Liz Callaway, Sheldon Harnick and More Join York Theatre 50th Anniversary Season Events in March

The York Theatre Company (James Morgan, Producing Artistic Director; Evans Haile, Executive Director), dedicated to the development of new musicals and rediscovery of musical gems from the past, as part of its 50th Anniversary season celebration, will present two added special events during the month of March: York Chat: Musicals in Mufti: 118 and Counting, the second in a series of panel discussions, _An Evening with Sheldon Harnick and Friends_ a special concert featuring Sheldon Harnick, Liz Callaway, and Karen Ziemba. Both special events will take place at The York Theatre Company at Saint Peter's (entrance on East 54th Street, just east of Lexington Avenue).

The first event is a York Chat, _Musicals in Mufti: 118 and Counting, the second in a series of lively panel discussions centering on the first fifty years of The York Theatre. This will be a candid talk with directors and performers who have come together to celebrate great musical theatre gems of the past-118 of them so far, with many more to come. The panel will include directors Pamela Hunt, Michael Montel, and Stuart Ross, actor Simon Jones, music directors Eric Svejcar and David Hancock Turner, York's Producing Artistic Director James Morgan, historian Charles Wright, and more to be announced. Moderating will be York's Executive Director Evans Haile. This special evening promises to be entertaining and insightful, filled with stories and anecdotes about the productions, stars, and creative artists who have made The York truly a place where "Musicals Come to Life" A reception with light snacks and beverages will will follow the discussion for all ticket-holders. Tickets are priced at $20, $15 for York Members, $10 for York Plus!_ Members. ONE-NIGHT ONLY: MONDAY, MARCH 9, 2020 AT 6:00PM.

The second event is another of the York's 50th Anniversary Legacy Concerts. An Evening with Sheldon Harnick and Friends will celebrate (and feature) one of the most illustrious songwriters of the American musical theatre: three-time Tony Award winner, Pulitzer Prize winner, and Oscar Hammerstein Award recipient Sheldon Harnick. Mr. Harnick will be joined on stage by singer nonpareil Liz Callaway (Miss Saigon), Tony Award winner Karen Ziemba (Contact), and Music Director Jeffrey Saver. An intimate evening giving audience members some of the celebrated songs Mr. Harnick has created in his astonishing 60+ year career, it will include his collaborations with composers such as Richard Rodgers, Joe Raposo, Michel Legrand, and-of course-Jerry Bock. Sprinkled with some behind-the-scenes anecdotes from such hit shows as Fiorello!, She Loves Me, and Fiddler on the Roof, as well as the lesser-known Tenderloin, The Rothschilds, Rex, and Dragons, An Evening with Sheldon Harnick and Friends promises to be a rare treat for musical theatre buffs of all ages. Tickets are priced at $60, $55 for York Members, $50 for York Plus! Members. ONE-NIGHT ONLY: TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2020 AT 7:00PM.

Sheldon Harnick began his career in the 1950s with songs in revues both on and off-Broadway (The Boston Beguine, Merry Little Minuet, and others). Beginning in 1957, he teamed with composer Jerry Bock to create memorable musicals including Fiorello! (Tony Award, Pulitzer Prize), She Loves Me (Grammy), Fiddler on the Roof (Tony Award), The Apple Tree, and The Rothschilds. His other musicals include Smiling the Boy Fell Dead (music by David Baker), Rex (music by Richard Rodgers), A Wonderful Life (music by Joe Raposo), A Christmas Carol (music by Michel Legrand), The Phantom Tollbooth (music by Arnold Black), and his own Dragons and Malpractice Makes Perfect. Mr. Harnick also contributed songs to the films The Heartbreak Kid and Blame It on Rio (music by Cy Coleman) and Aaron's Magic Village (music by Michel Legrand). In the 1970's, Harnick expanded his activities into opera, writing translations of The Merry Widow, Carmen, Ravel's The Enchanted Child, and Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale, as well as original librettos for several collaborations with Jack Beeson (Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines, Cyrano, and Dr. Heidegger's Fountain) Henry Mollicone (Coyote Tales and Lady Bird), and Thomas Z. Shepard (Love in Two Countries). Mr. Harnick is a member of the Dramatists Guild and the Songwriters Guild. His long association with The York stretches back to 1976, when a production of She Loves Me marked the company's first musical. In the decades since, he has received The York's Oscar Hammerstein Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre (in tandem with the late Jerry Bock) and been celebrated with a Musical in Mufti season in 2014 dedicated to his work; most recently, in 2015, the York premiered Rothschild & Sons, a newly revised version of The Rothschilds. In 2016, he received a Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, the Drama League Award for Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theatre and a Special Lifetime Achievement Award from The Outer Critics Circle. Most recently, Sheldon and his wife, photographer Margery Gray, have collaborated on two picture books, The Outdoor Museum (Not Your Usual Images of New York) and KOI: A Modern Folktale, which feature his poetry complemented by her photographs. Mr. Harnick is a member of the Dramatists Guild and the Songwriters Guild.

NOW AVAILABLE: Tickets may be purchased by calling (212) 935-5820, online at www.yorktheatre.org, or in person at the box office at the York Theatre at Saint Peter's (Citicorp Building, entrance on East 54th Street, just east of Lexington Avenue), Monday through Friday (12:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.).

Photo Credit: Genevieve Rafter-Keddy

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