Vanessa Williams Signs on for Broadway Series at the Kimmel Center

Vanessa Williams, the Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award nominated superstar, will make her Broadway Up Close concert series debut at The Kimmel Center in Philadelphia on Saturday, January 21 at 8:00 PM, co-starring SiriusXM radio star Seth Rudetsky as pianist and host.

Other stars appearing in the series this season will be Alice Ripley, Tony Award winner for "Next to Normal" on May 6, and living legend and two-time Tony Award winner Chita Rivera on June 3.

What differentiates this concert series from any other is the seamless mix of intimate behind-the-scenes stories from Broadway's biggest stars - prompted by the encyclopedic-minded Rudetsky's probing, funny, revealing questions - and their stellar singing of musical theatre repertoire. The concerts will be spontaneous evenings of hilarity and show-stopping songs.

For tickets and information, visit www.KimmelCenter.org or cal 215-893-1999.

Vanessa Williams has enjoyed one of the most varied and successful careers of any entertainer today. As a recording artist, she has sold over 25 million records worldwide, including #1 and Top 10 hits in genres stretching from Pop, Dance, R&B, Latin, Gospel, Jazz and more, including 17 total Grammy nominations. Her platinum single "Colors of the Wind" from the soundtrack to Disney's animated hit film "Pocahontas" won the Oscar for Best Original Song. On Television she starred as Wilhelmina Slater on "Ugly Betty," a role that brought her three Emmy nominations during the series' four-season run. She was just tapped by VH-1 to star in the new scripted series "Satan Sisters" based on the 2011 book by Star Jones which began production this past July.

On film, Vanessa has starred in "Soul Food," for which she won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress and the Black Film Award for Best Actress, as well as the films "Dance with Me," "Light It Up," "Shaft," "And Then Came Love," "My Brother," "Johnson Family Vacation," "Eraser," "Hannah Montana: The Movie," "Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor," among others. Among the award broadcasts she has hosted, are "The Essence Awards," "NAACP Image Awards," "TV Land Awards," "The Daytime Emmy Awards." Her Broadway performances include her Tony-nominated role in the revival of "Into the Woods," as well as "Kiss of the Spider Woman," "Sondheim on Sondheim," "The Trip to Bountiful," "After Midnight," and Encores' "St. Louis Woman." Vanessa Williams has received both the Lena Horne Lady of Soul Award and the International Press Academy's Mary Pickford Award for Outstanding Artistic Contribution to The Entertainment Industry. In 2007 she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her accomplishments as a performer. She also received the Human Rights Campaign Ally for Equality Award for Humanitarian Contributions, and is an advocate for equal rights, especially concerning the LGBT community and minorities.

Seth Rudetsky, has hosted the Broadway Series at The Nourse for its three seasons, as well as in Provincetown for the six seasons since its inception, and nation-wide in many other major cities. He is the afternoon host on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio's On Broadway as well as the host of Seth Speaks on SiriusXM Stars. As a pianist, he has played piano for over a dozen Broadway shows including Ragtime, Les Miserables and Phantom of the Opera among many others. As a comic, Rudetsky was awarded "Funniest Gay Male in NY" at Stand-Up NY and is a three-time Emmy nominee as a writer for The Rosie O'Donnell Show. His newest book, The Rise and Fall of a Theater Geek was published by Random House and is available on Amazon.com. He co-wrote and starred in the critically acclaimed new musical "Disaster!" this past season on Broadway. "Disaster!" also premiered on London's West End at the Charing Cross Theatre this past November to critical acclaim.

The Art House in Provincetown, MA, under the leadership of Producing Artistic Director Mark Cortale, is the original home to the internationally acclaimed Broadway @ The Art House series hosted by Seth Rudetsky. In its sixth season this past summer, the series presented Broadway superstars like Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, Patti LuPone, Matthew Morrison, Cheyenne Jackson, Megan Hilty and Vanessa Williams. The Broadway @ series also premiered in 2013 in New Orleans, in Australia (Sydney & Melbourne) with Megan Mullally and in London's West End with Patti LuPone at the Leicester Square Theater. The series has travelled to Fort Lauderdale (The Broward Center), Philadelphia (The Kimmel Center), San Francisco (The Nourse Theatre) and this summer it had its inaugural season at the Martha's Vineyard Performing Arts Center. More information at markcortalepresents.com.

IF YOU GO:

Kimmel Center & Mark Cortale Present

Vanessa Williams
star of TV's "Ugly Betty" and Broadway's "Kiss of the Spider Woman"

with Sirius XM's Seth Rudetsky as pianist & host

Produced by Mark Cortale

Saturday, January 21, at 8:00 PM

Perelman Theatre

300 S Broad St.

Philadelphia, PA 19102

For tickets and information, visit www.KimmelCenter.org or call 215-893-1999.

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