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Event Program
WITH
JULIE BENKO • MIKAELA BENNETT • ANDRÉA BURNS • CAROLEE CARMELLO
NIKKI RENÉE DANIELS • LAURA DARRELL • ALI EWOLDT
MARINA KONDO • EMILIE KOUATCHOU • BRYCE PINKHAM
SCARLETT STRALLEN • JESSICA VOSK • SALLY WILFERT
FEATURING SONGS BY
DEBORAH ABRAMSON • NEIL BARTRAM • SEAN BERRY • JOHN BUCCHINO
MERIDETH KAYE CLARK • CARMEL DEAN • CHRIS DISTEFANO
JAY EISENBERG • SCOTT EYERLY • PETER FOLEY • JENNY GIERING
ADAM GWON • MIKE HEITZMAN • MARY KELLY • HENRY KRIEGER
ANDREW LIPPA • DAVID LOUD • CHRIS MILLER • MATT PERRI
CHRIS PETERS • ILENE REID • JOSHUA ROSENBLUM • PHOEBE ROSENBLUM
JOSEPH THALKEN • JOEL WAGGONER • SAM WILLMOTT
JOSEPH THALKEN, PIANO
DEBORAH AVERY, FLUTE & CLARINET
KATHERINE CHERBAS, CELLO
CRAIG MAGNANO, GUITAR & UKULELE
BENNY KOONYEVSKY, PERCUSSION
MUSIC DIRECTION BY
JOSEPH THALKEN
DIRECTED BY
ANNETTE JOLLES
PRODUCED BY
JOEL FRAM & ANNETTE JOLLES
Julie Benko is currently marching her band out on Broadway every Thursday as the alternate for Fanny Brice in Funny Girl. For her performance, she was named the 2022 Breakout Star for Theater by The New York Times and received numerous accolades including Theater World’s Dorothy Loudon Award. Other Broadway/touring credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Les Misérables, and Spring Awakening. She has appeared Off-Broadway and regionally in such shows as Once, The Fantasticks, Our Town, Rags, Bar Mitzvah Boy, The Golem of Havana, and more at such venues as Barrington Stage, York Theatre Company, Weston Playhouse, and others. Her debut album Introducing Julie Benko and newest record Hand in Hand (Club44 Records) are available wherever music is streaming. She holds a BFA and an MFA from NYU-Tisch. Visit www.JulieBenko.com or follow her on Tiktok/Instagram @Jujujuliebee to discover more.
Julie Benko is currently marching her band out on Broadway every Thursday as the alternate for Fanny Brice in Funny Girl. For her performance, she was named the 2022 Breakout Star for Theater by The New York Times and received numerous accolades including Theater World’s Dorothy Loudon Award. Other Broadway/touring credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Les Misérables, and Spring Awakening. She has appeared Off-Broadway and regionally in such shows as Once, The Fantasticks, Our Town, Rags, Bar Mitzvah Boy, The Golem of Havana, and more at such venues as Barrington Stage, York Theatre Company, Weston Playhouse, and others. Her debut album Introducing Julie Benko and newest record Hand in Hand (Club44 Records) are available wherever music is streaming. She holds a BFA and an MFA from NYU-Tisch. Visit www.JulieBenko.com or follow her on Tiktok/Instagram @Jujujuliebee to discover more.
Mikaela Bennett has appeared as a featured soloist at London’s Royal Albert Hall at the BBC Proms with the John Wilson Orchestra, New York Philharmonic under Leonard Slatkin, Philadelphia Orchestra under Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Los Angeles Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel, San Francisco Symphony and National Symphony Orchestra under Michael Tilson Thomas, Cleveland Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, and Kennedy Center. On stage, Mikaela made her professional debut in The Golden Apple (Penelope) at City Center Encores!, originated the role of Norma in Dick Scanlan and Carmel Dean’s musical Renascence originating the title role in Acquanetta composed by Michael Gordon and directed by Daniel Fish, and made her critically acclaimed debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in West Side Story (Maria). She has recorded with the Knights under Eric Jacobsen and recently made her New York City recital debut at Alice Tully Hall. Mikaela was honored with the Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists.
Mikaela Bennett has appeared as a featured soloist at London’s Royal Albert Hall at the BBC Proms with the John Wilson Orchestra, New York Philharmonic under Leonard Slatkin, Philadelphia Orchestra under Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Los Angeles Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel, San Francisco Symphony and National Symphony Orchestra under Michael Tilson Thomas, Cleveland Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, and Kennedy Center. On stage, Mikaela made her professional debut in The Golden Apple (Penelope) at City Center Encores!, originated the role of Norma in Dick Scanlan and Carmel Dean’s musical Renascence originating the title role in Acquanetta composed by Michael Gordon and directed by Daniel Fish, and made her critically acclaimed debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in West Side Story (Maria). She has recorded with the Knights under Eric Jacobsen and recently made her New York City recital debut at Alice Tully Hall. Mikaela was honored with the Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists.
Andréa Burns was first a fan, then a friend of the luminous, hilarious, warrior Rebecca Luker. It is deeply meaningful to honor her tonight. Broadway: In The Heights (Daniela, Drama Desk Award), On Your Feet! (Outer Critics Circle Nomination) The Nance (w/ Nathan Lane), The Rose Tattoo, The Ritz, The Full Monty, Beauty and the Beast. Off-Broadway: Smart Blonde (Judy Holliday), original cast of Jason Robert Brown’s Songs for a New World, and Stephen Sondheim’s Saturday Night. Film: Spielberg’s West Side Story, Akron (Amazon), Bad Dates (digital stream 2021). Television: Rosie in Up Here (Hulu), The Equalizer (CBS), Blue Bloods, Generation Por Qué? (HBO Max ), Law & Order SVU, Kevin Can Wait, Jessica Jones, Mad About You. Album: A Deeper Shade of Red (psclassics.com). @theandreaburns www.andreaburns.com
Andréa Burns was first a fan, then a friend of the luminous, hilarious, warrior Rebecca Luker. It is deeply meaningful to honor her tonight. Broadway: In The Heights (Daniela, Drama Desk Award), On Your Feet! (Outer Critics Circle Nomination) The Nance (w/ Nathan Lane), The Rose Tattoo, The Ritz, The Full Monty, Beauty and the Beast. Off-Broadway: Smart Blonde (Judy Holliday), original cast of Jason Robert Brown’s Songs for a New World, and Stephen Sondheim’s Saturday Night. Film: Spielberg’s West Side Story, Akron (Amazon), Bad Dates (digital stream 2021). Television: Rosie in Up Here (Hulu), The Equalizer (CBS), Blue Bloods, Generation Por Qué? (HBO Max ), Law & Order SVU, Kevin Can Wait, Jessica Jones, Mad About You. Album: A Deeper Shade of Red (psclassics.com). @theandreaburns www.andreaburns.com
Carolee Carmello can currently be seen on Broadway as the Stepmother in Bad Cinderella and was seen earlier this season as John Dickinson in the Roundabout’s production of 1776. Ms. Carmello is a three-time Tony nominee for Parade, Lestat, and Scandalous. Other Broadway: Finding Neverland (Drama Desk nomination), Tuck Everlasting, Sister Act, The Addams Family (Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations), Mamma Mia!, Urinetown, Kiss Me, Kate, The Scarlet Pimpernel, 1776 (1998 revival), Falsettos, City of Angels. National Tours: Hello, Dolly!, Falsettos, Chess, Big River, Les Misérables. Off-Broadway: Sweeney Todd, Elegies, The Vagina Monologues, A Class Act, Hello Again (Obie Award), I Can Get It for You Wholesale, Das Barbecü, John & Jen. On-screen: Dopesick, Evil, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Good Fight, Madam Secretary, The Deuce, Law & Order: SVU, Smash, Remember W.E.N.N. (SAG Award nomination - Best Ensemble), Indoor Boys (Indie Series Award).
Carolee Carmello can currently be seen on Broadway as the Stepmother in Bad Cinderella and was seen earlier this season as John Dickinson in the Roundabout’s production of 1776. Ms. Carmello is a three-time Tony nominee for Parade, Lestat, and Scandalous. Other Broadway: Finding Neverland (Drama Desk nomination), Tuck Everlasting, Sister Act, The Addams Family (Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations), Mamma Mia!, Urinetown, Kiss Me, Kate, The Scarlet Pimpernel, 1776 (1998 revival), Falsettos, City of Angels. National Tours: Hello, Dolly!, Falsettos, Chess, Big River, Les Misérables. Off-Broadway: Sweeney Todd, Elegies, The Vagina Monologues, A Class Act, Hello Again (Obie Award), I Can Get It for You Wholesale, Das Barbecü, John & Jen. On-screen: Dopesick, Evil, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Good Fight, Madam Secretary, The Deuce, Law & Order: SVU, Smash, Remember W.E.N.N. (SAG Award nomination - Best Ensemble), Indoor Boys (Indie Series Award).
Nikki Renée Daniels has done 11 Broadway shows including Company (Jenny), The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess (Clara), The Book of Mormon (Nabulungi), and Les Misérables (Fantine). She played Angelica Schuyler in the Chicago company of Hamilton. Other New York credits include Martha Jefferson in 1776 at City Center Encores!, and Rose Lennox in The Secret Garden at David Geffen Hall. Her television credits include Madam Secretary, The Equalizer, and Billions. She has performed as a soloist with numerous symphony orchestras across the country and in Canada, and at Carnegie Hall, and holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Her debut solo CD, Home, is available on iTunes. @nikkireneesings
Nikki Renée Daniels has done 11 Broadway shows including Company (Jenny), The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess (Clara), The Book of Mormon (Nabulungi), and Les Misérables (Fantine). She played Angelica Schuyler in the Chicago company of Hamilton. Other New York credits include Martha Jefferson in 1776 at City Center Encores!, and Rose Lennox in The Secret Garden at David Geffen Hall. Her television credits include Madam Secretary, The Equalizer, and Billions. She has performed as a soloist with numerous symphony orchestras across the country and in Canada, and at Carnegie Hall, and holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Her debut solo CD, Home, is available on iTunes. @nikkireneesings
Laura Darrell Off-Broadway/New York (selected): Sweeney Todd (Johanna/ Pirelli/BW Standby, Barrow Street Theater); Kid Victory (Suze, Vineyard Theater, original Off-Broadway Cast Recording); Encores! The Golden Apple (Ensemble, New York City Center). Regional: Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure (Madge Larrabee, Portland Stage), Macbeth (Lady Macduff, Alabama Shakespeare Festival), Into the Woods (Cinderella, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival), Last Five Years (Cathy, Portland Stage), Fun Home (Medium Alison, Baltimore Center Stage), as well as productions at Signature Theatre (DC), Bridge Rep of Boston, Ogunquit Theatre, LA Rock Opera Co., MSMT, among others. Disney: originated the role of Anna in workshops and opening of Frozen Live! at DCA’s Hyperion Theater, directed by Liesl Tommy. Workshops/Labs: The Araca Group, Classic Stage Company, The Barrow Group, New York Theatre Workshop, The York Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, and Asolo Rep. Select Film: Boston Strangler (Karen, Dir. Matt Ruskin, 20th Century Studios/Hulu); Heightened (Tiffany, Dir. Sara Friedman); Creedmoria (Eileen, Cinequest Best Comedy, Dir. Alicia Slimmer). Television: Happy! (Sister Lee/Recurring, SYFY); Dietland (Anna/Recurring, AMC); A Very Special Christmas (PBS, nominated for N.E. Emmy Award). Sketch/Improv: UCB. Undergrad: USC (LA), NYU Tisch, and BADA (UK). www.lauradarrell.com. Instagram: lauraedarrell. Love to L, J, and K. Special thanks to manager, Rochel Saks at Saks&.
Laura Darrell Off-Broadway/New York (selected): Sweeney Todd (Johanna/ Pirelli/BW Standby, Barrow Street Theater); Kid Victory (Suze, Vineyard Theater, original Off-Broadway Cast Recording); Encores! The Golden Apple (Ensemble, New York City Center). Regional: Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure (Madge Larrabee, Portland Stage), Macbeth (Lady Macduff, Alabama Shakespeare Festival), Into the Woods (Cinderella, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival), Last Five Years (Cathy, Portland Stage), Fun Home (Medium Alison, Baltimore Center Stage), as well as productions at Signature Theatre (DC), Bridge Rep of Boston, Ogunquit Theatre, LA Rock Opera Co., MSMT, among others. Disney: originated the role of Anna in workshops and opening of Frozen Live! at DCA’s Hyperion Theater, directed by Liesl Tommy. Workshops/Labs: The Araca Group, Classic Stage Company, The Barrow Group, New York Theatre Workshop, The York Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, and Asolo Rep. Select Film: Boston Strangler (Karen, Dir. Matt Ruskin, 20th Century Studios/Hulu); Heightened (Tiffany, Dir. Sara Friedman); Creedmoria (Eileen, Cinequest Best Comedy, Dir. Alicia Slimmer). Television: Happy! (Sister Lee/Recurring, SYFY); Dietland (Anna/Recurring, AMC); A Very Special Christmas (PBS, nominated for N.E. Emmy Award). Sketch/Improv: UCB. Undergrad: USC (LA), NYU Tisch, and BADA (UK). www.lauradarrell.com. Instagram: lauraedarrell. Love to L, J, and K. Special thanks to manager, Rochel Saks at Saks&.
Ali Ewoldt has appeared as Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, Cosette in Les Misérables (Broadway, National Tour), Tuptim in The King and I (Lincoln Center, Lyric Opera of Chicago), and as Luisa in The Fantasticks (Off-Broadway). Regionally, she has played Amalia in She Loves Me (Signature Theatre, Helen Hayes nomination), Yook Mei in Gold Mountain (Utah Shakespeare), Rose in The Secret Garden (CTG; FITC concert with Rebecca), Philia in A Funny Thing…(The Muny), Fan/Mrs. Bonds in A Christmas Carol (McCarter Theatre), and Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls (Sacramento Music Circus). Concert/Symphony work includes: Alice Tully Hall, Town Hall, NY Pops at Carnegie Hall, APO, Houston Symphony, Kaohsiung Symphony, and The Boston Pops. TV/Film credits include The Michael J. Fox Show, Yield, and the short films Mia and The Cactus. Ali has a BA in psychology from Yale University and is a proud Filipina American. @aliewoldt
Ali Ewoldt has appeared as Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, Cosette in Les Misérables (Broadway, National Tour), Tuptim in The King and I (Lincoln Center, Lyric Opera of Chicago), and as Luisa in The Fantasticks (Off-Broadway). Regionally, she has played Amalia in She Loves Me (Signature Theatre, Helen Hayes nomination), Yook Mei in Gold Mountain (Utah Shakespeare), Rose in The Secret Garden (CTG; FITC concert with Rebecca), Philia in A Funny Thing…(The Muny), Fan/Mrs. Bonds in A Christmas Carol (McCarter Theatre), and Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls (Sacramento Music Circus). Concert/Symphony work includes: Alice Tully Hall, Town Hall, NY Pops at Carnegie Hall, APO, Houston Symphony, Kaohsiung Symphony, and The Boston Pops. TV/Film credits include The Michael J. Fox Show, Yield, and the short films Mia and The Cactus. Ali has a BA in psychology from Yale University and is a proud Filipina American. @aliewoldt
Marina Kondo is a Netherland-born first-generation Japanese American, and she is so thrilled to be joining such a beautiful celebration! She began singing in jazz bars in Tokyo, Japan, and continues to participate in many concerts, festivals, TV programs, and recordings in the US, Japan, and Brazil. Broadway: KPOP (OBC; Assistant Dance Captain, Swing, u/s Mwe & Ruby). National Tours: Disney’s Frozen (OTC; Queen Iduna, First Asian-American Anna (u/s)), Lincoln Center’s The King & I (Ensemble, u/s Tuptim and Lady Thiang). Off-Broadway: Road Show (NYCC), KPOP (Ars Nova). Regional: The Muny. TV: Succession (HBO). YounArts Finalist. University of Michigan (BFA). @marinakondo
Marina Kondo is a Netherland-born first-generation Japanese American, and she is so thrilled to be joining such a beautiful celebration! She began singing in jazz bars in Tokyo, Japan, and continues to participate in many concerts, festivals, TV programs, and recordings in the US, Japan, and Brazil. Broadway: KPOP (OBC; Assistant Dance Captain, Swing, u/s Mwe & Ruby). National Tours: Disney’s Frozen (OTC; Queen Iduna, First Asian-American Anna (u/s)), Lincoln Center’s The King & I (Ensemble, u/s Tuptim and Lady Thiang). Off-Broadway: Road Show (NYCC), KPOP (Ars Nova). Regional: The Muny. TV: Succession (HBO). YounArts Finalist. University of Michigan (BFA). @marinakondo
Emilie Kouatchou is thrilled to be returning to Symphony Space, where she made her debut as Anne in A Little Night Music. Previous theater credits include Phantom of the Opera (Broadway), Unknown Soldier (Playwrights Horizons), and Oklahoma! (Broadway at Music Circus, Sacramento). TV credits include upcoming seasons of HBO’s The Gilded Age and Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan’s Musical Theatre program.
Emilie Kouatchou is thrilled to be returning to Symphony Space, where she made her debut as Anne in A Little Night Music. Previous theater credits include Phantom of the Opera (Broadway), Unknown Soldier (Playwrights Horizons), and Oklahoma! (Broadway at Music Circus, Sacramento). TV credits include upcoming seasons of HBO’s The Gilded Age and Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan’s Musical Theatre program.
Bryce Pinkham Broadway: A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder (Tony, Drama Desk, Grammy Nominations), The Heidi Chronicles (Outer Critics Nomination, Drama League Nomination), Ghost, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Holiday Inn, The Great Society, Ohio State Murders (no nominations, but people said they really liked them). TV: Julia, Mercy Street, Blacklist, Proven Innocent, Blindspot, Instinct, The Good Wife, Person of Interest. Countries visited: 22 and counting. Concert Venues: Caramoor, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Library of Congress, Chicago Lyric. Co-Founder of www.zaraaina.org BA: Boston College. MFA in Acting and Playbill bios: Yale School of Drama. Follow: @theBrycecapades
Bryce Pinkham Broadway: A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder (Tony, Drama Desk, Grammy Nominations), The Heidi Chronicles (Outer Critics Nomination, Drama League Nomination), Ghost, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Holiday Inn, The Great Society, Ohio State Murders (no nominations, but people said they really liked them). TV: Julia, Mercy Street, Blacklist, Proven Innocent, Blindspot, Instinct, The Good Wife, Person of Interest. Countries visited: 22 and counting. Concert Venues: Caramoor, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Library of Congress, Chicago Lyric. Co-Founder of www.zaraaina.org BA: Boston College. MFA in Acting and Playbill bios: Yale School of Drama. Follow: @theBrycecapades
Scarlett Strallen performs with symphonies all over the world and was requested by Her Majesty the Queen on three separate occasions to sing for her. Most recent theater credits include the title role in Nell Gwynn at Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Gwendolyn in Tom Stoppard’s Travesties on Broadway. Other theater credits include Amalia in She Loves Me, Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Hartford Stage, Mabel in Pirates of Penzance at Barrington Stage, Sibella in A Gentleman’s Guide To Love & Murder at the Walter Kerr Theatre, Kenneth Branagh’s Lady Macduff in Macbeth at the Armory in New York, Cunegonde in Candide at the Menier Chocolate Factory, Cassie in A Chorus Line at the London Palladium, Kathy Selden in Singin’ in the Rain at Chichester Festival Theatre and the Palace Theatre, London (Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical), Clara in Passion at the Donmar Warehouse, the title role in Mary Poppins at the New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway, a role she also played in the West End and most recently at the Capitol Theatre, Sydney. Prior to this, she played Marian in The Music Man at Chichester Festival Theatre. She has worked for the Royal Shakespeare Company playing Anne Page in Merry Wives of Windsor. Her performance of Josephine at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in HMS Pinafore won her an Olivier nomination. Other productions at Regent’s Park include Cymbeline and Twelfth Night, Truly Scrumptious in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (London Palladium), and original casts of Mamma Mia! (Prince Edward), The Witches of Eastwick (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane) and Peggy Sue Got Married (Shaftesbury). Her work for the BBC Proms as Laurie in Oklahoma! and in the Bernstein Prom singing “Glitter and Be Gay” with the John Wilson Orchestra can be found on YouTube. Follow Scarlett @scarlettstrallenofficial
Scarlett Strallen performs with symphonies all over the world and was requested by Her Majesty the Queen on three separate occasions to sing for her. Most recent theater credits include the title role in Nell Gwynn at Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Gwendolyn in Tom Stoppard’s Travesties on Broadway. Other theater credits include Amalia in She Loves Me, Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Hartford Stage, Mabel in Pirates of Penzance at Barrington Stage, Sibella in A Gentleman’s Guide To Love & Murder at the Walter Kerr Theatre, Kenneth Branagh’s Lady Macduff in Macbeth at the Armory in New York, Cunegonde in Candide at the Menier Chocolate Factory, Cassie in A Chorus Line at the London Palladium, Kathy Selden in Singin’ in the Rain at Chichester Festival Theatre and the Palace Theatre, London (Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical), Clara in Passion at the Donmar Warehouse, the title role in Mary Poppins at the New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway, a role she also played in the West End and most recently at the Capitol Theatre, Sydney. Prior to this, she played Marian in The Music Man at Chichester Festival Theatre. She has worked for the Royal Shakespeare Company playing Anne Page in Merry Wives of Windsor. Her performance of Josephine at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in HMS Pinafore won her an Olivier nomination. Other productions at Regent’s Park include Cymbeline and Twelfth Night, Truly Scrumptious in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (London Palladium), and original casts of Mamma Mia! (Prince Edward), The Witches of Eastwick (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane) and Peggy Sue Got Married (Shaftesbury). Her work for the BBC Proms as Laurie in Oklahoma! and in the Bernstein Prom singing “Glitter and Be Gay” with the John Wilson Orchestra can be found on YouTube. Follow Scarlett @scarlettstrallenofficial
Jessica Vosk is a celebrated Broadway actress and concert performer who recently returned to Carnegie Hall in Get Happy: A Judy Garland Centennial Celebration, after her sold-out solo concert there in 2021. A few short weeks ago, Jessica performed at a state dinner at The White House for President Biden, and she just finished her debut 20-city solo concert tour last month. She is best known for her star turn as Elphaba in Wicked, both on tour and in the 15th Anniversary Broadway company, and she was recently seen performing “Defying Gravity” on Great Performances: Celebrating 50 Years of Broadway’s Best (PBS). She starred in the Jerome Robbins tribute Something to Dance About with the NYC Ballet. Broadway credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Finding Neverland, and The Bridges of Madison County. Jessica produced two albums: Wild and Free and A Very Coco Christmas, which both debuted on the Billboard and iTunes Charts. Having started with a career in finance, her one-of-a-kind story has been covered by ABC’s 20/20 and NBC Nightly News. www.jessicavosk.com @jessicavosk
Jessica Vosk is a celebrated Broadway actress and concert performer who recently returned to Carnegie Hall in Get Happy: A Judy Garland Centennial Celebration, after her sold-out solo concert there in 2021. A few short weeks ago, Jessica performed at a state dinner at The White House for President Biden, and she just finished her debut 20-city solo concert tour last month. She is best known for her star turn as Elphaba in Wicked, both on tour and in the 15th Anniversary Broadway company, and she was recently seen performing “Defying Gravity” on Great Performances: Celebrating 50 Years of Broadway’s Best (PBS). She starred in the Jerome Robbins tribute Something to Dance About with the NYC Ballet. Broadway credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Finding Neverland, and The Bridges of Madison County. Jessica produced two albums: Wild and Free and A Very Coco Christmas, which both debuted on the Billboard and iTunes Charts. Having started with a career in finance, her one-of-a-kind story has been covered by ABC’s 20/20 and NBC Nightly News. www.jessicavosk.com @jessicavosk
Sally Wilfert Broadway: Assassins, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, King David. National Tour: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Off-Broadway: Trevor, See Rock City, Make Me A Song: The Music of William Finn, The Mistress Cycle, The Prince & the Pauper. Regional: The Secret of My Success (premiere), Always, Patsy Cline, Mamma Mia!, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Chasing Rainbows, Damn Yankees, Kiss Me, Kate, The Light in the Piazza, Little Miss Sunshine (premiere), Les Misérables, Elegies: A Song Cycle, Enchanted April, Marry Me a Little, Amadeus, The Last Five Years, to name a few. Recordings: Trevor, All the Girls (duo album w/ Rebecca Luker), One Voice (EP with Natalie Weiss), See Rock City, Sweet Little Devil, New York City Christmas, Make Me a Song, Assassins, King David, The Prince & the Pauper. Television: Trevor: The Musical (Disney+), The Blacklist (NBC), The Ameri-cans (Comedy Central), Law & Order Criminal Intent (NBC), Submissions Only (web series), Loving (ABC). Numerous concerts in major venues across the country and internationally. Winner of 2022 Bistro Awards for Vocal Excellence. Twitter & Instagram: @sallywilfert www.sallywilfert.com
Sally Wilfert Broadway: Assassins, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, King David. National Tour: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Off-Broadway: Trevor, See Rock City, Make Me A Song: The Music of William Finn, The Mistress Cycle, The Prince & the Pauper. Regional: The Secret of My Success (premiere), Always, Patsy Cline, Mamma Mia!, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Chasing Rainbows, Damn Yankees, Kiss Me, Kate, The Light in the Piazza, Little Miss Sunshine (premiere), Les Misérables, Elegies: A Song Cycle, Enchanted April, Marry Me a Little, Amadeus, The Last Five Years, to name a few. Recordings: Trevor, All the Girls (duo album w/ Rebecca Luker), One Voice (EP with Natalie Weiss), See Rock City, Sweet Little Devil, New York City Christmas, Make Me a Song, Assassins, King David, The Prince & the Pauper. Television: Trevor: The Musical (Disney+), The Blacklist (NBC), The Ameri-cans (Comedy Central), Law & Order Criminal Intent (NBC), Submissions Only (web series), Loving (ABC). Numerous concerts in major venues across the country and internationally. Winner of 2022 Bistro Awards for Vocal Excellence. Twitter & Instagram: @sallywilfert www.sallywilfert.com
Woodwind specialist Deborah Avery (Flute/Clarinet) is currently in the orchestra for Bad Cinderella and can be heard on the cast albums of Bullets Over Broadway, Side Show, An American in Paris, Groundhog Day, Beast in the Jungle, Renascence, and Between the Lines. She has also performed in over 50 regional and touring musicals including Wicked, The Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies, Mary Poppins, West Side Story, and Chicago. Besides Broadway, Deborah has maintained an active career in jazz, studio, and orchestral music, touring with artists such as Florence Henderson, Natalie Cole, Bobby Caldwell, and Jethro Tull. She also held principal chairs in several orchestras across the country while being a featured soloist. Deborah earned degrees from USC and the Eastman School of Music.
Woodwind specialist Deborah Avery (Flute/Clarinet) is currently in the orchestra for Bad Cinderella and can be heard on the cast albums of Bullets Over Broadway, Side Show, An American in Paris, Groundhog Day, Beast in the Jungle, Renascence, and Between the Lines. She has also performed in over 50 regional and touring musicals including Wicked, The Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies, Mary Poppins, West Side Story, and Chicago. Besides Broadway, Deborah has maintained an active career in jazz, studio, and orchestral music, touring with artists such as Florence Henderson, Natalie Cole, Bobby Caldwell, and Jethro Tull. She also held principal chairs in several orchestras across the country while being a featured soloist. Deborah earned degrees from USC and the Eastman School of Music.
Katherine Cherbas (Cello) has performed in 34 Broadway shows, most recently as a member of the orchestra for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bad Cinderella. She appears regularly with the Encores! Orchestra at New York City Center, the New Jersey Symphony, and other area orchestras. Her interests as a chamber musician range from Baroque continuo playing to collaborations with composers on new works. After studying at the Indiana University School of Music while in high school, Katherine moved to New York City and completed an undergraduate degree at Columbia University, a master’s degree at The Juilliard School, and a doctoral degree at SUNY-Stony Brook. When not performing, she usually can be found dodging foul balls at one of her teenage son’s many baseball games.
Katherine Cherbas (Cello) has performed in 34 Broadway shows, most recently as a member of the orchestra for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bad Cinderella. She appears regularly with the Encores! Orchestra at New York City Center, the New Jersey Symphony, and other area orchestras. Her interests as a chamber musician range from Baroque continuo playing to collaborations with composers on new works. After studying at the Indiana University School of Music while in high school, Katherine moved to New York City and completed an undergraduate degree at Columbia University, a master’s degree at The Juilliard School, and a doctoral degree at SUNY-Stony Brook. When not performing, she usually can be found dodging foul balls at one of her teenage son’s many baseball games.
A native of Haifa, Israel, Benny Koonyevsky (Percussion) has made New York City his home after graduating from The Juilliard School. At the age of 20, he made his solo debut with the Israel Philharmonic. Artists he has accompanied include The Who, Petula Clark, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Kate McGarry, Jonatha Brooke, Kelli O’Hara, Jason Robert Brown, Adam Guettel, Lara Saint-John, Peter, Paul and Mary, Andy Statman, Debbie Friedman, and Elana Arian. Recording credits include Gloria Estefan, Vanessa Williams, Donald Fagan, Afroblue, Gabrielle Roth, Elana Arian, Jennifer Holiday, Yehuda Poliker, and many others. Benny has appeared on Broadway in many productions, including Camelot, The Lion King, Aladdin, Funny Girl, The Music Man, Frozen, West Side Story, Bridges of Madison County, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof, and Ain’t Too Proud to Beg. As a classical musician, Benny has been a member of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under Zubin Mehta and a Principal Timpanist with the International Symphony Orchestra under Lorin Maazel. He is a regular sub at the New York Philharmonic, New York City Ballet, NJ Symphony, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Orpheus, and Absolute Ensemble.
A native of Haifa, Israel, Benny Koonyevsky (Percussion) has made New York City his home after graduating from The Juilliard School. At the age of 20, he made his solo debut with the Israel Philharmonic. Artists he has accompanied include The Who, Petula Clark, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Kate McGarry, Jonatha Brooke, Kelli O’Hara, Jason Robert Brown, Adam Guettel, Lara Saint-John, Peter, Paul and Mary, Andy Statman, Debbie Friedman, and Elana Arian. Recording credits include Gloria Estefan, Vanessa Williams, Donald Fagan, Afroblue, Gabrielle Roth, Elana Arian, Jennifer Holiday, Yehuda Poliker, and many others. Benny has appeared on Broadway in many productions, including Camelot, The Lion King, Aladdin, Funny Girl, The Music Man, Frozen, West Side Story, Bridges of Madison County, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof, and Ain’t Too Proud to Beg. As a classical musician, Benny has been a member of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under Zubin Mehta and a Principal Timpanist with the International Symphony Orchestra under Lorin Maazel. He is a regular sub at the New York Philharmonic, New York City Ballet, NJ Symphony, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Orpheus, and Absolute Ensemble.
Craig Magnano (Guitar, Ukulele) began his career on Broadway in 2005 playing guitar in the hit show Jersey Boys. Since then, he’s played in over 30 original Broadway productions. Craig currently plays in the band at Moulin Rouge!
Craig Magnano (Guitar, Ukulele) began his career on Broadway in 2005 playing guitar in the hit show Jersey Boys. Since then, he’s played in over 30 original Broadway productions. Craig currently plays in the band at Moulin Rouge!
Deborah Abramson has served as Music Director or Associate Music Director for several Broadway and Off-Broadway premieres, including Spring Awakening, James Joyce’s The Dead, Bernarda Alba, Dessa Rose, The Glorious Ones, and Broadbend, Arkansas. First Children's Music Director on Broadway for Matilda, The Musical. Music Director for the world premiere of The Gardens of Anuncia (Old Globe) and the English-language premiere of Maybe Happy Ending (Alliance Theatre). As a composer, she has written Old Older Oldest (with William Finn), Young Marco Polo (with Peter Mills), The History of War (with Amanda Yesnowitz and Chip Zien), and On the Verge (with Amanda Yesnowitz). www.deborahabramson.com
Deborah Abramson has served as Music Director or Associate Music Director for several Broadway and Off-Broadway premieres, including Spring Awakening, James Joyce’s The Dead, Bernarda Alba, Dessa Rose, The Glorious Ones, and Broadbend, Arkansas. First Children's Music Director on Broadway for Matilda, The Musical. Music Director for the world premiere of The Gardens of Anuncia (Old Globe) and the English-language premiere of Maybe Happy Ending (Alliance Theatre). As a composer, she has written Old Older Oldest (with William Finn), Young Marco Polo (with Peter Mills), The History of War (with Amanda Yesnowitz and Chip Zien), and On the Verge (with Amanda Yesnowitz). www.deborahabramson.com
Neil Bartram What an honor it is to celebrate Rebecca in this way. She made an indelible mark on everyone she encountered and her voice and spirit continue to inspire. She and Danny were both so generous with their time and talent when I first moved to New York, and I’ll never forget how they made me feel instantly accepted and embraced. Words are not enough. Thanks also to Joel for being the brains and heart behind this incredible evening. Collaborations with book writer Brian Hill include Broadway: The Story of My Life, UK Tour: Disney’s Bedknobs & Broomsticks, Regional: The Theory of Relativity (Goodspeed), You Are Here (Goodspeed, Southwark Playhouse), The Adventures of Pinocchio (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Something Wicked This Way Comes (Delaware Theatre Company), and Belles-Soeurs (Segal Centre, Canadian tour).
Neil Bartram What an honor it is to celebrate Rebecca in this way. She made an indelible mark on everyone she encountered and her voice and spirit continue to inspire. She and Danny were both so generous with their time and talent when I first moved to New York, and I’ll never forget how they made me feel instantly accepted and embraced. Words are not enough. Thanks also to Joel for being the brains and heart behind this incredible evening. Collaborations with book writer Brian Hill include Broadway: The Story of My Life, UK Tour: Disney’s Bedknobs & Broomsticks, Regional: The Theory of Relativity (Goodspeed), You Are Here (Goodspeed, Southwark Playhouse), The Adventures of Pinocchio (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Something Wicked This Way Comes (Delaware Theatre Company), and Belles-Soeurs (Segal Centre, Canadian tour).
Sean Berry is a playwright, lyricist, and novelist. His work includes Saint-Ex (Sundance White Oak, Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts, Ucross, Weston Playhouse), Summerland (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat), and What We Leave Behind (Sundance Theatre Makers Lab, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat, Solo Flights Festival at Theatre Aspen, Weston Playhouse), all written with composer Jenny Giering. His fiction and poetry have appeared in numerous publications including Mississippi Review, Boston Review, and Brilliant Corners, and he is the author most recently of The Mythbreakers, a YA science-fiction/fantasy series. When he’s not writing words, you can usually find him rebuilding Jenny’s kitchen so she can make more French macarons.
Sean Berry is a playwright, lyricist, and novelist. His work includes Saint-Ex (Sundance White Oak, Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts, Ucross, Weston Playhouse), Summerland (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat), and What We Leave Behind (Sundance Theatre Makers Lab, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat, Solo Flights Festival at Theatre Aspen, Weston Playhouse), all written with composer Jenny Giering. His fiction and poetry have appeared in numerous publications including Mississippi Review, Boston Review, and Brilliant Corners, and he is the author most recently of The Mythbreakers, a YA science-fiction/fantasy series. When he’s not writing words, you can usually find him rebuilding Jenny’s kitchen so she can make more French macarons.
John Bucchino’s award-winning songs have been performed and recorded by some of the world’s great artists. He has released CDs, songbooks, a children’s book, and writing the songs for Broadway’s A Catered Affair, the revue It’s Only Life, the Dreamworks animated film Joseph, King of Dreams, the new Danish musical Esaura, and lyrics for Simeon’s Gift, with music by Ian Fraser and book by Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton. For more info, please visit www.johnbucchino.com or subscribe to John’s Patreon page at Patreon.com/johnbucchino.
John Bucchino’s award-winning songs have been performed and recorded by some of the world’s great artists. He has released CDs, songbooks, a children’s book, and writing the songs for Broadway’s A Catered Affair, the revue It’s Only Life, the Dreamworks animated film Joseph, King of Dreams, the new Danish musical Esaura, and lyrics for Simeon’s Gift, with music by Ian Fraser and book by Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton. For more info, please visit www.johnbucchino.com or subscribe to John’s Patreon page at Patreon.com/johnbucchino.
Carmel Dean is an award-winning composer/lyricist and Broadway music department multi-hyphenate. Her compositional debut, Renascence, was produced in New York in 2018 and subsequently won the Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Musical. Her song cycle is about bad-ass, game-changing historical women, Well-Behaved Women, premiered at Joe’s Pub in January 2020 and has gone on to receive rave reviews for its productions in Sydney, Australia, and multiple regional theaters across the US. Current compositions include Maiden Voyage (commissioned for New Works Provincetown) and On Cedar Street (co-composed with Lucy Simon), which is receiving its world premiere at Berkshire Theatre Festival this summer. As a Broadway Musical Director, Supervisor, and/or Arranger, Carmel’s credits include the current revival of Funny Girl, If/Then, American Idiot, Hands on a Hardbody, and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Upcoming Broadway projects include The Notebook (with a score by Ingrid Michaelson).
Carmel Dean is an award-winning composer/lyricist and Broadway music department multi-hyphenate. Her compositional debut, Renascence, was produced in New York in 2018 and subsequently won the Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Musical. Her song cycle is about bad-ass, game-changing historical women, Well-Behaved Women, premiered at Joe’s Pub in January 2020 and has gone on to receive rave reviews for its productions in Sydney, Australia, and multiple regional theaters across the US. Current compositions include Maiden Voyage (commissioned for New Works Provincetown) and On Cedar Street (co-composed with Lucy Simon), which is receiving its world premiere at Berkshire Theatre Festival this summer. As a Broadway Musical Director, Supervisor, and/or Arranger, Carmel’s credits include the current revival of Funny Girl, If/Then, American Idiot, Hands on a Hardbody, and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Upcoming Broadway projects include The Notebook (with a score by Ingrid Michaelson).
Chris DiStefano is grateful to have his song included in this series. He’s a Seattle-based music director, vocal coach, and composer. Many thanks to Joel for the opportunity. Love to Albert and Jamie. Yourmindonsinging.com
Scott Eyerly is equally at home in musical theater, opera, and concert music. His one-woman comic opera My Life Online will premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August. Other works include Creatures Great and Small, written for Jennifer Larmore (premiere, Megève, France, 2018); Arlington Sons, written for Broadway and Met Opera star David Pittsinger (performed by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra conducted by Leonard Slatkin); The House of the Seven Gables, an opera produced at Manhattan School of Music and available on Albany Records; and POOCH, a musical about the search for love, success, a lost dog – and Puccini (workshop premiere, Seagle Festival 2018). Works performed at Carnegie Hall, The Blossom Festival, and Town Hall. Eyerly teaches popular courses on opera and musicals at Juilliard. www.scotteyerly.com
Scott Eyerly is equally at home in musical theater, opera, and concert music. His one-woman comic opera My Life Online will premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August. Other works include Creatures Great and Small, written for Jennifer Larmore (premiere, Megève, France, 2018); Arlington Sons, written for Broadway and Met Opera star David Pittsinger (performed by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra conducted by Leonard Slatkin); The House of the Seven Gables, an opera produced at Manhattan School of Music and available on Albany Records; and POOCH, a musical about the search for love, success, a lost dog – and Puccini (workshop premiere, Seagle Festival 2018). Works performed at Carnegie Hall, The Blossom Festival, and Town Hall. Eyerly teaches popular courses on opera and musicals at Juilliard. www.scotteyerly.com
Peter Foley (1967-2021) was a composer, lyricist, vocal arranger, and orchestrator. His musical theater works include The Hidden Sky (world premiere at Prince Music Theater, Philadelphia; nominated for six Barrymore Awards), The Names We Gave Him, I Capture the Castle, Bloom, The Bear, Whitechapel, and music for “To Sing” in Songs from an Unmade Bed (New York Theatre Workshop; ShK-Boom Records). For his music and lyrics, he received an NEA New American Works grant, the Richard Rodgers Award, Stephen Sondheim Award, Jonathan Larson Foundation Award, commissions from The Public Theater and Signature Theatre, and fellowships/residencies at the MacDowell Colony, Millay, O’Neill, and Sundance. Peter’s songs have been performed at Lincoln Center’s American Songbook, Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, New York Festival of Song, Symphony Space, Town Hall, Joe’s Pub, and 54 Below. An entire evening of his songs will be performed here at Symphony Space on June 5, 2023, to celebrate his artistic legacy. www.peterfoleymusic.org
Peter Foley (1967-2021) was a composer, lyricist, vocal arranger, and orchestrator. His musical theater works include The Hidden Sky (world premiere at Prince Music Theater, Philadelphia; nominated for six Barrymore Awards), The Names We Gave Him, I Capture the Castle, Bloom, The Bear, Whitechapel, and music for “To Sing” in Songs from an Unmade Bed (New York Theatre Workshop; ShK-Boom Records). For his music and lyrics, he received an NEA New American Works grant, the Richard Rodgers Award, Stephen Sondheim Award, Jonathan Larson Foundation Award, commissions from The Public Theater and Signature Theatre, and fellowships/residencies at the MacDowell Colony, Millay, O’Neill, and Sundance. Peter’s songs have been performed at Lincoln Center’s American Songbook, Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, New York Festival of Song, Symphony Space, Town Hall, Joe’s Pub, and 54 Below. An entire evening of his songs will be performed here at Symphony Space on June 5, 2023, to celebrate his artistic legacy. www.peterfoleymusic.org
Jenny Giering’s current projects include Alice Bliss commissioned by Playwrights Horizons and Stacey Mindich Productions (2018 Weston Playhouse New Musical Award) and What We Leave Behind (co-written with Sean Barry, 2019 TheatreWorks Writer’s Retreat, 2019 Theatre Aspen’s Solo Flights Festival), for which she received a 2021 Barrington Stage Spark Grant. She has written numerous incidental scores including music for Silent Sky (TheaterWorks 2015), Peter Pan and Wendy (Shakespeare Theater, 2019), Georgiana and Kitty (Marin Theater Company, 2021), all by Lauren Gunderson, Gertrude, and Claudius (Barrington Stage, 2019) by Mark Saint-Germain, and many others. When she’s not writing music, you can usually find her making French macarons.
Jenny Giering’s current projects include Alice Bliss commissioned by Playwrights Horizons and Stacey Mindich Productions (2018 Weston Playhouse New Musical Award) and What We Leave Behind (co-written with Sean Barry, 2019 TheatreWorks Writer’s Retreat, 2019 Theatre Aspen’s Solo Flights Festival), for which she received a 2021 Barrington Stage Spark Grant. She has written numerous incidental scores including music for Silent Sky (TheaterWorks 2015), Peter Pan and Wendy (Shakespeare Theater, 2019), Georgiana and Kitty (Marin Theater Company, 2021), all by Lauren Gunderson, Gertrude, and Claudius (Barrington Stage, 2019) by Mark Saint-Germain, and many others. When she’s not writing music, you can usually find her making French macarons.
Adam Gwon’s musicals have been produced on six continents in more than half-a-dozen languages. Off-Broadway: Scotland, PA (Roundabout – Drama Desk nomination, NYT Critic’s Pick), Ordinary Days (Roundabout, Keen Company revival – Drama League Award nomination) Old Jews Telling Jokes (Westside Theatre, NYT Critic’s Pick); Regional: String (Village Theatre), Cake Off (Signature Theatre – Helen Hayes nomination, Bucks County Playhouse), Cloudlands (South Coast Rep), The Boy Detective Fails (Signature), Bernice Bobs Her Hair (Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma); West End: Ordinary Days (Trafalgar Studios). Honors: Kleban, Ebb, Loewe, Richard Rodgers Awards, 2ST Donna Perret Rosen Award, Weston Playhouse New Musical Award, ASCAP Adamson Award, MAC Wallowitch Award. Recordings: Ordinary Days, Audra McDonald’s Go Back Home, Artists in Residence, The Essential Liz Callaway, Over the Moon: The Broadway Lullaby Album.
Adam Gwon’s musicals have been produced on six continents in more than half-a-dozen languages. Off-Broadway: Scotland, PA (Roundabout – Drama Desk nomination, NYT Critic’s Pick), Ordinary Days (Roundabout, Keen Company revival – Drama League Award nomination) Old Jews Telling Jokes (Westside Theatre, NYT Critic’s Pick); Regional: String (Village Theatre), Cake Off (Signature Theatre – Helen Hayes nomination, Bucks County Playhouse), Cloudlands (South Coast Rep), The Boy Detective Fails (Signature), Bernice Bobs Her Hair (Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma); West End: Ordinary Days (Trafalgar Studios). Honors: Kleban, Ebb, Loewe, Richard Rodgers Awards, 2ST Donna Perret Rosen Award, Weston Playhouse New Musical Award, ASCAP Adamson Award, MAC Wallowitch Award. Recordings: Ordinary Days, Audra McDonald’s Go Back Home, Artists in Residence, The Essential Liz Callaway, Over the Moon: The Broadway Lullaby Album.
Mike Heitzman is the Artistic Director for Musical Development at the historic Lucille Lortel Theatre. His musical Genius will receive an industry reading produced by Ogunquit Playhouse this spring. Recent directing credits: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Tuacahn Center for the Performing Arts, Beauty and the Beast and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, 42nd Street at The Ordway and Drury Lane Theater (Jeff Award nominee, Best Director), Beauty and the Beast PCLO, North Shore Music Theater, La Mirada. Newsies, Big River, and Legally Blonde at Broadway at Music Circus. Shrek the Musical and Disney’s The Little Mermaid (IRNE Award nominee, Best Director) at North Shore Music Theater and VICES (Jeff Award nominee, Best Director). Member of The Dramatists Guild and SDC. michaelheitzman.com
Mike Heitzman is the Artistic Director for Musical Development at the historic Lucille Lortel Theatre. His musical Genius will receive an industry reading produced by Ogunquit Playhouse this spring. Recent directing credits: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Tuacahn Center for the Performing Arts, Beauty and the Beast and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, 42nd Street at The Ordway and Drury Lane Theater (Jeff Award nominee, Best Director), Beauty and the Beast PCLO, North Shore Music Theater, La Mirada. Newsies, Big River, and Legally Blonde at Broadway at Music Circus. Shrek the Musical and Disney’s The Little Mermaid (IRNE Award nominee, Best Director) at North Shore Music Theater and VICES (Jeff Award nominee, Best Director). Member of The Dramatists Guild and SDC. michaelheitzman.com
Henry Krieger most notably wrote the music for the Broadway shows Dreamgirls (1981, with lyrics and book by Tom Eyen), The Tap Dance Kid (1983), and Side Show (1997). He was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Score for both Dreamgirls and Side Show, won the Grammy Award for Best Cast Show Album for the cast album of Dreamgirls, and has the distinction of being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song three times in the same year, when three of his compositions for the film version of Dreamgirls received nominations: “Listen,” “Love You I Do,” and “Patience.”
Henry Krieger most notably wrote the music for the Broadway shows Dreamgirls (1981, with lyrics and book by Tom Eyen), The Tap Dance Kid (1983), and Side Show (1997). He was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Score for both Dreamgirls and Side Show, won the Grammy Award for Best Cast Show Album for the cast album of Dreamgirls, and has the distinction of being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song three times in the same year, when three of his compositions for the film version of Dreamgirls received nominations: “Listen,” “Love You I Do,” and “Patience.”
Andrew Lippa Musicals: John & Jen, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (new songs), The Wild Party, A Little Princess, Jerry Christmas, Asphalt Beach, The Addams Family, Big Fish, The Man in the Ceiling. Up next: LEAP, The Turning Point. Concert Works: I Am Harvey Milk, Rising Tide, I Am Anne Hutchinson, Unbreakable, Songs of the Phoenix (curator/2 songs). Film/TV: A Totally Awesome 80’s Christmas Movie (in development) The Wonder Pets (multiple episodes), John & Jen (Amazon Prime; others). Selected Individual Songs: “One Day,” “Evil Like Me” (from Disney’s Descendants), “I’m Not Waiting,” “Family Tree,” and “The Diva” (for Renée Fleming/Vanessa Williams). Honors: Fellow of The Leeds Conservatoire; Tony/Emmy/Grammy Nominee; Drama Desk; Outer Critics Circle; Gold record; ASCAP Richard Rodgers. Arts Leadership: President, Dramatists Guild Foundation (DGF.org); Trustee, Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC.org).
Andrew Lippa Musicals: John & Jen, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (new songs), The Wild Party, A Little Princess, Jerry Christmas, Asphalt Beach, The Addams Family, Big Fish, The Man in the Ceiling. Up next: LEAP, The Turning Point. Concert Works: I Am Harvey Milk, Rising Tide, I Am Anne Hutchinson, Unbreakable, Songs of the Phoenix (curator/2 songs). Film/TV: A Totally Awesome 80’s Christmas Movie (in development) The Wonder Pets (multiple episodes), John & Jen (Amazon Prime; others). Selected Individual Songs: “One Day,” “Evil Like Me” (from Disney’s Descendants), “I’m Not Waiting,” “Family Tree,” and “The Diva” (for Renée Fleming/Vanessa Williams). Honors: Fellow of The Leeds Conservatoire; Tony/Emmy/Grammy Nominee; Drama Desk; Outer Critics Circle; Gold record; ASCAP Richard Rodgers. Arts Leadership: President, Dramatists Guild Foundation (DGF.org); Trustee, Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC.org).
David Loud has had a distinguished career as a Broadway music director; his credits include The Visit, The Scottsboro Boys, Sondheim on Sondheim, Curtains, Ragtime, A Class Act, Steel Pier, and revivals of Porgy and Bess, She Loves Me, Company, and Sweeney Todd. He also originated the role of Manny in Terrence McNally’s Master Class, starring Zoe Caldwell and Audra McDonald. Broadway debut: Harold Prince’s original 1981 production of Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along. Off-Broadway, David created the vocal and dance arrangements for Kander and Ebb’s And the World Goes ’Round. He is currently on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music. His book, Facing the Music: A Broadway Memoir, was recently published by Regan Arts, a division of Simon & Schuster.
David Loud has had a distinguished career as a Broadway music director; his credits include The Visit, The Scottsboro Boys, Sondheim on Sondheim, Curtains, Ragtime, A Class Act, Steel Pier, and revivals of Porgy and Bess, She Loves Me, Company, and Sweeney Todd. He also originated the role of Manny in Terrence McNally’s Master Class, starring Zoe Caldwell and Audra McDonald. Broadway debut: Harold Prince’s original 1981 production of Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along. Off-Broadway, David created the vocal and dance arrangements for Kander and Ebb’s And the World Goes ’Round. He is currently on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music. His book, Facing the Music: A Broadway Memoir, was recently published by Regan Arts, a division of Simon & Schuster.
Chris Miller Tuck Everlasting (Broadway 2016), The Burnt Part Boys (Playwrights Horizons/Vineyard, Lortel Nominee Best Musical 2011), Fugitive Songs (Drama Desk Nominee Outstanding Revue 2008), all cast albums available. Co-arranging and co-orchestrating Swept Away by The Avett Brothers and John Logan, directed by Michael Mayer. Upcoming: the book, music, and lyrics for Ravello (Signature Theatre (VA) American Musical Voices Project); Prairie Songs & April Twilights for soprano & orchestra, setting the poetry of Willa Cather; The Goats, a commission for Barbara Whitman & Grove Entertainment; with Nathan Tysen: Revival, based on a short story by Willa Cather, Blown Sideways Through Life (book by Claudia Shear), and Dreamland for the EdTA and Concord Theatricals, which released a cast album on Craft Recordings, available wherever music is streamed.
Chris Miller Tuck Everlasting (Broadway 2016), The Burnt Part Boys (Playwrights Horizons/Vineyard, Lortel Nominee Best Musical 2011), Fugitive Songs (Drama Desk Nominee Outstanding Revue 2008), all cast albums available. Co-arranging and co-orchestrating Swept Away by The Avett Brothers and John Logan, directed by Michael Mayer. Upcoming: the book, music, and lyrics for Ravello (Signature Theatre (VA) American Musical Voices Project); Prairie Songs & April Twilights for soprano & orchestra, setting the poetry of Willa Cather; The Goats, a commission for Barbara Whitman & Grove Entertainment; with Nathan Tysen: Revival, based on a short story by Willa Cather, Blown Sideways Through Life (book by Claudia Shear), and Dreamland for the EdTA and Concord Theatricals, which released a cast album on Craft Recordings, available wherever music is streamed.
Matt Perri is currently the Resident Music Supervisor for The 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle, WA. Broadway credits: Bandstand, Come From Away, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Scandalous, How to Succeed... (2011), Promises, Promises (2010), White Christmas, and The Drowsy Chaperone. The 5th Avenue Theatre: Sweeney Todd, Afterwords, Austen’s Pride, West Side Story. Off-Broadway: Cagney. Perri also co-produced the original cast recording of Cagney. Television credits: The Sound of Music Live and Peter Pan Live, both on NBC; Late Night with Jimmy Fallon; The Late Show with David Letterman; and The View. In concert, he has served as music director and performed with Bette Midler, Kristin Chenoweth, Jessica Vosk, and Mario Cantone. He lives in Poulsbo, WA with his wife Molly, son Elliot, and daughter Nola.
Matt Perri is currently the Resident Music Supervisor for The 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle, WA. Broadway credits: Bandstand, Come From Away, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Scandalous, How to Succeed... (2011), Promises, Promises (2010), White Christmas, and The Drowsy Chaperone. The 5th Avenue Theatre: Sweeney Todd, Afterwords, Austen’s Pride, West Side Story. Off-Broadway: Cagney. Perri also co-produced the original cast recording of Cagney. Television credits: The Sound of Music Live and Peter Pan Live, both on NBC; Late Night with Jimmy Fallon; The Late Show with David Letterman; and The View. In concert, he has served as music director and performed with Bette Midler, Kristin Chenoweth, Jessica Vosk, and Mario Cantone. He lives in Poulsbo, WA with his wife Molly, son Elliot, and daughter Nola.
Chris Peters is a singer/songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He has produced records for independent artists Katherine Paterson and Sofia Campoamor and is a member of the NYC-based band, The Cuffs. His solo album, Chris Peters, Grown-Up Singer, is available on all platforms.
Chris Peters is a singer/songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He has produced records for independent artists Katherine Paterson and Sofia Campoamor and is a member of the NYC-based band, The Cuffs. His solo album, Chris Peters, Grown-Up Singer, is available on all platforms.
Ilene Reid is one of the Grammy-nominated songwriters of “Throw That Girl Around” from the Broadway musical Swing! Her musical Bingo (The Winning Musical), written with Michael Heitzman and David Holcenberg, had a successful Off-Broadway run and continues to have numerous productions nationally and internationally. Currently in development: two Heitzman/Reid musicals – the non-traditional, family-affirming Solana, the hilarious satire Genius, based on the novel by Patrick Dennis, and Godsplaining, the dark comic story of what really went down in Genesis, written with Manja Lyssy. Ilene is a proud member of The Dramatists Guild (2008-2009 Fellow) and Maestra and is also a private vocal coach in New York City and adjunct vocal professor at Indiana University.
Ilene Reid is one of the Grammy-nominated songwriters of “Throw That Girl Around” from the Broadway musical Swing! Her musical Bingo (The Winning Musical), written with Michael Heitzman and David Holcenberg, had a successful Off-Broadway run and continues to have numerous productions nationally and internationally. Currently in development: two Heitzman/Reid musicals – the non-traditional, family-affirming Solana, the hilarious satire Genius, based on the novel by Patrick Dennis, and Godsplaining, the dark comic story of what really went down in Genesis, written with Manja Lyssy. Ilene is a proud member of The Dramatists Guild (2008-2009 Fellow) and Maestra and is also a private vocal coach in New York City and adjunct vocal professor at Indiana University.
Joshua Rosenblum is the composer/lyricist of the Off-Broadway musicals Einstein’s Dreams (four Drama Desk nominations), Fermat’s Last Tango, and BUSH IS BAD (described as “a sensation” by Variety). He has conducted 12 Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, and performed as a pianist with the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall and the City Center Encores! Orchestra. He is a faculty member at both Yale (composition) and NYU (conducting) and holds a B.A. in Music summa cum laude and an M.M. in Piano from Yale. A longtime contributing writer for Opera News, Rosenblum is the author of the forthcoming book Closer Than Ever: The Unique Six-Decade Songwriting Partnership of Richard Maltby, Jr. and David Shire, which will be published by Oxford University Press later this year.
Joshua Rosenblum is the composer/lyricist of the Off-Broadway musicals Einstein’s Dreams (four Drama Desk nominations), Fermat’s Last Tango, and BUSH IS BAD (described as “a sensation” by Variety). He has conducted 12 Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, and performed as a pianist with the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall and the City Center Encores! Orchestra. He is a faculty member at both Yale (composition) and NYU (conducting) and holds a B.A. in Music summa cum laude and an M.M. in Piano from Yale. A longtime contributing writer for Opera News, Rosenblum is the author of the forthcoming book Closer Than Ever: The Unique Six-Decade Songwriting Partnership of Richard Maltby, Jr. and David Shire, which will be published by Oxford University Press later this year.
Joel Waggoner is a singer/songwriter, composer, performer, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, teacher, and comedian. Broadway: Be More Chill, School of Rock. Off-Broadway: A Man of No Importance (CSC), Southern Comfort (Public Theater), The Joel Waggoner Experience (Joe’s Pub). Regional: Knoxville (Asolo Rep World Premiere). TV: Only Murders in the Building (Season 3), Wig Mediums (original series, Broadstream), $100,000 Pyramid (Season 3). Vocal Arranger: Randy Rainbow “Speaker of the House,” “Fantasy for Santos,” Joe Iconis “Album,” Broadway Bounty Hunter (Off-Broadway Cast Recording). MFA from NYU Tisch. “Unlikely Warrior,” “Gorgine,” and “Stable Girl” are all available on music platforms. www.joelwaggoner.com @joelwaggoner @adventcarolndar
Joel Waggoner is a singer/songwriter, composer, performer, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, teacher, and comedian. Broadway: Be More Chill, School of Rock. Off-Broadway: A Man of No Importance (CSC), Southern Comfort (Public Theater), The Joel Waggoner Experience (Joe’s Pub). Regional: Knoxville (Asolo Rep World Premiere). TV: Only Murders in the Building (Season 3), Wig Mediums (original series, Broadstream), $100,000 Pyramid (Season 3). Vocal Arranger: Randy Rainbow “Speaker of the House,” “Fantasy for Santos,” Joe Iconis “Album,” Broadway Bounty Hunter (Off-Broadway Cast Recording). MFA from NYU Tisch. “Unlikely Warrior,” “Gorgine,” and “Stable Girl” are all available on music platforms. www.joelwaggoner.com @joelwaggoner @adventcarolndar
Sam Willmott’s shows include Wake Up, Daisy! (now playing at Central Park’s Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater) and Yo, Vikings!, both with Marcus Stevens, Bhangra Nation with Mike Lew and Rehana Lew Mirza (La Jolla Playhouse), and the Emmy-nominated HBO documentary Song of Parkland. His work has received the Kleban Prize, Fred Ebb Award, Jonathan Larson Grant, Richard Rodgers Award, and the ASCAP Foundation Harold Adamson and Cole Porter Awards. Sam is a staff writer for English Egg, a Seoul-based children’s language program, and teaches at Harvard University and with Lincoln Center’s Songwriting in Schools Program. For more info, visit SamWillmott.com. Endless gratitude for Joel Fram, Jay Eisenberg, and of course Rebecca Luker.
Sam Willmott’s shows include Wake Up, Daisy! (now playing at Central Park’s Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater) and Yo, Vikings!, both with Marcus Stevens, Bhangra Nation with Mike Lew and Rehana Lew Mirza (La Jolla Playhouse), and the Emmy-nominated HBO documentary Song of Parkland. His work has received the Kleban Prize, Fred Ebb Award, Jonathan Larson Grant, Richard Rodgers Award, and the ASCAP Foundation Harold Adamson and Cole Porter Awards. Sam is a staff writer for English Egg, a Seoul-based children’s language program, and teaches at Harvard University and with Lincoln Center’s Songwriting in Schools Program. For more info, visit SamWillmott.com. Endless gratitude for Joel Fram, Jay Eisenberg, and of course Rebecca Luker.
Joel Fram (Producer) is a music supervisor, conductor, and producer. Previously at Symphony Space with producing partner Annette Jolles: New Voices, Project Broadway, Wall to Wall Sondheim, Wall to Wall Cabaret, W2W Schwartz, Sinatra at 100, Songs from A Little Night Music, Songs from Cabaret. As a conductor, his Broadway credits include Company, Wicked, Scandalous, Sweet Smell of Success, Music Man, The Dead, Jumpers, CATS, and I Am Harvey Milk. In London, he has music supervised and conducted Company, Wicked, Forbidden Broadway, and Pictures from an Exhibition. Joel oversees the Musical Theatre Writing Workshop at the National Theatre in London, is a Creative Associate at the Universal Music Group UK Theatre Division, and serves as Literary Associate at the Old Vic.
Joel Fram (Producer) is a music supervisor, conductor, and producer. Previously at Symphony Space with producing partner Annette Jolles: New Voices, Project Broadway, Wall to Wall Sondheim, Wall to Wall Cabaret, W2W Schwartz, Sinatra at 100, Songs from A Little Night Music, Songs from Cabaret. As a conductor, his Broadway credits include Company, Wicked, Scandalous, Sweet Smell of Success, Music Man, The Dead, Jumpers, CATS, and I Am Harvey Milk. In London, he has music supervised and conducted Company, Wicked, Forbidden Broadway, and Pictures from an Exhibition. Joel oversees the Musical Theatre Writing Workshop at the National Theatre in London, is a Creative Associate at the Universal Music Group UK Theatre Division, and serves as Literary Associate at the Old Vic.
Annette Jolles (Director/Producer) has created a diverse body of work as a director and producer for theater and television and is the recipient of 17 Emmy Awards. She has directed numerous Live From Lincoln Center broadcasts, including solo concerts featuring Cynthia Erivo, Sutton Foster, Leslie Odom, Jr., Norm Lewis, and Patina Miller, and symphonic concerts for Mostly Mozart and the New York Philharmonic. She also produced and directed Stars on Stage for PBS, directing episodes starring Brandon Victor Dixon and Shoshana Bean, and recently produced the capture of Mr. Saturday Night for BroadwayHD. Previously at Symphony Space with producing partner Joel Fram: Wall to Wall Bernstein, Wall to Wall Sondheim, Wall to Wall Cabaret, Wall to Wall Stephen Schwartz, Frank Sinatra at 100, Project Broadway, New Voices, Songs from A Little Night Music, and Songs from Cabaret for the 2023 gala. She teaches Musical Theater Performance at Yale.
Annette Jolles (Director/Producer) has created a diverse body of work as a director and producer for theater and television and is the recipient of 17 Emmy Awards. She has directed numerous Live From Lincoln Center broadcasts, including solo concerts featuring Cynthia Erivo, Sutton Foster, Leslie Odom, Jr., Norm Lewis, and Patina Miller, and symphonic concerts for Mostly Mozart and the New York Philharmonic. She also produced and directed Stars on Stage for PBS, directing episodes starring Brandon Victor Dixon and Shoshana Bean, and recently produced the capture of Mr. Saturday Night for BroadwayHD. Previously at Symphony Space with producing partner Joel Fram: Wall to Wall Bernstein, Wall to Wall Sondheim, Wall to Wall Cabaret, Wall to Wall Stephen Schwartz, Frank Sinatra at 100, Project Broadway, New Voices, Songs from A Little Night Music, and Songs from Cabaret for the 2023 gala. She teaches Musical Theater Performance at Yale.
Henry Nettleton (Associate Director) is a New York-based theatre director specializing in new plays and musicals. At Symphony Space: Songs from Cabaret, Songs from A Little Night Music, Sinatra at 100. Select Credits: Lungs (Really Really Theatre Group), Much Better (Really Really Theatre Group), Every Brilliant Thing (Really Really Theatre Group), and Sweeney Todd (University of Michigan). As assistant director, he has developed work for the Juilliard School, Seattle Repertory Theatre, 5th Avenue Theatre, Keen Company, and Village Theatre (Issaquah, WA). He is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop as a lyricist and a proud graduate of the University of Michigan, Department of Musical Theatre. When not in the theatre, Henry works as a producer at HangarFour Creative.
Henry Nettleton (Associate Director) is a New York-based theatre director specializing in new plays and musicals. At Symphony Space: Songs from Cabaret, Songs from A Little Night Music, Sinatra at 100. Select Credits: Lungs (Really Really Theatre Group), Much Better (Really Really Theatre Group), Every Brilliant Thing (Really Really Theatre Group), and Sweeney Todd (University of Michigan). As assistant director, he has developed work for the Juilliard School, Seattle Repertory Theatre, 5th Avenue Theatre, Keen Company, and Village Theatre (Issaquah, WA). He is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop as a lyricist and a proud graduate of the University of Michigan, Department of Musical Theatre. When not in the theatre, Henry works as a producer at HangarFour Creative.
Sonnet
Performed by Ms. Kouatchou
Text by Alice Moore Dunbar-Nelson
Music by Scott Eyerly
I had not thought of violets late,
The wild, shy kind that spring beneath your feet
In wistful April days, when lovers mate
And wander through the fields in raptures sweet.
The thought of violets meant florists’ shops,
And bows and pins, and perfumed papers fine;
And garish lights, and mincing little fops
And cabarets and soaps, and deadening wines.
So far from sweet real things my thoughts had strayed,
I had forgot wide fields; and clear brown streams;
The perfect loveliness that God has made,—
Wild violets shy and Heaven-mounting dreams.
And now—unwittingly, you’ve made me dream
Of violets, and my soul’s forgotten gleam.
Broadway
Performed by Ms. Daniels
Text by Sara Teasdale
Music by Peter Foley
This is the quiet hour; the theaters
Have gathered in their crowds, and steadily
The million lights blaze on for few to see,
Robbing the sky of stars that should be hers.
A woman waits with bag and shabby furs,
A somber man drifts by, and only we
Pass up the street unwearied, warm and free,
For over us the olden magic stirs.
Beneath the liquid splendor of the lights
We live a little ere the charm is spent;
This night is ours, of all the golden nights,
The pavement an enchanted palace floor,
And Youth the player on the viol, who sent
A strain of music through an open door.
Central Park at Dusk
Performed by Ms. Kondo
Text by Sara Teasdale
Music by Adam Gwon
Buildings above the leafless trees
Loom high as castles in a dream,
While one by one the lamps come out
To thread the twilight with a gleam.
There is no sign of leaf or bud,
A hush is over everything—
Silent as women wait for love,
The world is waiting for the spring.
Digression on Number 1, 1948
Performed by Ms. Ewoldt
Text by Frank O’Hara
Music by Joel Waggoner
I am ill today but I am not
too ill. I am not ill at all.
It is a perfect day, warm
for winter, cold for fall.
A fine day for seeing. I see
ceramics, during lunch hour, by
Miro, and I see the sea by Leger;
light, complicated Metzingers
and a rude awakening by Brauner,
a little table by Picasso, pink.
I am tired today but I am not
too tired. I am not tired at all.
There is the Pollock, white, harm
will not fall, his perfect hand
and the many short voyages. They’ll
never fence the silver range.
Stars are out and there is sea
enough beneath the glistening earth
to bear me toward the future
which is not so dark. I see.
The Haunted House
Performed by Ms. Burns
Text by Phoebe Rosenblum (Age 7)
Music by Joshua Rosenblum
Once in a far far land,
There lived a vampire, a witch and a ghost.
They worked and lived in a haunted house
With spiders delivering their mail to scare the people.
With alligators as pets.
Rugs as tongues,
And snakes as ropes,
They worked and lived
In a very, very entirely
Haunted house.
Whenever they see someone walking by,
Their rug/tongue grabs them
And the witch quickly grabs the snake
And ties up the person.
They call their pet alligator,
And the person gets eaten alive.
And when their pet alligator gets a stomach ache.
They find him some bark or a dead body
Because those are the foods or medicines
That make him feel better.
They sleep all day
And they work all night.
Rugs as tongues
And snakes as rope.
They call an owl
To see if someone’s coming.
The end!
Where the Art Is
Performed by Ms. Vosk
Text by Phoebe Rosenblum (Age 12)
Music by Joshua Rosenblum
Home is where the heart is
It’s also where the art is
I come home every day
To a family’s smile, sweet and tart
It is the drumming drums a’ humming
A song is becoming
Jazz or classical I couldn’t tell you
But a great performance
I don’t doubt
Choose a different chord
Try an “A” diminished
Because of strict corrections
The song may never be finished
But home is where the art is
My very favorite part is
The music keeps me awake and alive
It’s forever where my heart is
Symphony
Performed by Ms. Darrell
Text by Mary Kelly (Age 13)
Music by David Loud
Most people go to the symphony
To hear sonatas, or concertos.
That’s their favorite part.
They await the start of these vast pieces
With bated breath.
They tap their feet
Expectantly, agitated.
Waiting for the musicians to warm up.
For their bows to finally touch the strings
With a sudden burst of sound,
Filling the room,
Bouncing off the walls playfully.
The notes chasing each other,
Combining,
And then dying away,
Making space for a new batch to come in,
And starting all over again
This is why most people go to the symphony.
But not me.
I go for the beginning
Not the start of the song
But the very beginning.
When the head violinist
The general of this musical army
Finally walks onto the stage
Everyone stands up to greet him
And they bow
I can almost imagine a salute
They give him respect
And then they are seated.
Then everyone is silent
Waiting
And the general
Takes a breath
And one single note comes out
Swells
Resonates
Fills the room.
And then, there is chaos.
This is my favorite part.
The chaos.
Everyone bursting out with their own sound
Testing to make sure they are ready
For the journey.
Soldiers on a field, preparing for what is ahead.
This is the only part, before it begins
That you can see
You can see each individual
With their individual minds
But it’s only for a brief second.
After all of the sound
Is out of their system
Their thoughts
It is quiet once more.
The conductor walks on
Tall
Proud
Ready to begin
Everyone holds their breath
As the head of this unique force
Walks.
And walks.
Until he reaches the center,
Where he belongs.
Everyone in their place
Everyone takes
A simultaneous breath
And they begin
All those separate minds from before
Are now melded
Into one.
Everyone marching, to the same beat.
In sync.
And even though
My favorite part is over
I realize
That it is still beautiful.
Lilacs
Performed by Ms. Benko
Text by Katherine Garrison Chapin
Music by Carmel Dean
When I met my lover
Lilacs were new,
He said, “I brought some lilacs,
Lilacs for you.”
I took them eagerly
Laughing in surprise;
He said: “They are pretty
Just like your eyes.”
I pressed the pointed blossoms
Close to my cheek,
And the smooth green leaves...
But I couldn’t speak.
How was I to tell him,
Spring being new,
How say: “It is the lilacs
I love, not you.”
Sonnet II: Time Does Not Bring Relief
Performed by Ms. Carmello
Text by Edna St. Vincent Millay
Music by John Bucchino
Time does not bring relief; you all have lied
Who told me time would ease me of my pain!
I miss him in the weeping of the rain;
I want him at the shrinking of the tide;
The old snows melt from every mountain-side,
And last year’s leaves are smoke in every lane;
But last year’s bitter loving must remain
Heaped on my heart, and my old thoughts abide.
There are a hundred places where I fear
To go,—so with his memory they brim.
And entering with relief some quiet place
Where never fell his foot or shone his face
I say, “There is no memory of him here!”
And so stand stricken, so remembering him.
Mirabeau Bridge
Performed by Ms. Wilfert
Text by Guillaume Apollinaire, trans. Richard Wilbur
Music by Chris Miller
Under the Mirabeau Bridge there flows the Seine
Must I recall
Our loves recall how then
After each sorrow joy came back again
Let night come on bells end the day
The days go by me still I stay
Hands joined and face to face let’s stay just so
While underneath
The bridge of our arms shall go
Weary of endless looks the river’s flow
Let night come on bells end the day
The days go by me still I stay
All love goes by as water to the sea
All love goes by
How slow life seems to me
How violent the hope of love can be
Let night come on bells end the day
The days go by me still I stay
The days the weeks pass by beyond our ken
Neither time past
Nor love comes back again
Under the Mirabeau Bridge there flows the Seine
Let night come on bells end the day
The days go by me still I stay
The Doctor Is In
Performed by Ms. Strallen and Mr. Pinkham
Music & Lyrics by Neil Bartram
Your head is throbbing.
You're racked with pain.
You’ve got a fever
You can’t explain.
You’re struck with pins and needles
Tingling down your skin.
Well, don’t worry.
The doctor is in.
My throat is scratchy.
My tongue is raw.
Well honey, open wide
And simply say... ah.
I hyperventilate.
The room begins to spin.
Thank heaven,
The doctor is in.
My knees are weak.
My heart’s a-flutter.
My sanity is hanging by a thread.
I try to speak.
I cough and stutter.
You should go directly to bed.
(It’s doctor’s orders)
Don't need a potion.
Don't need no pills.
To cure your vertigo
Your aches and your chills.
I'm so confused
I don't know where to begin.
Well, don’t fight it.
The doctor is in.
This pesky bug
Defies description.
I’ve never had a feeling like this.
Well, I’m your drug
And my prescription
Is hurry over here for a kiss.
(And that’s for starters)
This might be chronic
But that’s all right.
Now that there’s a doctor
In the house every night.
So take your medicine each night with a grin.
When she examines me it might be a sin.
You're (I’m) the Hippocratic yang to my (your) yin.
Just medicate me.
The doctor is in.
Buttering the Sky
Performed by Ms. Ewoldt
Text by Hafiz, trans. Daniel Ladinsky
Music by Deborah Abramson
Slipping
On my shoes,
Boiling water,
Toasting bread,
Buttering the sky:
That should be enough contact
With God in one day
To make anyone
Crazy.
Common Could
Performed by Ms. Kondo
Text by Jay Eisenberg
Music by Sam Willmott
I think I caught the common could
That’s why I’m still in bed
I could get up.
I could get out.
Or I could sleep instead.
“The common could’s incurable!”
That’s what the doctors say.
But I could cure it, probably.
Just...maybe not today.
The Dragon of Grindly Grun
Performed by Ms. Kouatchou
Text by Shel Silverstein
Music by Henry Krieger
I’m the Dragon of Grindly Grun,
I breathe fire as hot as the sun.
When a knight comes to fight
I just toast him on sight,
Like a hot crispy cinnamon bun.
When I see a fair damsel go by,
I just sigh a fiery sigh,
And she’d baked like a ‘tater–
I think of her later
With a romantic tear in my eye.
I’m the Dragon of Grindly Grun,
But my lunches aren’t very much fun,
For I like my damsels medium rare,
and they always come out well done.
There Are Delicacies
Performed by Ms. Bennett
Text by Earle Birney
Music by Joseph Thalken
there are delicacies in you
like the hearts of watches
there are wheels that turn
on the tips of rubies
& tiny intricate locks
i need your help
to contrive keys
there is so little time
even for the finest
of watches
Marilyn Miller
Performed by Ms. Darrell & Ms. Wilfert
Text by Dorothy Parker
Music by Joseph Thalken
From the alley’s gloom and chill
Up to fame danced Sally.
Which was nice for her, but still
Rough upon the alley.
How it must regret her wiles.
All her ways and glances.
Now the theatre owns her smiles,
Sallies, songs, and dances.
Ever onward Sally goes—
Life’s one thing that’s certain.
O’er the end of other shows
Let us draw a curtain.
Their untimely ends are sad,
But they stood no chances,
For, you see, they never had
Sally’s songs and dances.
Walking Away
Performed by Ms. Wilfert
Text by C. Day-Lewis
Music by Joseph Thalken
It is eighteen years ago, almost to the day—
A sunny day with the leaves just turning,
The touch-lines new-ruled—since I watched you play
Your first game of football, then, like a satellite
Wrenched from its orbit, go drifting away
Behind a scatter of boys. I can see
You walking away from me towards the school
with the pathos of a half-fledged thing set free
Into a wilderness, the gait of one
Who finds no path where the path should be.
That hesitant figure, eddying away
Like a winged seed loosened from its parent stem,
Has something I never quite grasp to convey
About nature’s give-and-take—the small, the scorching
Ordeals which fire one’s irresolute clay.
I had worse partings, but none that so
Gnaws at my mind still. Perhaps it is roughly
Saying what God alone could perfectly show—
How selfhood begins with a walking away,
And love proved in the letting go.
Not Funny
Performed by Ms. Strallen
Music & Lyrics by Michael Heitzman & Ilene Reid
i carry your heart with me
Performed by Ms. Carmello & Ms. Kouatchou
Text by e. e. cummings
Music by Merideth Kaye Clark
i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
i fear no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart with me(i carry it in my heart)
Somewhere There’s a Story
Performed by Ms. Daniels
Text by Sean Barry
Music by Jenny Giering
Somewhere there’s a story
of how the lonesome moon was born.
Of the longing that engendered light.
Of how from formlessness came form.
Somewhere there’s a story
of green things yearning for the sky.
Of rivers keening for the ocean.
Of waters too stopped up to cry.
Somewhere there’s the story
of how the winter turned to spring.
Of how we two would find each other.
Of how each end births a beginning.
Somewhere there’s the story
of just how mighty was my need.
Of how my point in life was you.
Of how your point in life was me.
Someday they’ll hear it told,
all the children of our children.
Of how my life began with you.
Of how this story’s end is them.
Declaration
Performed by Ms. Benko
Text by Langston Hughes
Music by Chris Peters
If I was a sea-lion
Swimming in the sea,
I would swim to China
And you never would see me.
No!
You never would
See me.
If I was a rich boy
I’d buy myself a car,
Fill it up with gas
And drive so far, so far.
Yes!
I would drive
So far.
Hard-hearted and unloving!
Hard-hearted and untrue!
If I was a bird I’d
Fly away from you.
Yes, way
Away
From
You.
Harlem Night Song
Performed by Ms. Burns
Text by Langston Hughes
Music by Chris DiStefano
Come,
Let us roam the night together
Singing.
I love you.
Across
The Harlem roof-tops
Moon is shining.
Night sky is blue.
Stars are great drops
Of golden dew.
Down the street
A band is playing.
I love you.
Come,
Let us roam the night together
Singing.
I Saw the Light Turn Red
Performed by Ms. Vosk
Based on “The Metropolitan Tower” by Sara Teasdale
Music by Matt Perri
We walked together in the dusk
To watch the tower grow dimly white,
And saw it lift against the sky
Its flower of amber light.
You talked of half a hundred things,
I kept each hurried word you said;
And when at last the hour was full,
I saw the light turn red.
You did not know the time had come,
You did not see the sudden flower,
Nor know that in my heart Love’s birth
Was reckoned from that hour.
It Happens All the Time in Heaven
Performed by Ms. Bennett
Text by Hafiz, trans. Daniel Ladinsky
Music by Andrew Lippa
It happens all the time in heaven,
And someday
It will begin to happen
Again on earth—
That men and women who are married,
And men and men who are
Lovers
And women and women
Who give each other
Light,
Often will get down on their knees
And while so tenderly
Holding their lover’s hand,
With tears in their eyes,
Will sincerely speak, saying,
“My dear,
How can I be more loving to you;
How can I be more
Kind?”
This program is made possible by the generosity of the Howard Gilman Foundation, the MacMillan Family Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, the Charina Endowment Fund, the Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Fund, The Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, the Michael Tuch Foundation, The Vidda Foundation, the Lemberg Foundation, the Joseph and Joan Cullman Foundation for the Arts, the Grodzins Fund, the Herman Goldman Foundation, and the Merrill G. and Emita E. Hastings Foundation.
This program is also made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
This program also receives support from an endowment established by The Bydale Foundation, the Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, Christopher and Barbara Dixon, the Herman Goldman Foundation, William and Angela Haines, Walter and Marge Scheuer, and Zabar’s.
Symphony Space thanks our generous supporters, including our Board of Directors, Producers Circle, and members, who make our programs possible with their annual support.
Kathy Landau Executive Director
Peg Wreen Managing Director
Isaiah Sheffer*
Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director (1978-1988)
Artistic Director (1988-2010)
Founding Artistic Director (2010-2012)
Allan Miller
Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director (1978-1988)
Darren Critz Director of Performing Arts Programs
Sofia Frohna Assistant Producer of Performing Arts Programs
*in memoriam
Started in 1998 to make a difference in the lives of people diagnosed with ALS, Project ALS identifies and funds the most promising scientific research that will lead to the first effective treatments and a cure for ALS. They recruit the world’s best scientists and doctors to work together—rationally and aggressively—to develop a better understanding of the ALS disease process and, in parallel, better therapeutic strategies. Since its founding, Project ALS has advanced ALS research significantly, overseeing productive collaborations among 25 leadingresearch institutions, the discovery of over 60 ALS genes, the development of the world’s first patient-based models of ALS for laboratory testing, supported and managed the first-ever facility dedicated exclusively to ALS and stem cell research, and accelerated drug testing and clinical trials through the identification of new drug targets.
To learn more about Project ALS, please visit projectals.org.