Performing Arts April 2019

Posted OnMarch 29, 2019

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Performing Arts April 2019: Michelle Wolf who rocked everyone’s world at the 2018 White House Correspondent’s Dinner is just one of the highlights of the local performing arts calendar.

Hot Ticket Alerts for April

Newsies, Westchester Broadway Theatre, March 28-May 26: This 1992 Disney musical with 12 original songs from the eight-time Academy Award winning composer Alan Menken (Little Shop Of Horrors, Little Mermaid, Beauty & The Beast, Aladdin) was a box office bust but a big hit on Broadway, earning 8 Tony-noms and two wins. The story is inspired by the real-life Newsboys Strike of 1899 in New York City. (One Broadway Plaza, Elmsford; www.broadwaytheatre.com)

Local! Proof, Hudson Stage Company, Whippoorwill Hall Theatre, Fri-Sun, 3/29-4/7 & Fri-Sat, 4/12-13: Armonk’s Hudson Stage Co. presents Proof, David Auburn’s mind twister about an enigmatic young woman, Catherine, her manipulative sister, their brilliant father, and an unexpected suitor. They are all pieces of the puzzle in the search for the truth behind a mysterious mathematical proof. Originally produced on Broadway in 2000, the play won the Pulitzer Prize, the Tony Award for Best Play and the Drama Desk Award. (North Castle Public Library, 19 Whippoorwill Rd. E., Armonk, www.hudsonstage.com)

Dance off the Grid, Tap, Lindy, Afro and Bharatanatyam Dance, Emelin Theatre, Sat, 4/6: 8pm: The Emelin’s acclaimed DOTG series returns with critically-acclaimed tap, jazz and Lindy Hop dancer and choreographer, and 2011 Bessie Award-winner Caleb Teicher. Some of his famous works feature tap dancing to a beat box and Bach’s Goldberg Variations and swing dancing to Ella Fitzgerald. Abby Z’s, choreographer-in-residence at Princeton University, work draws on African forms. And Malini Srinivasan, a visiting lecturer at Princeton University, will perform solo Bharatanatyam dance. (153 Library Lane, Mamaroneck; www.emelin.org)

Local! The Color of Light, Schoolhouse Theatre, Thurs-Sat, 4/3-27: 8pm & Sun, 4/7-28: 3pm: This new play about Henri Matisse, by Jesse Kornbluth, follows the relationship between Matisse and a young nursing student he hired while recuperating from intestinal cancer in the south of France in 1942. Five years later, now a nun, she asked Matisse to design a stained glass window to raise money to fix a hole in her chapel’s roof. Instead he designed and built her a new chapel, the Chapelle du Rosaire – his masterpiece. (3 Owens Rd., N. Salem; www.schoolhousetheatre.org)

Justin Willman: Magic in Real Life Tour, Ridgefield Playhouse, Fri, 4/5: 8pm: Star and executive producer of the Netflix original series Magic for Humans, Willman is a regular guest on The Tonight Show, Ellen, and “Conan.” Hisvideos have logged over a 100 million views online and the L.A.Times calls him, “A new breed of comic who’s making magic cool again for grown-ups.” He has hosted Cupcake Wars for Food Network and even had his own comedy/magic special on Comedy Central in 2015. (80 E. Ridge, Ridgefield, CT; www.ridgefieldplayhouse.org)

Jay Mohr, Ridgefield Playhouse, Sun, 4/7: 8pm: This Saturday Night Live alum (1993-95) starred as the back-stabbing sports agent Bob Sugar in Jerry McGuire, had his own TV sitcom Gary Unmarried and was Professor Rick Payne in the TV series Ghost Whisperer. He’s a regular on the stand-up circuit. See him at the intimate Ridgefield Playhouse. (80 E. Ridge, Ridgefield, CT; www.ridgefieldplayhouse.org)

David Sedaris, Stamford Palace, Thurs, 4/11: 7:30pm: Join best-selling author and NPR contributor, David Sedaris for an evening featuring all-new stories. David Sedaris returns to the road following the release of his most deeply personal and darkly hilarious collection, Calypso. Sedaris sets his formidable powers of observation toward middle age and mortality, that vertiginous moment when your own body betrays you and you realize that the story of your life is made up of more past than future. (61 Atlantic St., Stamford, CT; www.stamfordpalace.org)

Comedy Night for Brain Aneurysm Awareness, Bedford Playhouse, Fri, 4/12: 6pm An evening of cocktails and comedy from Ophira Eisenberg, Elon Altman and Lenny Marcus in memory of Jolie Schwell Lehmann to benefit the Brain Aneurysm Foundation. Ophira Eisenberg, host of NPR’s Ask Me Another was featured in New York Magazine’s “Ten New Comedians That Funny People Find Funny”, and has appeared on Comedy Central and Craig Ferguson. Lenny Marcus has appeared on Letterman three times. (633 Old Post Rd., Bedford) To purchase tickets visit: give.bafound.org/2019Jolie

In The Mood – 1940’s Musical Revue, Tarrytown Music Hall, Fri, 4/19: 7:30pm: Hop aboard the “Chattanooga Choo Choo” at this fully-staged tribute through song and dance to the music of Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, The Andrews Sisters and big band greats of the ’40s. Complete with period costumes and choreography. (13 Main St., Tarrytown; www.tarrytownmusichall.org)

Ages 10+! The Triplets of Belleville, Performing Arts Center, Sat, 4/20: 8pm: This much beloved animated film, that was nominated for a 2003 Academy Award for Best Animated Film, is screened as composer Benoit Charest leads Le Terrible Orchestre de Belleville in the live performance of his Le Jazz Hot original score for the film, including his academy award nominated best song. . (735 Anderson Hill Rd., Purchase; www.artscenter.org)

Rick Thomas, Illusionist, Stamford Palace Theatre, Sat, 4/20: 8pm: Star of ‘Masters of Illusion’ and ‘The Illusionists’ on Broadway, Rick Thomas is a winner of The Academy of Magical Arts’ Magician of the Year award. He has headlined The Sydney Opera House, sold out Caesar’s Coliseum, had his own ABC special and performed over 600 shows at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. (61 Atlantic St., Stamford; www.palacestamford.org)

BODYTRAFFIC, Performing Arts Center, Thurs, 4/25: 8pm: Named “the company of the future” by The Joyce Theater Foundation, one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch,” and “Best of Culture” by the Los Angeles Times, the company is internationally recognized for its world class contemporary dance and distinctive choreographic voices. “BODYTRAFFIC displays sheer animal magnetism…” Irene Hsiao, San Francisco Weekly (735 Anderson Hill Rd., Purchase; www.artscenter.org)

The Bodyguard: The Musical, White Plains Performing Arts Center, Fri, 4/26-Fri, 5/12: Based not the Oscar-nominated 1992 romantic thriller starring Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston, about a bodyguard, a star singer and a stalker, this production opened on London’s West End in 2012. The musical flips the narrative placing the singer Rachel Marrone in the forefront. It showcases 17 songs Including a host of chart-topping Whitney Houston’s greatest hits such as “I Have Nothing”, “One Moment in Time”, “Run to You”, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” and one of the biggest selling songs of all time, “I Will Always Love You”. (11 City Place, White Plains; www.wppac.org)

A Bronx Tale starring Chazz Pamintieri, Tarrytown Music Hall, Sat, 4/27: 8pm: Chazz Palminteri returns performing his one-man stage version of the hit movie and recent Broadway musical A Bronx Tale. Based on his childhood memories of working men and gangsters in the Italian-American neighborhood where he grew up, A Bronx Tale earned him Outer Critic’s Circle Awards for acting and writing. (13 Main St., Tarrytown; www.tarrytownmusichall.org)

In The Mood, Ridgefield Playhouse, Sun, 4/28: 4pm: Complete with the String of Pearls Orchestra and the In The Mood Singers & Dancers, this 1940s musical revue creates a nostalgic atmosphere with period costumes that transports the audience back to the 30s and 40s when Hollywood studio orchestras and choreographed dance routines took the Big Band sound to America. (80 E. Ridge, Ridgefield, CT; www.ridgefieldplayhouse.org)

Frank Caliendo, Ridgefield Playhouse, Sun, 4/28: 8:30pm: This Mad TV vet has made a career for himself doing impressions in comedy clubs, on late night TV, Fox NFL Sunday Pregame, and his own series Frank TV. His best-known impressions include Donald Trump, Morgan Freeman, Al Pacino, Robin Williams, Robert DeNiro; George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, John Madden, Charles Barkley, Dr. Phil, Jay Leno, and David Letterman. (80 E. Ridge, Ridgefield, CT; www.ridgefieldplayhouse.org)

Hot Ticket Alerts for May!

Jay Leno, Palace Theatre Stamford, Thursday, 5/2: 8pm: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno was the No 1 rated late night talk show for two decades. Known as the “hardest working man in show business”, Leno performs standup over 100 times a year and is the host of the CNBC show Jay Leno’s Garage. See him in Stamford (61 Atlantic St., Stamford; www.palacestamfrod.org)

Michelle Wolf, Tarrytown Music Hall, Thurs, 5/2: 8pm: Her amped-up performance as the headline comic on the 2018 White House Correspondents Dinner was a breakout moment for this former on-air contributor and writer for Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. Wolf debuted her first hour-long stand-up special, “Michelle Wolf: Nice Lady”, on HBO late last year. The well-reviewed special tackled a wide range of topics from her surprising thoughts on feminism, the environment and Hilary Clinton. (13 Main St., Tarrytown; www.tarrytownmusichall.org)

Dance Off The Grid, Emelin Theatre, Sat, 5/4: 8pm: DOTG presents three dance troupes at this performance. Including the Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance, whose contemporary ballet has been hailed by the New York Times as “elegant” and “complex”. Then Keigwin & Company (pictured), takes you on a zany trip backstage in the final moments before the curtain goes in Places Please! Megan Williams Dance Projects concludes the evening. Megan Williams is a former dancer with Mark Morris and her work has been staged at the 92nd Street Y, Joe’s Publ and more. (153 Library Ln., Mamaroneck; www.emelin.org)

Local! Baby, The Armonk Players, Whippoorwill Hall, Fri, 5/10-Sun, 5/19: check times: Tom Coppola directs this 1983 musical from Sybille Pearson with music and lyrics from David Shire and Richard Maltby Jr. ( Fosse, Ain’t Misbehaving), about three couples on a university campus in their early twenties, thirties and forties that find themselves unexpectedly pregnant. The play was nominated for six Tony Awards and won two Drama Desk Awards. (North Castle Public Library, 19 Whippoorwill Rd. E., Armonk; www.armonkplayers.org)

Kevin James, Palace Theatre Stamford, Sat, 5/4: 8pm: Emmy-nominated star of the hit CBS tv series The King of Queens, went on to produce, co-write and star in Paul Blart: Mall Cop I & II, Zookeeper and Here Comes the Boom. James began his career as a stand-up on Long Island, landing his CBS development deal after being discovered at the Montreal Comedy Festival. He has two stand-up comedy specials under his belt including Never Don’t Give Up for Netflix in April 2018. (61 Atlantic St., Stamford; www.palacestamford.org)

Old, New, Borrowed & Blue, Palace Theatre Stamford, Sat, 5/11: 8pm: The Connecticut Ballet performs four pieces including “a classic ballet, a contemporary world premiere, a retelling of a beloved tale, and a dramatic ballet.” (61 Atlantic St., Stamford; www.palacestamford.org)

The Magic of Adam Trent, Ridgefield Playhouse, Fri, 5/17: 7pm: Brace yourself for a high-tech spectacle of futuristic magic, music and comedy. Trent’s solo show spun out of his performances in The Illusionists on Broadway. He has been a featured guest on on America’s Got Talent, The Today Show and Ellen, and stars in his own 10-episode TV series The Road Trickon NETFLIX. (80 E. Ridge, Ridgefield, CT; www.ridgefieldplayhouse.org)

Hot Ticket Alerts June!

Paula Poundstone, Paramount Hudson Valley, Sat, 6/15: 8pm: Number 88 on Comedy Central’s list of the 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time, Poundstone was the first female comedienne to win a CableAce Award for her HBO Special Cats, Cops and Stuff. She followed up with another HBO special Paula Poundstone Goes to Harvard and a Bravo special Paula Poundstone: Look What The Cat Dragged In. She is currently the host of NPR’s Live from the Poundstone Institute. (1008 Brown St., Peekskill; www.paramounthudsonvalley.com)