NOW in Previews: Miracle on South Division Street!
a new comedy by TOM DUDZICK
directed by JOE BRANCATO
“When a nice Catholic boy suggests that his sister add a jar of gefilte fish to the cheese, pepperoni and beer on her shopping list, you know something strange is going on. And why not? There’s a very strange family at the center of … the crowd-pleasing Tom Dudzick comedy.” – The New York Times
“Every family has its stories. The Nowaks of Buffalo have a doozy … in Tom Dudzick’s heartwarming and clever comedy. A rollicking comedy in which one revelation builds on another to an unexpected and thoroughly satisfying conclusion. A blessing for the audience.” – Peter D. Kramer, The Journal News/Lohud.com
From the producer of the acclaimed Off Broadway musical THE DEVIL’S MUSIC: THE LIFE & BLUES OF BESSIE SMITH and the award-winning director of TRYST, COBB and FALL TO EARTH comes a new comedy about family, faith and adjusting to life’s surprises.
Her neighborhood may be depressed but not Clara Nowak. She and her three grown children tend a shrine built to commemorate the miraculous vision her father had in his barbershop in 1942. Clara has never lost her faith even if her kids have their doubts. That is, not until a deathbed confession reveals a long-hidden family secret, and all hell — and hilarity — breaks loose on South Division Street.
“Utterly delightful, while delivering a solid message on faith, the lack of it, why we believe what we believe, and how we can – or must – adjust to life’s surprises.” –Theatermania.com
“Best comedy of the year. A great hook that will keep generations laughing. You have to see it to believe it.” – Examiner.com
Performance Schedule
Tuesday 7 PM
Wednesday 2 & 8 PM
Sunday 2 PM
For more information visit the show website!
To purchase tickets please visit www.telecharge.com or call 212-239-6200.
NOW PLAYING! Sistas: The Musical
After a smash, award-winning run at the Midtown International Theater Festival,
SISTAS is moving uptown to the home of Off-Broadway hits!
SISTAS THE MUSICAL
A musical journey of
African-American women
from Bessie Smith to Beyoncé
3-time Tony winner Hinton Battle and JenKay present SISTAS, a musical journey of a multi generational African-American family.Using the lyrics of songs made famous by artists like Ma Rainey, Billie Holiday, Lena Horn, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Beyoncé and many others, the Musical play tells of the struggles, the joy and the triumphs of being Black in America, of being a woman in America – as told through the life of one woman and the women in her family.
Moving from the days of Jim Crow to the present, the narrative is presented through songs like Strange Fruit, Society’s Child, Taint Nobody’s Business, right up to the present with more contemporary songs of worth and independence – I am Not My Hair by India Arie, Alicia Keyes’ A Woman’s Worth, Golden by Jill Scott.
Beginning September 29, 2011!
Performance Schedule:
Thursday 7 p.m.
Saturday 1:30 p.m.
Saturday 4:30 p.m.
Sunday 4:30 p.m.
Visit the Sistas page on Facebook for more information!
Tickets can be purchased by visiting www.telecharge.com, by calling 212-239-6200 or by visiting the Box Office at St. Luke’s Theatre.
The Devil’s Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith: NOW PLAYING!
Sexy and racy, Blues singer Bessie Smith was the definition of a Red Hot Mamma and the most successful entertainer of her time. On the eve of her tragic death in 1937, Bessie takes center stage in a Memphis “buffet flat.” Now, among friends, she tells the story of her amazing life, career, her loves and losses. Put your troubles aside, and soak up the blues as Bessie Smith comes to life and sings the songs that made her so unforgettable, St. Louis Blues, Need a Little Sugar in my Bowl and Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out.
The incandescent Miche Braden plays iconic blues singer Bessie Smith and performs thrilling renditions of 15 songs associated with one of America’s great divas.
“Run, don’t walk, to the current production of “The Devil’s Music: the Life and Blues of Bessie Smith.” The riveting and incandescent Miche Braden is the lead in director Joe Brancato‘s new staging about one of the great divas of the 1920s.” –Newstimes.comShow schedule: Monday at 7 PM
To purchase tickets go to www.telecharge.com or call: 212-239-6200
Travel to Narnia!
“One of the best pieces of family theatre I’ve seen”
- Broadway World Jr.
“Sure to keep children and grown-ups enthralled…magical”
- Broadway World
THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE
from the book by C.S. Lewis
dramatized by le Clanché du Rand
The White Witch has trapped Narnia in a perpetual state of winter with no hope of Christmas. But all that changes when four siblings venture through an old wardrobe and enter this land of talking animals, charming fauns, giants and dwarves. Standing shoulder to shoulder with Aslan the Great Lion, the children courageously battle the forces of evil and discover that Love is the deepest magic of all. In this inventive and highly theatrical adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ classic, two actors give a tour-de-force performance that’s sure to delight children and adults alike.
Open to all, most suitable for ages 6 and up.
Meet the actors and get a free
Narnia sticker after every performance!
Now Playing: Saturdays at 11 a.m.
Directed by Julia Beardsley O’Brien
Starring Catherine Fowles and Robert Gilbert
featuring percussionist Shaun Gallant
Check out the 2 great reviews on Broadway World Jr. and BroadwayWorld.com here and here!
Visit www.narniaoffbroadway.com or follow the show on Facebook for more information!
For tickets call 212-239-6200 or visit www.telecharge.com.
Channeling Kevin Spacey: Now Playing!
Office Space meets Scarface in this hilarious comic romp! In Channeling Kevin Spacey we meet Charlie, a meek pushover stuck in a dead end job and a loveless relationship. After a particularly soul-squashing day at work, Charlie has an epiphany and resolves to change his life. Channeling Kevin Spacey has garnered international acclaim and taken home the coveted “Best of Fest” award at the Toronto, Winnipeg, and Edmonton Fringe festivals. Fans of both Kevin Spacey and Al Pacino are in for a treat as Charlie’s metamorphosis channels the characters of both actors, triggering devastating and hilarious confrontations. For more information, go to: www.ckstheshow.com.
Show schedule: Friday and Saturday at 8 PM, Sunday at 7 PM.
To purchase tickets go to www.telecharge.com or call: 212-239-6200
From Playbill.com an article about the director
of “Danny and Sylvia”
Pamela Hall: An Ingenue Who
Got Lost in the Stars
She made her Broadway debut as Nina, the winsome waitress who sings “I’ve Never Said I Loved You” in Dear World, then replaced Betty Buckley as Martha Washington in 1776 and was Philia in Broadway’s second A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.
Then — poof! — she got out of the ingénue business and, for all practical and visible purposes, dropped off the side of the stage while she was still ahead of the game.
In truth, Pamela Hall only relocated behind the footlights and became a director.
Her efforts are now displayed in the year-old Danny and Sylvia, with Brian Childers and Kimberly Faye Greenberg, twinkling ‘n’ shining under the roof of St. Luke’s Theatre (308 W. 46th).
Danny and Sylvia: CLOSED.
photo by Carol Rosegg
Brian Childers and Kimberly Faye Greenberg
Danny and Sylvia: The Danny Kaye Musical is playing to houses at 90% capacity and the press is raving about
Off-Broadway’s new hit musical!
Performances: Sundays at 2.
Tickets $59.50 & $31.50 via www.telecharge.com
or (212) 239-6200.
What the critics are saying about
“DANNY AND SYLVIA: THE DANNY KAYE MUSICAL”
“The popular, versatile comic entertainer Danny Kaye, and his wife, the songwriter Sylvia Fine, are profiled in a delightful off-Broadway musical called “Danny and Sylvia: The Danny Kaye Musical,” now on view at St. Luke’s Theatre. Childers seems tireless as he sings, dances and leaps about the stage, skillfully recreating Kaye’s clownish personality, complete with flamboyant hand motions, zany physical actions and quick wit. He easily executes the crazy accents and impromptu gibberish, as well as the fast-paced lyrics for which Kaye was famous.
Notable examples are his rendition of the Weill/Gershwin tongue-twister “Tchaikowsky,” in which he rattles off the names of dozens of similar-sounding Russian composers, and his audience-rousing version of “Minnie the Moocher.”
Sylvia is nimbly portrayed by Kimberly Faye Greenberg as loving, yet with a ruthless edge. Greenberg sings beautifully, conveying Fine’s love for the mostly undisciplined Kaye along with her astute, apparently sharklike business aptitude.
Somehow director Pamela Hall keeps it all in check and moving along smoothly.
This musical is an enjoyable look back at Kaye’s unique abilities, and an excellent showcase for the talented Greenberg and Childers.”
–Jennifer Farrar, NEW YORK TIMES/ASSOCIATED PRESS
“Watch those limbs!!! Brian Childers’ physicality is so like Kaye’s it’s a see-it-to-believe-it experience. Childers can dive into gibberish and do accents like Sid Caesar; he gambols, pivots, yelps, frolics, leaps, squeaks, and giggles. He acts, too. He’s a charmer. Enjoy Childers, whether leading the audience in singing Cab Calloway’s “Minnie the Moocher,” prancing through Fine’s still-fine “Anatole of Paris” or drilling through “Tchaikovsky”. Kimberly Faye Greenberg not only resembles Fine, she radiates her fearlessness. Greenberg reveals heart beneath Fine’s heartlessness plus compassion for her comic-savant husband.”
–Leonard Jacobs, BACKSTAGE
“DANNY AND SYLVIA is an entertaining evening. Fueled by the talents of its two stars, it’s a smoothly paced revue that doesn’t bog itself down with heave does of exposition. Bob Bain and Robert McElwaine have written a very good score that also includes some of Kaye’s most memorable performances. Brian Childers portrays Danny Kaye with loving care and exquisite attention to vocal and physical detail. His impersonation of Kaye is simply uncanny and his spectacular dead-on rendition of “Minnie the Moocher” is a memorable highlight. Kimberly Faye Greenberg has a strong comedic presence as songwriter Sylvia Fine, Kaye’s creative partner and eventual spouse and is an excellent match for Childers. Pamela Hall directs the script sweetly and Gene Castle has done a great job bringing Kaye’s choreography to the stage. Fans of Danny Kaye will not be disappointed with this production. It’s a pleasure to see Brian Childers portray him.”
–Jason S. Grossman, NYTHEATRE.COM
“Childers and Greenberg have good stage chemistry and both belt out the songs with gusto. Childers is at his best singing Kurt Weill’s and Ira Gershwin’s “Tchaikovsky,” a tongue-twisting litany of 58 Russian composers sung in a breakneck 38 seconds.”
–CURTAIN UP
“The life of Danny Kaye is a whopper of a story.”
–John Simon, BLOOMBERG
“DANNY AND SYLVIA” is a heartfelt tribute to the well-known comedian and the significant contribution of his lesser-known wife. We get to see some of the brilliance that made Kaye a star of stage, screen and TV. Watching Brian Childers bring Kaye to life, you get the sense his style may have influenced the Monty Python crew and certainly influenced Nathan Lane.”
–Paul Cozby, ABOUT.COM
“Danny Kaye fans will love Brian Childers’ recreation of the ‘Tummler’.”
–Merle Exit, MERLE’S WHIRLS
“Danny and Sylvia: The Danny Kaye Musical is a little jewel. The production is a triumph of casting with Brian Childers as Danny Kaye. Mr. Childers received the 2002 Helen Hayes Award for “Outstanding Leading Actor in a Musical” and the Mary Godwater Award for his performance as Danny Kaye in Danny and Sylvia: A Musical Love Story. Understandably there are more awards attached to his name and we at Arts & Leisure News Service add their name to the accolades for his performance in Danny and Sylvia: The Danny Kaye Musical.”
–Joyce Hauser, ARTS & LEISURE NEWS SERVICE
“Brian Childers flawlessly achieves the reincarnation of Danny Kaye in his high-energy fluency and physical commitment to the role. He not only captured the character in song and dance, but also used the play’s sporadic narrative to engage the audience and add depth to what we already know about the famous showman.
Playing Sylvia Fine, Kaye’s steadfast and loving wife, Kimberly Faye Greenberg shone as the playful yet disciplined backbone to Danny Kaye’s funnyman routines. Fine was also the creator of some of his most renowned material.
By the finale it is clear why the world quickly embraced the tongue-twister master and all-around performer that was Danny Kaye. Danny and Sylvia: The Danny Kaye Musical is a great evening off-Broadway and will have you singing those fabulous Danny Kaye songs for weeks to come.”
– Alyssa Lettman, Best of Off-Broadway.com
For more information, visit: www.dannyandsylvia.com
