The Fred Barton Broadway Band and Guests Return To Feinstein's/54 Below

Fred Barton and his Broadway Band returns to Feinstein's/54 Below and New York nightlife, with top-drawer guest singers, in a new evening of Broadway gems and Swing rarities, Friday, September 6 at 9:45 PM. As always, Fred presents performers who know how to stop shows, and the songs that let them do it, arranged for the band in his trademark explosive style which has made him the orchestrator of choice for the New York Pops and orchestras around the country.

Fred's guest singers include Broadway veterans Karen Murphy and Dorothy Kiara, American Idol semi-finalist John Preator, and Off-Broadway and recording artists Jesse Luttrell and Karen Wilder.

Fred Barton's long association with Cy Coleman will be reflected by songs from CITY OF ANGELS, SEESAW, and THE LIFE, and his association with Kander & Ebb by their witty score for 70, GIRLS, 70. Also featured will be songs by Jule Styne, both in his Hollywood heyday and on Broadway (SUGAR), the New York debuts of two rare songs by Frank Loesser, as well as rediscovered gems by Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Bob Merrill, and a tip of the hat to the current generation with a showstopper by Jeanine Tesori.

Fred Barton: "I love show music. I love a good band. I love a great singer. And I especially love a great singer singing a great show tune with a great band. I know a bunch of great old-school Broadway performers, a bunch of great songs that aren't being heard these days, and I know a bunch of show music fans like me - and I've got a great 8-piece band comprised of Broadway's best musicians. I'm happy we can all get together and recall the words of Jerry Herman' song: 'There is no tune like a show tune!'"

Fred Barton and his Broadway Band will perform at Feinstein's/54 Below (254 West 54th Street) on Friday, September 6, at 9:45 PM. Tickets are tiered at $25, $35, and $65 (Premium) seating, with a $25 minimum applicable to the full dining menu or cocktails. Tickets can be purchased at www.54below.com or at (646) 476-3551.

Karen Murphy's Broadway credits include A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, 9 TO 5, ALL SHOOK UP, 42ND ST., and TITANIC, as well as her acclaimed turns Off-Broadway in Forbidden Broadway, ZOMBIE PROM, and MY VAUDEVILLE MAN. She just returned from playing a featured role in the FINDING NEVERLAND tour, as well as in OLIVER! at the Goodspeed Opera House. She sings regularly with major symphony orchestras nationwide.

Dorothy Kiara made her Broadway debut in the original company of THEY'RE PLAYING OUR SONG. She understudied no fewer than eleven roles in the original NINE before taking over the role of "Lina Darling," Liliane Montevecchi's aide-de-camp. She played Irma, the gangster moll ("Buddy, Beware") opposite Mitzi Gaynor in the long-running national tour of Lincoln Center's ANYTHING GOES revival. In between, she became a riotous regular in the epic Forbidden Broadway franchise.

John Preator rocketed to national attention on AMERICAN IDOL, where he achieved Semi-Finalist along with Jennifer Hudson. He's concertized nationwide with Reba McEntire, Shoshona Bean, Michael McLean, Christiane Noll, and David Archuleta, and built an active musical theatre career, including playing the dashing Gaylord Ravenal in SHOW BOAT at the Westchester Broadway Theatre.

Jesse Luttrell has just returned from performing his acclaimed one-man show SHOWSTOPPER in London and Puerta Vallarta, after multiple engagements at Feinstein's/54 Below. His solo CD is being streamed to fans around the world. His burlesque-meets-vaudeville revue BAWDY ran for six years at the Triad, and Jesse performed regularly in Fred Barton's AMERICAN SHOWSTOPPERS concert series at the Michael Schimmel Center. Numerous major roles in regional productions include CABARET, CATS, CAROUSEL, and MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS.

KAREN WILDER appeared with Fred Barton in the original Forbidden Broadway, having performed in numerous regional productions including GUYS & DOLLS, MACK & MABEL, NO NO NANETTE, and DAMES AT SEA. Karen performed on the original Broadway cast albums of SUGAR BABIES, PRETTYBELLE, RAGS, THE BAKER'S WIFE, BRING BACK BIRDIE, and ONWARD VICTORIA, and the studio recreations of SHERRY! (with Nathan Lane and Bernadette Peters) and BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S (with Faith Prince).

Fred Barton is an acclaimed composer, lyricist, orchestrator, conductor, and actor. His symphonic arrangements are played regularly by the NY Pops at Carnegie Hall and in major concert halls nationwide. Fred debuted at age 23 as arranger-pianist for the original Forbidden Broadway (Drama Desk and Tony Awards.) He served the same role on WHOOP-DEE-DOO! (Drama Desk Awards), as well as arranging and playing SPAMILTON in New York, supervising the Chicago, LA, London, and Pittsburgh productions, and recently launched the smash National Tour. In 1983, Fred created book, music, and lyrics for his one-man show MISS GULCH RETURNS! (Back Stage Bistro Award), still produced by theatres nationwide into 2019, with the 1986 CD still selling and streaming steadily. Broadway and National Tour conducting: Anthony Quinn in ZORBA, Hal Prince's revival of CABARET, Cy Coleman's CITY OF ANGELS (Broadway, LA productions and National Tour), and Robert Goulet in CAMELOT. TV Composer/Arranger/Conductor credits include THE MAGIC SCHOOLBUS (Emmy Award), HBO's CATHOUSE: THE MUSICAL, WONDER PETS! (Emmy Award), and OLIVIA. Fred has arranged and/or played for nearly 80 musical theatre stars.

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