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Thursday, May 19, 2016

GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK SEASON SET @ NJPAC

2016-2017 American Songbook Season

Recognized the world over not only by their bold-face names, but especially by their superb talents, the artists headlining New Jersey Performing Arts Center's 2016-17 American Songbook season validate the Arts Center as the state's most diverse and artistically excellent presenter.

Michael Feinstein, considered the go-to interpreter and historian of the American Songbook, puts a hand upon this season's music broadcasts. The pianist and singer, who performed last season in NJPAC's centennial salute to Frank Sinatra, is the new host of Michael Feinstein's American Songbook at NJPAC, the Emmy-nominated public TV series. Tapings take place on December 1 and 2 in the Victoria Theater, with a dazzling, upbeat cast of stage and cabaret performers to be announced. This concert-and-conversation series, presented by NJPAC and NJTV, airs on NJTV, WNET and WLIW21

Carefree: Dancin' with Fred & Ginger (November 4 and 5) represents a first-time collaboration between NJPAC and RKO Stage. Tony Award winning director and choreographer Warren Carlyle (After Midnight and She Loves Me) and book-writer Peter Duchan (Dogfight) will reimagine the glitziest numbers from the Astaire-Rogers partnership at RKO Pictures with a cast of Broadway singers and dancers and state-of-the-art stage technology. Making the leap from screen to concert hall will be classics like "Night and Day," "The Way You Look Tonight" and "They Can't Take That Away from Me."

Some of the finest musical theater performers grace NJPAC's stages, which include the 2,800-seat Prudential Hall, 500-seat Victoria Theater and 250-seat Chase Room. Appearing twice-nightly in the intimate, cabaret-style Chase Room are "The Voice of Broadway" Betty Buckley (Cats, Sunset Boulevard) on September 17; James Monroe Iglehart (Aladdin, Memphis) on January 28, 2017; Judy Kuhn (Fun Home, Les Misérables) on March 18, 2017; and Paulo Szot (South Pacific and the Metropolitan Opera) on May 6, 2017.

SiriusXM Broadway host Seth Rudetsky, who has emceed, music-directed and performed in a number of events at NJPAC, strikes up the band on October 7 for Broadway's Best with Seth Rudetsky, featuring beloved numbers from the Great White Way, sung by his friends. A centennial tribute to composer Leonard Bernstein, a Cole Porter cavalcade with Judy Kaye, and an all-star concert version of The Muppet Christmas Carol are other can't-misses for those who love shows and standards.

Betty Buckley

WHEN: Saturday, September 17, 2016, 6pm and 8:30pm
WHERE:
The Chase Room

Dubbed "The Voice of Broadway," Tony winner Betty Buckley is equally renowned for her work on stage (Cats), TV (Eight Is Enough), film (Carrie) and concert halls worldwide.

This quintessential music theater actress has taken on roles that run the gamut from the wife of a President (1776) to deluded, silent-screen star Norma Desmond (Sunset Boulevard). In addition to her contributions to the stage, Betty Buckley has released an astonishing 16 solo albums and has been twice-nominated for a Grammy. She recently gained an entirely new set of fans for her recurring appearances on Pretty Little Liars.

For performance details, click here.


Broadway's Best with Seth Rudetsky

WHEN: Friday, October 7, 2016, 7:30pm
WHERE:
Victoria Theater

Host Seth Rudetsky's "amahzing" Broadway singers perform numbers from Gypsy, The Phantom of the Opera, A Chorus Line and other hit musicals - interspersed with fabulous backstage gossip!

Seth Rudetsky, the afternoon Broadway host on SiriusXM Radio and the star-creator of Broadway's new musical comedy Disaster!, brings you Broadway's Best! He and a few singers perform best-known songs from all your favorite shows. Between each song, Rudetsky reaches into his 20 years of experience to share - with flair! - fun facts and scoops about the Great White Way. You'll leave humming every song, while getting a unique insider's look at all the backstage antics. This performance will be recorded for future broadcast on SiriusXM.

For performance details, click here.


Carefree: Dancin' with Fred & Ginger

WHEN: Friday, November 4, 2016 at 7:30pm; Saturday, November 5, 2016 at 7:30pm
WHERE:
Victoria Theater

An all-new tribute, live on stage, to American cinema's most iconic dance duo, Carefree takes us on a modern musical journey through Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers' singular partnership on screen.

Tony Award winner Warren Carlyle's innovative staging blends today's hottest Broadway hoofers with original footage from films like Top Hat and Swing Time to breathe fresh life into the pair's famous routines. With book written by Peter Duchan (Dogfight), Carefree: Dancin' with Fred & Ginger features tunes from the Golden Age of Hollywood musicals, such as "Cheek to Cheek," "The Way You Look Tonight" and "Slap That Bass," with accompaniment by a swinging house band. Carefree confirms that the magic of Fred and Ginger lives on!

For performance details, click here.


NJPAC and NJTV Present:

Michael Feinstein's American Songbook at NJPAC

WHEN: Thursday, December 1, 2016 at 7:30pm; Friday, December 2, 2016 at 7:30pm
WHERE:
Victoria Theater

Broadway's brightest stars join host Michael Feinstein for season four of Michael Feinstein's American Songbook at NJPAC! Live tapings of this concert-and-conversation public TV series take place in the intimate Victoria Theater.

Michael Feinstein, a foremost interpreter and historian of the Great American Songbook, welcomes top talents from the worlds of musical theater and cabaret to perform and talk about their lives on and off the stage at Michael Feinstein's American Songbook at NJPAC. Each evening, different artists sing their favorite Songbook standards, then sit down for a Q&A conducted by the host. This popular series, co-presented with NJTV, was nominated for a Mid-Atlantic Emmy Award for direction. Note: American Songbook sessions are taped before a live audience for future broadcast on NJTV, WNET and WLIW21. Audience members may appear on screen.

For performance details, click here.


James Monroe Iglehart

WHEN: Saturday, January 28, 2017, 6pm and 8:30pm
WHERE:
The Chase Room

The show-stopping, Tony-winning Genie from Broadway's Aladdin and original cast member of Memphis performs his favorite hit songs from stage and screen.

James Monroe Iglehart is best known for his portrayal of Genie in the Disney musical Aladdin, for which he won the Tony and Drama Desk awards. He also was seen as the hilarious villain Coriolanus Burt in The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and originated the role of Bobby Dupree in the Tony-winning musical Memphis. Iglehart has been seen in shows such as Gotham, The Good Wife and The View, and lent his voice to the good-hearted thief Lance Strongbow in Tangled, the animated series coming to the Disney Channel. A member of the hip-hop improv group Freestyle Love Supreme, he played sold-out dates at 54 Below in Manhattan with his fantastic cabaret show, How the Heck Did I Get Here?

For performance details, click here.


One Hand One Heart: 100 Years of Leonard Bernstein

with Scott Coulter, Tony Yazbeck, Lisa Howard, Mary Testa and Jessica Vosk

WHEN: Saturday, February 18, 2017, 7:30pm
WHERE:
Victoria Theater

Four top Manhattan vocalists, backed by a four-piece band, perform "Tonight," "Somewhere," "New York, New York" and all the Bernstein classics.

To celebrate the maestro's 100th birthday, we pay tribute to the musical masterpieces he created, while honoring the scope of his genius. For One Hand One Heart: 100 Years of Leonard Bernstein, creator-director Scott Coulter has assembled a cast of Broadway's best, presenting such timeless songs as "America," "Some Other Time" and "Make Our Garden Grow" from the legendary musicals West Side Story, On the Town and Candide. Singers include Tony Award nominee Tony Yazbeck (On the Town), two-time Tony nominee Mary Testa (42nd Street), Drama Desk Award winner Lisa Howard (It Shoulda Been You) and Broadway star Jessica Vosk (Fiddler on the Roof). The 20-voice Broadway by the Year chorus joins the cast on several selections to give the evening a sense of the grandeur Bernstein's music demands.

For performance details, click here.


Judy Kuhn

WHEN: Saturday, March 18, 2017, 6pm and 8:30pm
WHERE:
The Chase Room

Four-time Tony nominee Judy Kuhn (Fun Home) performs songs from her career on the musical stage and beloved standards.

The singing voice of Disney's Pocahontas, Judy Kuhn has been acclaimed for her roles in the Roundabout's hit revival of She Loves Me and the American premieres of Chess, Les Miserables and Rags. Other Broadway credits include Two Shakespearean Actors, Alan Menken and Tim Rice's King David, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood. A successful recording artist, she has performed on concert stages around the world.

For performance details, click here.


Paulo Szot

WHEN: Saturday, May 6, 2017, 6pm and 8:30pm
WHERE: T
he Chase Room

A Tony Award winner for South Pacific, Paulo Szot is renowned for his performances on Broadway, the world's great opera stages and in intimate cabaret settings.

Paulo Szot has appeared with major opera companies around the globe and in his native Brazil. He made a highly acclaimed Metropolitan Opera debut in Shostakovich's The Nose (2010) and a New York Philharmonic debut in a concert conducted by Marvin Hamlisch. He returned to the Met in Carmen and to Carnegie Hall for a concert with Deborah Voigt and the New York Pops. A MAC Award nominee, Szot performed in the American Songbook Series at Lincoln Center and at the Café Carlyle in the acclaimed An Evening with Paulo Szot.

For performance details, click here.


About NJPAC

New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), located in downtown Newark, New Jersey, is among the largest performing arts centers in the United States and is the artistic, cultural, educational and civic center of New Jersey - where great performances and events enhance and transform lives every day. NJPAC brings diverse communities together, providing access to all and showcasing the state's and the world's best artists while acting as a leading catalyst in the revitalization of its home city. Through its extensive Arts Education programs, NJPAC is shaping the next generation of artists and arts enthusiasts. NJPAC has attracted more than 10 million visitors (including over 1.5 million children) since opening its doors in 1997, and nurtures meaningful and lasting relationships with each of its constituents. NJPAC is a proud partner of Newark Celebration 350.


Follow NJPAC

Location and Directions: NJPAC is located at 1 Center Street, Newark, New Jersey; a short walk from the Newark Penn Station stop by Newark-bound PATH Train or Amtrak.

Detailed instructions on approaching the venue by car, by bus, by foot or by rail:

For additional information and up-to-the-minute updates, call 1-888-GO-NJPAC (888-466-5722)