You just saw her starring as Nanette in No No Nanette last week at City Center Encores! Now - we got her at Birdland! Making her Birdland debut on May 19 in Dreaming Wide Awake, Mara Davi will share the songs that fuel her fantasy life, make her heart soar and her toes tap.  The evening of song, which will include two hits from the recently premiered musical Dancing in the Dark, is a blend of jazz, musical theatre, and contemporary music all arranged with Davi and Waite's fanciful touch.  Mara is known best for her work on Broadway as Maggie Winslow in A Chorus Line and more recently as Janet Van De Graaff in The Drowsy Chaperone.  At City Center Encores! she played Emily Benson in Of Thee I Sing, and will be  seen in the upcoming No, No Nanette in the title role.  Davi played Princcess Buttercup in the workshop of The Princess Bride and toured USA and Japan as Peggy Sawyer in 42nd Street.  Currently, Davi is developing the role of Gabrielle Gerard in Dancing in the Dark, a new musical based on the movie “The Bandwagon.”  Davi's favorite piano man, composer/conductor/pianist Adam Waite has had the privilege of performing alongside many great jazz musicians including Claudia Acuna, Kenny Burrell, and Charlie Biddle.  Since 2005, he has been the Music Director for Broadway's Greatest Gifts: Carols for a Cure, and is the recently appointed Artistic Director of the Lyrica Chamber Orchestra. Call Birdland at 212-581-3080 or click on www.birdlandjazz.com for reservations!

Coming up on Monday, May 26, we're thrilled to welcome back Georgia Stitt & Friends!

JUST FOR TODAY: The debut CD from vocalist Lars Vercelli is online at CDBaby and on the iTunes store. The album features twelve amazing tunes that you are just bound to love. Buy the CD today! Visit www.cdbaby.com/larsvercelli.

THREE MUST-SEE STARS. ONE DON'T-MISS OFFER! Save up to $30 on The Country Girl. Peter Gallagher, Frances McDormand, Morgan Freeman. Best Revival of a Play! Drama Desk Award nominee. “Terrific entertainment!" – John Lahr, The New Yorker. “Leaves most Broadway fare trailing by a country mile! Clifford Odets is a master of dramatic irony and suspense.” -John Simon, Bloomberg News. Directed by Oscar® winner and 8-time Tony® winner Mike Nichols, The Country Girl is Clifford Odets’ classic backstage story of a down-on-his-luck actor and the two people in his life that can make– or break – his comeback. Get tickets for just $70. Visit BroadwayOffers.com and enter the code CGNPT55, or call Telecharge.com 212-947-8844 and mention the code CGNPT55, or print and show this ad to the Bernard B. Jacobs theater box office, 242 West 45th St. (show runs through July 20). Some restrictions apply. Limit 8 tickets per order.

JUST RELEASED - BILLY STRITCH AND CHRISTINE EBERSOLE: "SUNDAY IN NEW YORK." The selections were culled from the pair's recent sold out run at The Metropolitan Room in New York City. In a review of that performance, Stephen Holden of the New York Times commented: "Ms. Ebersole, a bright, zany soprano and ebullient clown, can whirl on a dime and evoke an inexpressable sorrow under a facade of garrulous pluck. When she adds a spinning vibrato to her lemony voice, she can turn into a playful latter-day Kathryn Grayson or Jeanette MacDonald. Mr. Stritch, a pop-jazz pianist and gifted arranger, is a solid exponent of the gregarious, swinging Vegas style epitomized by Steve Lawrence." Listen to song samples, buy the CD, and learn about all things Billy Stritch at http://www.billystritch.com.

BROADCAST YOURSELF…BEFORE SOMEONE DOES IT FOR YOU. Introducing…"I." An ongoing collaborative web series. A story told in snippets. At www.youtube.com/ichannel -OR- www.connectwithi.com. "I." (also referred to as "iChannel") is an ongoing interactive web series in which a man's life is taken over by an online audience - YOU. Together, Sebastian Arcelus (Jersey Boys), Craig DiFolco, and Michael Izquierdo (New Jerusalem) have forged a path into the world of truly interactive television by directly linking the "subject" to his "audience" in this comically existential adventure. With 34 episodes already filmed and more on the way, they invite you to join in and connect with "I." Is your life worth watching? Check out "I." PLEASE NOTE: Texts that appear in "quotes" within the episodes are actual user comments. If you comment or post a video response, it may very well appear in a future episode.

THE BROADWAY SEASON IS IN FULL SWING and one of the most exciting new openings of the year is the official launch of Audience Rewards, the only experiential rewards program created for theatergoers and patrons of the performing arts. Audience Rewards is proud to offer premiere experiences and entertainment benefits to the loyal fans of Broadway.  All you have to do is join. Membership is FREE. And, as a fan of Jim Caruso's Cast Party and Broadway at Birdland, we will give you a gift of 500 points to get you started toward earning Broadway tickets, unique memorabilia, special experiences and tickets to arts and entertainment events. Membership also includes invitations to VIP receptions and special offers on dining, travel and, of course, Broadway shows. Visit www.AudienceRewards.com to sign up to get many exciting benefits including special presentations and offers brought to you by Jim Caruso and Audience Rewards.

JIM CARUSO…THE PARTY CONTINUES ON CD: Caruso: Live and In Person, with Billy Stritch on piano. "Jim is funny, facile and fabulous! He performs with charm, wit and style, and is vastly entertaining." -- Michael Feinstein. "A cabaret-lover's dream!" -- Chip Deffaa, New York Post. "An unbeatable act of jazz, pop, comedy and conversation that is different from anything else in town." -- Rex Reed, New York Observer. "This impish, twinkling-eyed performer exudes the buoyant spirits of a conetmporary vaudevillian…with an extremely tart lemon tucked firmly in his cheek." -- Stephen Holden, New York Times.

ELAINE PAIGE , THE "FIRST LADY OF BRITISH MUSICAL THEATRE," HOSTS AN ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS WEEKLY RADIO SHOW on BBC Radio 2 every Sunday night.  The program is devoted to musical theatre and film music from Hollywood, Broadway and the West End.  The celebrated star of Evita, Cats, Chess and Sunset Boulevard has interviewed a host of stars including Angela Lansbury, Sir Elton John, and Michael Feinstein, and continues to delight audiences with a unque mix of show music and juicy interviews. Click on BBC: Elaine Paige on Sunday to hear the current show.

KEN KLEIBER'S OFFERING VIDEOGRAPHY SERVICES. You have the talent, you booked the room and the crowds came. But what about that sought-after agent who was escorting his star client to a premiere? Or that family member who got stuck out-of-town due to inclement weather? Or that best friend who got the 24-hour flu? They can all re-live your shining performance through the magic of digital video. Videographer Ken Kleiber (host of TV, internet & radio’s "That’s Kentertainment!") not only interviews the stars, he films them too. With over 6 years of videotaping experience, Ken has filmed hundreds of hours of cabarets, concerts, live theatre, dance recitals, comedy sets, interviews, on-tape auditions, parties and more. For more information on Ken’s videotaping, copying and transferring services, please contact Ken at kentertain@yahoo.com. Don’t let that once-in-a-lifetime moment be…just once!

MINNELLI & CARUSO: TOGETHER AGAIN…I'm beyond excited to tell you that I'll be performing on the road with my amazing friend Liza Minnelli quite a bit this next year!  We're celebrating Kay Thompson and the Williams Brothers' historic nightclub act that took the world by storm in the late '40's and early '50's.  Cortes Alexander, Johnny Rodgers, Tiger Martina and I are working hard to approximate the blend and unique sound that Bob, Dick, Don and Andy Williams brought to Kay's ingenius vocal arrangements.  With dazzling direction and choreography by Ron Lewis, and old pal Billy Stritch at the piano, this project is an absolute dream come true!

ON THE CD, AT THE MOVIES, DAVE KOZ, A MULTI-GRAMMY NOMINATED SAX PLAYER with two gold albums and ten top 5 hits to his credit, takes center stage on eight instrumentals: "Over The Rainbow," "As Time Goes By," "The Pink Panther," "Summer of '42," "Cinema Paradiso," "Schindler's List," "It Might Be You" and " The Shadow of Your Smile." The 40-piece orchestra enlisted by Koz and producer Phil Ramone provides a majestic, sweeping soundscape for the saxophonist and his guest vocalists, including Vanessa Williams, who contributes an exquisite version of "The Way We Were," and Johnny Mathis, who perfectly captures the bittersweet quality of "The Shadow Of Your Smile," from The Sandpiper. Other highlights include Anita Baker's elegant rendering of "Somewhere," from West Side Story and Donna Summer's shimmering version of "A Whole New World," from Disney's Aladdin. Barry Manilow duets with Koz on a hip arrangement of Henry Mancini's " Moon River," and India.Aire delivers a deeply personal performance of "It Must Be You," from Tootsie. At The Movies is a must-have for music and film lovers everywhere. Disappear into another world and spend some time At The Movies.

SQUIGS DRAWS THE STARS. Justin 'Squigs' Robertson is well known in the Los Angeles theatre community for capturing show biz folks in pen and ink, and his acclaim is quickly spreading across the country. He loves sushi. His favorite song is 'It's Only A Paper Moon'. And he genuflects upon merely hearing the name of Al Hirschfeld. His whimsical illustration and design is aided and abetted by his parallel career as an actor and entertainer. You can visit for a look at Squigs' take on such talented friends of Cast Party as Jeff Blumenkrantz, Julia Murney, Christine Ebersole, Victoria Clark, Kelli O'Hara, Bob Martin and Liza Minnelli. www.squigsink.com

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.

TheaterMania.com:
"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."

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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