Fraser, Gemignani, Testa and More at Laurie Beechman this October

The West Bank Café has announced upcoming performances to be presented in The Laurie Beechman Theatre. The West Bank Café is located at 407 West 42nd. St., at Ninth Avenue. For reservations, please call 212.695.6909.

The Laurie Beechman Theatre has a rich tradition of presenting cutting-edge work, which has played a role in shaping American theatre and live performance. Since the 80’s, the theatre has staged numerous plays and hosted a myriad of live performance events. 

This October, the theatre is proud to announce an exciting and eclectic line-up of performers and performances, all of which will take place in the gorgeous eighty -five seat venue.

Please note there is a $15 food and/or beverage minimum at each performance, with the exception of The After Party. All major credit cards are accepted, and a full dinner/bar menu is available.

Featuring performances from:
Andrea Burns, Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Alison Fraser, Annie Golden, Alexander Gemignani, Carly Jibson, Marni Nixon, Christine Pedi, Kate Reinders, Sarah Schulman, Gabrielle Stravelli, Mary Testa and others...

The After Party
Every Friday from 10:30pm to 2am
No cover, no minimum
This weekly open-mic schmoozefest for the theatrically inclined has become the hit of midtown, hosted by iron-lunged Brandon Cutrell and Alysha Umphress, with Ray Fellman at the keys. Come hang and belt out a showtune or two. No cover, no minimum. You never know who might drop by.

John Koprowski
Wednesday, October 1 @ 7pm
$20 cover
John Koprowski sings songs from the Classic Rock era--1970s and 1980s. Songs include favorites by Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, Jim Croce, Boston, Harry Chapin, Guns'n Roses, the Eagles and others. Musical Direction by Tracy Stark with a five piece band (piano, guitar, electric bass, drums and violin).

Crystal Monee Hall
Wednesday, October 1 @ 11pm
$15 cover
From the cast of the closing company of Broadway’s Rent, Crystal Monee Hall returns to our stage to blow the roof off the place. Not to be missed.

Jonathan Whitton
Thursdays, October 2, 9 @ 7pm
Thursdays, November 13, 20 @207pm
$15 cover
Jonathan returns to the solo cabaret stage at The Laurie Beechman Theatre for the first time since his 2008 Bistro & MAC Award wins with an encore engagement of his celebrated second cabaret piece, Something Beautiful.

The Chalks: Live & In Person
Friday, October 3 @ 7pm
$10 cover
They have their hearts in Nashville, their tongues in their cheek, and their finger on the pulse of America. Don’t miss The Chalks: Live & In Person when they bring their high octane, seriously fun music and comedy back to The Laurie Bee chman Theatre. You’re gonna have a good time or your money back.

Cabaret Cares
Sunday, October 5 @ 9:30
Monday, October 27 @ 9:30pm
$25 cover
Cabaret Cares is a benefit series that brings together the best of the Broadway and Cabaret communities to raise funds for Broadway Cares and Help Is On the Way Today, and not for profit organization providing funds for children living with HIV.

Thad Turner Wilson=2 0& Felipe Gonzalez: Generation XY
Sunday, October 5 @ 7pm
$10 cover
Born in the 1980’s… at the tail end of Gen X and the beginning of Generation Y… watch these two fellas identify with both and struggle to find their place in either.  From The Beatles to Ace of Base, music tells the story of the life and times of Generation XY.

Christina Bionco: Small Wonders
Wednesday, October 8 @ 7pm
Thursday, October 16 @ 7pm
$15 cover< /div>
Forbidden Broadway’s Christina Bianco is back for two encore performances of her hit debut show, Small Wonders, reminding us that good things come in small packages. Take a breath to appreciate the "little things!" Featuring an exciting assortment of music from Broadway, pop and contemporary songwriters including: William Finn, John Bucchino, Christine Lavin, Maltby & Shire, Marvin Fisher and Christina Aguilera. Some of the greatest things in life are often so small, we barely take notice. Join Christina in Small Wonders, as she takes us in search of those special moments, when the ordinary becomes remarkable.

Elegies for Angels, Punks & Raging Queens
Fridays, October 10 & 17 @ 7pm
Saturday, October 11 @ 3pm
Sunday, October 19 @ 6pm
$18 cover
Bill Russell (Sideshow) and Janet Hood’s beautiful musical based on the AIDS quilt. The musical is intended to reflect the broad spectrum of people AIDS has both infected and affected.

SAY Something: A Spoken Word Salon
Sunday, October 12 @ 6pm
$10 cover
The Laurie Beechman Theatre is pleased to announce plans for our second SAY Something: A Spoken Word Salon. The event will feature spoken word performances from writers and actors, presenting their own work as well as excerpts from some of their favorite texts. SAY Something will feature a diverse spectrum of performers from the worlds of theatre, film and print. The cast includes Phil Geoffrey Bond (My Roaring Twenties), Marni Nixon (four time Emmy winner and singing voice for films The King and I, West Side Story and An Affair to Remember) Christine Pedi (Fobidden Broadway), novelist Sarah Schulman (Rat Bohemia),  and others to be announced soon.

Living for Today: A Benefit Concert
Sunday, October 12 @ 9:30pm
$5 cover
Living for Today is an exciting benefit concert featuring the best of Broadway to benefit the Gilana Shira Alpert Scholarship fund. Currently scheduled to appear are 7181 (Avenue Q, "Scrubs"), Kate Reinders (Wicked, Gypsy, Into the Woods), Carly Jibson (Hairspray, Crybaby), Celina Carvajal (42nd Street, Tarzan, "Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods," Cats), Todd Buonopane (Spelling Bee) and Lucia Spina (Legally Blonde, Les Miz, Spelling Bee). With over twenty voices, a live band, new arrangements of your favorite tunes and all proceeds going to a great cause, this is not a night to be missed! Produced by Erica Ruff, musical direction by David Dabbon, directed by David Alpert.

Voice from the Great White Way: Andrea Burns
Monday, October 13 @ 7pm
$25 cover
Continuing our celebrated Voices From the Great White Way Series, we’re thrilled to welcome Andrea Burns from the cast of In The Heights. Audiences will also remember Andrea from Broadway’s The Ritz, The Full Monty, Beauty and the Beast and, of course, the original cast of Jason Robert Brown's Songs for a New World.

Late Harvest: The Songs of Tina Lear
Monday, October 13 @ 9:30
$10 cover
Multi award-winning singer-songwriter Tina Lear will perform her music in an evening led by a cast of incomparable Broadway performers, including: Q Smith (Les Miserables), Jill Abramovitz (Martin Short’s Fame Becomes Me), Weston Wells Olson (Hollywood Bowl’s Les Miz, PBS Camelot), Alex Brightman (Glory Days, Twilight in Manchego), Natalie Moore and Carey McCray. Contact thespotlightcabaret@yahoo.com for reservations.
 
My Roaring Twenties: How I Learned to Drink Fast
Wednesday, October 22 @ 7pm
Saturday, October 25 @ 7pm
$12 cover
Phil Geoffrey Bond’s new piece about coming of age in 1990’s New York City. Expect tales of Joan Rivers, Eli Wallach and Nell Carter, anecdotes about drinking in boy bars, working for Walt Disney and hanging out at Fire Island, and childhood confessionals about Stephen Sondheim, Gloria Steinham and Kathleen Turner. Bond is a six time MAC winner, as well as the recipient of the Bistro and Nightlife Awards.

Music Box
Wednesday, October 15 @ 8pm
$10 cover
The Beechman’s own sound and light guru, Joey Pier, puts together this wonderfully eclectic evening from the world of independent music. Expect five or six of New York’s most compelling up and coming bands, trios and soloists.

SPOTLIGHT Series Presents: Dance Numbers from Musicals You Haven’t (yet) Heard Of
Thursday, October 16 @ 9:30
$10 cover
An evening of dance from up and coming musicals. Directed by Jessica Redish w ith choreography by Jessica Redish and Connor Gallagher, Produced by Ryan Scott Oliver. Dance arrangements from the following composers will be included: Bobby Cronin (Bratt Camp), Kirstein Guenther & Joy Sun (Little Miss Fix-It), Jeff Blumenkrantz (Betty Boop), Dave Ogrin (Hell Hole Honeys), Tom Mizer and Curtis Moore (The Legengd of Stagecoach Mary), Eli Bolin & Sam Forman (The Big Show), Jeffrey Thomson & Jordan Mann (Jawbreaker), Will Van Dyke, Sammy Buck and Dan Acquisto (The Seven Year B*tch), Ryan Scott Oliver (Darling, Alive at Ten) and Brian Lowdermilk and Kait Kerrigan (The Woman Upstairs).

Marcus Dagan: Short Stories (Songs with a Twist)
Saturday, October 18 @ 7pm
$15 cover
Currently celebrating the release of his new CD, The Train Still Runs, Marcus has been an entertainer with Norwegian Cruise Lines for the past seven years. He's finally back in New York to debut his new cabaret show, Short Stories, (Songs with a Twist), featuring the music of Porter, Cohen, Waits, Rogers & Hart and many others.

Terri Troiano
Saturday, October 18 @ 9:30pm
$15 cover
Terri Troiano with Robert Marks at the piano in Let Yourself Go. In her latest show, Terri performs a selection of tunes ranging from jazz standards to musical theater classics. 

Voice from the Great White Way: Alison Fraser & Mary Testa
Monday, October 20 @ 7pm
$25 cover
The Laurie Beechman Theatre is very pleased to welcome two of Broadway’s most esteemed performers - Alison Fraser and Mary Testa (with special guest, Annie Golden), as part of our celebrated Voices from the Great White Way Series. Accompanied by a four piece band led by Allison Leyton-Brown, the evenings will feature music written by songwriter Rusty Magee. Audiences can expect to hear tunes from Magee’s musicals The Green Heart (written with Charles Busch) and The Czar of Rock and Roll (written with Lewis Black), as well as Magee’s iconic New York ballad, New York Romance.

Scot Albertson
Thursday, October 23 @ 8pm
$20 cover
The debut string performance of the Scot and Daryl Kojak String Sextet. Scot's fourth CD has been recorded and is set to be released December 30, 2008 @ 9:30p.m. on the Laurie Beechman stage. Both Scot's 3rd and upcoming 4th CDs feature string presentations of jazz standards arced with Broadway classic songs that create beautiful and soaring music. Scot's August 14, 2008 performance @ the Laurie Beechman celebrated his one year anniversary of monthly appearances. The String Sextet includes: Daryl Kojak-Pianist/Musical Direction, Tom Hubbard-Bass, Rex Benincasa-Percussion, Antoine Silverman-Violin, Cenovia Cummins-Violin, and Chris Cardona-Viola. Special Guest Pianist: Jerry Scott. For more information, please visit www.ScotAlbertson.com.

Nat & Kat Duo
Sunday, October 26 @ 7pm
$15 cover
Come swing-the-vote at this election-season celebration of Great American Women and the Great American Songbook. Featuring the vintage song stylings of the Nat & Kat Duo along with the vocal and puppetry talents of guest artist Alissa Hunnicutt and new original songs by Jeremy Halpern.

Joe Iconis
Sunday, October 26 @ 9:30pm
$5 cover
Joe Iconis is the proud recipient of a Kleban Award and a Jonathan Larson Award, and i s the Composer-in-Residence at Ars Nova. His notorious garage band musical The Black Suits, (book co-written by Robert Maddock, directed by John Simpkins) had its world premiere this summer at the Public Theater as part of SPF. His family rock musical The Plant That Ate the Dirty Socks, (for TheaterWorksUSA)  opened in July at the Lucille Lortel Theater. Joe is a member of the band The Big Galoots and is the sole songwriter for notorious Skazz Cat Records recording artists The Kissin' Kazoo Sisters. Look for an evening of mayhem featuring Iconis at the piano and a talented group of singing co-horts.

Voices from the Great White Way: Alexander Gemignani
Monday, October 27 @ 7pm
$25 cover
Featured in the recent Broadway productions of Les Miserables, Sweeney Todd and Sunday in the Park with George, Alexander will soon appear in the new Stephen Sondheim musical, Road Show, at the Public Theatre. Join Alexander for a one night only concert appearance before rehearsals get underway.

Liz Strickland
Wednesday, October 29 @ 7pm
$15 cover
Australian singer Liz Strickland and pianist Lionel Cloarec from Paris combine a fun night of French and American Cabaret songs, intertwined with the piano work “L’Histoire de Babar le petit éléphant” by Francis Poulenc. 

Shawn Ryan
Wednesday, October 29 @ 9:30pm
Thursday, October 30 @ 9:30pm
Saturday, November 1 @ 9:30pm
$25 cover in advance, $30 at the door
“You’re coming back!  You were born to do this..."  the panel of judges declared when confident crooner and comic Shawn Ryan made his debut on NBC’s America’s Got Talent. Shawn is also coming back to New York, where he was previously seen performing comedy and jazz standards at the Cabaret Convention, as well at Helen's and The Duplex Cabaret Theatre, among other venues. A rising star, Shawn Ryan will play a 3-night engagement at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.

Gabrielle Stravelli
Thursday, October 30 @ 7pm
$15 cover
The voice that roared is back at the Beechman with her eclectic vocal selections, ranging from Gershwin to Joni Mitchell. Stravelli is truly a must see. Stravelli is featured in the new Broadway-bound musical Ace, having just returned from the show’s tryout production at Goodspeed Opera House.

Photo Credti Peter James Zielinski

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