HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JUDY GARLAND!; KAREN OBERLIN, JULIE REYBURN...AND MORE!

June 10, 2010

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JUDY GARLAND!; KAREN OBERLIN, JULIE REYBURN...AND MORE!

If Judy Garland was around today (SHE IS!), she would be celebrating her 88th birthday! 88 years for 88 keys (the number of keys on a piano!). How appropriate. What a wonderful musical legacy she has given us. And it still boggles me that her major body of work covered a 34 year period.
(I'm covering Age 13 when she was signed by MGM to her death in 1969 at the age of 47).

The following is from her WIKIPEDIA entry:Judy Garland
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Born Frances Ethel Gumm
June 10, 1922(1922-06-10)

Grand Rapids, Minnesota, U.S.
Died June 22, 1969 (aged 47)
Chelsea, London, England, UK
Occupation Actress/Singer

Years active 1924–1969 (singer)
1929–1967 (actress)
Spouse(s) David Rose (1941–1944)
Vincente Minnelli (1945–1951)
Sid Luft (1952–1965)
Mark Herron (1965–1967)
Mickey Deans (1969)

Judy Garland (June 10, 1922 – June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years, Garland attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage. Respected for her versatility, she received a Juvenile Academy Award, won a Golden Globe Award, received the Cecil B. DeMille Award for her work in films, as well as Grammy Awards and a Special Tony Award. She had a contralto singing range.[1] After appearing in vaudeville with her sisters, Garland was signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer as a teenager. There she made more than two dozen films, including nine with Mickey Rooney and the 1939 film with which she would be most identified, The Wizard of Oz. After 15 years, Garland was released from the studio but gained renewed success through record-breaking concert appearances, including a Cacritically acclaimed Carnegie Hall concert

, a well-regarded but short-lived television series and a return to acting beginning with a critically acclaimed performance in A Star Is Born (1954).

Despite her professional triumphs, Garland battled personal problems throughout her life. Insecure about her appearance, her feelings were compounded by film executives who told her she was unattractive and manipulated her on-screen physical appearance. Plied with drugs to control her weight and increase her productivity, Garland endured a decades-long struggle with prescription drug addiction. Garland was plagued by financial instability, often owing hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes. She married five times, with her first four marriages ending in divorce. She also attempted suicide on a number of occasions. Garland died of an accidental drug overdose at the age of 47, leaving children Liza Minnelli, Lorna Luft and Joey Luft.

In 1997, Garland was posthumously awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Several of her recordings have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 1999, the American Film Institute placed her among the ten greatest female stars in the history of American cinema.

Karen Oberlin: Heart and Soul
Reviewed By: Brian Scott Lipton

With the fanfare for Stephen Sondheim's 80th birthday having died down, music lovers can now safely turn their attention to another birthday boy, Frank Loesser, who would have turned 100 on June 29. And there's perhaps no more fititng start to the festivities than rising cabaret star Karen Oberlin's new show Heart and Soul, which is playing the Algonquin Hotel's famed Oak Room through June 19.

This well-craftled, smartly directed (by Eric Michael Gillett) and decidedly engaging act is a superb introduction to the composer-lyricist's talent for tunefulness and witty wordplay, which can be heard in everything from "The Inch Worm" to "Snug as a Bug in a Rug."
Better still, it's also a show that will please Loesser's longtime fans -- some of whom may even find a song or two they don't know, such as "Bloop, Bleep!" "Lovelier Than Ever," and a pair of songs cut from two of Loesser's big Broadway hits: "Traveling Light" (written for Guys and Dolls) and "Wanting to Be Wanted" (written for The Most Happy Fella).

And if no 70-minute show could cover all the bases of Loesser's incredibly prolific if too-short career, Oberlin makes sure to mix it up, showcasing some of his best comic numbers, including "Hamlet,

" "Rumble, Rumble, Rumble," and "Love Isn't Born (It's Made)" even though these large-spirited songs don't particularly suit her rather delicate vocal instrument.
She even throws in the delightful "Then I Wrote the Minuet in G," for which Loesser wrote the lyrics and Ludwig von Beethoven penned the music, and ably duets with musical director Jon Weber on "Baby, It's Cold Outside." Her slam-bang take on "I Believe In You" not only whets the appetite for the upcoming Broadway revival of How to Succceed in Business Without Really Trying, it's one of the act's highlights.
Still, Loesser was never more brilliant than when penning a heartfelt ballad or plaintive love song, and Oberlin proves most masterful in tackling the show's title song, "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve," "More I Cannot Wish You," and especially "I Wish I DIdn't Love You So." The 20th Century was lucky to have Loesser, and the 21st Century is equally lucky to have singers like Karen Oberlin making sure his work lives on.

AWARD-WINNING VOCALIST JULIE REYBURN RETURNS TO
FEINSTEIN’S WITH “SUMMER NIGHT” – WEEKEND ENGAGEMENT!

On the heels of her critically acclaimed CD Release, Live at Feinstein’s, 2010 Bistro & MAC Award recipient Julie Reyburn returns for a two night engagement at the famed Park Avenue Club. Her new show, “Summer Night” features works by Cy Coleman, Harold Arlen, James Taylor, William Finn, Henry Mancini and more!

Joining her will be Music Director Mark Janas with Ritt Henn on Bass and Walter Usiatynski on Drums

Directed by: Lennie Watts

Produced by: Jeff Hamblin

Julie Reyburn, “Summer Night” @ FEINSTEIN’S – Friday July 16th & Saturday July 17th

Both shows @ 8:30pm

$25 Cover - $25 Food/Drink Minimum

Limited $40 Premium seating available - reserve early!

Feinstein's at Loews Regency

540 Park Avenue (at 61st Street)

Reservations Required: 212-339-4095

Julie is a 2010 Bistro and MAC Award recipient who has appeared in many of the top clubs in Manhattan. Her ability to connect to a lyric with unique interpretations has established her as one of New York's celebrated female vocalist. She is the first ever Nightlife Award recipient for Outstanding Female Vocalist in 2003 and again in 2005 as a finalist. In 2007 Julie was presented with the coveted Julie Wilson Award from the Mabel Mercer Foundation "in joyful gratitude for the vocal majesty and lyrical interpretation she continually manifests in her classic presentations of the Great Popular Songbook".

Julie Reyburn / julesbabes@hotmail.com
VISIT www.juliereyburn.com for upcoming shows and information
Download the Bistro Award Winning CD, "Live at Feinstein's" today on iTunes or amazon.com

Cabaret superstar Karen Mason makes Boston debut
(SOURCE:)
EDGE National Arts & Entertainment Editor
Monday Jun 7, 2010

Karen Mason has won every major cabaret award extant, including five consecutive MAC (Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs) Awards as Major Female Vocalist of the year; and performed in virtually every major cabaret venue in the country - from New York’s Feinstein’s to San Francisco’s Plush Room. Yet she has never performed her cabaret show in Boston. That oversight will be remedied on June 12, 2010 when Mason comes to Ryles Supper Club in Cambridge accompanied by her long-time musical director Christopher Denny and an array of cabaret talent from the Boston area.

Those with long memories will recall that Mason appeared in Boston in 1996 as Joanne in the Huntington Theatre Company’s production of Company, where her rendition of "The Ladies Who Lunch" gave Elaine Stritch a run for her money. In fact when Mason isn’t performing in cabarets, she’s likely to be found in a musical, usually on Broadway. She originated the role of Tanya in Mamma Mia!; was the understudy to the role of Norma Desmond and performed the role some 150 times in New York and Los Angeles; sang "You Gotta Have a Gimmick" in Jerome Robbins’ Broadway; won an Outer Critics Circle Award for the Kander and Ebb revue The World Goes ’Round; and appeared in regional theater productions of White Christmas, Gypsy, Side by Side by Sondheim and, most recently, as Dorothy Parker in a one-person show about Dorothy Parker - You Might As Well Live.
While she may have played the world-weary Parker, Mason’s off-stage persona is far sunnier. "Karen Mason, more than most New York cabaret performers," wrote Stephen Holden in the New York Times, "embodies the kind of Midwestern woman who would unblushingly accept Oscar Hammerstein’s description of Mary Martin’s character in ’’South Pacific’’: ’’as corny as Kansas in August’’ and ’’as normal as blueberry pie... As always, Ms. Mason emerges as the kind of person you sense you could trust to be a loyal friend.
That’s a rarity in a field not known for its generosity of spirit."

EDGE spoke with Mason recently about her career, her Boston cabaret debut and recently playing the Queen of Hearts in the new musical Wonderland, based on Lewis Carroll’s classic story.

EDGE: Is hard to believe that this will be your Boston cabaret debut -- you’ve never performed cabaret here before?

Karen Mason: Actually, I have never done my cabaret in Boston. Somehow scheduling and venue never seemed to be right! I did Company at The Huntington Theatre years back, and have sung at a few private parties in Boston, but have never done my cabaret act with Christopher Denny in Boston! I am really looking forward to it! I love your city!

EDGE: In addition to the concert, you’re conducting a master class. Is this something you do often?

Karen Mason: I have been doing Master Classes for a few years. I started at Perry Mansfield Arts Camp in Colorado, as a substitute for a teacher who had to cancel... it was daunting because I had never done it. However, I was co-teaching with Chris Denny, and found I really loved it. The class is an opportunity for all of us to learn and share and be inspired!

EDGE: What does the master class consist of?

Karen Mason: Usually, the master class will consist of an introduction of Chris and myself. and then....WORKING! I love that people want to "jump in the deep end", as it were, and get to work!

So we start having individuals get up and do a song they have brought. Chris and I then try to show them how to find an approach to discovering your own storytelling voice in the song. I was lucky to have had some great teachers along the way... and that I am lucky to work with some generous and loving artists, including Mr. Denny.

EDGE: How did the Ryles Jazz Club date come about?
Karen Mason: Chris Denny suggested to Eric Larivee, the creator of Vox Humana Project, maybe our doing a masterclass/cabaret. I think Eric was looking to continue the program. And it all just worked out! It is always great when that happens, right?

EDGE: What will you be singing in your part of the program?

Karen Mason: Well, Chris and I just did an evening at The Metropolitan Room in NYC to help our friend Julie Wilson, who had to cancel a few dates. And we decided to do some new and old arrangements, some new and old songs... and we had an absolute ball! It was a combination of well-known songs and original songs written for me. From "All That Jazz" and "Downtown" to "Hello, Tom" (which was written for me... soooo many years ago!).

EDGE: You’ve won the MAC Award for Major Female Vocalist for six years running. That’s quite an accomplishment. What do you think is the key to your success as a cabaret performer?

Karen Mason: First of all, I just feel lucky, more than anything! I mean, I get to sing great songs that I choose, in a style that I get to choose... and collaborate with someone like Chris Denny! I am just so very lucky to be able to do that. Yes, sometimes this crazy business is frustrating... very very frustrating.
So when you can have your peers recognize you, well, that is a very special day. I just follow my heart. Boy, that sounds very Pollyanna. I am from the Midwest, ya know!!!

EDGE: You have great comfort level in different genres of music (Broadway, pop, jazz) -- does this come easy or is it something that required training over the years?
Karen Mason: I want to learn as much as I can! I still study. I think your whole career is a journey of training. I learned over the years what works for me; what gives me the best opportunity to tell the story I want with the song. AND If you are lucky enough to work with great people, you listen to their input, and decide what works for you and what doesn’t. You are constantly trying on new things, and seeing what fits, and then taking the rest back to the store!
You can tell I like to shop!

EDGE: You got your start in Chicago with Brian Lasser, who was your musical director. Could you talk a bit about your early days and Brian?

Karen Mason: Brian was my first musical director, and a huge part of my early development as an artist. I met him at a restaurant called Lawrence Of Oregano. He was responsible for the music direction of an entire staff of singing waiters and waitresses. I got hired as a singing hostess... and we just knew we were supposed to share music together. We both found our voices with each other. Those early days were filled with endless rehearsals, creating arrangements, and learning new songs...and it was fantastic!
I loved absolutely every minute of working with Brian. We were growing up together through music.
He wrote music for me, and did crazy, inventive , wonderful arrangements (many of which I still do all these years later, some of which were not good fits at all!).
We learned what was our voice, and what was not! It was absolutely joy! He died in 1992, and is missed every day. And yet his voice is so alive in everything I do.

EDGE: You’ve won plenty of awards for your cabaret work, but you’ve also won an Emmy?
Could you talk about that?

Karen Mason: Actually, the Emmy was for Brian’s songwriting. Brian won the 1998 Daytime Emmy for Songwriting for the song "Hold Me," from my CD, Better Days. It was a posthumous award, that my husband Paul Rolnick and I accepted for Brian. My husband, who had an Emmy nomination the year before for one of his songs, and had produced Better Days, submitted BD to "Guiding Light"... and it was used as a love-theme for the show. And he won! It was a beautiful night! I wish Brian could have been there to know he has an Emmy for his songwriting.

Karen Mason, Louise Pitre, and Judy Kaye in Mamma Mia!

EDGE: You were Glenn Close’s stand-by in Sunset Boulevard, but unlike many other stand-bys, went on more than 100 times for her. Is being a stand-by one of the hardest jobs on Broadway?

Karen Mason: Covering any role is a tough gig! You have to be ready to go on in a moment’s notice... and without the same rehearsal period as the person playing the role. My husband called me a "well-paid insurance policy"! I was paid to do nothing except wait... until I got the call to be the star in a huge musical! Now that is a strange job! I actually think my cabaret background helped me in a lot of ways: 1. No previews, just an opening night! 2. I was very comfortable with myself as a performer so I could make some fast character decisions. 3. A certain fearlessness that comes from being on stage as a solo performer. Of course, it was all these things... with fantastic costumes, hair, and jewelry! And a great and generous cast! It was so scary and so much fun!

EDGE: What did you like about playing Norma Desmond?
Karen Mason: the costumes, the hair, and the jewelry! Definitely the jewelry!!! And such extreme over-the-top emotions! I mean, she goes crazy and is still beautifully dressed!

EDGE: Do you think that Norma is the last great Diva role written for a Broadway musical?

Karen Mason: Hmmm that is interesting! I never thought about it. It certainly is a great Diva role. I hope to play her again.

EDGE: You also played Joanna in Company here at the Huntington. And have played Mama Rose.
Is it difficult to sing a song or play a role so identified other performers?

Karen Mason: Well, I would love to say that it is not difficult to play such signature roles.... but I am not THAT secure! Every actor wants a chance to tackle such great roles... you have to believe that you have something special, some special puzzle piece, to these characters!

When I played Joanne at The Huntington, I was besieged with people talking about Elaine Stritch’s performance. It was quite daunting! One day, I thought I had an insight into my Joanne, and felt very good about the direction I would take her. Of course, at the opening performance, the vamp for "Ladies who lunch" begins, and I am feeling very good about where I am going with the song,... and hear some voice in the front row say (in a rather loud whisper!) "This is the song Elaine Stritch made famous"! Well, I have to say it actually made me a little angry and a lot more focused!!!

EDGE: And what was opening in Mamma Mia like?

Karen Mason: By the time the show came to NY, it was a huge hit. So we were all so excited to be part of such a big show! Of course, we started rehearsals right around 9-11. And it all became more... intense. There was camaraderie in the cast.. we all were happy to have each other to share this experience. And the opening was.... well, those nights when we started doing the curtain calls, the rush of emotions and the huge sound that came from the audience was overwhelming. Somehow, those hours we spent in the theatre during those times were our way of sharing our fears and our pride and our optimism. I was proud of NYC and of the Broadway community during that time.

EDGE: You certainly have done your share of shows -- how do you come up with the ideas for them and how do you choose your material?

Karen Mason: Yeah, I have sung a lot of songs! Ideas come from all kinds of places... You just have to keep listening and wanting to communicate.

And I have a great director Barry Kleinbort who has pushed me in some new directions. And Chris Denny always has great ideas. I am not necessarily an idea person... I know how to make the ideas work for me. I love our collaborations!
EDGE: Are there singers who greatly influenced you?

Karen Mason: Barbra Streisand, Judy Garland, John Gary, Frank Sinatra.

EDGE: And who do you admire?

Karen Mason: In the world or in the business... or both?

In the business and in the world, I admire Julie Wilson. A woman who has been in the business a long time, has been successful in her career, and still loves to sing and entertain. She is one of the most generous spirits I have ever known. She supports other singers... and there is no better teller of stories than the Amazing Miss Wilson.
in the world? I admire my parents. They were married for 60 years and still were flirtatious with each other!!
Their life together was filled with love, intelligence, humor, and hardships, like a lot of other lives. But their grace and generosity made their love very beautiful. My Dad died 4 years ago, and is missed every minute.
EDGE: You play the Queen of Hearts in the new musical Wonderland. You said it was "great to be Queen." Why?

Karen Mason: Who is more important than The Queen? NO ONE!
I have a great song written for me by Frank Wildhorn and Jack Murphy; a costume that is a work of art by Susan Hilferty; dance moves by Margueritte Derricks; and all directed by Gregory Boyd. Why wouldn’t you want to be Queen!!!!

EDGE: What’s happening with the project?

Karen Mason: The writers are still working on the show, and it is going great! We have all loved being part of this process of Wonderland.
It is a great show with great music and an absolutely fantastic cast!

EDGE: If it comes to Broadway, will you be part of it?
EDGE: Cross those fingers!! I would love that!
Karen Mason: And you’ll be performing in Cambridge with your musical director Christopher Denny -- what is so special about your relationship with him?

Karen Mason: He thinks I am pretty good!! I like working with people who think I am pretty good!
And I think he is pretty good, too! I am being a little silly, but I think you can tell by all of my other answers that I think Christopher Denny is an artist of beautiful talent and generous spirit and he is one of my best friends.
I love laughing and singing with him.

Karen Mason appears on Saturday, June 12, 2010 at 7pm at Ryles Jazz Club, 212 Hampshire Street, Cambridge, MA. Presented by Eric Larivee and The Vox Humana Project Boston. For more information visit the Ryle’s Jazz Club website. For more on Karen Mason visit her website.
Robert Nesti can be reached at rnesti@edgepublications.com.

Callaway Joins GREAT ENTERTAINERS ON BROADWAY Series At Time Square Arts Center
(SOURCE: BROADWAYWORLD.COM)

Liz Callaway has joined the roster of stellar performers in Great Entertainers on Broadway, the new summer series of live performances by some of today's most talented and well known stage, television and cabaret entertainers which premieres in late July and early August at the Times Square Arts Center (TSAC) in the heart of New York City's world famous theatre district.

Ms. Callaway joins star performers (in alphabetical order): Christine Andreas, Tony Babino, Steve DePass, Rebecca Luker, Donna McKechnie, Mark Nadler, Marni Nixon, Faith Prince and Richard Skipper in the concert series being presented by producer/promoter Herbert G. Goldman, the author of books about Eddie Cantor, FAnnie Brice and Al Jolson.

Great Entertainers on Broadway will be presented on eight evenings -- Monday through Thursday, July 26, 27, 28 and 29 and Monday through Thursday, August 2, 3, 4 and 5 at 7 PM and 9:30 PM each night - in the TSAC's elegant 300-seat venue (to be renamed the Broadway Emporium for this engagement). Some performers will headline single shows while others will perform both shows on a given night. The performance schedule is as follows:

WEEK ONE
Monday, July 26, at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM - Mark Nadler, the zany comedian, singer, piano player and all-round entertainer, winner of a coveted MAC Award and a regular headliner at the prestigious Oak Room at New York's famed Algonquin Hotel, will perform two different shows on the same evening.;

Tuesday, July 27, at 7:00 PM -- Tony Babino, one of today's premier vocalists, is a first class singer-songwriter and recording artist who presents a high energy show featuring past classics to modern day gems. He is proud to be carrying on the traditions of such legendary entertainers as Bobby Darin, Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett.

Tuesday, July 27, at 9:30 PM - Richard Skipper, a critically acclaimed, multi-award winning performer, director and co-producer of the 2010 Bistro Awards, has been spellbinding audiences for years. Richard will be joined by John Fischer on Piano, Steve Bartosik on percussion and Jeff Carney on bass as he presents - for the only time in New York this year! - his critically acclaimed Carol Channing in Concert show, which has been described by Ms. Channing herself as "the first time I have ever been shown with such love, respect and polish. Richard Skipper is a true musical comedy star! He is fabulous as me!"

Wednesday, July 28, at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM - Rebecca Luker, one of the hardest working musical performers, has starred in Broadway productions of Mary Poppins, The Phantom of the Opera, Showboat, The Secret Garden, Something Wonderful, Brigadoon, The Sound of Music and The Music Man in a career dating back to the late 1980's. On television, she has also starred in three PBS music specials saluting Broadway composers and performers - Some Enchanted Evening: Celebrating Oscar Hammerstein II (1995), The Rodgers & Hart Story: Thou Swell, Thou Witty (1999), and My Favorite Broadway: The Leading Ladies (1999).

Thursday, July 29, at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM - Donna McKechnie, the Tony Award winning star of the original Broadway production of A Chorus Line, is regarded internationally as one of Broadway's foremost dancing and singing stars and choreographers. On Broadway, she has also won rave reviews for her stellar performances in How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, The Education of Hyman Kaplan, Sondheim -- A Musical Tribute (which she also choreographed), On The Town, Promises, Promises, Company and State Fair, for which she received the Fred Astaire Dancing Awards for Best Female Dancer of the 1995-1996 season. She also has several award-winning cabaret shows that she performs in venues all over the world.

WEEK TWO

Monday, August 2, at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM - Christine Andreas, the multi-talented Broadway musical performer, returns to Broadway this season as Jacqueline in the Olivier Award winning revival of La Cage Aux Folles at the Longacre Theater on Broadway. Fresh off a 55-week national tour of The Light in the Piazza, she has starred in Broadway productions of My Fair Lady, On Your Toes, Oklahoma!, Legs Diamond and The Scarlet Pimpernel, among others. She is also an acclaimed cabaret performer who has entertained in clubs all across the United States and abroad along with her husband and musical accompanist Marty Silvestri.

Tuesday, August 3, at 7:00 PM -- - A singer, composer, poet and master of improvisation, Steve DePass has performed at the White House on four separate occasions. His songs are witty, poignant, satirical, humorous or philosophical, and his ability to improvise and ad-lib is uncanny.

Tuesday, August 3, at 9:30 PM - A gifted musical actress who has sung opera, classical song and appeared in Broadway musicals, Marni Nixon performed on stage screen and television, most recently the animated feature, Mulan, and TV popular Law and Order. Blessed with a magnificent soprano singing voice, she spent year early in her career dubbing the singing voices of such film stars as Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady), Natalie Wood in West Side Story, and Deborah Kerr in the King and I and Affair To Remember. She performs in concert and cabaret venues all over the United States.

Wednesday, August 4, at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM - Tony nominee and Emmy Award winner Liz Callaway, one of the top singer-actresses on Broadway today, has been seen by Broadway audiences in Merrily We Roll Along, Baby, Miss Saigon, The Three Musketeers, The Look of Love and Cats, in which she played Grizabella (singing "Memory") for five years. She has also starred in numerous Off Broadway shows as well as the internationally acclaimed Sibling Revelry with her sister, Ann Hampton Callaway. Her numerous film and television credits include the singing voice of Anastasia in the award-winning animated film, Jasmine in Aladdin and the King of Thieves, and Nala in The Lion King, II. She is an accomplished studio singer and can be heard on more than 35 recordings, including her three solo albums.

Thursday, August 5, at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM - Faith Prince, the multi-award winning musical actress and comedienne, has been dazzling Broadway audiences ever since she swept the major theater awards - The Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Circle Awards - for her performances as Miss Adelaide in the acclaimed revival of Guys and Dolls. Most recently she starred in Broadway productions of The Little Mermaid, A Catered Affair; Bells Are Ringing, Nick & Nora, Little Me and Noises Off. She also has a number of television credits, including appearances on Ugly Betty, CSI and Medium.

Tickets are available at (www.americantheatrenetwork.com) or by calling TicketWeb at 1-866-468-7619. They are also available at the TSAC box office, 669 Eighth Avenue, between 42nd and 43rd Streets. Ticket prices are $60, $55, $50, $45 and $40. The series will benefit the American Diabetes Association and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

There are two Special Discount Packages: The Diva Series and The Gentlemen Series.

Diva Series: Buy tickets ($55 regular price) for the six 9:30 PM performances starring Rebecca Luker (July 28), Donna McKechnie (July 29), Christine Andreas (Aug. 2), Marni Nixon (Aug. 3), Liz Callaway (Aug. 4) and Faith Prince (Aug. 5) - and get 20% off the regular price: a $330 value for $264 (plus TicketWeb charge).
Gentlemen Series: Buy tickets ($55 regular price) for the three 7:00 PM performances of Mark Nadler (July 26), Tony Babino (July 27) and Steve DePass (Aug. 3) and a get a 15% discount off the total price: a $165 value for $140.25 (plus TicketWeb charge).

Great Entertainers on Broadway is presented by American Theatre Network.

Support THE ARTS! LIVE THEATRE! Go see a LIVE show this week!

Send me your reviews and suggestions and I will put them in my next blog coming out June 15th.
Here's to an ARTS-filled June! Don't forget to contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING & HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS: http://www.carolchanning.org/Foundation.htm

With grateful XOXOXs for your support!

Richard Skipper

Follow me on Twitter @RichardSkipper
HERE IS WHAT AUDIENCES ARE SAYING ABOUT MY WORK:

The Following is from Rich Siegel's blog:To acknowledge one special professional relationship in particular, I've toured the US with cabaret star Richard Skipper , from Maine to Colorado to South Carolina and various points in between. I suppose I never expected back in my music school days that I would be working for a man who puts on a dress and becomes Carol Channing, but doing so has been an absolute delight!
Celebrities! (This paragraph is not for the squeamish! I am dropping names!) Did I tell you that just before a Richard Skipper show in Mississippi Carol Channing herself called to wish us a good show?!! Part of the fun of working as a free-lance musician has been contact with celebrities, and I'd be lying if I denied it! (SOURCE: http://richsiegel.com/musicmaina.html)

What a fun night last Wednesday at The Iguana - and a great & fabulously talented crowd too! Thank you for creating this wonderful new room, Richard, and for creating this great community of singers in the city! xo, Lori Evanson

It was great to see Richard Skipper perform last night at Tudor City Greens AND The Iguana. He is the perfect host and has proven he is a great host anywhere. We can't wait to see his show in July. I'm getting some others to join us.
Oh...and a friend of ours in California just LOVES him. She sees the reviews and testimonials and thinks he is pretty classy. We hope they will be out here in the fall and she can't wait to meet him. Mary Lahti

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NYC THE AWARD WINNING WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT THE IGUANA STARRING DANA LORGE, RICHARD SKIPPER, AND FRIENDS!
Dana Lorge and I have put our OWN spin on the variety show format and are now hosting every Wednesday night in NYC at The Iguana VIP Lounge (http://www.iguananyc.com) in the heart of NYC (240 West 54th Street 8-11PM/with an intermission).

Cover: $12 - no food or drink minimums – but remember – the food is great!
WINNER OF TWO 2010 MANHATTAN ASSOCIATION OF CABARETS AND CLUBS AWARDS (MAC) FOR OUTSTANDING VARIETY SHOW AND OUTSTANDING HOSTS!
or more info, please call 845-365-0720 or visit _www.RichardSkipper.com_
RESERVATIONS A MUST!!!!!!!! 212-765-5454.