Kelli O'Hara & Steven Pasquale to Reunite for Ronald McDonald House Benefit Concert at 54 Below

On Monday, October 6, 2014 five-time Tony Award nominee Kelli O'Hara and Drama Desk nominee Steven Pasquale will perform an intimate benefit concert titled Kelli O'Hara and Friends at 54 Below, located at 254 West 54th Street. The evening is a joint benefit in support of PopsEd Programs at Ronald McDonald House® New York, which provide creative outlets to the children and families in residence. Hosted by Steven Reineke, Music Director of The New York Pops, the evening will also feature performances by children participating in the PopsEd programs at Ronald McDonald House® New York, along with some special surprise guests. The benefit will start with a champagne reception at 5:30PM followed by dinner and a performance at 6:30PM.

Since 2006 the PopsEd residency at Ronald McDonald House® New York has helped children fighting cancer discover their creative voice by teaching basic musical, creative writing and instrumental techniques. The multi-faceted program meets twice weekly and includes piano lessons and a choir, along with Rockin' the House, a special residency created for pre-teens and teenagers. Music lessons help children and families retain a sense of normalcy, nurturing emotional growth and well-being.

Kelli O'Hara recently received her fifth Tony Award nomination along with Drama Desk, Drama League and Outer Critics Circle award nominations for her portrayal of Francesca in the musical adaptation of The Bridges of Madison County. Other Broadway credits include: Nice Work If You Can Get It (Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, Outer Critics Circle award nominations), South Pacific (Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle award nominations), Pajama Game (Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle award nominations), The Light in the Piazza (Tony and Drama Desk award nominations), Sweet Smell of Success, Follies, Dracula and Jekyll & Hyde. Regional/Off Broadway: Far From Heaven (Playwrights Horizons and WTF), King Lear (Public Theater), Bells Are Ringing (City Center Encores!), Sunday in the Park with George (Reprise), My Life With Albertine (Playwrights Horizons). Concerts span from Carnegie Hall to Capitol Hill. Film/TV credits: Sex & The City 2, Scorsese's The Key to Reserva, "Blue Bloods," "Alexander Hamilton," "N3mbers," and the animated series "Car Talk." She is a frequent performer on PBS's live telecasts and the Kennedy Center Honors. Her solo albums, "Always" and "Wonder in the World," are available on Ghostlight Records.

Steven Pasquale is best known for starring on the FX hit TV series "Rescue Me" as firefighter Sean Garritty. He recently starred opposite Kelli O'Hara in the original Broadway production of Bridges of Madison County (Drama Desk and Drama League award nominations). Other recent credits include Far From Heaven and Tony Kushner's The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures. He starred on Broadway in Neil LaBute's reasons to be pretty and Off-Broadway in A Soldier's Play, Fat Pig, A Man of No Importance (Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle award nominations), Beautiful Child, The Spitfire Grill, Spinning Into Butter, and Andrew Lippa's The Wild Party. Pasquale also created the role of Fabrizio in Adam Guettel and Craig Lucas' Tony Award-winning The Light in the Piazza. He starred in The Secret Garden (World AIDS Day Concert), and A Little Night Music (opposite Victor Garber, Natasha Richardson, and Vanessa Redgrave). Steven co-starred in Ricky Ian Gordon's Grapes of Wrath opera at Carnegie Hall. Other television credits include "Do No Harm," "Up All Night," "Over/Under," "Coma," "Marry Me," "Six Feet Under" and Sofia Coppola's "Platinum." Film credits include Alien vs. Predator: Requiem, Aurora Borealis, and The Last Run. His debut solo album, "Somethin' Like Love," was released in 2009 by PS Classics.

Steven Reineke is the Music Director and Conductor of The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall, Principal Pops Conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and Principal Pops Conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Reineke is a frequent guest conductor with The Philadelphia Orchestra and has been on the podium with the Boston Pops, The Cleveland Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at Ravinia. His extensive North American conducting appearances include San Francisco, Houston, Seattle, Edmonton and Pittsburgh.

Photo by Walter McBride