Mama Foundation Brings ALIVE! to The Dempsey Theater in Harlem Tonight

The Mama Foundation for the Arts presents ALIVE!, a celebration of a generation in song, featuring a full company of performers who are age 55 and over. Conceived and written by Vy Higginsen and Ken Wydro (the creators of MAMA, I WANT TO SING), and directed by Mr. Wydro, ALIVE! returns to The Dempsey Theater in Harlem (127 W. 127 St.) this Fall -- performing Saturday matinees tonight, October 4th and October 18th, November 1st, 15th and 22nd at 2 PM. ALIVE! will be profiled by Lesley Stahl in an upcoming "60 Minutes" news story that will air later this year (Ms. Stahl previously profiled The Mama Foundation's Gospel for Teens program in a 2012 Emmy Award-winning feature). Tickets to ALIVE! are $35 and are available by calling the Mama Foundation for the Arts at 212-280-1045, or online at mamafoundation.org (or through SmartTix.com).

ALIVE! is about healing and the transformative power of story and song. The cast is comprised of everyday people ages 55 and over, from all walks of life, and represents everyone from hard working mothers to Grammy Award-winning artists. ALIVE! features a unique blend of gospel, jazz, R&B and pop music -- songs that served as a soundtrack for this generation. Through the music and through authentic stories and testimonies, ALIVE! tells how it used to be, and how life could be going forward. Proving that it's never too late to live a dream, this cast is ALIVE! . . . and kickin.'

The cast of ALIVE! features Num H.S. Amun'Tehu, Deborah Bingham, Donna Love Brown, Matthew Brown, Matthew Burke, Robin Campos, Robin Crudup, Gladys DeJesus Mitchell, Darlene Eklou, Phyllis Harris, Theo Harris, Gloria Jones, Susie Jones, Sahron Patrick, Roberta Ross, Ricardo Vega, and Renee Walker.

ALIVE! has music direction by Greg Kelly.

ALIVE! will be performed on Saturdays this Fall -- October 4th and 18th, November 1st, 15th and 22nd at 2 PM. Tickets for ALIVE! and all Mama Foundation shows are $35 - $45 and are available by calling the Mama Foundation for the Arts at 212-280-1045 or through SmartTix.com (212-868-4444). Special rates for groups and parties are also available. Directions to The Dempsey Theater via Public Transit: - Subway: Number 2 or 3 express trains to 125th St and Lenox Ave; walk two blocks north, turn left on 127th St. - Bus: M2, M3, M7 Buses to 127th St.

Proceeds from ALIVE! and all Mama Foundation productions benefit The Mama Foundation for the Arts, a cultural space in Harlem with a mission to present, preserve, and promote the history and fundamentals of gospel, jazz, and rhythm and blues music for current and future generations, as well as to provide quality training and employment in the performing arts to both youths and adults. A non-profit 501(C)3, the Mama Foundation for the Arts was founded in 1998 by Vy Higginsen, inspired by the worldwide success of her musical, MAMA, I WANT TO SING. For more information, visit www.mamafoundation.org.

Photo Credit: Carol Rosegg

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