Saturday, December 21, 2013

Musical News for Saturday, December 21, 2013

LIVE EVENTS: Cabrillo Music Theatre celebrates its upcoming production of In the Heights with Carnaval De Cabrillo on January 12. Modeled after the “Carnaval del Barrio” that plays a pivotal role in the show, Carnaval De Cabrillo unites enthusiastic young people, dancers of all ages, city officials, community leaders and local businesses for a free afternoon of dance, music, food and fun. Carnaval will take place from Noon to 5:00 pm in Carpenter Park, directly outside Cabrillo Music Theatre’s home venue, the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza.

The event will feature a live participatory demonstration by the entire community of a dance from In the Heights using the original Tony Award-Winning Broadway Choreography of Andy Blankenbuehler, and taught by Cabrillo’s director-choreographer, Morgan Marcell. Participants may sign up in advance at http://carnavaldecabrillo.rsvpify.com/ or in person on the day of the event. The choreography will be taught at all skill levels, allowing for full participation from anyone who wants to learn.  Participants can show up at any time from Noon to 1:30 pm and learn the moves. The presentation and performance, as well as a sneak peek of In the Heights, will take place at 1:45 pm. Food and drink will be available for purchase. Additional prizes will be given out hourly. For more information visit www.Facebook.com/CabrilloMusicTheatre or call 805-497-8613 x 1.


NEW MUSICAL: A new rhythm & blues musical is being brought to the stage this spring by a trio of veteran Los Angeles actors - Larry Poindexter, David Carey Foster and Michael Nicklin. The Devil You Know is the ultimate modern anti-hero story of redemption woven among a sonic backdrop of soul and rhythm & blues. Co-author and composer Larry Poindexter has been seen in hundreds of hours of television, nearly 50 movies and countless stage plays including S.W.A.T, 17 Again and Reefer Madness. He has composed over 200 songs, many of which have been heard in television episodes and films. Co-creator David Carey Foster has appeared in numerous stage, TV and film productions including The Mentalist, Dexter, Orson’s Shadow at Artists Repertory Theatre, Inventing Van Gogh at PCPA Theatrefest, and The Woman in Black at the Old Lyric Repertory. He has produced plays for the Colony Theatre, Central Coast Repertory, and Nottingham Players, and is soon to be seen in the upcoming film, Get A Job, starring Bryan Cranston. Nicklin has produced or consulted for numerous film, television and electronic media projects, plus more than a hundred live events. He is a fervent supporter of independent projects from initial idea to executable plan by providing professional consultation, end-to-end project management, fundraising leadership, and stakeholder relations to monetize and create the most marketable products. Stay tuned for more about this new musical. www.devilyouknowmusical.com.


TELEVISION: The American Masters Season 27 finale Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love will premiere nationally on Friday, December 27, 2013, 9-10:30 pm on PBS (check local listings). I’ve seen the documentary and this beautiful portrait of one of musical theatre’s greatest composers is not to be missed. It features candid interviews with his collaborators from music, stage and screen, and takes a deeply personal look at one of the greatest artists of our time. “The Way We Were,” “Nobody Does It Better,” A Chorus Line -- Marvin Hamlisch’s hit streak was staggering. By age 31 he had won four Grammys, an Emmy, three Oscars, a Tony and a Pulitzer Prize -- making him one of only 2 PEGOT winners ever. New interviews include wife Terre Blair Hamlisch, Barbra Streisand, Steven Soderbergh, Carly Simon, Quincy Jones, Christopher Walken, Sir Tim Rice, Joe Torre Allen, John Lithgow, Lucie Arnaz, Ann-Margret, Sir Howard Stringer, Kelli O'Hara, Brian DArcy James, Idina Menzel, Melissa Manchester, songwriter Carole Bayer Sager, and many others. For my previous Special BWW Coverage of the show, Click Here.

The Sound of Music starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer will air on ABC 7 at 7:00 pm, Sunday, Dec. 22. You can also watch The Polar Express on ABC Family at 8:00 pm, Monday, Dec. 23.

FILMS: The El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood will host a special engagement of the Sing-A-Long version of Disney’s classic Mary Poppins, January 10 – 20. Audiences are encouraged to dress as their favorite characters from the film, and sing along to the classic soundtrack as the words to the songs are projected up on the screen. There will also be a costume contest on opening night and other special opening night surprises. El Capitan guests may also go “Behind the scenes” of the making of Mary Poppins with rarely seen unit photography from the Walt Disney Archives and a special “Walking On Cherry Tree Lane” photo opportunity on display throughout the run. In addition, January 14 is Tiny Tot Tuesday. During the 10:00 am performance parents and small children can enjoy the movie in a Tiny Tot-friendly way, with lights dimmed rather than out and reduced sound levels. Daily showtimes are 10:00 am, 1:15 pm, 4:30 pm, and 7:45pm. Special General Admission ticket price of $10 includes popcorn. VIP price of $20 includes a reserved seat, popcorn and drink (for all ages). Tickets are available at the box office, at www.elcapitantickets.com, or by calling 1-800-DISNEY6. I also highly recommend the current film Frozen, starring Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff and Santino Fontana. The pre-show is terrific!


CONCERTS/CABARET: Color and Light Theatre Ensemble will bring a one-night presentation of Joe Iconis’ Things to Ruin to Southern California on January 11 at 9:00 pm. The theatrical rock concert is an incendiary collection of songs by Kleban and Larson Award Winner Joe Iconis (SMASH, The Black Suits and Bloodsong of Love) about human beings who are messy, emotional, drugged up, knocked down, inspired, electric and who don’t have nearly enough time to cause the kind of commotion they so desperately need to cause. Featuring direction and musical staging by Joanna Syiek, with musical direction by Jennifer Lin, the cast includes Emily Arkuss, Jeff Buco, Ben Burch, Samantha Eve, Ari Gwasdoff, Josh Hillinger, Tyler Ledon, Katharine McDonough, Jamie Mills, Kelsey Schulte, and Kristofer Sundquist. The concert will take place at Surf Dog’s Sports Grill located at 5932 Warner Ave, Huntington Beach, CA 92649. For tickets and more information, go to www.colorandlighttheatre.org.


Pasadena Playhouse is offering 30% off tickets for its star-studded concert One Starry Night to benefit The ALS Association - Golden West Chapter, on Mon. Jan. 13, 2014 at 8pm. Use the code BLOG30 when you order tickets HERE. Joining the cast is Richard M. Sherman (two-time Academy Award-winner for Best Song and Best Score of Mary Poppins, who is being portrayed by Jason Schwartzman in the just-released Disney film Saving Mr. Banks), Kerry O’Malley, Amy Paffrath, Barry Pearl, Drew Seeley, Daniel Tatar, and Bruce Vilanch. Directed by Grammy Award-nominee Bruce Kimmel, with musical direction and orchestrations by Richard Allen, the evening will also feature performances by Obba Babatunde, James Barbour, Kay Cole, Daisy Eagan, Crow Garrett, Ilene Graff, Juliana Hansen, Melora Hardin, Jean Louisa Kelly, Jason and Nolan Livesay, Gary Morgan and The Flying Morgans, James Mulligan, Reagan Pasternak, Jonathan Pendragon, Joan Ryan, Rex Smith, and Terri White. The evening will also feature special appearances by Terri Ivens, Kate Linder, and Charlene Tilton.

Kritzerland at Sterling’s Upstairs at The Federal presents New Kids in Town on Sunday, January 5, at 7:00 pm. The show will star Paige Befeler, Brennley Brown, Quintan Craig, Oliviana Marie, Hadley Belle Miller, Jenna Lea Rosen, Sami Staitman, Sarah Staitman, and Carter Thomas, with Music Director: Tom Griep. Reservations: (818) 754-8700. Doors open for dinner at 5:30 pm. Show starts at 7:00pm. For more about Sterlings, visit www.msapr.net.


The Grove Theatre in Upland invites you to spend a Rockin’ New Year’s Eve with The King and Company at The Grove Theatre. Chris Luna and the TCB Flashband are returning to The Grove Theatre on New Years’ Eve at 9:00 pm. Luna is one of Southern California’s premier Elvis Tribute artists and has been performing his Elvis Tribute Show (Chris Luna - A Tribute to ELVIS!) since 1998. Joining Chris is award winning Jacob Roman, the 17 year old Elvis Tribute Artist who has been wowing audiences all over Southern California and Nevada. The show also features Beach Boys’ tribute band, The Nocturnes, Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello tribute artists AK Kist and Megan Walker, Wendy Lynn Adams, who performs tributes to Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette, and Blues Brothers tribute artists Gary Anderson and Chris Luna. Chris pays tribute to Tom Jones and Gary brings Johnny Cash back to the stage. For tickets call (909) 920-4343 or go to www.grovetheatre.com.

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