Broadway To Vegas

Copyright: March 26, 2017
By: Laura Deni
CLICK HERE FOR COMMENT SECTION

COVERING THE SONGS OF GRAMMY WINNER JIM STEINMAN

Jim Steinman.

You might not immediately know his name - but you'd instantly recognize the monster hit songs he's written: Grammy winner as producer for Record of the Year, Steinman's compositions include: Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart, Air Supply's Making Love Out of Nothing at All, Meat Loaf's I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That), the Sisters of Mercy's This Corrosion and More, Barry Manilow's Read 'Em and Weep (originally released by Meat Loaf), Celine Dion's cover of It's All Coming Back to Me Now and Boyzone's No Matter What.

Now comes a debut album from Tyce, HERO which has raised eyebrows and dropped jaws. It's great. The 2 disc CD released on Broadway Records covers the hits of noted-Meat Loaf-collaborator Jim Steinman whose Bat Out of Hell The Musical, based on the hit 1977 album Bat Out of Hell, opened for previews at the Manchester Opera House in Manchester, England, and will officially open at the London Coliseum in June.

The mono named Tyce - last name Green - may be new to the world of studio recordings, but he's known among the Broadway community. He made his New York debut, Off-Broadway, as Spinks in Kissless. Tyce won the Houston Buzzy Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his work as Moritz in the U.S. Regional Premiere of Spring Awakening. Other credits include: Hands On a Hardbody (Chris); Ragtime (Younger Brother); Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (John C. Calhoun); The Sound of Music (Rolf); The Miser (Cleante); Little Women (Laurie); Forbidden Broadway (Various); Les Miserables; White Christmas and Reefer Madness.

Tyce has also appeared at the cabaret Feinstein’s/54 Below.

The CD Tyce: HERO has the blessing of Steinman who is listed as Creative Consultant.

Disc One is back by a full throttle, take no prisoners musicians who know how to deliver the music the way the composer intended. Steinman who had written on his own website that, in effect, he has never been dumped nor ever dumped anyone, demonstrates the unique ability to write for both sides. Zak Lloyd's arrangements establishes that he, too, knows how to convey the full meaning of the musical emotion.

Tyce's voice isn't so much vocally a serrated knife ripping into the listener as Meat Loaf's singing style. Tyce is more a smooth dagger which lodges and remains. The songs are an emotional bloodletting.

The first five tracks are the determined Holding Out for a Hero; Heaven Can Wait, gentle with significant piano backing; I'll Kill You If You Don't Come Back, exhibits growing anger and total frustration; Left in the Dark is sorrowful with desperate pleading; and the almost overpowering Total Eclipse of the Heart.

Known for his unique, eclectic vocals, Tyce, a tenor, has roots in musical theatre tinged with a bit of rock. On Disc 1 there is power, rage and vulnerability. Tyce delivers.

Next up is It's All Coming Back to Me, one of the most significant songs ever written about a lost love that is still living in one's heart. Tyce's delivery would be show stopping.

There are interesting sidelights to this song, including the observation that as far as Broadway To Vegas can determine Tyce is the only male who has been permitted to so a solo recording. Meat Loaf's version was a duet with Marion Raven.

It's All Coming Back to Me Now is a heart wrenching, power ballad Steinman has stated was inspired by Wuthering Heights, and was his attempt to write "the most passionate, romantic song" he could ever create.

He succeeded.

On his own website, Steinman, who is a member of the Songwriter's Hall of Fame, elaborated that, "I was trying to write a song about dead things coming to life. I was trying to write a song about being enslaved and obsessed by love, not just enchanted and happy with it. It was about the dark side of love; about the ability to be resurrected by it... I just tried to put everything I could into it, and I'm real proud of it."

He continued: "It's about obsession, and that can be scary because you're not in control and you don't know where it's going to stop. It says that, at any point in somebody's life, when they loved somebody strongly enough and that person returns, a certain touch, a certain physical gesture can turn them from being defiant and disgusted with this person to being subservient again. And it's not just a pleasurable feeling that comes back; it's the complete terror and loss of control that comes back. And I think that's ultimately a great weapon."

Originally Steinman only wanted a woman to sing it. Reportedly, Meat Loaf convinced Steinman to permit him to record it as a duet with Marion Raven where it was described as "a cautionary tale about how life is too short and fleeting to allow yourself to hurt someone you love."

Celine Dion turned the song into a major chart hit in her album Falling Into You and the collection Best of Celine Dion. She also added an emotionally mega-powerful desperation Third Verse, obviously with Steinman's permission. He also produced her albums.

It's All Coming Back to Me Now reached No. 2 on the Billboard charts and won Steinman the award for BMI song of the year. The album also won two 1997 Grammy Awards, for Best Pop Album and for Album of the Year.

On this CD Tyce sings the Dion, not the Meat Loaf lyric version.

That song is followed by three more tracks: I'm Gonna Love Her for Both of Us, Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are and Braver Than We Are.

Dic 2 is billed as "7 bonus tracks" with 3 songs repeated from Disc 1 performed in an acoustic setting. Tyce's voice is thinner, higher, more subtle, especially when backed by only a piano. It's fascinating to listen to the same songs performed in two different musical arrangements. I prefer Disc 1. Other may prefer Disc 2. Excellent musical choices offered in this HERO CD.

The stunning CD booklet resembles a model's portfolio. There are 12 exquisite photographs of Tyce - worthy of a photography exhibit in itself, plus cover art work. The photography is by The Emma Experience while Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell are credited with the album cover painting.

Tyce has a muscular sinuous appearance which by itself should attract some tween girls and gays whose buying power and devotion can make a star - just ask Bette Midler. His voice should rock the world of everyone.

Recorded at ZL Prduction Studios, Los Angeles. Vocal recording at John Prpich, Radd Sound Studio, LA. Mixed by Justin Gariano at TreeHaus Recording, Woodland Hills, CA. Mastered by Alex U'Ren at Au.audio.

All music recorded and performed by Zak Lloyd and Nicky James McDonald. Additional musicians:
Mike Smith - guitar solo on Holding Out For a Hero. Max Rich - Guitar on Holding Out For a Hero and Objects in a Rear view Mirror May Appear closer Than They Are. Justin Gariano - Bass guitar on Holding Out For a Hero. Alex Nester - vocals on Total Eclipse of the Heart, I'm Gonna Love Her for Both of Us and Braver Than We Are Mia Moravis/Cynthia Geary - vocals on Objects in a Rear view Mirror May Appear closer Than They Are. Zak Lloyd - vocals on Total Eclipse of the Heart and Braver Than We Are.










Broadway To Vegas is supported through advertising and donations. Priority consideration is given to interview suggestions, news, press releases, etc from paid supporters. However, no paid supporters control, alter, edit, or in any way manipulate the content of this site. Your donation is appreciated. We accept PAYPAL.

Thank you for your interest.

ART AND ABOUT

BUNNY MUSEUM Bunnies are part of our fabric of life. They're cute and cuddly. Everybody loves bunnies with the possible exception of Elmer Fudd who wanted to shoot that darned rabbit Bugs Bunny.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a Disney hit. While we won't discuss what happened to that rabbit in Fatal Attraction, Jim Stewart had an imaginary best pal rabbit in Harvey.

Peter Billingsley who starred as Ralphie Parker in the iconic 1983 movie A Christmas Story, had a famous scene in which he wore bunny pajamas. Even Prince George has a pet stuffed bunny which, according to his mother Duchess Kate, is named Bun Bun - presumably because the toddler tried to pronounce 'bunny' and it came out 'bun bun.'

Then there's the Easter Bunny.

There is even a Bunny Museum - which holds a Guinness Book of World Records title.

“We currently have over 33,000 bunny items,” said Candace Frazee, who co-owns the attraction along with her husband, Steve Lubanski.

The Bunny Museum is a place devoted to the acquisition, conservation, study, exhibition, and educational understanding of bunnies in nature, historically, and artistically.

Steve and Candace married in 1994 at the Wayfarers Chapel in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Candace, who wears red every day, was married in a stunning red Oleg Cassini gown and Steve was in a traditional black tuxedo.
After the vows Steve excused himself for a moment, returning to surprised his bride at their reception by appearing in a bunny costume complete with buck teeth. Photo: Bunny Museum

A Grand Hoppenin' took place on March 20, 2017 when the Museum expanded, unveiling a new venue in Altadena, CA. The Grand Hoppenin' began with a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony concluding with The Some Bunny Party that evening.

Every bunny had a good time.

While rabbits are known to rapidly multiply, it has taken Candace and Steve a few years to acquire their bunny patch. It all started with love.

The Bunny Museum was born on Valentine’s Day in 1993 thanks to one bunny Lubanski, who is from Pasadena, gave to Frazee, a Toronto native who was then his girlfriend. Since then they have given one another some sort of a bunny each and every day.

When they had collected 7,000 of the creatures, they decided to open their home to the public. That was March 1998.

A small sampling of bunny items. Photo: Bunny Museum

The massive collection includes Bugs Bunny, Lola Bunny, Peter Cottontail, NesQuik Rabbit, Peter Rabbit, Brer Rabbit, White Rabbit and March Hare from Alice in Wonderland, Roger Rabbit, Trix Rabbit, Rabbit from Winnie the Pooh, Thumper from Bambi, Uncle Wiggily, Energizer Bunny, Miffy, and Mashimaro, to name a only a few. There are also nine Rose Parade float bunnies.

Actually, anything bunny that you could possible imagine. Bunny-themed furniture to antiques, bunny-inspired contemporary art, kitchenware, toiletries, books, games, Mary, Jesus and Joseph bunnies, bunny lamps, bunny banks, a carousel bunny made from crushed almond shells, a wicker bunny, a bunny-shaped broom, a bunny-label Vaseline jar from Canada, ceramic and glass bunnies.

While some might twitch their nose, there are even several bunnies who were once alive - including their first rabbit Honey Bunny a female New Zealand White - which are freeze-dried preserved and are on display. They are to be respected, not touched.

Broadway To Vegas asked Candace some questions.

Do you encourage school groups to tour your museum?
Yes! (also) The Bunny Museum attracts families.

Elvis Parsley (sic) pitcher made by Fitz & Floyd ® 1994. Visitors rank it as one of the most popular bunnies in the museum. Photo: Bunny Museum.

Since you have indicated that the collection stays intact, upon the decades away deaths of you and your husband, who will maintain the museum; or have other institutions requested the collection?
The Bunny Museum is a museum unto itself. A 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. We have a Board, an Advisory Board, and docents. It will keep operating as a museum after our deaths.

Is the collection insured?
Yes.

Have any celebrities visited your museum?
To name a few: Elijah Wood, Neil Flynn, Emma Roberts, Adam Carolla, Aubrey Plaza, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Huell Howser. . .

The Museum doesn't purchase bunnies from other collectors. However, you do accept donations. Has your museum ever acquired any bunny items that have been used in a theatrical production?
Yes, an Easter bunny made of paper.

Animal rights groups and vets discourage people from giving children little bunnies or chickens as Easter presents because they either get abused, killed or turned out to fend for themselves or dropped off at shelters. You keep living bunnies. Any thoughts for people you'd like to pass on to people who are considering owning a bunny or giving a rabbit as a gift?
The Bunny Museum promotes adopting bunnies from a shelter, not buying one from a pet shop. Our advice is NOT to get a bunny pet... unless you are home a lot, like to vacuum daily, have space enough to give them one or two rooms uncaged, and bunny-proof your home (everything chewable 3 feet up from the floor).

SWEET CHARITY

THE FIRST UK CEO COOK-OFF

Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall cooks along side chef Jamie Oliver. Photo: Clarence House

took place on March 21, 2017 with Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall, who is Patron of UKHarvest, teaming up with chef Jamie Oliver to cook dinner along with 29 phenomenal head chefs of top London restaurants.

The Jamie Oliver Food Foundation and UKHarvest brought together Great Britain's top chefs and the biggest names in UK business for a once in a lifetime evening of cooking, fundraising and feasting. The chefs and CEOs dished up a banquet to six hundred everyday heroes from schools and hospitals, raising money to tackle food waste and food education. The money raised will be divided equally between the food education program of Jamie Oliver Food Foundation & UKHarvest's food waste reduction initiatives.

Over a half a million dollars was raised with "more pouring it" as Jaime Oliver put it.

UKHarvest is a food rescue operation that collects excess food from commercial outlets and delivers it to charities.

RED NOSE DAY which took place Friday, March 24, 2017 raised more than 72 million pounds so far ($88.5m). Participants included James Corden’s Red Nose Day Carpool karaoke with Take That, Ed Sheeran and the Love Actually cast.

MASTERVOICES 2017 SPRING BENEFIT formerly The Collegiate Chorale, celebrating its 75th Anniversary this year, holds its annual Spring Benefit in support of its artistic programming and education and outreach initiatives on Thursday, March 30, 2017 at the Metropolitan Club in New York City.

The evening will begin with cocktails, followed by dinner and performances, and a live auction of a few special items.

The incomparable Kelli O'Hara will join MasterVoices Artistic Director, Ted Sperling and the Tevye with whom he worked with in Fiddler on the Roof - the terrific Danny Burstein - to present lively entertainment as the centerpiece of the Spring Benefit.

The gala will celebrate some of the many donors and artists who have made significant contributions to build MasterVoices into the organization that it is today. The event will honor foundational donors Karen and Kevin Kennedy, Elaine Petschek, and Daisy Soros, as well as some of the artists who starred in early productions who were instrumental in cementing the company's reputation as a distinguished performing arts organization: Martina Arroyo, Harolyn Blackwell and Lauren Flanigan.

The event is led by Benefit Co-Chairs Susan Baker & Michael Lynch, Lois Conway, Donald R. Crawshaw & Matthew D. Hoffman, Ellen F. Marcus, Ellen B. Nenner, Bruce Patrick, Deborah F. Stiles, Adèle K. & John Talty, and Elizabeth Tunick.

THE SHAKESPEARE THEATRE OF NEW JERSEY launches the start of its 55th season with their 2017 Annual Gala on Saturday, April 1, 2017.

The Gala is the Theatre’s largest fundraising event of the year.

In honor of April Fool’s Day, this year’s Gala takes inspiration from Shakespeare’s fools, the art of comedy and the gift of laughter.

The centerpiece of the evening will be a glittering Cabaret featuring music dedicated to fools in love, comedy sketches performed by some of the company’s best Shakespearean “clowns,” and much more. Past performers have included luminaries such as Cyndi Lauper, Dick Cavett, Blythe Danner, Allison Janney, Tamara Tunie, Laila Robins, Robert Cuccioli, Christopher Durang, Baby Jane Dexter, Vivian Reed, Christiane Noll, Ciarán Sheehan and many more.

The Theatre will transform its space for this fools-inspired, black-tie event in which guests will dine, mingle and explore the “factory” as well as bid on spectacular and unique silent auction offerings, including handcrafted artwork, jewelry, and furniture, and one-of-a-kind theatrical opportunities, ranging from tickets to the Broadway hit Hamilton to the chance to bid on a one-night appearance in the Theatre’s fall production of Shakespeare in Love. After the Silent Auction closes guests are invited into the Grand Ballroom for dessert, coffee and the star-studded Cabaret.

THE FOURTH ANNUAL EIGHT OVER EIGHTY BENEFIT GALA for The New Jewish Home will pay tribute to eight New Yorkers who, in their ninth and tenth decades, continue to live lives of remarkable achievement, vitality and civic engagement. The event, at the Mandarin Oriental New York on Tuesday, April 4, is expected to attract more than 450 guests and raise more than $1 million for the nonprofit’s rehabilitation, skilled nursing, and home health care programs, which together serve 12,000 older adults of all faiths and ethnicities each year.

The honorees, each of whom will be celebrated in a video vignette, are style icon and self-described geriatric starlet Iris Apfel, 95; dance legend Carmen de Lavallade, 85; civil rights leader and businessman Vernon E. Jordan, 81; activist and television pioneer Norman Lear, 94; culinary star Jacques Pépin, 81; philanthropist and business leader Morris W. Offit, 80; and New York City power couple Barbara and Donald Tober, 81 and 85, respectively. These men and women, the best of the best in their individual spheres of achievement, are movers and shakers who continue to contribute and to make waves, in the process showing the world that trailblazing is ageless.

The gala benefit committee includes: Carol Becker, Lisa Lippman and Benjamin Finkelstein, Nancy and Joel Hirschtritt, Kate Lear and Jon LaPook, Judith and Michael Luskin, Amanda and Ned Offit, Stefanie and Dan Offit, Susan and Arthur Rebell, Marcia Riklis, Tami Schneider, Sofia and Mike Segal, and Claudine Pepin and Rollie Wesen.

JEFFREY FASHION CARES will benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation, the Hetrick-Martin Institute and Lambda Legal.

The event takes place Monday, April 3, 2017 at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City.

Since 2002, this highly anticipated fashion industry fundraiser, featuring a cocktail party, silent auction, and fashion show that has raised more than $12 million for LGBT human rights, HIV/AIDS prevention and research, and breast cancer research and treatment organizations.

SPREADING THE WORD

THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN OFTEN singer Vera Lynn, who made the song We'll Meet Again famous during World War II and was known as The Forces Sweetheart, officially celebrated her 100th birthday on March 20, 2017. In England the songbird is known as Dame Vera Lynn and her natal day was celebrated by the band playing We'll Meet Again during the Guard Change at Buckingham Palace.
,br> Her image was also projected onto the white cliffs of Dover. Oh, and she has a new record release. It's called Vera Lynn 100, reorchestrating her most famous songs, along with their originals. The CD contains her mega hits We’ll Meet Again and (There’ll be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover. It opened at No. 3 on the British placing her ahead of reality star Zara Larsson known as Sweden's pop princess. Lynn was even ahead of hip hop star Drake.

Can't recall another such birthday celebration.

AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATER in San Francisco announced Thursday, March 24, 2017 that their famed artistic director Carey Perloff will step down at the end of the company’s 2017-18 season.

She has guided San Francisco’s largest theater company since 1992, coming from a six-year tenure at New York’s Classic Stage Company.

After her departure she hopes to write another book, direct again at the Stratford Festival and follow the success of A Thousand Splendid Suns, whose world premiere Perloff commissioned and directed. After playing at ACT and in Canada’s Theatre Calgary, the production will be mounted at Shakespeare Theater in Washington, D.C., Seattle Rep, San Diego’s Old Globe, and Grand Theatre and Royal Manitoba Theatre Center, both in Canada.

THE KENNEDY CENTER IN WASHINGTON DC has invited the Kansas City Ballet to perform The Nutcracker in the nation’s capital the week of Thanksgiving.

The Kennedy Center brings different Nutcracker” productions to D.C. during the holidays. Last year it was the Cincinnati Ballet. The year before it was Ballet West from Salt Lake City.

It's a massive undertaking for The Kansas City Ballet which will require taking two casts and several crew members and support staff to D.C. The show’s sets and other materials will be transported across the country by truck.

POWER DRESSING: FASHION AT COURT 1500 - 1900 is the latest lecture from Historic Royal Palaces Inc. Spring Lecture Tour by Collections Curator, Eleri Lynn who is Curator of the dress collection at Historic Royal Palaces, London where she looks after a collection of 10,000 items of royal and court dress dating back to Tudor times.

Through this illustrative lecture, Collections Curator, Eleri Lynn will explore how monarchs projected their majesty and power, especially in times of conflict, and how courtiers displayed their wealth and even their loyalty. Robert Dudley, Elizabeth I’s favorite, is said to have spent as much to buy one outfit as Shakespeare did to buy his house in Stratford upon Avon. Clothing is how people were noticed, how secret favors were communicated, and legendary dynasties were shored up.

Wednesday, March, 29 at The General Society of Mechanics in New York City and on Thursday, March 30, at The Woman’s Athletic Club in Chicago.

NATASHA, PIERRE AND VODKA a freewheeling conversation with cast members and director Rachel Chavkin about the Broadway smash musical Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. Theater, dancing, and the creation of the hit show are all topics on the menu, accompanied by vodka tasting, which figures prominently in the musical. Featuring the stunning Brittan Ashford (Sonya), Grace McLean (Marya D), and Lucas Steele (Anatole).

Part of The Drama League's Up Close Series, takes place Monday, April 3, 2017 at The Drama League in New York City.

BROADWAY BACKSTAGE will give audience members a behind the scenes look at Broadway with an all new show, as part of On Stage at Kingsborough's 2017 spring season. On April 1, 2017 six Broadway stars will belt out the tunes that they sing from the world’s grandest stages and share backstage gossip, on-stage mishaps, “big break” moments, and other insider stories. The show promises to "take the audience beyond the glitz and glamour and give them a rare opportunity to see what really goes on backstage during a Broadway show, with stories of how the stars got their big break, costume mishaps and more."

Created & Directed by Daniel C. Levine. Music Director: Bryan Perri.

Performers include: Daniel C. Levine, Michael Seelbach, Sarah Litzsinger (Broadway’s longest-running Belle in Beauty and the Beast), Elena Shadow, Donna Vivino and Burke Moses.

On Stage at Kingsborough is located at Southern Brooklyn's Kingsborough Community College, Brooklyn, NY.

MUSIC MAKES YOU A BETTER PERSON explained Erik Scherder, Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology during a lecture attended by Queen Maxima of the Netherlands who is married to King Willem-Alexander. The lecture on the effect of music on a child's brain was followed by interactive workshops involving more than 200 teachers and administrators to discuss music curriculum at Dutch schools. Then Queen Maxima received guests at the Renaissance-style Noordeinde Palace as part of her role as chairman of the musical charity.

Scherder teaches at VU University in Amsterdam and researched the academic body of work focused on the link and effect of music on the human brain. "[Neurologist] Gottfried Schlaug proved that children who make music increase the connection between the hemispheres of the brain, which is incredibly important when growing up," he stressed.

In other words, it is true that "music has charms to soothe the savage beast."

During his many lectures, Scherder is noted for picking up the violin that he’s been learning to play for two years. His brain is scanned while he plays a short piece of music.

According to Harvard Medical School which covered some of his lectures, when Scherder was finished playing he told the audience: "I know you did not particularly like what I just played, and neither did I. But let’s take a look at my brain: the prefrontal cortex is hard at work now!”

The conclusion was that both playing as well as listening to music "results in heightened empathy,” becoming "a better, more caring person."

There is a catch. It must be music that you like. If you listen to a type of music you abhor, your stress level will increase along with your heart rate. No matter the type of music - if it's music that you like, the results are positive.

Harvard Medical School added that:

"A Columbia University neuroscientist posted in an academic magazine that synchronizing music and movement - dance, essentially - constitutes a pleasure double play. Music stimulates the brain’s reward centers, while dance activates its sensory and motor circuits."

NATIONAL NOUGAT DAY is today, Sunday, March 26. Tomorrow is National World Whisky Day. Tuesday is National Black Forest Cake Day. Thursday is National Turkey Neck Soup Day (even though Thanksgiving was last November. Here's hoping that neck has been in the freezer.

OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY

THE MUNY IN ST. LOUIS has announced that they have received a $20,000 grant from the Monsanto Fund to assist with The Muny’s Community Access Program.

“We are incredibly grateful for Monsanto Fund’s support of The Muny’s Community Access Program,” said Muny president and CEO Denny Reagan. “It is immensely important to us that every member of this community has the opportunity to attend a Muny production and experience the arts on this level. We are thrilled to continue this program in 2017 with the very generous support from the Monsanto Fund.”

The Monsanto Fund, the philanthropic arm of Monsanto Company, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the communities where farmers and Monsanto Company employees live and work.



CEC ARTSLINK announced the US and international artists and curators selected for the 2017 CEC ArtsLink Back Apartment Residencies in St. Petersburg, Russia. The Fellows will conduct research, create new work, collaborate with the local community, and participate in public programs.

Those selected are:

Anna Baumgart (Poland, Warsaw) - March 2017
Henna Paunu (Finland, Espoo) - April 2017
David Diamond (New York, NY) - May 2017
Diana Shpungin (Brooklyn, NY) - May 2017
Blane De St. Croix (Brooklyn, NY) - May 2017
Pim Zwier (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) - June 2017
Cynthia Madansky (Scarsdale, NY) - July 2017
Lynn Cazabon (Baltimore, MD) - July 2017
Michael Bramwell (Cary, NC) - November 2017
Les Joynes (New York, NY) - November 2017
Kimberly Schoen (Los Angeles, CA) - December 2017
Damien Zhang (Paris, France) - December 2017

HOW TO MAKE A MARRIAGE LAST: LAUGHTER AND FIRST CLASS SEX

It's not often that show business couples stay together. Two couples who kept it coupled celebrated significant anniversaries this month.

ARLEEN AND ALANA ALDA he the Emmy winning and Grammy, Tony and Oscar nominated actor/writer/director and she the musician and best-selling author, celebrated their 60th (sixtieth, that's right) wedding anniversary on March 15, 2017.

On his twitter account Alan posted that after 60 years they were "still laughing."

MIA KIM AND TOMMY VIG

Celebrating 50 years of marriage with 26 friends in their home, Mia sings and Tommy looks on approvingly while Isvan "Gyafi" Gyarfas plays the guitar. Photo: Courtesy Tommy Vig

Mia Kim and Tommy Vig were married in an elaborate wedding at Temple Beth Shalom in Las Vegas

he the vibraphonist and she of the famed Kim Sisters celebrated their Golden 50th Wedding Anniversary on March 21, 2017.

The couple was married in Las Vegas and now live in Hungary.

Vig told Broadway To Vegas that they had a party. "We were 26 at the celebration and got beautiful gifts from all our friends." The gathering enjoyed live jazz and later the Golden Anniversary couple finished the celebration with, according to Vig, "first class sex (really!!!).

"Mia and I are having a great time in Hungary in many, many ways," he continued. "Excellent health care, season tickets with our friends to the Opera and Symphony, (which) the Government supports with money. Our dollars go far when it comes to standard of living.

"We have been invited to Korea to perform every year for the last three years, the last time we were guests of the Hungarian Ambassador in Seoul. Living proof of Hungarian-Korean friendship + all American show!"

Still in many ways they will always call Las Vegas home.

"In our will and last testament we specified Las Vegas for our final resting place. That is where Mia and I fell in love and that is where, in the sixties, life for our kinds of people were incredibly good, jazz and show business . . . Lots of work, lots of fun, good money."

Vig and Kim met at the now imploded Stardust Hotel where both were performing.

See Broadway To Vegas column of October 16, 2011.



BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY by Stephen Adly Guirgis,

Directed by CPH Associate Artistic Director Robert Barry Fleming.

Still holding onto the memory of his recently deceased wife and a long-standing racially charged lawsuit against the NYPD, ex-cop Walter “Pops” Washington is not one to forgive and forget. Day in and day out, he rules the roost in the impressive rent-controlled apartment that he shares with his parolee son and surrogate family. But, eviction notices and ultimatums are piling up, and Pops soon becomes caught between losing his honor and losing his home.

Starring Grammy winner and Tony nominee Larry Marshall as Pops. Featuring Dominic Colón (Oswaldo), Yvette Ganier (Church Lady), Zoë Sophia Garcia (Lulu), Ken Robinson (Junior), Michael Russotto (Lieutenant Dave Caro), and Danielle Skraastad (Detective Audrey O'Connor).

The creatives are: Rob Milburn & Michael Bodeen (Sound Design), Wilson Chin (Scenic Designer), Geoff Josselson (casting) Tom Humes (Stage Manager), Toni-Leslie James (Costume Designer), Thom Jones (Dialect Coach), Keith Parham (Lighting Designer), Wigs and Whiskers (Wig Master) owned and operated by Mary Schilling-Martin and Caitie Martin.

April 1-23 at Cleveland Playhouse in Cleveland, Ohio.

DIMINISHED by Sam Hoare.

Directed by Tom Attenborough.

"I suppose it’s more palatable to have a mad wife than an evil one."

It seems that Mary and Adam Connor have the perfect life together; great jobs, a new flat and a beautiful baby girl. But a devastating hole opens up in their picture-perfect world and tests their relationship to the very limit. Is their marriage really for better or worse or are some things truly unforgivable?

Hoare's debut play interrogates society’s willingness to overlook unsettling truths and asks how far we will go to assuage our guilt opens Downstairs at the Hampstead in London on March 31 running through - April 29, 2017.

LINDA VISTA a world premiere by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning Tracy Letts.

Directed by Dexter Bullard.

Wheeler is 50. His marriage is over, his job is mundane, and the best years of his life appear to be behind him. A move from the cot in his ex-wife’s garage to his own apartment opens up new possibilities for love and sex - complicated, painful and hilarious. Full of opinions, yet short on self-examination, Wheeler must reconcile the man he has become with the man he wants to be.

Featured Ensemble Members Ian Barford, Tim Hopper, Sally Murphy, Caroline Neff, and Tracy Letts with Cora Vander Broek, Troy West and Kahyun Kim.

Scenic Design Todd Rosenthal. Costume Design Laura Bauer. Lighting Design Marcus Doshi. Sound Design and Original Music Richard Woodbury. Dramaturg Ed Sobel. Casting JC Clementz. Stage Manager Malcolm Ewen. Assistant Stage Manager Christine D. Freeburg.

March 30-May 21, 2017 at Steppenwolf in Chicago, IL.

LIMEHOUSE a new play by Steve Waters is receiving rave reviews at the Donmar Warehouse in London.

Directed by Polly Findlay.

Composer Rupert Cross.

One Sunday morning, four prominent Labour politicians – Bill Rodgers, Shirley Williams, Roy Jenkins and David Owen - gather in private at Owen’s home in Limehouse, East London. They are desperate to find a political alternative. Should they split their party, divide their loyalties, and risk betraying everything they believe in? Would they be starting afresh, or destroying forever the tradition that nurtured them?

"Steve Waters' thrilling new drama takes us behind closed doors to imagine the personal conflicts behind the making of political history.

Limehouse is a fictionalized account of real events. It is not endorsed by the individuals portrayed."

Featuring Roger Allam, Nathalie Armin, Paul Chahidi, Debra Gillett, and Tom Goodman-Hill.

Lighting design by Jon Clark. Sound design by Emma Laxton. Set design by Alex EaLes. Projections by Duncan McLean. Movement direction by Naomi Said. Dialect coach Nia Lynn.

On stage through April 15, 2017 at Donmar Warehouse in England.

WHO'S WHERE

THE BOSTON POPS ESPLANADE ORCHESTRA and conductor Keith Lockhart will showcase the music of George Gershwin including a new arrangement of the overture from the George and Ira Gershwin musical Nice Work If You Can Get It. The program will also feature the Paul Whiteman take on George Gershwin’s An American in Paris. Also on the bill, Fascinating Rhythm and the Rhapsody in Blue and I Got Rhythm variations, which will showcase the talents of longtime Pops collaborator, pianist Michael Chertock. Also on the bill such Gershwin standards as Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off and a medley ’S Wonderful, ’S Marvelous, ’S Gershwin. Tony winner Bernadette Peters will join the Pops for the engagements at The Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University in Chicago on March 31 and at the Niswonger Performing Arts Center’s 10th Anniversary Gala in Van Wert, Ohio on April 1. Other performance this week include Monday, March 27, at the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Sciences in Sioux Falls, SD. Next Sunday, April 2, at The Palladium at the Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, IN.

BON JOVI performs Monday, March 27, at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, MN. Wednesday's gig is at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, MI. On Friday he entertains at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA. Saturday's show is at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT.

ARIANA GRANDE on stage Monday, March 27, at the SAP Center in San Jose, CA. Thursday's gig is at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA. On Friday she can be enjoyed at the Forum in Inglewood, CA.

CHRIS ROCK wraps up a two night gig at the Baenger Theatre in New Orleans, LA. On Tuesday, March 28, he takes part in the Garden of Laughs at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Wednesday's stop is at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, FL.

TONY DANZA performs a selection of his favorite standards from the Great American Songbook, as well as selections from the Broadway musical Honeymoon in Vegas, while interweaving stories about his life and personal connection to the music. March 31 and April 1, 2017 at Feinstein's/54 Below in New York City.

COLLABRO Jamie, Matt, Michael and Tom, winners of Britain’s Got Talent return to the United States for a tour to promote their latest album Home! On Tuesday, March 28, they are on stage at the Highline Ballroom in New York City. Wednesday's stop is at the Sellersville Theater in Sellersville, PA. Friday's gig is in Clinton Township, MI at the Macomb Center for the Performing Arts.

STEVE TYRELL the Grammy-winning vocalist opens a four night stand March 30 at Feinstein's at The Nikko in San Francisco, CA.

FINAL OVATION

COLIN DEXTER the author who created Inspector Morse died at his home in Oxford, England on March 21, 2017. He was 86.

His series of 13 Morse novels, written between 1975 and 1999, were adapted into long running television series.

He wrote his first Morse novel, Last Bus to Woodstock, in 1975 while on holiday in Wales. The fictional detective was then killed off in the final book, The Remorseful Day.

In 200 Dexter received an OBE for services to literature.

Survivors include his wife Sheila.

JOHN "SIB" HASHIAN the former original drummer for the rock band Boston who played on their self-titled debut item, and 1978 chart-topping sequel Don’t Look Back collapsed and died Wednesday, March 22, 2017, while mid-set playing classic rock on a Legends of Rock Cruise that sailed out of Miami Saturday, .March 18, 2017. The ship had left a stop in Puerto Rico when Hashian collapsed and efforts to revive him with CPR and a defibrillator failed. He died on board. He was 67.

Others on the bill were rockers Lou Gramm, the original Foreigner vocalist, ex-Kansas singer John Elefante, ’80s rocker John Cafferty, and ’60s pop/rock group the Grass Roots.

The Boston band site posted a statement on Hashian’s death that read, in part, “Sib’s high energy drumming on the early Boston albums and tours leaves a legacy that will be remembered by millions.”

Hashian went on to play off and on in other bands including Ernie and the Automatics. He also became a business owner of a record shop as well as a chain of tanning parlors in Boston. He lived in Lynnfield, Massachusetts.

Hashian is survived by his wife of 38 years , Suzanne; a son, Adam; two daughters, the songwriter Aja Hashian and the singer-songwriter Lauren Hashian; and several grandchildren including Lauren's daughter with the actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Jasmine Johnson. In a post Dwayne Johnson referred to Hasian as his "second dad."

KURT COCHRAN a musician who ran Onion Street Studio in West Bountiful, Utah a music and rehearsal studio, was murdered in a terrorist attack on March 22, 2017 while on a 25th wedding anniversary trip with his wife in London. He was 54.

His wife Melissa Cochran was seriously injured in the same attack but is expected to recover.

The terrorist group ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack, which also took the lives of Aysha Frade, 43, a mother of two from Spain, 75-year-old Leslie Rhodes, and London police officer Keith Palmer. More than three dozen others were injured. Six are in critical condition. Prince Charles visited King's College Hospital to meet paramedics, support staff and those injured in the Westminster terrorist incident.

Next Column: April 2, 2017
Copyright: March 26, 2017 All Rights Reserved. Reviews, Interviews, Commentary, Photographs or Graphics from any Broadway To Vegas (TM) columns may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, utilized as leads, or used in any manner without permission, compensation and/or credit.
Link to Main Page

---

Laura Deni

For the snail mail address, please E-mail your request.
CLICK HERE FOR COMMENT SECTION