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 Psst - after you've read all of the Cast Party scoop, be sure to spend a moment with our fabulous sponsors!
December 8 , 2006
There was no room for choreography when Debbie Gravitte, that gorgeous Tony-winning Broadway diva, stormed the Birdland stage Monday night, what with the extraordinary 17-piece big band backing her up. Debbie and the Russ Kassoff Big Band hosted one of the most thrilling nights of music we've heard, what with the wall of sound, the big, juicy arrangements, and that lusty voice! Debbie even had her old pal Mario Cantone introduce her. If you look to the left, you'll see them backstage, oohing and aahing over our sponsor Charlie Lapson's 'opening night' present! There were some theatrical heavy-hitters in the crowd, including Jerry Mitchell, David Zippell, Mark Sendroff, Barry Brown, Michael Kerker, Scott Coulter, Beau Gravitte, and our simply favorite Steven Brinberg! The following Cast Party was equally starry and so musically varied, what with the many voices of Christine Pedi, Grammy winner Lari White, Tony winning-stud Jarrod Emick, trumpet dude Domenic Farinacci, and original Manhattan Transfer gal Laurel Masse! Even Broadway's sometime-Grinch Michael Riedel looked cheerful and happy with the performances! (Check out more photos on Flickr!!) We do it all again next week, with David Budway and Steve Doyle making up the Cast Party Symphony Orchestra.
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 Just had to tell you a bit about our Caribbean adventure...if you've never heard of Turks & Caicos, you might check out Turks and Caicos and call the airlines immediately. The beaches were just named 'Most Beautiful In The World' by Travel & Leisure Magazine, and we couldn't agree more. Hilary Kole, Billy Stritch, Steve Doyle and I (left) were treated like royalty, and trust me when I say we can't wait for the next time! SO many thanks to Randy Swartz, Mark and Barbara Pankhurst, Peter Jakubowski, Betty & Alastair Dods, Wilma Dietsche, Ben Strogatz, The Somerset on Grace Bay and the Turks & Caicos Friends of the Arts Foundation. Our own Gianni Valenti, King of Birdland, went down for relaxation, and ended up doing yeoman's duty as our sound guy. We couldn't have been happier to have his ears and watchful eyes on us!
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 We're so proud to present MELISSA ERRICO in her brand new show, then & now on Monday and Tuesday, December 11 and 12 at 7pm, in continuation of “Broadway at Birdland.” This series features top Broadway performers and songwriters at the legendary music room located at 315 West 44 Street in NYC. Call 212.581.3080 or www.InstantSeats.com/Birdland for reservations.
Making her solo debut at the legendary jazz club, Melissa Errico will perform a fresh set of standards, theater music, original songs and lullabies. The song list includes: “I Remember,” “The Man That Got Away“ and “From This Moment On," as well as highlights from her first album “Blue Like That” (EMI) and her upcoming symphonic album with Michel Legrand, produced by Phil Ramone, featuring such Oscar-winning classics as “The Summer Knows” and “What Are You Doing The Rest of Your Life?” The show will feature Andy Ezrin on piano and Tim Lefebvre on bass.
Tony-nominated for her work in Amour, Errico has also been seen on Broadway in Dracula The Musical, High Society, My Fair Lady, and Anna Karenina. Off-Broadway credits include Aunt Dan and Lemon and Finian's Rainbow, while she has also been seen at Encores! in One Touch of Venus and at the Kennedy Center in Sunday in the Park with George.
Coming up: Christine Ebersole & Billy Stritch on Sunday, December 17 @8pm, Toxic Audio on Monday, December 18 @7pm, Jason Graae on Monday, January 15 @7pm and Cady Huffman on Monday, January 29 @7pm. Call Birdland - 212.581.3080 or www.InstantSeats.com/Birdland.
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 PS CLASSICS, THE LABEL DEDICATED TO THE HERITAGE OF BROADWAY AND AMERICAN POPULAR SONG, has joined forces with prolific cabaret producer Jamie deRoy on a new CD celebrating songwriters from the worlds of Broadway, pop, country and cabaret. But this new album has a twist: the songwriters are also the performers. Entitled IF I SING, after the Maltby/Shire song from Closer Than Ever, the album features 16 songwriters taking on their own material, some of it familiar, some totally unknown, in new performances and new arrangements. The theatre composers include some of Broadway’s finest, including Stephen Schwartz, Maury Yeston, Richard Maltby & David Shire, Robert Lopez & Jeff Marx, Andrew Lippa, Lucy Simon, and Gretchen Cryer & Nancy Ford, while the pop songwriters include such luminaries as Grammy Award-winners Julie Gold and Larry Gatlin. The album, produced by Paul Rolnick, with artistic direction by Barry Kleinbort, is in stores, or on the web at psclassics.com, amazon.com, footlight.com, For more info, click: jamiederoy.com.
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 SQUIGS DRAWS THE SHOWBIZ! Justin “Squigs” Robertson will draw for food. He’ll draw for fame and fortune too, but first things first. Since 1993, Squigs has captured showbiz folk from the backyard to Broadway, including many ladies and gents who have wowed the crowds at Cast Party. His theatrical style is aided and abetted by his parallel life on the stage – a character man drawing characters. His favorite song is “It’s Only A Paper Moon”; he loves sushi; and he genuflects upon merely hearing the name of Al Hirschfeld. Well-known in the Los Angeles theatre scene where he's based, Squigs is working at kicking up the art a notch (or 7). Come see what's happening at the website: www.squigsink.com. Stop by anytime, and drop a line to say “hello.”
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 CHARLIE
LAPSON'S SIGNATURE COLLECTION is the culmination of years of training, world travel, and professional
experience as one of Hollywood's top designers. His luxurious
handbags and men's wallets are produced by factories in Tuscany, Italy
made of fine Italian leather. Lapson's handbags and clutches have
been worn by the elite of Hollywood to numerous red carpet events
and on camera as well.
Celebrities such as Felicity Huffman, Eva
Longoria, and Debra Messing can be seen
at award shows adorned with Charlie
Lapson Jewelry. The collection is created by using the
most brilliant diamonds and precious gemstones mixed with 18 kt gold,
and molding them into works of art. Celebrities dazzle with glamorous
bold statement pieces. Look for large colored gemstones and mixes
of textures with unique shapes.
Style fit for a star!
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|  WHAT
DO MICHAEL C. HALL, KERRY BUTLER, CHEYENNE JACKSON, ESTELLE PARSONS, JULIA MURNEY, DEVEN
MAY, HUNTER FOSTER, MICHAEL ARDEN, JAMES BLUNT and the GOO GOO DOLLS
all have in common?Their
secret weapon -- voice teacher Liz Caplan! Her student ANA GASTEYER
(upcoming Threepenny Opera) says, "Studying with Liz has changed my
approach to singing on every level. In the two years we have worked
together, she has combined phenomenal technique with tailor-made specifications
to meet a huge variety of professional demands. Her tireless enthusiasm
and expertise have empowered me physiologically and emotionally to become
a better singer than I had ever imagined. It's like physical therapy
and good, old-fashioned psycho-therapy for your vocal chords!" Visit http://www.LizCaplan.com for more information, but tell Liz you heard about her at Cast Party!
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|  OUR
UPDATED T-SHIRT is now available in Tootsie-Roll brown
with safety-cone orange trim, as seen at left, where Jim reveals his
secret identity as -- Superhost! Show
your love for a certain Monday night Open Mic extravaganza by wearing
this 100% cotton, Peruvian-made, American-printed piece of art! The
wry "Got Mic?" logo is on the front, and our logo is on the
back. They're only $20 and available if you click http://www.castpartynyc.com/Goods.htm. |
As always,
many thanks to our corporate and private sponsors:
Gianni Valente & Hilary Kole, Randy Swartz
& Stage Step, Jamie deRoy & friends, Michael Estwanik, Piper-Heidsieck
Champagne, Todd Forman, Steven Minichiello, Matthew Gilbert and Wild
Oats Productions, as well as our Birdland sound guru Sean Corcoran and
Brian Wilson at SoHa Media. We can't do it without you!
Click
here to advertise with us. It costs
less than the average banner ad, and you're guaranteed to be seen by
tons of fabulous people (look, you're reading this right now,
yes?).
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|  "The
Party simply glows with New York nightlife ambiance. It feels like a
throwback to another era but it has this era's top-notch entertainers
dropping in to schmooze, sing, eat, and drink. Caruso consistently provides a flow of exciting singers, and he's definitely
hip, cool and classy all by himself."
-THEATERMANIA
When:
Every
Monday at
9:30pm
!
Where:
BIRDLAND
315 West 44th
Street (between 8th & 9th), NYC
212.581.3080
Bookings for Jim Caruso's
Cast Party® for theaters, arts presenters,
corporations and private events:
Ligeti Artists LLC
Peter Ligeti
mrligeti@aol.com
212.396.1111
For online booking information, click: The
Show Store
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