personal, first-hand, insider's view of the glamorous and sometimes maddening world of Broadway from a vantage point the public rarely sees. Former press agent Josh Ellis worked with an amazing array of larger-than-life personalities on The Great White Way who taught him the tricks of the publicity trade. They include stars Yul Brynner, Carol Channing, Ethel Merman, Lena Horne, Sandy Duncan, Eartha Kitt, composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim, and producer David Merrick - all of whom MR. Ellis brings to life.
At its core, CALL MY PUBLICIST! is about a love affair with the New York theatre, the hits and the flops, and like all romances, it has its share of joys and heartbreaks.
Among the shows Josh Ellis publicized are the original Broadway productions of Into the Woods, 42nd Street, Fences, The Elephant Man, The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music, Big River, and the award-winning revivals of The King and I (Yul Brynner), Dracula (Frank Langella), Peter Pan (Sandy Duncan) and Morning's at Seven.
Ellis was on the founding steering committee of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, and served on that committee for five years while heading BC/EFA's public relations efforts. Among the Broadway press agents who worked in his office are Adrian Bryan Brown, Chris Boneau, Jackie Green, Susanne Tighe, Jim Byk, David LeShay, and John Barlow.
Gretchen Cryer is an award-winning director, playwright, lyricist and actress. After a career as a Broadway actress (Little Me, 110 In the Shade, 1776), she began her collaboration with composer Nancy Ford, writing book and lyrics for the Off-Broadway musical Now Is the Time for All Good Men, in which she also starred, The Last Sweet Days of Isaac, that won the Obie, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards, and I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking It on the Road, in which she also starred, a hit at The Public Theatre which transferred Off-Broadway where it played over 1,000 performances. It had a successful American tour and won acclaim around the world, including an extended London run. Cryer and Ford's other collaborations include the musicals Shelter, Anne of Green Gables and Einstein and The Roosevelts. Their most recent musical, Still Getting My Act Together, premiered at the York Theatre Company in 2011 and was a hit at the Laguna Playhouse last year.
Musical director and arranger Mark York is perhaps best known as Jim Dale's onstage sidekick and accompanist in Just Jim Dale, The Roundabout's Off-Broadway hit, directed by Richard Maltby, Jr., which went on to a successful run in the West End in 2015. Mr. York is the Co-founder and Executive Producer of The Ziegfeld Society, and musical coordinator for legendary Broadway songwriter Jerry Herman.
The Ziegfeld Society's 2016-2017 season continues on November 12th with Cheryl Ann Allen as Sophie Tucker in Person, directed by Ian Finkel and Call On Dolly: A Brief History of Dolly Gallagher Levi on Stage and Screen, hosted by Richard Skipper, on February 25th. The Ziegfeld Society will present as its first annual fundraiser an original musical, Ziegfeld Follies of the Air: The 1934 Live from Broadway Broadcast Revue, with musical direction and arrangements by Mark York, written and directed by Associate Artistic Director Walter Willison, featuring an all-star cast at The Cutting Room on December 18TH.
All proceeds benefit The Ziegfeld Society of New York City, a not-for-profit organization that aspires to enlighten, entertain and educate current and future generations of theatergoers and young artists about the legendary performers, songwriters and creators of our vast musical theater heritage. Monthly performances feature Broadway stalwarts performing alongside young up-and-coming artists as well as presentations by authors and screenings of lost film and television musicals.
Tickets are $23.00 for general admission, $15.00 for seniors, and $10.00 for students and can be purchase on line at theziegfeldsociety.com or by calling 917-371-5509. All contributions are tax deductible. CALL MY PUBLICIST! runs 95 minutes and will be followed by a question-and-answer session. For more information visit theziegfeldsociety.com.
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