Easter Bonnet!

Phantom dancers Jordan Ashley, Brianne Kelly Morgan, Erina Noda, Deana Villei, and Bradley Benjamin high atop the Rio!

Just a reminder that the Easter Bonnet Competition is this Sunday, April 5... come see what exciting surprises director Tim Tucker has up his sleeve for this year's show!

This event is a benefit for St. Therese HIV Outreach.

The Chippendales Theatre at the Rio

Sunday, April 5 at 2pm

$25 for Premium Seating

$75 for VIP Lounge

For more information, click here:

Las Vegas Easter Bonnet, Home Page

It's that time again!

The Liberace Museum proudly presents

The Composers Showcase

Thursday, April 2 at 10:30pm

$5 cover charge at the door (free with show or student ID)

Featuring the songs of local composers and songwriters The Apple Sisters, Erich Bergen, Michel Brennan, Vita Corimbi, Rylan Leo Helmuth, Christopher Lash, Andrew Lippa, Bonnie Mizell, Kristopher McNeeley, Richard Oberacker, and Keith Thompson

... and the delightful songs stylings and vocal powers of Armi Abiera, Travis Cloer, Kimmy Gatewood, Christine Hudman, Rebekka Johnson, Greg Kata, Sarah Lowe, Joan Sobel, Ali Spuck, Lisa Wilson, Melody Wilson, and other special guests!

Plus the amazing instrumental chops of Jean Ainsley, Patricia Diaz, Mike Fouts, and Tyler Williams.

The museum is located at E. Tropicana and Spencer.

There will be a $5 hors d'oeuvres buffet and a cash bar provided by Carluccio's and the Liberace Museum.

The AIDS Walk for AFAN

For the third year in a row, Phantom will participate in the AIDS walk on April 19!

To sponsor Team Phantom in the walk by donating online, click here:

AIDS Walk Las Vegas 2009 - General Donation

Phantom is also holding a silent auction to raise money for the event. To check out the auction items (still being gathered so stay tuned) and place your bids, click here:

Phantom Silent Auction to benefit AFAN

Fabulous Erich Bergen write-up

Las Vegas Weekly writer Steve Friess gets it. 

Click here to read his thoughts on Jersey Boys actor Erich Bergen (soon performing a solo show at the Liberace Museum) and the Las Vegas Strip theatre community as a whole.

Las Vegas Weekly : Catch the rising stars

Lion King cast announced

For the Las Vegas production, Disney has hand-selected an international cast of performers who have won acclaim in productions of THE LION KING around the world, including New York, Taipei, South Africa, London, Los Angeles, Australia, Toronto, Shanghai, Paris and Holland.  The cast includes nine South African natives, and three ensemble members, Joseph Rivera, Renata Renee Wilson and Deon Ridley from Las Vegas.  The group assembled in Las Vegas on Monday, March 9 to rehearse together for the first time.

The malevolent and evil "Scar" will be played by Thom Sesma, whose credits include The Times They Are A-Changin' , The Man of La Mancha, La Cage Aux Folles on Broadway and Thomas Andrew in Titanic, the national tour.  Alton F. White will play the lion king "Mufasa."  Mr. White's credits include THE LION KING's Broadway company and national tour, as well as Ragtime, Tommy, The Color Purple and Miss Saigon on Broadway. Marvette Williams, a Los Angeles native, will play "Sarabi."  Her credits include the acclaimed musicals Hair and Tommy along with vocals in the film Tears of the Sun. Buyi Zama, a native of South Africa, will be the wise "Rafiki."  Ms. Zama has performed in seven productions of THE LION KING, including London, Sydney, Melbourne, Shanghai, South Africa, Taipei and the national tour; her credits also include backing as a vocalist for artists such as Whitney Houston and Rebecca Malope.

Kissy Simmons, a native of Floral City, FL, will be the lioness, "Nala."  She joins the Las Vegas cast from the Broadway production of THE LION KING and previously performed in the national tour. Mufasa's son, "Simba," will be played by Clifton Oliver, who is an alumnus of Douglas Anderson School of Arts and has numerous theatre credits including featured roles in THE LION KING's Los Angeles production and national tour, in addition to Grease, Rent and Wicked on Broadway.

The meerkat "Timon" will be played by Damian Baldet, who has appeared in THE LION KING's national tour in addition to productions of Frankenstein, Attempts on Her Life, The Rats Are Getting Bigger and Gone Missing.  Patrick Kerr, who will portray "Zazu," and appeared as KACL's Noel on "Frasier" and recently performed in The Ritz on Broadway.  Adam Kozlowski will portray "Pumbaa" the warthog and has appeared in Scrooge the musical on national tour.

The three hyenas will be played by Keith Bennett ("Banzai"), an original cast member of THE LION KING, whose additional credits include the Broadway productions of Oh, Kay! and The High Rollers Social and Pleasure Club; Jacquie Hodges ("Shenzi"), who has performed off Broadway in For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide and in the national tours of THE LION KING and Aida; and Robbie Swift ("Ed"), acting graduate from The Theatre School at DePaul University, who toured nationally with THE LION KING and recently played "Linus" in the West Coast premiere of Snoopy.

Performances in the role of "Young Simba" will be alternated between Duane Ervin and Elijah Johnson.  The role of "Young Nala" will be alternated between Ruby Crawford and Jade Nelson.

The music director is Jay Alger, formally an associate music director at Phantom:The Las Vegas Spectacular. He joins the Las Vegas production of The Lion King from the national tour.

Menopause, the Musical

Queen Emily, one of the top five finalists in “America’s Got Talent,” has officially joined the cast of Menopause, The Musical at the Las Vegas Hilton!

Queen Emily got her start singing as a little girl in church. Although her talent was apparent to everyone who heard her sing, life got in the way of her dreams. Raising her daughters as a single mother meant Emily's musical aspirations had to be put on hold.

When she turned 40, Emily experienced an epiphany and realized that it was time to stop dreaming and start acting, which led her to the "America's Got Talent" auditions. She became a top five finalist in the popular show (out of the more than 200,000 people who auditioned), dazzling the nation with her story and her voice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PmUnvhNCu4

Inspired by a hot flash and a bottle of wine, Writer/Producer Jeanie Linders created Menopause as a celebration of women who are on the brink of, in the middle of, or have survived “The Change.” From its first performance, the show has evolved as a "grassroots" movement of women who deal with life after 40 and all the challenges that result in the mental, physical and spiritual freedom of the post-World War II baby boomer generation. Since it’s inception in 2001, it has played to nearly eleven million people across the world.

Showtimes for Menopause The Musical in the Las Vegas Hilton’s Shimmer Cabaret are Mon., Tues., Thur., Fri., 7 p.m., Saturday 4 p.m. & 7 p.m., and Sunday 6 p.m. Dark Wednesdays. Tickets are $49.50 (plus tax and service charge) and can be purchased at the Las Vegas Hilton box office, online at www.lvhilton.com, www.vegas.com, www.ticketmaster.com or by calling 702-732-5755 or 1-800-222-5361.  For group sales, call 702-884-1222.

The show is set to close at the Hilton on April 5, BUT... something tells me this is not the last we'll hear of them here in Vegas. Keep your eyes and ears open!

Broadway Vegas alums come together

For one night only, stars from the Broadway stage will travel to Seattle to participate in an evening of elegant cabaret to benefit the Broadway Bound Children's Theatre! The roster of performers includes Vegas theatre alums Brent Barrett (Phantom), Bill Nolte (The Producers), Rebecca Spencer (Phantom), and Philip Fortenberry (currently at Jersey Boys).

Monday, March 23

Cocktails and hors d'oeuvres begin at 5:30pm

Performance begins at 7:00pm

Single ticket is $75. A pair is $125.

Broadway Performance Hall

1625 Broadway

Seattle, WA  98122

For more information, click here:

March 23 Cabaret — Broadway Bound Children's Theatre

For tickets, click here:

Brown Paper Tickets - The first and only fair-trade ticketing company!

Jersey Boys lend their expertise

Seven local students are a part the CineVegas outreach program this year. They're taking part in a five-week long film workshop, the culmination of which will be a screening of their 10-minute film at the festival this June.

Erich Bergen and Jeff Leibow (Jersey Boys) taught an acting workshop for them on Tuesday, emphasizing preparation and confidence. 

Becky Bosshart wrote an article covering this in Wednesday's Las Vegas Sun. To read the full article, click here:

High school students enmesh themselves in art of filmmaking - Las Vegas Sun

Reminder: Heart and Music

Just a reminder that members of the cast of Phantom will perform tomorrow (Sunday) at 3pm at Mountain View Presbyterian Church. All proceeds from the concert will be donated to a fund to benefit Phantom original cast member Stephen Hood. Stephen was recently diagnosed with Leukemia and has had to take an extended leave from the show while he battles his illness. Your support would truly be appreciated!

See previous post "Heart and Music" for details.

Brent Barret and the Las Vegas Philharmonic

Broadway star and former Las Vegas "Phantom" Brent Barrett will perform a pops concert with the Las Vegas Philharmonic this month!

"You and the Night and the Music"

A Night on Broadway with Brent Barrett

Saturday, March 21 at 8pm

The title song of the evening was arranged by Broadway veteran, Las Vegas musician, and all around great guy Jimmy Lockett. 

For details and ticket information, click here:

The Las Vegas Philharmonic

The boys of Phantom

Phantom's former 'Raoul' Ryan Silverman is keeping busy these days! He has just returned from London where he performed selections from the nominated West Side Story at the Olivier Awards. He'll be performing with James Barbour at Sardi's in New York on March 14. And next up, Raoul returns to Phantom! No, not the Las Vegas Spectacular. 

Tim Martin Gleason, the original Las Vegas 'Raoul,' will be leaving his position in the Broadway company to play the Phantom on the national tour! In his place on Broadway? You guessed it... Ryan Silverman. 

Congratulations to both! 

Broadway Vegas Babies

So many little ones have been born into this fabulous community in the last couple of years and there are more on their way, as well! Congratulations to all the new moms and dads and to all of the sweetie-pies... welcome to the world!

Dori Rosenthal and Anthony Crivello (Phantom) welcomed Enzo in September of '06. They're also expecting their second baby this summer!

Juliane and Stephen Price (Phantom) welcomed Lily in March of '07.

Jen Cantorna (Mamma Mia!) and Sean Kuehl welcomed Ben in June of '08.

Kristen Hertzenberg (that's me!) and Dana Satterwhite welcomed Shea in November of '08.

Jacquelyn Holland-Wright (Mamma Mia!) and Jason Wright welcomed Parker in February of '09.

Amanda Huddleston (Phantom) and Andy Clark welcomed Silas in February of '09.

Melody and Jeff Leibow (Jersey Boys) are expecting their first baby this summer.

Warmest congratulations to everyone!

Carol Linnea Johnson at Boomer's

Mamma Mia's Carol Linnea Johnson will perform tomorrow night alongside Chris Davis on bass (Phantom), Gabriel Falcon on cajon (Donnie & Marie), and Mundo Juillerat on percussion (Le Reve). Together, they make up the band Hot Club of Las Vegas.

Where: Boomer's (3200 N. Sirius)

When: Wednesday, March 11 at 9:30pm

What: A Gypsy Djazz band... combining the elements of American Swing, Flamenco, and Parisien Musette. The style was born out of the Paris jazz scene in the 30s and 40s and made popular by Django Reinhardt, Stephanie Grapelli, and Quintette du Hot Club de France.

Click here to read Jerry Fink's article about them in today's Las Vegas Sun:

Jazz, infused with flavors of Europe - Las Vegas Sun

Welcome PEEPSHOW!

We'd like to announce and officially welcome the cast of PEEPSHOW to Las Vegas!

The show stars Mel B and Kelly Monaco.

Olivia Cipolla, Keltie Colleen, Kristin Rose DeCesare, Lena Giroux, Monica Klus, Emily Loftiss, Michele Martinez, Allie Meixner, Marielys Molina, Leah O'Donnell, Carolyn Pace, Jessica Press, Katie Webber, Adar Wellington, Kaci Wilson, Albert Blaise, Stoyan Metchkarov, Nick Kenkel, and Timber make up the ensemble.

The singers are Elyse Branch, Jackie Seiden, and Josh Strickland. 

And the swings are Renay Wright Herter, Jennifer Quinlan, and Jason Davies.

Welcome to Vegas, PEEPSHOW!!!

Backstage Reading

This week's actor: Jason Forbach

Jason is an understudy for 'Raoul' in Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular

Currently reading: Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. This graphic novel was rated one of the top 100 novels since 1923 in Time Magazine so Jason's interest was piqued. He's also reading Why the Devil Chose New England for his Work by Jason Robert Brown and says it's "clean and simple storytelling that leaves the reader with a haunted reflection of each story's violent outcome." He likes disturbing books.

Jason's favorites are Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar and Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead. He says he found himself completely enraptured by both stories and the characters within, so much so that he felt as if he was a part of them.

To find out more about Jason, click here:

www.jasonforbach.com

Erich Bergen at Liberace!

From the cast of Jersey Boys, Erich Bergen will perform for two nights at the Liberace Cabaret!

Wednesday, March 25 at 7pm

Wednesday, April 8 at 7pm

Erich is such a huge talent! In addition to his role as 'Bob Gaudio' in Jersey Boys, he is an accomplished pianist and songwriter. Don't miss this opportunity to see him live!

To learn more about him, click here:

Erich Bergen

Phantom auditions

Information taken from actorsequity.com...

PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (LV)

Clear Channel Entertainment and The Really Useful Company,

Venetian Hotel

Las Vegas, NV

April 7 at 11am (sign-in at 10:30): Equity Chorus - Female Dancers

April 7 at 2pm (sign-in at 1:30): Equity Chorus - Male Dancers

April 8 from 9:30am to 4pm (sign-in at 8:30): EPA

April 9 at 10am (sign-in at 9:30): Equity Chorus - Singers

EPA and Chorus rules are in effect. A monitor will be provided.

Location: Backstage Dance Studio II

3425 Backstage Blvd., Las Vegas, NV  89121

Personnel:

Dale Brown, Tara Rubin Casting

Denny Berry, Dance Supervisor

David Caddick, Musical Supervisor

Contract: Casino ($1422/wk)

See breakdown here:

actorsequity.org | Actors' Equity Association Casting Call

Dancers: Be dressed, warmed up, and ready to dance at the hour the audition begins. If asked to stay and sing, choose music from the musical theatre repertoire that best shows off your voice and range. Bring sheet music in your key.

Singers: Please be prepared to sing a song from the standard opera/operetta/legit musical theatre repertoire, preferably in English, that shows off your voice and range. Do not sing pop or rock music.

An accompanist will be provided. There is no solo singing for the dancers (except 'Meg'), but they will have to carry some vocal responsibility in the ensemble numbers.

Easter Bonnet!

Spread the word... the 2nd Annual Las Vegas Easter Bonnet Competition and Show is a month away! This amazing fundraiser has been a beloved annual event in New York for over 20 years now and the tradition officially began in Las Vegas last year, as well!

Shows, companies, and corporations in town are invited to participate by entering a hat that expresses the theme of your production or company/corporate brand image. Hats should be festive, fun, funny, comment on Las Vegas, or honor the St. Therese Center in some way.

Go to Las Vegas Easter Bonnet, Home Page to download submission forms, see photos from last year's competition, and obtain ticket information. 

The show is Sunday, April 5 at 2pm at The Rio All-Suite Hotel. Ticket sales benefit St. Therese Center - HIV Outreach and a 10% donation will also be made to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

Last year's event raised nearly $10,000. Let's get the word out, flex our creative muscles, and make this year's Bonnet even better than the last!

Click here to read the press release on Playbill.com:

Playbill News: Second Las Vegas Easter Bonnet Competition Announced

Heart and Music

Phantom's fabulous Andrew Ragone, Tina Walsh, Megan Starr-Levitt, Scott Watanabe, and William Waldrop will present "Heart and Music," an afternoon of musical theatre, at Mountain View Presbyterian Church. 

Sunday, March 15 at 3pm. 

The concert is free, but donations will be truly appreciated. Our cast mate and original company member of Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular, Stephen Hood, has recently been diagnosed with Leukemia. He has had to take an extended leave from the show as he fights this illness. The proceeds from "Heart and Music" will be donated to a fund to help him and his family during this trying time. 

Cast of Jersey Boys at NASCAR

Jason Martinez, Jeff Leibow, Travis Cloer, Rick Faugno, Devan May, Kristofer McNeeley, and Charl Brown

The Vegas cast of Jersey Boys performed the national anthem at NASCAR yesterday and was broadcasted live on FOX!

The Singing Dresser

Starring Isaiah Hiram Urrabazo and friends from Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular

Isaiah will share his voice and wonderful stories of his life as a performer, costumer, and dresser and will also present several of his original costume renderings.

Sunday, March 8 from 3-5pm

Trinity International School (2525 Emerson Ave, 89121)

Hosted by the Gateway Gallery - A Public Art Collection

Please RSVP at 702-255-0695

Cost: $15 donation (fully deductable) to the Gateway Gallery Scholarship Fund