SONGBOOK LIVE! to Present THE HOLIDAY SONGBOOK This Month

Songbook Live! will present The Holiday Songbook at Lakeshore Players Theatre this month. There will be two performances on Monday, December 12th and Tuesday, December 13th at 7:30pm.

From Deck The Halls to All I Want For Christmas Is You, The Holiday Songbook is a rollicking and sometimes bawdy look at winter holiday music. Featuring a cast of Twin Cities-based and nationally acclaimed performers who bring personal interpretations to every song they sing. You'll discover how the tradition of holiday caroling began and learn the surprising origins of some of your favorite winter holiday songs.

This edition of the Songbook features:

ERIN SCHWAB

Theatre blogger Jill Schafer said, "Erin Schwab has a fantastic voice and is a brilliant comedian. She brings the house down." Erin is a regular on Fox 9's The Jason Show, with Jason Matheson, and a guest host on MyTalk 107.1FM. Her theatrical credits include Mamma Mia, Tina' n' Tony's Wedding, Beehive, the national tour of School House Rock Live, a stint as King Herod in Jesus Christ Superstar, The Broadway Songbook Series, A Christmas Story, The Catalyst production of Shelly Bachberg's: Orange is the New POTUS, Theater Late Da's productions of Beautiful Thing, Oh Shit I'm Turning Into My Mother, The Rink, and Songs for a New World. She and Jay Fuchs have performed their popular cabaret shows for over 15 years. Lavender Magazine has named Erin Best Twin Cities entertainer.

Jennifer Eckes

is a Minnesota Native who has been singing professionally for over two decades as a soloist in jazz/pop concerts and cabaret shows, as well as in theatrical stage productions, operas and rock musicals. She has been seen at Twin Cities venues including the Ordway Center, Bloomington Center for the Arts, Hastings Arts Center, Hanifl Performing Arts Center, Phipps Center for the Arts, Bryant-Lake Bowl, Honey Lounge, Crooners, and the Nicollet Island Inn. Critics have said that Jennifer has a "strong, lovely voice and an engaging gift for song", Eckes holds a B.A. in Vocal Performance from Luther College, was twice a fellow of the Cabaret Conference at Yale. She is a founding member of the Twin Cities Cabaret Artists Network.

James A. Rocco

A pre-teen named Jamie Alexander made his recording debut, singing a few lines on Frank Sinatra's Watertown album, produced by Bob Gaudio of The Four Seasons. Shortly after, he headed to Los Angeles and made a series of masters at the legendary Gold Star Studios, home of The Righteous Brothers, The Ronettes, and Darlene Love. This started a career that took Jamie Alexander, now James A. Rocco, to Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Théâtre Du Châtelet, and tours with Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, and The Duke Ellington Band. In between gigs, he starred on Broadway in CATS all over the USA in Jesus Christ Superstar and performed a stint as The Witch in Into The Woods. From 2005-2017, he was the Producing Artistic Director at The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts. Rocco's been called "a master showman" and "a powerhouse of talent.". In 2021 Broadway World cited him as Twin Cities Vocalist of the Decade.

LORI DOKKEN (The "Lor-chestra")

Over the past four decades, Lori Dokken has performed at every major venue in the Twin Cities, The Dakota, The Guthrie, The Ordway, Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, Crooners, and The History Theatre. A sought-after accompanist, she is also a producer, educator, vocal coach, arranger, and vocalist. Currently the Music Director at Unity Minneapolis, she has also been the MD for everything from ensembles and cabaret shows to theatre productions. As a composer, she received The John Lennon Songwriting Award in 2001 and a Knight Foundation Grant for her show, Women on the Moon, great female vocalists of the 1960s. Lori Dokken has produced headline shows for cruise ships and local cabaret acts and has opened for legends such as Eartha Kitt, Carole King, and Tony Bennett. In addition, she has sung backups for Kenny Loggins and shared the stage with Beatrice Arthur.

Critics call The Songbook Series more than a concert and have dubbed it edutainment.
This edition of the Songbook is fast-paced and will give the audience a new look at the winter holidays songs they thought they knew!

There's free parking onsite and every seat is a great seat at the intimate Lakeshore Players Theatre at HANIFL Center for the Performing Arts.

For tickets, more information, and updates, visit https://www.lakeshoreplayers.org/ or call 651-478-7427.

For a peak at highlights from this and other Songbooks, visit the Songbook YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSJ4u7_GVpvVdcCf1B_mEhQ

ABOUT SONGBOOK LIVE!

Songbook Live! is an outgrowth of the wildly successful Broadway Songbook series, which played for seven years at The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts and venues around the country. Songbook Live! has expanded the concept to include all popular music styles, with live and virtual experiences. The brainchild of Broadway veteran and recording artist James A. Rocco, the Songbook is the Winner of Broadway World's best Streamed Concert of 2021. Past Songbooks have explored the legacies of Stephen Sondheim, Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Johnny Mercer, Kander and Ebb, The 1950s, The Singers and Songwriters of the 1970s, Hollywood, The Birth of Rock and Roll, Contemporary Broadway, The California Songbook and many more.

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