Ann Harada and More Set for Madeline Kahn Tribute at the Met Room This Month

On Saturday, September 12, 2015, William V. Madison, author of Madeline Kahn: Being the Music, A Life (University Press of Mississippi, 2015), will host a musical tribute to the late singing actress as part of Metropolitan Room's GONE TOO SOON series, produced by Joseph Macchia. Directed by Peter Napolitano, THE MUSIC OF MADELINE KAHN will feature several friends & colleagues of the comic legend, including her co-stars from Richard Rodgers' Two by Two, Walter Willison and Joan Copeland, with Lawrence Leritz, guest star on "Cosby". They will be joined by performers from theatre, cabaret & opera who have been inspired by Kahn, including Ann Harada (Avenue Q, "Smash"). Jeff Cubeta serves as music director.

"Anyone who's seen YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN knows that Madeline had a voice," Madison says. "But many people don't realize how important music was to her career. All her early breaks came to her because she could sing and even in straight plays, she treated the script as a score." He adds, "Expect surprises! Madeline had a vast repertory and we'll try to include samples of every aspect of her work."

Classically trained, Madeline Kahn briefly considered a career in opera. After working in New York nightclubs -- not unlike Metropolitan Room -- she went on to success on Broadway and in Hollywood, winning back-to-back Oscar nominations for PAPER MOON (1973) and BLAZING SADDLES (1974). She received four Tony nominations and won on her last nomination, as Best Actress for THE SISTERS ROSENSWEIG (1993). On television, Kahn starred on four sitcoms and won a Daytime Emmy in 1987. She died of ovarian cancer in 1999, shortly after the release of her last film, JUDY BERLIN.

William V. Madison is a former producer for Dan Rather at CBS News and a former associate editor of Opera News magazine. His writing has appeared in lingua franca, The Forward, Pen World, Andante.com & The Kurt Weill Newsletter, among other publications. A graduate of Brown University and of Columbia University's graduate program in creative writing, he has also worked in theatre (production assistant, RAGS, 1986) and opera (Major-Domo, Ariadne auf Naxos, Fort Worth Opera, 2013). Following the 4pm performance, Madison will sign copies of his book.

The concert is slated for Saturday, September 12th at 4pm at the Metropolitan Room, located at 34 West 22nd Street. Price: $22.50 ~ $115.00, plus 2-drink minimum. For reservations, call (212) 206-0440 or go to www.metropolitanroom.com.

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