New Dates for The Phantom of the Opera, Sister Act and Tent Show Radio

Due to a change in the national touring schedule, The Phantom of the Opera performance dates will move to June 11-22, 2014. The production remains part of the 2013-14 Kimberly-Clark Broadway Across America – Fox Cities Series having originally been scheduled January 8-19, 2014. The two-week run will include 16 performances including matinees on Saturday, Sunday and a mid-week matinee on Thursday, June 12. Season Ticket Holder Week will be June 11-17.

Two other productions in the 2013-14 Season schedule will be affected as a result of The Phantom of the Opera date change. Sister Act, also part of the Kimberly-Clark Broadway Across America – Fox Cities Series, will play eight performances May 6-11, 2014 instead of the previously announced dates of May 27 - June 1. Tent Show Radio’s 20th Anniversary Tour Celebration, part of the Boldt Arts Alive! Series, will move from May 8 to May 16, 2014.

All Season Ticket Holders will be notified with the rescheduled dates via email or phone this week. The new performance dates will be reflected on their tickets which they will be receiving in August. Group clients will be notified by the Center’s group sales department.

ABOUT THE SHOWS

The Phantom of the Opera
June 11-22, 2014
Midweek Matinee: June 12, 2014 at 2:00 p.m.
Season Ticket Holder Week: June 11-17, 2014
Following an acclaimed sell-out tour of the United Kingdom, Cameron Mackintosh’s spectacular new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s phenomenal musical success, The Phantom of the Opera, will come to the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center as part of a brand new U.S. National Tour. Hailed as, “Stunning, intense and spectacular,” by the Sunday Express, this production features a brilliant new design by Paul Brown, costumes by the much missed Maria Björnson, a new staging by Laurence Connor – director of the recent acclaimed 25th anniversary celebration at the Royal Albert Hall – and new choreography by Scott Ambler. The production is overseen by Matthew Bourne and Cameron Mackintosh.

Sister Act
May 6-11, 2014
Sister Act is Broadway’s feel-amazing musical comedy smash! The New York Post calls it, “ridiculously fun,” and audiences are jumping to their feet in total agreement. Featuring original music by eight-time Oscar® winner Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Little Shop of Horrors), Sister Act tells the story of Deloris Van Cartier, a wannabe diva whose life takes a surprising turn when she witnesses a crime and the cops hide her in the last place anyone would think to look—a convent. Under the suspicious watch of Mother Superior, Deloris helps her fellow sisters find their voices as she unexpectedly rediscovers her own. A sparkling tribute to the universal power of friendship, Sister Act is reason to rejoice! Sister Act is locally sponsored by CR Meyer and SECURA Insurance Companies.

Tent Show Radio’s 20th Anniversary Tour Celebration
May 16, 2014
From the shores of Lake Superior, tucked away in the great North Woods, “Tent Show Radio” broadcasts the summer line-up of Big Top Chautauqua’s finest acts. Now, celebrating their 20th anniversary on public radio, the crew is taking the show on the road. New York Times best-selling author, host and humorist Michael Perry and the Blue Canvas Orchestra are setting up camp at the Fox Cities P.A.C. on their first-ever tour, bringing the best of “rural life” to the “big city.” Tent Show Radio ’s 20th Anniversary Tour Celebration is locally sponsored by St. Elizabeth Hospital.

TICKET INFORMATION 

Tickets for The Phantom of the Opera and Sister Act are available now as part of the 2013-14 Kimberly-Clark Broadway Across America – Fox Cities Season Ticket Package. Tickets for Tent Show Radio’s 20th Anniversary Tour Celebration are available now as part of the Boldt Arts Alive! Season Package.

For information on Season Tickets Packages offered by the Fox Cities P.A.C., please visit foxcitiespac.com or contact the Center’s ticket office in person or by phone at (920) 730-3760. Groups can also reserve tickets now by calling (920) 730-3786.

Prepare to be Inspired by the 2013-14 Season

Earlier this week, the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center

in Appleton, Wisconsin announced its 2013-14 Season!

KIMBERLY-CLARK BROADWAY ACROSS AMERICA - FOX CITIES SERIES AND

BOLDT ARTS ALIVE! SERIES 

SEASON TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW!

Freddy Cole Quartet Carries On A Jazz Family Legacy

With three older brothers making names for themselves, how could Eddie, Ike, and Nat's youngest brother possibly avoid the jazz bug? 

This weekend, the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center is pleased to welcome jazz great Freddy Cole as he performs two cabaret style performances Friday, March 22 and Saturday, March 23.

Inspired At An Early Age
Lionel Frederick Cole was born on October 15, 1931, the youngest of Edward and Pualina Nancy Cole’s five children. “I started playing piano at five or six,” Freddy remembers. “Music was all around me.” 

In the Chicago home of his youth, visitors included Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Lionel Hampton. He also credits Billy Eckstine as a major influence. “He was a fantastic entertainer,” Freddy recalls. “I learned so much from just watching and being around him.”

After a possible career in the NFL was shelved due to a hand injury, he began playing and
singing in Chicago clubs as a teenager. Although he was ready to hit the road at 18, his mother intervened, and he continued his musical education at Roosevelt Institute in Chicago. 

Freddy moved to New York in 1951 where he studied at the Julliard School of Music and found himself profoundly influenced by John Leis, Oscar Peterson and Teddy Wilson. He got a master’s degree at the New England Conservatory of Music and then spent several months on the road as a member of an Earl Bostic band that also included Johnny Coles and Benny Golson.

It was back in New York that Freddy successfully laid the groundwork for a career that continues to flourish to this day. He developed a vast repertoire of songs in Manhattan bistros and concurrently began to supplement his live performances with television and radio commercial “jingle work.”

A resident of Atlanta since 1972, he currently leads a quartet made up o f himself, guitarist
Gerry Byrd, bassist Herman Burney, and drummer Curtis Boyd that regularly tours the U.S., Europe, the Far East and South America.

Freddy has been a recording artist since 1952, when his first single, “The Joke’s on Me,” was released on the obscure Chicago-based Topper label. The following year, he produced a moderate hit, “Whispering Grass,” for Columbia’s Okeh subsidiary. After making singles and albums for Dot De-Lite, and other domestic labels in the ’50s and ’60s, Freddy recorded several albums for European and English companies during the ’70s that helped him to develop a loyal overseas following, especially in Brazil.

Unmistakable Similarities
Freddy Cole doesn’t apologize for sounding so much like his brother, Nat “King” Cole. There are certain unmistakable similarities. He plays piano, sings and performs live with guitar and upright bass, just like Nat. Yet his voice is raspier, smokier and jazzier even. He has emerged from the awesome shadow cast by his elder brother. In truth, his phrasing is far closer to that of Frank Sinatra or Billie Holiday than that of his brother, and his timing swings a little more.

With his sixth Fantasy release, Cole’s career continues to ascend. His vocals – suave, elegant, formidable, articulate and polished – are among the most respected in jazz, and he occupies a place in the front ranks of America’s homegrown art form with a style and a musical sophistication that are uniquely his own.

Don't miss your chance to see the Freddy Cole Quartet!

Tickets start at $30. 

 

Celebrate Abilities with Justin Hines March 12

On Tuesday, March 12 the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center and Celebrating Abilities are proud to welcome Canadian singer-songwriter Justin Hines to the Fox Cities stage.

Hines’ latest album, “Days to Recall,” marks his American debut. His music is uplifting and heartfelt, overflowing with natural optimism, although he is no stranger to challenges. 

Hines has Larsen Syndrome, a joint dislocation condition that requires him to permanently use a wheelchair. He jokes, “I’ll never be a guy who relies on choreography,” but his live performances are delivered with honest emotion and a passion for music that shines through every song.

Hines Embodies Celebrating Abilities
Celebrating Abilities is a local Fox Cities nonprofit that raises awareness about the incredible abilities of individuals in the community, regardless of any apparent disability. 

Since 2003, the organization has raised awareness of the contributions people with disabilities make in our community and the people who help make those contributions possible. 

Each year, Celebrating Abilities presents "A-bilities Awards" which recognize the individuals, organizations and businesses who make a positive difference in the way people with disabilities can develop and celebrate their abilities.

This week, watch our Facebook Page
and join us in celebrating abilities! 

Tickets for Justin Hines are $20!

Singer-Songwriter Justin Hines Shines With Natural Optimism

There’s a moment in every artist’s life when he knows that music is not only his path, but his destiny.  

For Canadian singer-songwriter Justin Hines who will perform next month at the Fox Cities P.A.C., his moment of realization came at the most unlikely of places – a Toronto Raptors’ basketball game in his hometown 15 years ago.

A then14-year-old Hines won a vocal competition to sing the National Anthem – both the Canadian and American – at the game and his world opened up before him. “In that moment, it all seemed possible,” he recalls. “The performance eliminated any stage fright.”  Thrown in the deep end, Hines, who has performed professionally ever since, realized he could not only survive, but thrive.

But then again, Hines has thrived all his life against odds that would daunt someone with a less indomitable spirit. Hines has Larsen Syndrome, a joint dislocation condition that confines him to a wheelchair. “The reality is I don’t really look at my situation as that big a deal,” he says. “We all have our things that challenge us, just some people’s are a little more visible in the forefront. Mine is very apparent, whereas others wear it on the inside.”

Hines has performed across the globe, throughout Europe, China, the Middle East and North America. Although he admits his condition has provided challenges, he primarily sees the good it has brought him and the inspiration he can provide others. “There have been so many blessings. It’s afforded me so many other opportunities. It’s a bit of an attention grabber,” he says. “But then my job is to keep people interested and keep their attention with my music.”

That natural optimism permeates much of his American debut, “Days to Recall,” the singer/songwriter’s collection of heartfelt songs about life and love. “I don’t want to pretend that dark times don’t exist, but I have a hard time leaving things negative,” he says. “I think every challenging situation leads to something better. When I’m writing I don’t do it consciously in the songs, it’s just how they evolve.”

The album’s 2011 release coincided with a PBS special of Hines in concert taped at Toronto’s Royal Cinema with special guests Ron Sexsmith, Natalie MacMaster, Donnell Leahy, Sierra Noble and the Canadian Tenors. The special has had over 400 airings across North America to date. Hines also appeared in a CBS Sunday Morning feature, which aired December 18 and received an abundance of positive responses nationwide.

Music has always been a big part of Hines’ life. His parents had a jukebox— well stocked with tunes from the ’60s and ’70s that provided their son with a music education from an early age. “I really listened to such an eclectic mix,” he says. “What I most resonated with was James Taylor. He’s definitely one of my heroes.”

Though Hines doesn’t remember it, his mom tells him he wrote his first song when he was seven. “My grandmother still has the lyrics,” he says. In his late teens, Hines decided to teach himself how to play piano as a way to better express himself,  despite the obstacles Larsen Syndrome provided. “I’d done a lot of writing with other people. The most frustrating thing was I could hear the song in my head, but I was relying on other people to write chords since I didn’t play anything,” he says. “I decided for just about a year to focus on playing piano. I had to figure out my own method of how to make it work. My fingers are unique. Sometimes I use up to seven fingers. For a lot of songs I can get by with three.”

Hines recorded “Days to Recall,” his fourth album overall, during a six month period in Toronto. The first single, lilting, instantly catchy “Tell Me I’m Wrong,” tackles the fears that plague everyone and our desire for reassurance.  The music video for the single was shot in Joplin, Missouri following the devastating 2011 tornado. To support the American Red Cross, the music video displays a community coming together to rebuild, following tragedy. The song climbed to #21 on the Billboard AC Charts and the video has garnered hundreds of thousands of hits.

The second single from the album is “Say What You Will,” an uplifting song that initially appeared on Hines’ second album. The first video released for the song was filmed in Toronto’s Dundas Square and showed everyday people writing personal messages on whiteboards and showing them to the world. The whiteboard concept traveled to South Africa, where a new video was filmed, featuring the Most Rev. Desmond Tutu and was partially filmed at Oprah’s Seven Fountain School. The song took on a life of its own and was used as part of a campaign to refurbish 20 schools in 11 days.  Hines performed in South Africa spring 2011 and saw the schools that will educate more than 22,000 students. “It’s so beyond an honor knowing that a song we did was part of this, that we get to be part of that beauty,” he says. At the time of his visit, the song had hit number one on South African commercial radio.

Following the success of “Tell Me I’m Wrong,” American fans quickly fell in love with “Say What You Will” and began posting their own whiteboard messages online, which inspired a U.S version of the music video to be released. The new video was filmed from the east to west coast and features appearances by athletes, as well as everyday people, each writing their own messages of love and hope. Decca/Universal released the video in February.

“Say What You Will” was also highlighted in concerts across the U.S. recently as The Tenors and National Symphony Orchestra joined Justin to perform it in Boston, Portland, Minnesota, Cerritos and four nights at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

“I get transformed to a different place when I perform. I hope it just makes people feel something,” he says, adding that he especially enjoys singing ballads. “Hopefully, that helps form an intimate connection with the audience. I embrace those moments because it feels like you’re having a unique conversation with people.”

That conversation begins anew with “Days to Recall.”

You can see Justin Hines Wednesday, March 14 at the 

Fox Cities Performing Arts Center in downtown Appleton. 

Tickets are $20.

Biography provided by justinhines.com.

No One Spells Romance Like Jane Austen

This Thursday, Jane Austen has a date at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center.  

Celebrating with a classic romantic comedy on Valentine's Day, L.A. Theatre Works' radio theater style performance of Pride and Prejudice promises to be as entertaining as the author intended 200 years ago.

The British novel is in good hands with this renowned company. Under the leadership of Producing Director, Susan Albert Loewenberg, L.A. Theatre Works (LATW) has been the foremost radio theater company in the United States for more than two decades. 

L.A. Theatre Works is broadcast weekly in America on public radio stations, daily in China on the Radio Beijing Network, streamed online at latw.org and programs are aired internationally on the BBC, CBC, and many other English language networks. LATW has single handedly brought the finest recorded dramatic literature into the homes of millions. 

The company records the majority of its productions annually in Los Angeles before an enthusiastic and loyal audience of season subscribers. Works by Arthur Miller, Tom Stoppard, Lillian Hellman, Athol Fugard, Joyce Carol Oates, Wendy Wasserstein, Neil Simon, David Mamet, Lynn Nottage and others have been performed and recorded by LATW with casts of the most critically acclaimed film and stage actors. 

On the road, LATW has delighted audiences with its unique live radio theater style performances in over 300 small towns and major cities, including New York, Boston, San Francisco, Washington and Chicago, Beijing and Shanghai. An L.A. Theatre Works performance is immediate, spontaneous, and features a first-rate cast, live sound effects, and a connection to the audience rarely felt in a traditional theater setting. This theater is an event.

Today, LATW’s Audio Theatre Collection includes more than 500 classic and contemporary titles – the largest library of its kind in the world. Much lauded, the L.A. Theatre Works Audio Theatre Collection is available in over 9,000 libraries and has received awards from the Audio Publishers Association, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Publisher’s Weekly, Writer’s Guild of America, American Library Association, GRAMMY® Awards and many others. 

Additionally, over 3,000 high schools nationwide use the recordings and accompanying study guides to teach language arts, literature, history and civics through LATW’s Alive & Aloud educational outreach program. LATW’s newest initiative, The Play’s the Thing for Higher Education, makes over 300 digitized works from their collection available to universities and colleges across the country for use in a variety of disciplines. 

For more information on these programs, LATW’s Audio Theatre Collection, national radio broadcast information and other exciting projects, visit latw.org.

Tickets are still available for L.A. Theatre Works' Pride and Prejudice 

Thursday, February 14!

 Biography provided by Baylin Artist Management

Join Us for Fox Cities P.A.C. Fan Day with Scrap•Arts•Music

For more than a decade, theater fans have graciously supported the Fox Cities P.A.C. On Wednesday, March 20, allow us to say, “thank you!"
 

Scrap•Arts•Music is a great family-friendly show, perfect for special pre and postshow activities. Arrive early for a preshow talk led by Scrap•Arts•Music’s co-founder Gregory Kozak and fun family activities. Enter for a chance to win Super Fan prize packs or a seat upgrade to the Entrance 21 Luxury Suite, and be sure to add your autograph on the Fan Day celebrity board, just like the stars. Activities are free for all ticket holders, and the doors open at 6:00 p.m.


ABOUT SCRAP•ARTS•MUSIC
Scrap•Arts•Music is the creation of Vancouver artists Gregory Kozak and Justine Murdy. He’s a percussion virtuoso with a talent for welding, a commitment to recycling and energy to burn. She’s a designer with a passion for spectacle. Together with talented musicians Spencer Cole, Christa Mercey, Greg Samek and Malcolm Shoolbraid, Scrap•Arts•Music tours the world, transforming the stage into an eco-friendly musical empire made vibrant with creative energy. In a highly physical, wildly theatric performance, sculptures that are gorgeous enough to stand on their own become ensemble instruments in masterful compositions. For more information, visit ScrapArtsMusic.com.

To purchase tickets to Scrap•Arts•Music,

visit foxcitiespac.com today!

Don’t have tickets yet for Scrap•Arts•Music? Enter our Share Your Story promotion, and tell us your favorite memory of the Fox Cities P.A.C. One hundred lucky winners will be selected at random and receive two tickets to Scrap•Arts•Music! For details or to enter, visit foxcitiespac.com/ten or shareyourstory1213.blogspot.com .

Hurry, Share Your Story ends Wednesday, February 20!  

         

 

250 Reasons to Love Spirited Songs February 9

Why do people love choral music?

If you were to ask all 250 singers preparing for Spirited Songs: A Celebration of Choral Music, you would probably get 250 different answers. Here are just a few they've shared!
 

 

 

 

 

 

On Saturday, February 9 three of the leading Fox Cities choral music groups will perfor together onstage for the first time since the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center opened in 2002. Enjoy the experience as the Appleton Boychoir, Lawrence Academy Girl Choir and White Heron Chorale join together in a rare ensemble performance, highlighting the best of each group and combining their talents for a spectacular choral event! 

Tickets are $18 for adults and $10 for students.

 

 

Familiar Face Among the BBC Concert Orchestra

You may recognize a familiar Fox Cities name among the composers for next Tuesday night's performance by the BBC Concert Orchestra. Alongside Benjamin Britten, Edward Elgar and George Butterworth, you can expect to see Appleton resident and composer, Maury Laws.

Shortly before the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center opened in 2002, Maury Laws was asked to compose a "Fanfare" to be played over the sound system, reminding everyone that the performance was about to begin or resume. He wrote the 10 second fanfare for brass quintet.

In honor of the Center's 10th Anniversary, Laws has expanded the motif into a longer piece. Keith Lockhart agreed to include it in the program featuring the BBC Concert Orchestra, so the modest reminder has become the opening fanfare of this special evening. The music suggests the activities that take place backstage as performers ready themselves for the opening curtain. The piece is called “Curtain Call.” 

Maury Laws began playing the guitar and singing at the age of 12. By age 16, he was a featured soloist with local dance bands and jazz groups in his native North Carolina. After returning from World War II, he performed in clubs and theaters throughout the U.S. and Canada. He eventually settled in New York where he pursued a formal education in music. Among his teachers was Tibor Serly, the associate of Bela Bartok. In the early days of television, he appeared with vocal groups on the most popular variety shows while writing arrangements for many of the top recording artists of the 1950s and ’60s. In 1964, Maury became the musical director for the animated production of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” 

He went on to compose, arrange and conduct music for more than 30
television specials and films including “The Hobbit,” which won a Peabody Award and received an Emmy nomination. He also composed for the off-Broadway theater and scored symphonic works for orchestras in the U.S. and Europe. His most recent works include “The Baseball Music Project” with Fred Sturm and featuring Hall of Fame great, Dave Winfield.
 
In 2011, Maury was inducted into the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters. He also received the 2012 Hanns Kretzschmar Award for Excellence in the Arts. More  information about his work can be seen at maurylaws.com.

Tickets for the BBC Concert Orchestra start at $35.