THE DIVA AND THE BARITONE Plays the Laurie Beechman, 8/10

The Diva and the Baritone, stars Metropolitan Opera baritone Theodore Lambrinos and his singing partner and wife, international operatic soprano Hallie Neill. Elliot Finkel, a concert pianist with the chops of a Broadway musical director wrote the arrangements to showcase the couple's amazing vocal talents in a charming mix of Broadway, opera and the best of the Great American songbook.

This "dynamic duo" are singers with phenomenal power, range and flexibility. Miss Neill has a voice that can ascend to the high E flat and in almost the next breath descend to three octaves beloW. Lambrinos' rich and stirring Baritone (hitting easily the low F) to a ringing high A flat is incomparable.

But this is not merely an evening of fantastic vocalism: the pair is charming and very, very funny. Neill's script is clever, based on the couple's real life adventures as international opera singers. Theodore is the elegant Baritone and Hallie is the Diva with a comedienne's timing-the combination is irresistible.

The Laurie Beechman Theatre is located at the West Bank Café, 407 West 42 Street, NYC. The show starts at 7:00 p.m. on August 10, 2012, and costs $20 + $15 food/drink minimum. (Kitchen/Bar Opens at 6:00). Call 212-695-6909 for reservations.

For more information, visit www.DivaBaritone.com. Plus, get a preview of the show in the video!

HALLIE NEILL (Soprano) San Diego native Hallie Neill is a "rapturous singing actress", (The New York Times) with a "fiery soprano" (Opera News). A winner of the Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation award, Miss Neill made her Carnegie Hall debut in Verdi's Jersualem with celebrated tenor Enrico di Giuseppe. "A beautiful soprano with a voice of glory", noted Placido Domingo, and a "terrific singer who can act!" according to Hal Prince, Miss Neill has created leading roles in two operatic world premieres: Anton Coppola's Sacco and Vanzetti for Opera Tampa and Philip Glass's La Belle et la Bete throughout Europe, and recorded for Nonesuch Records. Hallie has appeared in concert at Lincoln Center with the New York Grand Opera Orchestra and the Little Orchestra Society, and in leading operatic roles of Tosca, La Traviata, Carmen, Falstaff, Don Giovanni, La Boheme, Pagliacci, Die Fledermaus and The Merry Widow in the US and abroad including Cairo Opera, Netherlands Opera, Opera Tampa, New York Grand Opera in Central Park, Metro Lyric Opera, Opera 2001 European Tour and Teatro Lirico d'Europa in European and US tours. Hallie has appeared in over 25 countries in opera and concert including Hong Kong, Bangkok, Egypt, Dubai, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Jordan, Qatar, Indonesia and Korea.

The talented singing actress is also a noted playwright, having created the musical "A Scandalous Affair" about the love story of Hollywood film icons Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. The CD with Neill and Lambrinos was featured on the 50th Annual Grammy Awards Entry List for "Best Musical Show Album" and has received standing ovations around the country, including the famed Players Club and Lincoln Center.

Hallie and Theodore will soon be heard as the "Opera Singers" in the upcoming film "Doggie Boogie", Audience Favorite Feature Award Winner in the Sonoma International Film Festival.

THEODORE LAMBRINOS Mr. Lambrinos' has sung over 60 major baritone roles with the Metropolitan Opera and opera companies throughout the US including Chicago, Seattle, Cincinnati, Colorado, Des Moines, New Jersey, Arizona, Nevada and abroad including Cairo, Beijing, Greece, and Indonesia. His powerful voice and compelling stage presence make him one of the finest Verdi baritones appearing before the public today. His appearance at the Metropolitan Opera in the title role of Rigoletto was described by the New Jersey Star Ledger as a "The Metropolitan Opera's A Team – a gripping performance that brought down the house" Following ovations in Beijing, China, he was honored to perform Rigoletto in the historical first-ever performance of opera in Hanoi, Vietnam. He created the role of Carlo Tresca in the premiere of Anton Coppola's Sacco and Vanzetti for Opera Tampa. Theodore has sung numerous roles with Metro Lyric Opera including Rigoletto, Tosca, Traviata, Cavalleria and Pagliacci.

He performed a marathon of leading roles for the New York Grand Opera Verdi Festival in Central Park, including Macbeth, Ernani, Simon Boccanegra and La Forza del Destino. He has sung nearly 200 performances of Rigoletto, Nabucco, Il Trovatore, Cav and Pag, Aida and Tosca with the European touring companies Opera 2001 and Teatro Lirico d'Europa throughout Europe and the US. His performances have taken him to nearly 20 countries from the Middle East to the Far East and he has performed with such luminaries as Domingo, Fleming, Zajick, Corelli, Scotto, Moffo and Hines. Born in Brooklyn, NY Theodore began his career as soloist with the famed Russian Don Cossack Chorus throughout the US and Canada. He went on to appear in musicals On and Off-Broadway and in Summer Stock. Mr. Lambrinos has an active voice studio in NY sharing his vast experience with the new performers on the horizon. With his wife, soprano Hallie Neill he has appeared in opera/Broadway concerts, in Neill's original operetta "A Scandalous Affair" and operas including Falstaff, Tosca, La Boheme and Don Giovanni in New York and throughout Europe.

David Shenton, Pianist - David Shenton is an English pianist, violinist, composer and arranger living and working in New York City. David has worked as musical director for numerous acts and recently collaborated with Tony Bennett, Denyce Gravess, Renee Fleming, Sherrill Milnes, Liz Callaway, and Amanda McBroom. David performs regularly in NYC.

David is the composer of five musicals all of which have premièred in New York. He was recently commissioned to write a ballet for The Pendulum Aerial Dance Company in Portland (OR), who performs this work, Ascension, frequently. David wrote his first film score for Franc Reyes' drama, Beauty, which was screened in Hollywood, Miami and New York. A prolific arranger, David has worked for Abbey Road & CTS Studios (London), on Hollywood movies, West End & Broadway shows. He re-orchestrated the music for Howard Blake's The Snowman, which has run in the West End since 1998, and currently has 2 orchestrated shows running in Germany. David was commissioned to write a song for the 2010 Edinburgh Festival. The song was premièred at the same concert at which David also performed the world-première of a new song by composer Stephen Schwartz.

Born in Rotherham (South Yorkshire), England in 1975, David studied violin and piano at The Royal College of Music, London from where he graduated with the highest honours.

To post a comment, you must register and login.