University of Miami's Department of Theatre Arts to Honor Jerry Herman at 75th Anniversary Concert, 3/3

The University of Miami's Jerry Herman Ring Theatre will celebrate 75 years of bringing fantastic theatre to South Florida and exemplifying excellence in theatrical training. The University of Miami will celebrate the 75th season of the Department of Theatre Arts in the College of Arts & Sciences with an evening of music, dance and theater in a special tribute to alumnus and Tony Award winner Jerry Herman, who will attend the event.

Jerry Herman (class of '53) has a long and distinguished career in musical theatre, and is one of only two composers/lyricists to have written three musicals with more than 1,500 consecutive performances each on Broadway. In addition to his two Tony Awards, Herman has won Grammy Awards, Drama Desk Awards, a Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement and is a Kennedy Center Honoree. As a UM student, he wrote, produced and directed the longest-running show to ever play at UM; his production of Sketchbook ran 17 shows longer than the originally scheduled three performances.

The evening will culminate with live entertainment by Broadway veteran Jason Graae (A Grand Night for Singing, Falsettos, Stardust, Snoopy Snoopy), Klea Blackhurst who just played the title role in Goodspeed Musicals production of Hello, Dolly, James Followell, Dawnn Lewis (A Different World), Valerie Perri and many alumni and current students of the Department of Theatre Arts at the University of Miami. These distinguished guests will celebrate the rich history of the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre and perform a bevy of Broadway tunes written by Herman, including selections from Hello Dolly!, Mame and La Cage aux Folles. This show will leave you humming some of your favorite Broadway hits all the way home.

The 75th Anniversary celebration reception will be at 5:30 pm with performances to follow, beginning at 7 pm, on Monday, March 3, 2014 on the Alvin Sherman Family Stage at the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre. Tickets ($50) for the performance and ($125) for the reception and performance are on sale now through audience services (1312 Miller Drive, Coral Gables), 305-284-3355 and online at Miami.edu/ring.