Hey there
Hope all is going well out there! I've been very busy planning benefits and such. We recorded 108 Waverly for a CD last week-very exciting and always fun in the studio-especially with the crazy and brilliant Lynn Portas-LOVE HER! Also went to see 7 Reece Mews again last night and brough my friends Laura and Darcie as well. Then Mick joined us for a little banana pudding at The Magnolia Bakery in the village-if you have not been, go now. I mean it...NOW. go. stop reading, because you're just wasting valuable time that could be spent on a train heading to the Magnolia...good.
What else is happening? Mandy Gonzalez's cabaret is going swimmingly-Don't Miss it! Also started chatting with Laura Bell Bundy about her one-woman show in the Fall. She is so unbelievably sweet and incredibly funny, I think it should be a good pairing for her show. Make sure you catch her as Glinda in Wicked, next time I know she's going on is June 10th.
Not very long-winded today-I hurt myself at the gym a little bit. I'm kinda gung ho about it since my free membership runs out in a month! little too much too soon though-and the free personal training session was not a positive one-I think the trainer was a Nazi sargeant in a previous life. So I'm recovering. Talk to you all soon!
Love, Jamie
with love from Jamie at 9:57 PM
Hey there
Sorry, there's this new blogger thing that doesnt automatically publish my posts, so here's a new one...
Standing Ovations was a HUGE success...I had an incredible day and the talent was extraordinary. Rob and Craig-thanks for including me in the evening!
7 Reece Mews also had a wonderful opening this weekend and is running for two more, make sure you get downtown to see it! www.smarttix.com
Also, I had the pleasure of escorting my brother and sister in law around the city this weekend. We had a really incredible time-sent them to Avenue Q and Phantom on Saturday, both of which they enjoyed immensely, with a little bit more enthusiasm for the Q...
Aaaaanyway...that's about it right now...been away from email for 2 days, so I gotta go get back to work! Hope you're all well and as always thanks for always being so supportive!
Love, Jamie
with love from Jamie at 12:45 PM
Hey there,
I am at The Westbeth Arts Center, where 7 REECE MEWS opens tonight. I'm very excited-it's a really wonderful piece with some great performances in it. It will be running for 3 weekends, so please come see it.
Also in the final stages for STANDING OVATIONS, which is the concert that happens on Sunday. There will certainly be some fun in store that day!
I'm trying to think of anything new to add...
CONGRATS to all the courageous couples in Massachusetts who were finally granted marriage certificates! That's some happy news...
In The Works happened last weekend at the Pink Room, to much success-it was so thrilling to see these three new singers performing their heart out. Truly exciting to see people who are that eager to analyze a song and truly give a remarkable performance. So thanks to Randy Redd, musical director and the three incredible performing talents, Anna, Dani and Mick-great work!!! Despite me not being a lighting guy...Natalie Douglas recommended I get a MAC nomination for worst lighting. So true.
Anyway...that's about it for now. I hope everyone is well!
oh yeah forgot...I joined CRUNCH Gym yesterday...yesterday, felt kinda fun and like I was doing something good for myself. Then I met Diamond-my trainer...It will be a while before I can feel anything.
Love, Jamie
with love from Jamie at 2:13 PM
Hey there
So here I am...I ended up having a bit of an evening off. After seeing the premiere of the Tony n' Tina's Wedding film featuring my girl Daisy Eagan, I decided against going to the party as it seemed like it was going to be a little too crazy for my current mood. So I came home...very nice to have a bit of a night off. Nights off can bring some very nice surprises.
I'm working hard on 108 Waverly which, as I said in my previous post, opens on Wednesday. It's been such a fun and eductational experience. It seems like ages since I've played a role. I've always enjoyed playing Matthew in this show-one of the best things I feel I've done in my life. The show is really quite beautiful-I'm entirely partial to it, but it seems tog et a pretty good response from the audience as well. It's been so strange putting the show on it's feet. I did it two years ago, and as we block scenes, all of a sudden my body will remember my old blocking and I'll just go into it. Part of that feels dishonest, but for the most part its quite comfortaing. I felt right about it then and I feel right about it now.
It's also incredible beeing so busy and going from producing (the festival) to directing (7 Reece Mews, Staning Ovations, In The Works...) to acting (108 Waverly). If nothing else, I am definitely learning that I miss performing...I was offered a night or two at Opia (a new cabaret-type restaurant/lounge on the east side) to do a cabaret evening. So I'm thinking about that (not terribly actively mind you with everything else going on this month).
Anyway, I think that's about it for right now. Hope you are all well and hope you all come to see the show!!!
Love, Jamie
with love from Jamie at 12:26 AM
Hey there,
This note is part update part "hello and sorry I've been out of touch and here's why," and part come see some shows!
Since it's hard for me to say what's the most important project I'm working on, I'm going to tell them to you chronologically...
First off, I'm PERFORMING-you read right-PERFORMING in 108 Waverly, a new musical by Dan Clancy and Lynn Portas that I actually did a showcase of two years ago in Queens. It's one of the most exciting new musicals I've had the opportunity to work on in the years I've been here. It's 2 gay couples, one set in 1928 the other in 1998. The 1928 couple is deciding whether or not they can move in together, while the 1998 couple is discussing adopting a child. It's really a fantastic show featuring Chris Weikel, Patrick Porter and Alex Quiroga and directed by Sam Viverito so check out the ticket info at www.theatermania.com
Next, I am directing and producing a cabaret of new songs by new writers, as performed by up and coming young singers. The evening (and subsequent series), called IN THE WORKS...will feature Anna Ty Bergman, Mick Bleyer and Dani Marcus. Musical direction and additional performing duties from Mr. Randy Redd (who appeared in my Embrace and Miracle on 47th Street concerts in the past year). The event will be the first cabaret to take place in the brand new PINK ROOM at CLUB BLACK (56th Street and 11th Ave). You can purchase your inexpensive tickets at http://www.smarttix.com
Following that, I am directing a new play downtown at the Bank Street Theatre. The play is about a young man who is obsessed with the life of painter, Francis Bacon. He does all he can to emulate Bacon. Not only his style of painting, but his entire life. He goes as far as to rent a studio and set it up exactly as Bacon had his London studio put together. Discussion ensues as to whether the junk and mess in Bacon's 7 Reece Mews studio was random or had order. The purpose of art is questioned and the needfulness of obsession is put under the magnifying glass. The show will run from May 19th-June 5th and more info can be found at http://www.mondaymorningproductions.com
On May 23rd, I will be directing the already sold-out STANDING OVATIONS Concert at Joe's Pub. This is a benefit concert for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, as produced by Robert Diamond, Craig Brockman and BroadwayWorld.com, Broadway's Premiere Web Resource. The evening will feature performances from James Barbour (Assassins), Laura Bell Bundy (Wicked), Kim Cea (Smokey Joe's Cafe), Susan Egan (Thoroughly Modern Millie), Felicia Finley (Aida), Alison Fraser (The Secret Garden), Mandy Gonzalez (Dance of the Vampires), Andrea McArdle (Annie), Raymond McLeod (Wonderful Town), Erin Leigh Peck (Dance of the Vampires), William Tost (The Fantasticks), Eddie Varley (Grapefruit), Max von Essen (Dance of the Vampires), Bill Weeden (The Fantasticks), Kate Shindle (Cabaret) and several others. visit http://www.BroadwayWorld.com
Perhaps the largest project I am working on currently working on is NYMF or The New York Musical Theatre Festival. NYMF promises to be an enormous and very worthwhile event in New York City. I am certai that it will become known as THE Musical Theatre Festival the world over. In working with some of the city's finest talent in the musical theatre industry, we are constructing the most effective ways of showcasing and encouraging an art form in the city that created it. We are currently seeking support in the form of sponsorships, please visit http://www.NYMF.org for more info.
Other projects that are on the horizon include a new cabaret series produced by BroadwayWorld.com-featuring Mandy Gonzalez and Gavin Creel as some of the first artists to perform as well as a concert version of Stephen Schwartz' PIPPIN to take place in December (along the same lines as last year's CHILDREN OF EDEN Concert) to take place at CLUB BLACK.
This past year has brought so many incredible people into my life and my creative circle, and I am eternally grateful for that. It's really hard to believe how much has happened just in the past 6 months. Between "Miracle on 47th Street,"-a holiday concert to benefit God's Love We Deliver, Children of Eden, which brought focus to the National AIDS Fund and the York Theatre Company, "Embrace," - a concert benefiting the extremely important Matthew Shepard Foundation, and most recently SNOOPY! In Concert, which benefited The Pied Piper Children's Theatre, I have been honored to work with some of the most generous, talented and lovely people I've ever known. So thank you to all of them and the countless people that supported these projects in one way or another. Your work makes a huge difference.
That's all for now. I hope to see some or all of you at some or all of these upcoming events. Thanks so much for all the support you have already given me. Hope to see/hear from you all soon.
Much Love, Jamie
with love from Jamie at 8:08 PM