Old And New Numbers Dazzle At Broadway On Broadway

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Parent Category: Film and the Arts

Category: Reviews

Published on Tuesday, 22 September 2009 21:13

Written by T. Terry Maloney

Performances by stars from the long-running Broadway hit Chicago and by newcomers from the upcoming musical Memphis were among the highlights of the 18th Broadway on Broadway, the free outdoor concert held annually in Times Square from 43rd to 47th Streets.

The sultry, gyrating singers and dancers from Chicago, including star Deidre Goodwin, electrified the crowd of thousands with the classic "All that Jazz." Then, Chad Kimball, the male lead in Memphis, "brought down the house" with his beautiful rendition of "Memphis Lives in Me." The musical, opening Sepember 23rd at the Shubert Theater, is the story of an interracial romance in the segragated south of the 1950s, played against a background of the burgeoning rock and roll era.

Film and television star Michael McKean hosted the event which kicked off the 2009-2010 Broadway theater season. McKean is starring in the play Superior Donuts at the Music Box Theater, currently in previews and scheduled to run through January 3, 2010. The Steppenwolf Theater production was written by Tracy Letts, the author of August: Osage County.

Other performers included: and Kerry Butler of Rock of Ages, who had the huge crowd singing along with the Journey classic "Don't Stop Believing;" Daniel Breaker, star of Shrek the Musical (minus the costume) along with co-stars Sutton Foster and Ben Crawford; Kate Baldwin and Cheyenne Jackson from Finians Rainbow; Tony Award winner Alice Ripley along with Jennifer Damiano and Aaron Tveit from Next to Normal; Anya Garnis and Pasha Kovalev of the dance extravaganza Burn the Floor; Beth Leavel from Mamma Mia; Cassie Levy of Hair; Christine Noll from Ragtime; Laura Osnes of South Pacific and a non-singing John Stamos, who will star in the first Broadway revival of Bye Bye Birdie thru January 10, 2010.

Other shows represented by dancing and/or singing cast members included In the Heights, Jersey Boys, Billy Elliot the Musical, the upcoming Bye Bye Birdie, Fela!, The Lion King, Phantom of the Opera, West Side Story, Wicked and White Christmas (minus the heavy winter clothing worn by an earlier cast at last year's Broadway on Broadway.)

The huge finale led by Stamos and McKean featured cast  members from all featured show singing New York, New York and punctuated by the shooting of thousands (millions?) of square bits of colorful "confetti" into the late summer air, many of which made it to the site of Fashion Week several blocks east in Bryant Park. and most likely beyond (I stopped searching at Fifth Ave,).

Broadway on Broadway 2009, produced by the Broadway League and the Times Square Allaince, was presented by Bucik LaCrosse and Continental Airlines. It is part of Back2Broadway Month celebrating the Great White Way with free events, special ticket offers, dining discounts, concerts, interactive activities and the annual BC/EFA Flea Market and Grand Auction on Sunday, September 27th.

For more info go to: www.ILoveNYTheater.com

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