Tony Award-Winner Beth Leavel and Tony & Olivier Nominated Gavin Lee Appear at Ocean State Theatre

Tony and Drama Desk Award-winner, Beth Leavel and Tony and Olivier nominated and Drama Desk Award-winner, Gavin Lee, will be performing as part of the Broadway Spotlight concert scheduled for Monday, October 17 at Ocean State Theatre in Warwick.

The concert, which is being produced exclusively for Ocean State Theatre Company by Rhode Island native, Stephen DeAngelis, who has produced over 200 different Broadway concerts at venues in New York and across the United States, features five great "straight-from-Broadway" performers, who will recreate some of their most memorable musical moments and share some of their backstage stories! Following the concert, those in attendance will have an opportunity to participate in a question and answer session.

Beth Leavel received Tony, Drama Desk, NY Outer Critics Circle and L.A. Drama Critics awards for her performance as the title character in The Drowsy Chaperone. She also received Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations for her role as Florence Greenberg in Baby It's You. Beth has been seen in eleven Broadway shows, including Elf (Emily), Mamma Mia! (Donna), Young Frankenstein (Frau Blucher), the revival of 42nd Street (Dorothy Brock), the original company of Crazy for You (Tess), The Civil War (Mrs. Bixby), Hal Prince's Show Boat (Ellie), and in 42nd Street (Anytime Annie), her Broadway debut.

Gavin Lee recently played Thénadier in the Broadway revival of LES MISERABLES and has enjoyed a lovely stint of playing Fred Astaire roles including Ted Hanover in Holiday Inn at Goodspeed (World Premiere) and Jerry Travers in Top Hat at the Aldwych Theatre in London (Olivier Award for Best Musical). Previously he originated the role of Bert in the West End and Broadway productions of Mary Poppins for which he was nominated for Olivier and Tony Awards and won both Drama Desk and Theatre World Awards. Other London credits include Crazy For You, Peggy Sue Got Married, Me and My Girl, Over My Shoulder, Oklahoma! and Contact.

Ms. Leavel and Mr. Lee join will be joining Jackie Burns (Wicked, If/Then, Rock of Ages, Hair); Robert Creighton (Cagney, Anything Goes, Chicago, The Little Mermaid); and Kissy Simmons, who played Nala in The Lion King for nine years, making her the longest running Nala ever! You can't find this much Broadway talent on one stage...unless you are on Broadway!

Producer Stephen DeAngelis, who has produced over 200 different Broadway concerts at venues in New York and across the United States, will be producing his first concert in his home state. His concerts have featured a multitude of Broadway stars including many Tony Award and Drama Desk Award-winners and nominees, stars from hit television series and films, whose roots are on stage, and Broadway's fastest rising young stars. He is also the Producing Artistic Director and Host of At This Performance..., the critically acclaimed concert series, which has showcased the talents of over 800 Broadway standbys, understudies and alternates since October 2003. Stephen is also one of Manhattan's most accomplished and respected Casting Directors.

Music Director, Eugene Gwozdz is the Music Director/Arranger for the American Dance Machine 21 and the Duke Ellington Center for the Arts. He was the MD/Arranger for Our Guy, Cy, a musical concert tribute to Cy Coleman, starring Tony Award-winners, Randy Graff, Cady Huffman, and LiLlias White; the Jerome Robbins Awards honoring Chita Rivera, Harold Prince, and Stephen Sondheim; as well as the Tony Award-winning Princess and the Frog starring Anika Noni Rose at the Lincoln Center American Songbook Series

"This concert will include songs from Wicked, The Lion King, The Drowsy Chaperone, Mary Poppins and Cagney, among others," said Mr. DeAngelis, who will host the concert. "I am so excited to have found this wonderfully intimate venue in my home state. Finally, my family and friends will get a glimpse into some of what I do to make a living."

Broadway Spotlight will be presented on Monday, October 17 at 7:30 pm. The theatre is located at 1245 Jefferson Boulevard, Warwick, RI. Tickets are $49 for preferred seating, (limited to the front section only), and $39 for standard seating. Tickets are on sale at the box office Monday through Friday from 12 noon - 6:00 pm, Saturdays from 12 noon - 4:00 pm, and from 12 noon until curtain on performance days. Tickets are also available online 24 hours a day at www.OceanStateTheatre.org and via telephone during normal box office hours by calling (401) 921-6800.

Ocean State Theatre Company (OSTC) is a professional not-for-profit regional theatre whose mission is to preserve and pass on the tradition of live, professional theatre - including the American musical - and to pursue avenues of enrichment and education for the benefit of the state of Rhode Island and the surrounding region through the theatre arts. OSTC, which re-opened and ran the historic Theatre By The Sea in Matunuck, RI from 2007-2012 and began producing shows in Warwick, RI in 2012, is an IRS designated not-for-profit 501(c)(3) corporation.

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