92Y to Present Darius de Haas in YOU SEND ME: THE SONGS AND SOUL OF SAM COOKE

Lyrics and Lyricists™ 50th anniversary season will continue with You Send Me: The Song and Soul of Sam Cook on April 23, 24 and 25. Darius de Haas (Broadway: Rent, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Carousel, Shuffle Along. TV: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel ) delves into the world of Sam Cooke - his gospel roots and triumphant 1964 engagement at the Copacabana; his classics of romance ("You Send Me," "Wonderful World," "For Sentimental Reasons") and an anthem of revolution ("A Change Is Gonna Come"); and work as a trailblazing entrepreneur and civil rights activist. The show features vocalists Crystal Monee Hall, Phillip Johnson Richardson and Avery Smith.

Darius credits his work in providing the singing voice for Shy Baldwin in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel with informing his approach to Cooke's music, getting inside his vocals and arrangements without imitation and leaning into the influences that created his sound. He also has a personal connection to Cooke and his generation of performers, through his mother, aunt and uncle. As the trio Andy and the Bey Sisters, they worked on the same circuit as Cooke in the early 60s.

"It's amazing that Sam Cooke is as relevant today as he was in the late 50s-60s," Darius notes. "And his music was part of an interesting evolution of change in music tastes, from an older generation who loved Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday - his idols - and a younger generation who loved Little Richard and Elvis Presley. 'A Change is Gonna Come' hits deeper than ever before and has become one of our great musical anthems. His legacy, particularly through that song, is ultimately a portrayal one Black man's effort to encapsulate an American experience of trial, discrimination, and struggle- but through it all he still lands on the deep faith that we can and we will do better."

Musician Credits:
Ravi Best, Trumpet
Sherrod Barnes, Guitar
Darius Christian, Trombone
George Farmer, Bass
Patience Higgins, Saxophone
Jason Thomas, Drums

Lyrics & Lyricists 2022 Season

June 18, 19, 20

"ISN'T IT BLISS?" SONDHEIM ON LOVE
Conceived, Written, Directed, Hosted, and Music Directed by Ted Sperling
Stephen Sondheim's astute, clever, emotionally intelligent exploration of the many facets of love is unrivaled in musical theater. Tony Award winner and Lyrics & Lyricists favorite Ted Sperling conceived and hosts this show looking at love through the Sondheim songbook. The incomparable songs address love in all its phases: its giddy heights ("What More Do I Need"), crushing heartache ("Not a Day Goes By"), manic panic ("Getting Married Today") and the emotional ambivalence Sondheim captured with perfect pitch ("Being Alive"). Hear them and more than a dozen others, including "Send in the Clowns," "Barcelona" and "Move On," in this one-of-a-kind celebration of the most innovative and influential composer-lyricist in Broadway history.

A Brief History of Lyrics & Lyricists™

Lyrics & Lyricists began in 1970, at a time when there was no precedent for a program of first-person histories narrated by great living lyrists. Founding artistic director Maurice Levine himself "at first doubted there would be an audience for such a program," as he related in a New York Times interview. "But a discussion with the lyricist E. Y. (Yip) Harburg ["Over the Rainbow"] changed his mind. 'I went over to visit Yip,' Mr. Levine said, 'and as he talked, I realized that I had only a peripheral understanding of lyrics. What he said was so exciting that I knew I had to have an audience there.' At first, Levine invited lyricists to talk about their work, which was performed between discussion segments. By 1983, however, Mr. Levine had exhausted the supply of lyricists who were available to give the kind of illustrated lectures the programs had become. His solution was to reconfigure the evenings by providing scripts and adding film clips to the live performances. The series developed a large and loyal following and became the Y's most consistently successful music series. 'We try to give an impression of who the person is, what he stood for and what he tried to accomplish, along with a certain amount of musicology and music history,' he said. 'In three words, we inform entertainingly.'"

Stephen Sondheim, Sheldon Harnick, Johnny Mercer, Sammy Cahn, Hal David, Jerry Herman, Carolyn Leigh and Lynn Ahrens are just a few of the celebrated lyricists who have appeared on the 92Y stage to "inform entertainingly."

As the series evolved beyond its original format of presenting living legends to its now signature mix of shows celebrating the best of Broadway musicals, exploring other facets of American popular music, and looking into the process of a living lyricist, these award-winning Broadway performers are a few of the talented artists who have joined L&L to illuminate the American Songbook: Jonathan Groff, Philippa Soo, Brandon Victor Dixon, Lucie Arnaz, Billy Porter, and Rebecca Luker.

92Y Health & Safety Protocolsa??

MASKS MUST BE WORN BY EVERYONEa??over the age of 2, regardless of vaccination status.
ADULTS AND CHILDREN AGE 5+ MUST SHOW PROOF OF VACCINATION UPON ARRIVAL.

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