Before There Was BYE BYE BIRDIE, There Was A POUND IN YOUR POCKET

As previously announced, Feinstein's/54 Below will present the rarely heard musical A Pound in Your Pocket as part of its popular Second Act Series on Wednesday, January 24th at 7:00pm. The very first collaboration from acclaimed songwriters Charles Strouse and Lee Adams, best known for Bye Bye Birdie, A Pound In Your Pocket is a delightful, Dickensian story about friendship and redemption. Strouse will be on hand at the one-night-only concert to greet fans and sign copies of his memoir, Put On A Happy Face.

When Strouse first met Adams, 1949, neither knew what would happen next. 68 years and three Tony Awards later, Strouse and Adams are one of the most celebrated and prolific teams in musical theatre. Now, an all-star cast will celebrate their very first collaboration, the delightful and rarely heard A Pound In Your Pocket. With a delectable score that launched Strouse and Adams' legendary career and an all-star cast, the charming and intimate musical is sure to be considered a newly-discovered classic to warm your hearts this winter.

"I believe Lee discovered it through a radio play that had been written for Helen Hayes. We both thought it would make a fun musical, " said Strouse about the little-known gem. "We [Adams and Strouse] didn't think it was a commercial piece, but a producer named Phil Burton championed it. It was done in Florida and critically acclaimed. It was performed with piano and percussion. I was the pianist. Dody Goodman, Helen Gallagher, and Melville Cooper were all in the cast."

Fans of Strouse and Adams may hear songs they've never heard before as the collaborators never recycled these melodies in another show. Songs include "Sleeping Dreams, Waking Dreams", "The Best Ain't Good Enough", "Someone Who Cares" and the title song.

Best known for his Tony Award-winning score for Annie, there may be no other living composer whose work is as integrated into the popular culture. A three-time Tony Award-winner, Charles Strouse's music has touched the life of almost every American in the last half century. From the classic "Once Upon a Time" to the rocking score of Bye, Bye, Birdie(Tony Award), his celebrated songs are an essential part of the American songbook. A graduate of The Eastman School of Music, Charles studied composition with Aaron Copland, and Nadia Boulanger. Like most composers, he found himself playing in bar rooms and strip-clubs (a particular boon for one who was to write the music for the film The Night They Raided Minsky's). Having previously composed chamber music, two piano concertos, a string quartet and two operas, Charles met Lee Adams, with whom he would collaborate on more than ten musicals including It's a Bird... It's a Plane... It's Superman, (Tony nomination), Golden Boy (Tony nomination) and the Tony-winning Applause. Charles has received the Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein, and Leonard Bernstein awards for musical achievement. In addition to Adams, Charles has collaborated with an array of celebrated songwriters such as Alan Jay Lerner (Dance A Little Closer), Sammy Cahn (Bojangles), Stephen Schwartz (Rags), Hal David (Lady For A Day), Richard Maltby, Jr. (Nick and Nora) and more.

Lee Adams, the Tony Award-winning lyricist behind the smash Broadway productions Bye Bye Birdie, Applause and Golden Boy, was born in Mansfield, Ohio on August 14, 1924. Adams began his professional career as a working journalist, having first gained a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from Ohio State University, and later, a Master's degree from the renowned Columbia School of journalism in New York. For 10 years following his Master's degree in 1950, he worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine writer and editor, and radio writer and interviewer. During those same years, he began writing lyrics for shows at the summer camp, Green Mansions as well as special material for nightclub acts. He was also actively writing songs for composer Charles Strouse, whom he had met in 1949, for theatrical revues in New York and London. The first production for the team of Adams and Strouse was the musical, Bye Bye Birdie. It debuted on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on April 14, 1960, starring Dick Van Dyke and Chita Rivera. It was an instant success and the initial production ran for over 600 performances earning the 1960 Tony Award for Best Musical. Three years later a film version was released starring Janet Leigh, Dick Van Dyke, and Ann Margaret. The next production for the team of Adams and Strouse was: All American, which opened at the Winter Garden Theater on Broadway on March 19, 1962. Two years later on October 20, Golden Boy, starring Sammy Davis Jr. opened at the Majestic and Adams and Strouse again received critical acclaim and success with a 569 show performance run and a Tony nomination for Best Musical. Perhaps the most successful of the Adams and Strouse productions opened on March 30, 1970, at the Palace Theatre. Applause was based on the movie screenplay All About Eve and the original cast included legendary film actress Lauren Bacall. The production won the Tony Award for Best Musical and ran for over 850 performances. In addition to his notable Broadway and London West End credits, Adams, with Strouse, wrote a much-acclaimed London musical, I and Albert, in 1972. Thereafter, Adams became active in films and television. His theme for TVs long-running All in the Family, titled "Those Were the Days, has been heard more often than any other television theme. He also wrote the lyrics for the acclaimed film, The Night They Raided Minsky's. Among his prodigious output of songs, a number have become legitimate standards. These include "Put on a Happy Face," "Kids," "One Boy," "Applause," "Night Song," "Once Upon a Time," "This is Your Life," "You've Got Possibilities," "I Want to Be with You" and "A Lot of Living to Do."

For one night only, on Wednesday, January 24th, 2018 at 7:00pm, audiences at the famed New York supper club will have the rare opportunity to hear a seldom-sung score by two of the American musical theatre's most acclaimed writers. Based on the classic Charles Dickens novel The Old Curiosity Shop, the comedic musical centers around Dick Swiveller. A congenial, boozy, soon-to-be-heir to a family fortune, Dick takes a job as a law clerk while waiting to come into his inheritance. When he befriends the lonely servant girl of his corrupt employers, the unlikely duo overcome greed, malice, and injustice through a series of topsy-turvy plot twists.

The concert will star Drama Desk Award-winner Ed Dixon (Georgie, Les Miserables, Sunday In The Park With George and more) as Sampson Brass, Sally Ann Triplett (Carrie, The Last Ship, Finding Neverland) as Sally Brass and War Paint's Tally Sessions (Falsettos, School of Rock, Paramour) as Dick Swiveller. Also featured in the evening are Richard Rice Alan (Drat! The Cat!), Yvette Bedgood, soprano Eugenia Copeland, Suzanne Dressler (Nick & Nora), Mac and Bistro Award-winner Stearns Matthews, Erik Sisco (The Concrete Jungle) and Nikki Switzer (Nightmare Alley, National Tour of 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee). Starring as The Little Servant Girl is is Abbey Jasmine Rose, who was chosen by the show's composer to reprise her turn after first playing the role at King's College in 2016.

The one-night-only concert is presented as part of the Second Act Series, produced by Steven Carl McCasland and James Horan. Each evening revisits a short-lived musical, highlighting its neglected score and inviting audiences to rediscover a forgotten gem.

Previous evenings include: Bring Back Birdie, The Fix, Onward Victoria, Charlie and Algernon, Eating Raoul, Nick & Nora, 70, Girls, 70, Shelter starring Jon Cryer and more. The evening features Musical Direction by Horan and Direction by McCasland.

Tickets, beginning at $25, are available now at 54below.com/events/charles-strouse-lee-adams-first-collaboration-pound-pocket or by calling (646) 476-3551.

Michael Feinstein, one of the world's great musical artists, and 54 Below, Broadway's Supper Club, have united to give New York an unparalleled destination for entertainment and dining.

Feinstein's/54 Below, Broadway's Supper Club, is the performance venue in the grand tradition of New York City nightlife. A few blocks from the heart of Times Square and just below the legendary Studio 54, Feinstein's/54 Below is a classically designed state-of-the art nightclub in the theatre district that hosts audiences with warmth and style. Feinstein's/54 Below presents iconic and rising stars from the worlds of Broadway and popular music. The venue provides a food and beverage menu from early evening through the wee hours of the morning that is worthy of the world-class entertainment on the stage. Located at 254 West 54th Street, Feinstein's/54 Below features up to three shows nightly with cover charges ranging from $15-$105

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