The Zipper March Line-Up incl. Behar, Rubin-Vega & Mullally

The Zipper Factory (336 West 37th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues) will present the following performances in the theater in March 2008:

THE WAU WAU SISTERS
Good Girls go places. Bad Girls go  . . . Everywhere!
When:  Saturday, March 1 at 8:30 pm
Tickets: $20

Join the Wau Wau Sisters, the only two-girl circus in the world, in their return to The Zipper.  Having recently traveled the world, they are more than ready to teach the audience their own meaning of the term "foreign relations!"  Spreading the love  (that knows no boundaries), the Sisters will regale with tawdry tales from P-town to Portugal, London to LaChapelle . . . from Feasting Down Under to Cruising Up the "Mexican Riviera" (with 1,800 lesbians).  After performing for "Queens" the world over, the girls recently capped it off with a "Royal Flush" in England's famed tabloids!

Challenging the state of reverence and preciousness of the Cirque du Soleil aesthetic, the Wau Wau Sisters carve out a new niche for circus events – right in front of you - so close you can see the sinew of their muscles, the sweat on their skin . . . and the tear in their fishnets! A sly mix of jaw dropping physical prowess and guileless mayhem, the show starts at a break-neck pace and gets wilder from there!

If you like your girls strong and your cocktails stronger, pull up a (car) seat, order a drink and behold as the Wau Wau Sisters, New York's bravest and bawdiest burlesque darlings, share more than you bargained for in their first show stateside since last summer.   In one festive, freewheeling evening they prove that love and liquor can unite nations and bring peace and love - if not forever, at least for one night!

BINDLESTIFF FAMILY CIRKUS WINTER CABARET
When:  Sundays, March 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30 at 8:00 pm
Tickets: $20 ($5 discount for clowns in make-up)

Bindlestiff Family Cirkus Cabaret returns to New York in March. When the Cirkus began in 1995, it set the stage for today's vaudeville and burlesque revival, and since then has become a legend in the New York and national performance scene. The Bindlestiffs have featured over 400 variety acts, toured nationally for the past fourteen years, and brought vaudeville back to Times Square.

The Bindlestiff Family Cirkus Winter Cabaret brings together elements of circus, sideshow, vaudeville, burlesque, and cabaret to provide a stage for some of the most talented performing artists in the world. Jugglers, clowns, acrobats, and trapeze artists share the stage with musicians, magicians, dancers, daredevils, and more. Each show features a unique combination of acts, but all promise a legendary lineup of circus feats, sideshow marvels, and world-class entertainers.

Every show features Bindlestiff Family Cirkus co-founders Philomena and Kinko the Clown, along with an amazing lineup of entertainment legends.

VITA AND VIRGINIA
By Eileen Atkins
Starring Kathleen Chalfant and Patricia Elliott / Directed by Pamela Berlin
Presented by The No Frills Company
When:  Mondays, March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 at 7:00 pm (Mondays at 7 pm through April 28)
Tickets: $35

Award winning actresses Kathleen Chalfant (Wit, Angels in America) and Patricia Elliott ("One Life to Live," A Little Night Music, The Shadow Box) star in The No Frills Company's presentation of Vita and Virginia, a play by Eileen Atkins adapted from the correspondence between Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West and directed by Pamela Berlin.  The play, about two extraordinary 20th Century women exploring their passions - literary and otherwise - takes place in the 1920s and 1930s and through the first years of WWII. It deals, in a very timely way, with women seeking their place in the world as they face personal and professional conflicts.

jeremy schonfeld
When:  Monday, March 3 at 9:30 pm
Tickets: $20

jeremy schonfeld, backed by his full band and surprise special guests, showcases his unique rock-theater fusion from his previously released albums "Blue Skies & All," and "Drift," as well as workshopping new music from "37 Notebooks," his latest studio album.   "37 Notebooks" (which includes an all-star line-up of artists including Shoshana Bean, Adam Pascal, Tracie Thoms, Kelli O'Hara, Lauren Kennedy, and Jarrod Emick, among others) is scheduled for release in April 2008.

NICE JEWISH GIRLS GONE BAD
Faster, Pussycat! Kvetch! Kvetch!
When:  Saturdays, March 8, 15, 22 and 29 at 7:30 pm (Saturdays at 7:30 through April 26)
Tickets: $25

Nice Jewish Girls Gone Bad returns to The Zipper for a brand new variety show.  The evening mixes comedy, music, spoken-word and burlesque and, as always, features those gals who learned to smoke at Hebrew School, got drunk at their Bat-Mitzvahs and would rather have more schtuppa than the chupah.

Nice Jewish Girls Gone Bad features comedians Ophira Eisenberg (Comedy Central), Julie Goldman (LOGO, HBO), Jessica Golden (Montreal Comedy Festival, Reign Over Me), Poppi Kramer ("The Biggest Loser"), Cynthia Levin (Comedy Central, "Comics Unleashed"), Shawn Pelofsky (E!, "Comics Unleashed"), Jessica Wood ("Showtime at the Apollo") and Rena Zager (Comedy Central, VH-1) spoken word artist Vanessa Hidary (HBO), the burlesque duo Sister Schmaltz, the klezmer all-star house band The Four Skins and the host, the queen of quick change, comedian and chanteuse The Goddess Perlman (Last Comic Standing).

Joy Behar: BITCHIN' WITH BEHAR
When:  Thursday, March 13 and Thursday, March 27 at 8:00 pm
Tickets: $25

The multi-talented comedian/actress/talk-show host/author returns with more intimate evenings at The Zipper.  A funny, dishy delight, with each night's proceeds going to benefit one of Ms. Behar's favorite charities.

Daphne Rubin-Vega
When:  Friday, March 14 at 8:00 and 10:30 pm
Tickets: $25

Broadway diva Daphne Rubin-Vega (two-time Tony nominee for originating the role of "Mimi" in Rent, as well as for her role in Nilo Cruz' Anna in the Tropics) hits The Zipper stage with her band for two concerts, featuring music from her two albums "Redemption Songs" and "Souvenirs."

UP
Money. Fame. Love. Don't look down.
Music by Andrew Gerle
Lyrics by Andrew Gerle, Eddie Sugarman and Maryrose Wood
Starring Mark Jacoby, Michael Marcotte, Kate Rockwell and Lynne Wintersteller
Directed by David Schweizer
When:  Monday, March 17 and Monday, March 31 at 9:30 PM
Tickets: $20

An injured baseball player imagines getting back to the big leagues . . . A girl finds the courage to be herself on a reality TV show . . . A recording superstar confronts the loneliness of the spotlight . . . A woman from a poor neighborhood remembers the public library that fueled her dreams and changed her life. Broadway veteran and Tony nominee Mark Jacoby and Drama Desk nominee Lynne Wintersteller are joined by newcomers Michael Marcotte and Kate Rockwell (TV's "Grease: You're The One That I Want") in an evening of song directed by David Schweizer, who has helmed productions from Lincoln Center and City Opera to Mabou Mines and The Culture Project.

Composer and lyricist Andrew Gerle is a three-time recipient of the Richard Rodgers Award (with Maryrose Wood), administered by Stephen Sondheim and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He and lyricist Eddie Sugarman were awarded a 2006 Jonathan Larson Award for their show, Meet John Doe, which had its critically-acclaimed world premiere last season at Ford's Theatre in Washington, DC, directed by Eric Schaeffer and orchestrated by Jonathan Tunick.

From vegans to Vegas, soldiers to supermoms, Up is a musical revue for everyone who has dreamed of something more.

THE SHARP THINGS
When:  Thursday, March 20 at 8:00 pm
Tickets: $15

The Sharp Things are a dozen-plus strong orch pop ensemble from NYC led by singer/songwriter Perry Serpa.  The band offers up a mixed bag of influences, (Bacharach, Scott Walker, Elton John, Marvin Gaye, etc...) that at first glance can be a little overwhelming, but ultimately makes total sense. The sprawling outfit's latest and third long player, "A Moveable Feast" (Bar/None) was received with accolades, with Harp Magazine saying, "On their third full-length, New York's favorite 10-plus-member chamber-pop outfit have crafted a record that's as theatrical and ambitious as the group itself. . . you'll find yourself swept up and away into another more polished and cinematic world." The show will feature guest singers and musicians.

SOMI: NEW AFRICA
When:  Friday, March 21 at 8:00 pm
Tickets:  $20.00

The return of the New Africa music series curated by Rwandese-Ugandan jazz vocalist Somi, who performs along with other artists from various countries and all musical genres.

HAPPY SUNSHINE KUNG FU FLOWER
Written by Matthew-Lee Erlbach
Directed by Darren Katz
Music Arranger: Ian Aster
With Heath Calvert, Colette Hawley, Brooke Ishibashi, Stephen Reyes and Stephen Sheffer
When:  Friday, March 21 at 10:00 pm
Tickets: $20

Happy Sunshine Kung Fu Flower is a multimedia sociopolitical satire that follows a group of outsourced Japanese Ninjas hired by China, as they infiltrate the American Psyche for the coming takeover by taking on roles in the Media, Pop Culture, and Politics.

Megan Mullally AND SUPEME MUSIC PROGRAM
When:  Monday, March 24, 2008 at 9:30 11:30 p.m.
Tickets: $35 - $65

Supreme Music Program is: Megan Mullally – vocals, cardboard box, chains in a bowl, plastic egg, moral high ground; Greg Kuehn – acoustic piano, Wurlitzer electric piano, Farfisa organ, toy piano, harmonium, acoustic guitar, finger bass, percussion, back-up vocals; Stuart Mathis – acoustic and electric guitars, banjo, mandolin, harmonica, percussion, back-up vocals; Joe Berardi – drums, percussion, flotsam and jetsam, manly atmosphere; Doug Livingston – pedal steel, tuba, bass, organ, percussion; Piotr Jandula – viola, percussion; and Larry Williams – trumpet.  Since 1998, Supreme Music Program has been playing an eclectic mix of music, often focusing on lesser-known works of master songwriters, or deconstructing slightly better-known pieces.  Like postmodern cabaret-gone-mad, Supreme Music Program's lush vocals and unique arrangements are applied to some of the greatest storytelling songs, from a wide variety of genres -  blues, pop, roots-country, traditional folk, rock, and classical.  Their recent engagements include Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, the Seattle Symphony, and Orange County Performing Arts Center.  Supreme Music Program has released three records: "Sweetheart" (1999), "Big as a Berry" (2002) and the recent "Free Again!" (2007).

Supreme Music Program lead vocalist Megan Mullally is currently starring on Broadway in the hit musical Young Frankenstein, having previously appeared in the Broadway revivals of How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying and Grease.  She played the character of Karen Walker on NBC's "Will & Grace" for 8 seasons, receiving two Emmys and four Screen Actors Guild Awards.

THREE LOST CHORDS
A Trio of Solo Operas
With Music by Lance Horne
Libretto by Mark Campbell
Directed by David Schweizer
Starring Nathan Lee Graham, Michael Slattery and Caroline Worra
When:  Sunday, March 23 at 3:00 pm; Wednesday, March 26 at 8:00 pm; Sunday, March 30 at 3:00 pm  (and Wednesday, April 2 at 8:00 pm; Sunday, April 6 at 3:00 pm and Wednesday, April 9 at 8:00 pm)
Tickets: $20.

Three Lost Chords, the acclaimed trio of solo operas, returns to The Zipper.  Adapted from three short stories (Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart, Nicolai Gogol's A Hunger Artist and Dame Muriel Spark's The Girl I Left Behind Me) this triptych of musical ghost stories once again features Nathan Lee Graham, Michael Slattery and Caroline Worra, three young stars from the worlds of both modern and classical opera and musical theater.  In each musical monologue, the character must confess the strange circumstances that brought them to a place from which they cannot escape: an asylum, a panther's cage in a traveling circus, and the ominous office of a small company. By turns macabre, humorous, and oddly sensuous, Three Lost Chords propels its characters through the dark twists and turns of their surprising lives . . . and deaths.

DON'T QUIT YOUR NIGHT JOB
When:  Thursday, March 27 at 11:30 pm
Tickets: $20

The acclaimed comedy variety show featuring a revolving cast of Broadway's brightest performing without a net returns for its wildly popular monthly performance at The Zipper.  This late night happening of improv, music, sketches and stories was created by its stars: Steve Rosen (The Farnsworth Invention, Spamalot), David Rossmer (Fiddler on the Roof, Titanic), Sarah Saltzberg (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee) and music director Dan Lipton (The Coast of Utopia).  This month's special guests will be announced soon.  Proceeds go to benefit Wendy Wasserstein's Open Doors Initiative (TDF).

NOE VENABLE: THE SUMMER STORM JOURNALS
When:  Friday, March 28 at 8:00 pm
Tickets: $15.00

Noe Venable is a singer-songwriter, composer, and poet. Having honed her songwriting and musicianship within the context of San Francisco's rich experimental and jazz music scene, Venable has gone on to somewhat wider recognition through the release of five albums, as well as several national tours opening for such artists as Ani DiFranco and They Might be Giants.

Venable's newest release, The Summer Storm Journals, has been four years in the making and may be her strongest statement to date. Written over the course of Venable's transition from the west coast to New York City, and recorded in four different cities, this is an album about change: resisting it, fear in the face of it, surrender to it, and ultimately finding peace in the inescapable reality of uncertainty. Produced with Venable's longtime collaborator, bassist Todd Sickafoose, the album features a stellar cast of musicians including violinist Alan Lin, guitarist Adam Levy (Norah Jones) and avant garde marimba virtuouso Payton MacDonald (Alarm Will Sound).

As well as performing her own music, Venable has lent her voice to many other projects. Several of Venable's songs are featured in the film, Cherish, by Finn Taylor, and her cover of Breakdown by Tom Petty was included in the album's soundtrack. In addition, her voice can be heard on numerous recordings by other artists, including Ani DiFranco, John Vanderslice, Julian Summerhill, Faun Fables, and Alice Bierhorst.

LIN McEWAN: NOW I KNOW
When:  Saturday, March 29 at 10:00 pm
Tickets: $10

Since settling in New York a couple years back, Baltimore-native Lin McEwan has been "gaining notice for her uncommonly deep voice," and for her "soulfully sung and well-written" material—a funky fusion of rock, blues, and pop with an emphasis on old-school soul vocals . . . like Mavis Staples or Tina Turner singing over Maroon 5 (The Baltimore Sun; Just Soul). She and her band have been playing at major venues all over the city, opening for big names in New York and Baltimore, and basically having a damn good time building up their fan base.  Lin heads to the Zipper Factory to celebrate the release of her new digital-only EP, Now I Know, and to debut her first two music videos directed by the award-winning Andy Shipsides and Rolando Ramos. With guest appearances by Chris Mann, Marques Toliver, Joyce Chen and Marlan Barry, this is sure to be her most exciting show ever and one hell of a party.

FOR TICKETS TO ALL ZIPPER FACTORY EVENTS:
Call OvationTix at 212-352-3101 or buy online at www.thezipperfactory.com.

IN-PERSON:  Box office opens one hour prior to curtain for all events.

The Zipper Factory Tavern is directly accessible to/from the theater space.  The tavern presents an eclectic, seasonal menu, and the kitchen is run by Executive Chef Larry Kolar (Bolivar, Sign of the Dove, Camino Sur).  To view the menu, visit www.thezipperfactory.com.  The tavern is open Monday through Saturday for lunch, and from happy hour to pre-theater, through theater and into late night.  For reservations for the Zipper Factory Tavern, call (212) 695-4600.

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