Julie James Hosts STAGE17's FAN FARE Reality Broadway Series; Part Two Airs Today

STAGE17, Chairman David Stoller (Executive Chairman of Reach4Entertainment), and President and Executive Producer Ondine Landa Abramson are pleased to present the WORLD premiere of the original reality series Fan Fare which offers backstage scoop, from auditions to closing nights, as casts and creative teams from iconic Broadway shows reunite at the legendary Sardi's with Julie James, host of On Broadway from SiriusXM. STAGE17, a new digital entertainment destination for episodic fiction and reality programming, launched the original series on Sunday, April 6, 2014 and part two airs today, April 11, 2014.

In the premiere episode of Fan Fare, Julie James sits down with the acclaimed cast and creative from Jerome Robbins' Broadway as they reminisce about everything from auditions to the Tony Awards. The show stars Grover Dale (West Side Story, Billy), Debbie Gravitte (LES MISERABLES, Chicago), Robert LaFosse (Quiet City, West Side Story Suite), Mary Ann Lamb (Chicago, Curtains), and Faith Prince (Guys and Dolls, Bells Are Ringing).

JULIE JAMES (host) is an award-winning vocalist, theatre performer, voice over artist and radio personality. Her latest incarnation has her working at Sirius XM Radio for the past six years, is the Program Director for the On Broadway & Metropolitan Opera channels, and hosts & produces her own show Broadway Names with Julie James, which welcomes each week a different Broadway Star.

DIANA BASMAJIAN (producer) is a producer and director for television and live theatrical shows. She was the Associate Producer for A&E/BIO's the uneXplained, a documentary series Executive Produced by Doug Liman and Russ Stratton. More recently, she worked with WORLD of Wonder on Big Freedia, Queen of Bounce for Fuse Network. Diana has also directed and/or developed shows with Tony-winners Shuler Hensley, Lea Salonga, Sheldon Harnick, Jonathan Tunick, and Austin Pendleton; Emmy-winners Paul Miller and Eileen Fulton; and her longtime collaborator and friend Tony-nominee Kate Baldwin, among others. Her work has been performed at Lincoln Center's The Allen Room, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Arena Stage, Feinstein's, Café Carlyle, Naked Angels, Rattlestick, Old Vic/New Voices, The Princeton Festival at Princeton University, and the NY International Fringe Festival. She coaches numerous actors in NYC and Chicago for both role preparation and auditioning and has taught musical theatre for various universities. Diana is a Leopold Schepp Fellow, received her M.F.A. in Directing from The New School for Drama, and is a proud graduate of Northwestern University. www.dianabasmajian.com

JON-ERIK GOLDBERG (producer/director) started performing at a young age, with professional training from the School of American Ballet at Lincoln Center. After traveling on national tours through Europe and North America, and playing regional theatres, Goldberg made his Broadway debut with the closing company of CATS. Shortly after, he was cast in the Original Company of Mamma Mia! His fifteen-year career in theater is the foundation on which his work at STAGE17 is built. A creator, writer, and producer of original content for STAGE17, he also oversees the curation process, finding entertaining and exciting pre-existing content from all over the internet.

JACOB PINION (producer/director) is an actor, writer, director and producer. In addition to performing in Broadway's Mamma Mia, he is currently producing several web-series for STAGE17. A graduate of New York University's Tisch School Drama, Jacob worked with Kevin Spacey at Bridge Project Shakespeare and T.S. Eliot Old Vic/Public Theater exchange. He's been producing original content since before it was cool writing middle school puppet musicals on the founding of Rhode Island, the discovery of the polio vaccine and an all puppet musical version of The Miracle Worker.

STAGE17 presents FAN FARE, created by JON-ERIK GOLDBERG, JACOB PINION executive produced by ONDINE LANDA ABRAMSON, DAVID STOLLER produced by DIANA BASMAJIAN, JON-ERIK GOLDBERG, JACOB PINION edited by CHRISTIAN HENDRICKS director of photography RAYMOND COLLINS audio provided by REMOTE RECORDING-KAREN BRINTON, MATHEW SCHEINER camera by STAN BURNSIDE, RAYMOND COLLINS, DAVID ETKIN, GARRETT KAFCHINSKI

STAGE17 was formed by Chairman David Stoller (Executive Chairman of Reach4Entertainment) and President and Executive Producer Ondine Landa Abramson, as a new digital platform aiming "to lure a demographic of 25-to-54-year-old females by using Broadway as a jumping-off point," (Variety) by specializing in original and curated entertainment for the world's largest stage -- the Internet. STAGE17 presents a digital experience for audiences where quality, originality, and ease of use are paramount. It is aimed at a growing community of tech-savvy individuals, with a strong interest in theatre and entertainment, for whom there is currently no dedicated digital platform. As a digital playground for Broadway and theatrical artists, STAGE17 will explore the art of storytelling, both scripted and unscripted, from masters in the craft.

Viewers can currently join STAGE17.tv for a preview of the inaugural season and early access to the Beta when it is released on March 31st.

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