2012 Interview with Kaye Ballard

Actress/singer/comedienne Kaye Ballard remains one of the great living legends of stage, screen and television. She did comedy and sang with bandleader Spike Jones. She was the costar of TV's The Mothers-In-Law and The Doris Day Show, and the very funny film The Ritz among many others and too many Broadway musicals and road shows to mention. This lady brings mirth and goodwill wherever she appears. Animals are close to her heart, so it is no wonder that she, Lee Roy Reams and Liliane Montevecchi are mounting Doin' It For Love, for two nights only at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre March 9 and 10 to benefit PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). In our chat she talks about PETA, her love of animals and offers choice bits about her accomplishments and costars.


Tell me about PETA.


First of all I love animals as much as I love people, and maybe even a smidgen more. I have four dogs and two rescue dogs, and I agree with what they're doing. They've got to change the laws. People don't understand that. I fight for abused animals. I would be the one to pull the lever on somebody.

Whenever I see infomercials on animal abuse, I tear up.


I can't take it either. Animals are little souls. Just like we have souls, if we do...I feel animals have them. When I look in their eyes, I can see it. I've got to spend the rest of my life trying to make money to keep animals.

Bless you! You are equally comfortable in a book musical and on the cabaret stage. Would you rather do your act or a show?


I'd rather do a show. I did a show five years ago with Sean Phillips, a Ronald Harwood play called Quartet.
That was the most exciting thing I've ever done. I'd rather do a play or a musical...really a musical, than anything. If you are not on television, they think you are dead. I've never stopped working and I'm 86.

You don't look it. I've seen you twice in the Palm Springs Follies and you look sensational.


Thank you, Don. I use my Henny Youngman there (he was famous for one-liners, short jokes delivered rapid-fire), because that is so commercial. Every single word I've ever done on stage, though, is true. My two favorite comics in the world are Kristen Wiig from SNL (Saturday Night Live) and Bridesmaids, I love her. There are actually three. Catharine O'Hara and...I'm thinking as I'm talking... Melissa McCarthy. She's adorable, but the only thing is I wish I could say, "Don't go that far!"

How do you feel if you have a young audience and you're performing standard material. How do you grab them?

This is what we're going to find out, Donald. Like the Henny Youngman thing, if it's funny, it's funny, no matter how old it is, it's funny. I do a takeoff on Sophie Tucker that is funny, because she was the old sage. I'm going to find out because there are a lot of young people in PETA. I love them.

with lee roy reams and liliane montevecchi 

They don't understand the old stuff.


And they've got to be taught.

What's your favorite role on stage?


Without question, it's Quartet or Gypsy. I did that in Dallas in 1961-62 with the original company and got an award for it. Mama Rose...I guess I was 40 then. I also did it in San Diego for three months.

Do you have an icon, a favorite performer?

I've got a couple. Judy Garland, Martha Raye...and Bea Lillie. When I was at the Macambo, Judy Garland sat in the front row and she came in with Ethel Merman...how about that? She'd say, "Do me! Do me!" When I started out in show business, I did an impression of Judy Garland. I've been very fortunate. I've had wonderful contacts in my life.

I'm going to mention a show, film or TV show you've done or a celebrity you've worked with. Say the first thing that comes into your mind about them.


The Mothers-In-Law.

That was the happiest time for me. Eve Arden said, "Do you have a good side?" I said, "I don't know." She said, "Well this is my good side." Her good side was always showing, so there was never a problem. (we laugh)

The film of The Ritz.


The only thing that disappointed me about that is that they took really some of the good scenes out. It's a director's medium of course. I would like to do one movie where I can say "That's the best I could do."

Your personality never changes. You're always so warm.

Thank you. I'll tell you something. I was George Clooney's mother in one episode of The Law and Mrs. McGraw. Six months later, he got ER, and we know what happened. I just saw him recently, and he acted like he just saw me yesterday. It was so thrilling.

Molly.


When you watch shows today, Molly wasn't so bad. The score was wonderful, but it was the wrong time. Everybody was curious about the set, because it was a depression set. They said, "It's too gloomy." And about me playing Molly Goldberg, "She's too Italian." Molly's son told me I gave the very essence of his mother.

Carnival.


The most fun. I'm lucky, I'm very lucky. It was wonderful.

Nunsense.


Fun. It was not my favorite show, because you wear one costume. (we laugh)

The Full Monty.

minnie's boys

I think that show deserved more than it got. What a beautiful score! ...You know one of the best things I did was Minnie's Boys. I did it with the original cast in Pittsburgh. Lewis Stadlen wrote in his book, "If Kaye had done the part originally..." Shelley Winters played it and she was a dear friend of mine. I loved her. It should have been called My Sons, The Marx Brothers, then I think it would have had a better chance. Shelley took out a lot of the songs that were wonderful, but I love her, so there you are.

The Pirates of Penzance.


That was the most difficult to do. (she sings the staccato lyrics) I talked like a typewriter in that one.

A House Is Not a Home.


That was fun. I never achieved what I wanted to achieve, but to think I had a scene with Robert Taylor. (I can sense her swooning as she thinks of him) It's so funny, because he was very nervous. I said, "You can't be nervous" and he said, "Oh, yes. I'm always nervous the first day of shooting." And I thought "Robert Taylor's nervous. I don't feel so badly."

Pia Zadora.

She was one of the best Funny Girls. She didn't get the credit she deserved. She made it her own and she was great.

Eve Arden.

A class act! That's how I really gained weight. I'd see her eat a bagel or a donut and think, "If she can do it, I can..." She never gained an ounce. If I read a menu, I gain a pound. (we laugh)

Spike Jones.

Spike Jones was a musical genius. Everything was timed within seconds. What a pro!

Alice Ghostley.


My darling. We did Cinderella and we both took the same salary. Even the chorus kids made more than we did with the overtime...(she laughs hard)

Doris Day.


She was wonderful to work with. She was so real, I didn't know if she was talking to me or doing the scene.

Linda Lavin.

A wonderful actress! I did Alice with her one time, and she was having trouble with producers. I said to her, "Linda, you don't know this, but this is the best time you'll have in your life in show business." She was making so much money. A very talented lady!

Your costars in Doin It For Love: Lee Roy Reams and Liliane Montevecchi.

They are adorable. Lee Roy is the cutest white man...(she laughs)...I call him Baby man! He's like a little kid. If a light goes on, he does three numbers. Hilarious! He's staging part of the show. Nobody directs because this is material we've all done for years. I'v known Liliane for 40 years. We did Follies together at the Paper Mill Playhouse. It was called the definitive version. Ann Miller was in it as well. She'd come off and she'd say, "Oh, Kaye, I forgot the lyrics." And I'd say, "That's OK, don't worry about it. They don't understand you anyway." She was adorable! In this show Doin It For Love, we (Lee Roy, Liliane and I) do three numbers together and we each do our individual spots.

I love to hear you talk about your Nana.

I do that. That's an important part of my life; it's earned me my salary. And if it's real, it holds up. With the direction that comedy is taking...I mean I worked with some of the greats, and I think they'd be upset. Gross is not necessarily funny; it's an embarrassed laugh rather than a laugh.

One thing about Kaye Ballard. She knows how to make people laugh, and it's within the realm of wholesome good humor. What a warm-hearted and lovely human being!
Rember Doin' It For Love: one night only!
Info below!

http://do512.com/event/2012/02/24/doin-it-for-love

It's 2012. Rich Little, The Man of a Thousand Voices, Has This To Say...

Needing no introduction, popular TV star of the 60s, 70s and 80s impressionist Rich Little, who is known for his impressions of Ronald Regan, Jimmy Stewart, George Burns, Richard Nixon, among others, will appear at the Welk Resort in Escondido Wednesday February 29 thru Sunday March 4. In our interview he gives us a little preview of his latest solo show Jimmy Stewart and Friends, which he hopes to eventually take into New York.

When did you first know you had the knack for doing so many different voices?


Oh, when I was about 15 or 16 I started imitating teachers at school. Kids loved it; the poor teachers were bewildered. They didn't know why I was talking in such a strange voice.

Didn't you start professionally imitating politicians?

No. In the beginning actually I did teachers and movie stars and TV performers; I didn't do politicians until a Prime Minister in Canada came along, Diefenbaker (John), who was very stupid, very strange...everybody was trying to imitate him; I hooked on to his voice, and it went over extremely well. He was the first politician I ever did.

You had a partner in those days, correct?


Yeah, I did. We were school boys and clowned around a lot, I suppose, and did voices and stuff; it was just a hobby. When I started to make money, it became a different story. (he laughs)

You were a disc jockey as well, weren't you?

Yeah, I was. I used my voices all the time. I used to do takeoffs of movies, little sketches I had written; I did an all night show when I was a teenager. I had quite a following, because I would do so many crazy things. It was Friday night and I'd work until six in the morning. Later I joined a radio station, where I was born in Canada, about fifty miles from Ottawa, and became a permanent announcer on that.

Was The Judy Garland Show (1963) your American TV debut?


I had done a show in Toronto with a friend of mine, Mel Torme, and he got me on that show.It was just terrific. I was doing voices nobody else had done, and Judy took a liking to me, and when I did James Mason from A Star Is Born, her reaction was...she really flipped out. When you watch it today (on video), you can't take your eyes off her (she was relishing it so much).

Who's your favorite character to play?

There's a couple I like. I love to do Regan, 'cause I knew him so well. He was such a fan, and he was the best audience in the world. And Carson (Johnny) was one that I still do, and a lot of people knew me from doing Nixon. I'd say Carson and Jimmy Stewart and John Wayne, those are the voices that everybody remembers from early in my career. I don't think he's going to go anywhere, but the best one to imitate is Ron Paul. (he chuckles) I always tell people, "Vote for Ron Paul. Who cares? Would he make a good President or not, give me a break!"

What would Jimmy Stewart say about Congress today?


(in his best Stewart voice) He'd say, "Wow. I made a movie called Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, a story of greed and corruption in the Senate. If it was made today, it would probably be called Fantasy Island.
(we both laugh) That's right out of my Jimmy Stewart show.

What would Ronald Regan say?


(assuming Regan's voice) He'd probably say, "Barrack Obama's campaign is picking up speed, but then things do pick up speed when you go down hill."

I read a review of an LP about the First Family that you did in 1981, which stated "there are too many ancient jokes and impressions of dead people." How do you feel about negative comments like that?


The best voices are the ones that are deceased. They say that about everything; "just an excuse to do impressions"! You can destroy anything if you want to. My main objective is to please the audience. When I put Dr. Phil in Jimmy Stewart, he doesn't really belong there, or Andy Rooney, but it works. It doesn't have anything to do with Jimmy Stewart, but the idea is to entertain. There are so many things I knew about Jimmy because I knew him so well, things that he told me, but somebody could say "That isn't true. He made that up." I told him a couple of years before he died that I was thinking about doing a one-man show about his life, and he said, "Rich, I don't think that's a good idea. With the way I talk, that show would be over 4 hours long." I said, "I'll speed it up a little." He said, "Oh, I'll be on a faster speed." He had a wonderful sense of humor. So did Regan...and with the two of them together...

Give us more of a preview of the show you'll be doing in Escondido at the Welk Resort.

I'm going to do my Jimmy Stewart show, which ends up having about 26 impressions in it. There's the obvious ones with Stewart, like Henry Fonda, John Wayne, Ronald Regan, Robert Stack and Lionel Barrymore, but, as I said before, I put a lot of other people in it, like Louis Armstrong because Gloria's (Stewart, Jimmy's wife) favorite tune was "It's a Wonderful World". It's a tour-de-force for me, because I go from Jimmy Stewart right into characters. I take license. Every time I stand up, I do a character; every time I sit down, I do Jimmy. So, it isn't like a usual one-man show. I mean, you see George Burns or you see Clarence Darrow talking for an hour and a half. Me doing Jimmy Stewart is going through a raft of impressions. It's certainly not boring. I didn't want to bore the audience;  I want them wondering who's coming next.

Believe me, you are not boring! Why do you think a TV show like The Kopycats (1972) isn't produced today?

The money. A show like that costs a fortune. I loved doing the variety show with Julie Andrews; it's the one I'm most proud of. That would cost ten times what it cost. Maybe if you kept it simple ...  but when you have big sets, today it's just incredible. Those Julie Andrews shows...each one was like a special. They spent a lot of money on them. Variety went out of vogue. When you think about it, there are no variety shows now.

What's the most embarrassing moment you've had as a performer?


One time years ago I introduced Gerald Ford. I set the whole thing up, and then I did Spiro Agnew's voice... for Gerald Ford...all the lines in the wrong voice. The interesting thing was that nobody mentioned it. Not much demand for Spiro Agnew today. (he laughs)

Any new impressionists coming up that you would highly recommend?


Gordy Brown down at the Golden Nugget (Las Vegas) is an extraordinary talent. He's from my home town in Ottawa. We're both Canadians. He's very good. We don't have as many impersonators as we used to.

We're looking forward to seeing you do Jimmy Stewart and Friends in Escondido.

I'm looking forward to doing it. I've never done five nights in a row. I'm gearing it towards Broadway, so all the shows I can get are like rehearsals to improve it. I won't do that, go to New York, until I know it really works. You can go into New York and open and close in a week. That would be the end of it, so...I saw George Burns on Broadway with Frank Gorshin. I never thought it was really that good, but it certainly did well in Florida and on Broadway. When they asked me to o a show, they wanted me to put Jack Benny in it...Groucho Marks, other comedians. George, they just wanted to do George.

George Burns was George Burns. In a class by himself. Rich Little, the Man of a Thousand Voices, is another comedian/impressionist like no other. He is the granddad of impressionists... a totally unique entertainer for the ages.
Don't miss him in Escondido at the Lawrence Welk Theatre February 29-March 4!

for info and tix:
http://www.welktheatersandiego.com/

Interview with BWW Award Winner Olivia d'Abo

Actress Olivia d'Abo is BWW's Best Lead Actress Award winner for Entertaining Mr. Sloan. She is best known for TV's The Wonder Years and Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Few may know that she is also an accomplished musician. In our chat, d'Abo opens up fiercely about her passions, showing just how consummate a performer she truly is.


CAREER - NOW:


How does it feel to win the BWW Award as Best Actress in a play for 2011?

Well, I’m incredibly overjoyed; it’s a delightful  cherry on top of a beautifully baked cake. I’ve never really considered awards important but this one has been.The process of hard work and commitment that went into this for everyone involved set an unusually high bar. When that happens and you really pull it off come rain or come shine there’s a lot to be proud of. We created a very specific world and the characters of Sloan were very challenging, requiring lots of  guts and gusto.Though there were clearly some questionable moments when I said to myself  'Oh My God can i really do this ?Keep this amazing locomotive of a creature alive and running around the stage for two hours straight   .........even if there's no more red bull back there  to get me through ??"  It took all the trust I have and in return taught me about really letting go of EVERYTHING which feels so good. 

Kath was a gift: she never failed me, every night I'd jump into her and every time I jumped it was scary as hell but totally intoxicating. It’s also been wonderful for the whole production to be recognized the way it has on so many levels. I was so proud we won best play. Ultimately I think the production, the subject matter and performances shocked and shook people up as only Orton can and brought an intimacy to the theatre that people don’t see all that often .

 

How did you get involved in Sloan?
















I ran into Ian Buchanan and little did I know he was already cast in the role of Ed. He called me a few days later and asked me if I knew the play, as it was an English classic and would I be interested in playing his sister Kath ........"It's a dark comedy he said " and the role of Kath is a sort of Blanche Dubois. Of course I knew Joe Orton's work,  but wasn't as familiar with Sloan as some of Orton's other plays. I was intrigued enough to have a conversation with the director Stan Zimmerman ......who coincidentally I'd also met before, but hadn't seen in a long time. Ironically enough ,Stan and I were very close to working on a pilot  together awhile back called Olivia Master's Life for Brillstein Grey and ABC. So he was quite familiar with my comedic skills and I had a feeling Stan would know exactly what to do to bring out my humor  to play Kath and be a brilliant director for this play, and he was. 


Describe Kath in detail.

We spoke about flair of the piece and the music that was coming out of England at that time.Then we got into the light and shade of the character of Kath. He asked me how I felt about playing Kath, losing the beauty and playing her as a very plain, frumpy, heavyset, middle aged woman ? I thought to myself  why not ? How refreshing ! No make up, wear a wig, a fat suit, get pregnant in the second act .... which meant more padding and then dive in and stretch! To me all those things was what was so captivating about the role. What it's meant to my career thus far is that she came into my life for a reason and at the perfect time. I was able to discover different things about myself as an actress and about myself as a person through her.


 I found a different  sexuality in her, a different kind of beauty "inside first” which then permeated to an outside glow, a different kind of movement .......I swayed once I put the padding on because I felt more grounded, less light so I felt more solid and planted. A character's obstacles are always an inspiration to me. However, Kath's strength, her determination, conviction and her courage to pull herself up and out from being crippled and oppressed by her family. And the tough breaks of her life were a revelation to me and a testament to the human spirit. It was important to me that she was seen for who she is in the play, not as a one dimensional person or a parody of the the character. I just wanted her personality to shine and outweigh everything else. I also discovered playing the underdog is where the "gold" is for an actor; it's a deeper  more satisfying journey. 

Was this your first play in LA?

Not my first, I've done quite a few plays here, but Sloan  is to date my absolute favorite hands down. I just did two right before Sloan actually which were quite fulfilling...... each in completely different ways. Cyrano another classic at the John Ruskin theatre set in 17th century Paris, in which I played Roxane. And before that I played the role of Joan in a hilarious modern comedy with a wonderful ensemble of actors called It's Just Sex at The Two Roads Theatre. I had the great honor of working with both Frank Langela and Juliette Stevenson on stage at the Mark Taper Forum in another English play set in 16th century Venice after the battle of Lepanto written by Howard Barker called Scenes from an Execution  which was directed by Robert Ackerman .

Tell me about The Odd Couple in 2005 on Broadway and what it was like playing with Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane? Did you enjoy playing one of those crazy sisters? Was it easier than say Sloan?

Doing Broadway was always a dream of mine since I was a little girl. However, doing a Neil Simon play on Broadway ........well, I'm not sure you can beat that can you?! For example, the comment I made earlier that sometimes great art will come your way and at other times you have to be an explorer and seek it out? This was one of those times for me. I heard about the auditions they were having in New York through my agent. He got me an audition a few weeks later, so I flew myself out, put myself up and went in to read for Joe Montello and Neil Simon. 

There's a feeling that comes with the territory of manifesting a role that's meant to be and I always  get a strong intuition about it  that I can see clearly. For the most part if when you're up for something all you have is your choices so then you must to go with your very deepest instinct and use it! Mine was to play a different kind of Gwendolyn Pigeon. Having grown up with watching Neil Simon films and having watched the Odd Couple as a series, I instantly was drawn in by Oscar and Felix's dynamic but when I saw the Pigeon sisters in the film I thought to myself  “they're so proper !" And there's nothing proper about two sisters who've moved all the way from England to New York City to work and answer phones for a weight loss company called SLENDERAMA! 


So for the play's audition I gave Gwendolyn a brash Spice Girls cockney twang, a loud laugh and snort  to go with it and played her from East London .....well luckily they loved it. She was lovable, funny , zany ........ not the sharpest knife in the drawer but earnest with a big heart. I loved playing Gwendolyn Pigeon with my on stage sister Cecily Pigeon for 11 months. I adored working with both Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick; they were absolutely joyous to watch and act with every night. Sometimes we'd crack up on stage so badly we could hardly contain ourselves and the audience were right there with us....... Matthew and Nathan are notorious for that. I wasn't on stage as often as I was in Sloan so it didn't necessarily challenge me in the same way. But when you do Broadway there are other challenges as well, that require just as much muscle including doing 8-9 shows a week. Every experience is unique in and of itself.

CAREER - THEN:

Let's talk a little about The Wonder Years (1988-92) and what playing that role did for your career in Hollywood. Doing TV or film, I know, is not as rewarding as stage. Did you feel suffocated doing a supporting role, where Fred Savage got more attention than you, or were you too young at that point to realize?

It did a lot for me in many ways  both personally and professionally. It was brilliantly written, extremely well constructed and a hugely successful show. People just fell in love with it and tuned in religiously to each weekly episode as audiences found the characters and the show instantly identifiable. Surprisingly we found a larger demographic than we thought we would  ...... it was recognized as much more than a family show. It set a really high bar for me to be part of such a well made series for all those seasons, and because of its nostalgic tone it started to become a part of classic American television. 


Shortly after filming the pilot and winning the Emmy  for best new show it became a wonderful springboard for me as well as the other cast members establishing our acting abilities with broader strokes through being able to tackle both subtle comedy with undertones of drama. TV can be just as rewarding as stage if it challenges you at a deep level and you're learning things and gaining insight that you haven't mastered yet. I was perfectly fine to play a supporting role as Fred Savage's big sister Karen. He had a lot more pressure then I did to sustain the momentum of the show and the ratings. I think he handled it beautifully for someone so young. The consistency of the series taught me a certain technique you need for television on a one camera show. Up until then I'd had no real experience in using props to help you make both the scene and the pacing work better. We'd have to be meticulous about that especially around the dinner table and lock it in. It was like  graduating college in a way. I came out of it  a seasoned actress which I'm very thankful for. I'm also thankful that though I was getting paid for all shows produced (including the ones I wasn't in) when the right opportunities came my way to go do a film, a TV movie, work on music or do a play, the producers  allowed me to do them. Of course, my proposition was to forfeit my salary if I wasn't in an episode to be able go and work on other projects and continue getting better at my craft.

as nicole wallace in law and order: criminal intent

You’ve played a princess in the theatrical film Conan the Destroyer and done many other roles including Nicole Wallace sociopath/psychopath in TV’s Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Considering all other roles you’ve played,  is the female role in Sloan still the best you've ever had, do you think?

Yes, it's still the biggest stretch I've had so far .

FUTURE ENDEAVORS:

Is there another part you'd like to play on stage - classical or contemporary?

Yes, there are a few  in fact . I'd love to explore doing a Moliere play. I've always wanted to play Lady Macbeth and Strindberg's Miss Julie. I would donate one of my limbs to do The Seagull  by Anton Chekhov and I'd also love to do Noel Coward's Private lives. I saw a masterful production of it on Broadway with Alan Rickman ....... and it made me yearn to have a crack at it. 

Let's switch gears to your musical career.

Did that come before acting? Do you like it equally? If so, why?

I've been writing and composing songs since I was  5 years old.......... "so my father tells me". So yes, I've been writing, singing and playing piano longer then I've been acting. But acting wasn't that far behind my musical interests. I treat and honor them equally. When my interest in acting developed I experimented fusing the two together and performing in musicals and contests at school. My father was in a group called Manfred Mann. He wrote " Build me up Buttercup " for the foundations  and "'Handbags and Glad rags " for Rod Stewart. So, coming from such a musical pedigree I'm constantly surrounded by music;  it's a huge part of my life that I couldn't live without .When I make an album, compose or write song for a film  it's a similar yet different  gear shift  for me than acting. I prefer not to have anything else going while I'm in that creative space and process as to not disrupt my musical flow.  I think in some ways it's a slightly deeper form of expression if you can write your own songs, lyrics and play a musical instrument at the same time. Because you have more control over the final product as it's completely in your hands. I think you can get the same kind of  concentrated -fulfilling  sense of expression with acting though, especially if you are an actor and a film maker.

What do you feel is your ultimate goal as a performer?

That's a really great question. I've embarked upon many facets as a performer and am continuing to explore and honor all of them. Being an artist  and a performer is an astonishingly powerful and beautiful road when you've got a lot you want to say. I wish I cold narrow it down to just one but that's tough for me. I'm really excited about Guest hosting Second City in May and doing a live sketch comedy show, as it's right up my alley ......I have a comedian living inside of me so I'm  in the process of  continuing to explore that. I think  another ultimate goal is to integrate music and characters into a live show  of some sort. A broadway musical would be  something great to work towards. I'm actually working and developing a night club act- at the moment with Stan Zimmerman the director of Entertaining Mr. Sloan. He's  conceived a wonderful show for me called British Blondes. You know, I thought I'd reached my ultimate goal as a performer when I'd gotten through a month of playing Kath in Sloan on stage. But then I realized I was just getting started ....... I  think you reach your ultimate goal and then you dream up another one.

Olivia d'Abo is the kind of actress that makes things happen. She is the one to watch.

news article: Musical Theatre LA to Present Gala Concert of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

On February 15 at the historic Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills for one night only renowned Musical Theatre of Los Angeles will present a benefit Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat: In Concert!
Starring as Joseph will be  Broadway sensation David Burnham, who appeared in the national tour as Joseph, and special guest TV and film star Lorenzo Lamas will make a rare stage appearance as Pharaoh. They will be backed by a full-size Broadway orchestra and a 60 member youth choir. Joseph will be directed by Mark Rozzano with musical direction by Greg Haake, choreography and musical staging by Jim Borstelmann and Colette Brandenburg. James Lent serves as assistant musical director and Jonas Sills as youth vocal director and associate producer.

Not content with remounting traditional Broadway musicals traditionally, Musical Theatre of Los Angeles (MTLA), under the artistic direction of Bonnie McMahan - who along side Aaron Jacobs is co-executive producing this event - have consistently striven to bring extraordinary values and fresh perspectives to each musical they produce. Both popular and critical successes in the past have included Blood Brothers, West Side Story, Cabaret and their most recent production of Chess, a spectacular musical event, also in concert, which was extended multiple times in 2010 and played to SRO audiences, every performance. From top to bottom MTLA is committed to creating the best musical theatre in LA. It prides itself in always presenting  the best actors as well as a top-notch behind the scenes creative team.

David Burnham

Lorenzo Lamas

The Honorary Host Committee for Joseph include such luminaries as Jack and Lindy Groban, Kristin Chenoweth, Bryan Cranston, Sally Struthers, Judy Norton, and Nia Vardalos among others. On Wednesday the 15th there will be a special technicolor red carpet arrival at the Saban at 6: 30 pm, followed by the concert at 8:00 pm, and then assisting Josh Groban's Find Your Light Foundation, there will follow a very special VIP Post Concert Event, which will include the participation of Swing Dames, the MTLA dancers and Sons of August. 

Tickets: Orchestra: $100; Mezzanine: $70; Balcony: $25.

VIP Tickets (includes show, post-reception, hosted bar and food): $150

 LOCATION: Saban Theatre, 8440 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90211

*Cocktail Attire Required

visit:

www.musicaltheatrela.org

&

www.plays411.com/dreamcoat

for tix