Dreamweaver Marketing News, 2016-2017 TRUST CABARET SERIES FEATURING BILLY PORTER

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Media Contacts:
Shaunda Miles, Director of Public Relations, 412-471-1578 / Miles@TrustArts.org

Diana Roth, Communications Manager, (412) 471-8717 / Roth@TrustArts.org

Images available: Pittsburgh Cultural Trust Press RoomSearch: 1617 Cabaret

THE PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST ANNOUNCES

2016-2017 TRUST CABARET SERIES

FEATURING

BILLY PORTER
KAREN MASON
JAMES MONROE IGLEHART
JUDY KUHN
LEA SALONGA

CABARET AT THEATER SQUARE | 655 PENN AVENUE | CULTURAL DISTRICT

Pittsburgh, PA—The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is pleased to announce the fifth season for the 2016-2017 TRUST Cabaret Series. This series is comprised of Broadway’s best performers and provides audiences with a rare opportunity to experience the featured cabaret artists and their outstanding musical accompanists at the intimate 250-seat Cabaret at Theater Square, 655 Penn Avenue, in downtown Pittsburgh’s Cultural District.

The 2016-2017 Trust Cabaret season maintains a high standard of quality and showcases a diverse lineup of bright stars including Tony award winners and the singing voices of some of Disney’s most iconic characters.

“The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is pleased to begin the TRUST Cabaret season with Tony Award winner and Pittsburgh Native, Billy Porter,” shared Randal Miller, Director of Dance Programming and Special Projects for the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.  “I can’t imagine a better way to start this spectacular season which will also include the talents of Karen Mason whose Broadway credits include Mamma Mia and Sunset Boulevard;  James Monroe Iglehart who received a Tony Award for his role in the Broadway production of Aladdin;  Judy Kuhn, leading actor in the Tony Award winning musical Fun Home and the incomparable Lea Salonga whose extensive list of credits include a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as Kim in Miss Saigon and who served as the singing voice of Disney characters Mulan and Jasmine.  It is exciting to give people access to such a diverse group of artists of this caliber.”

Subscription packages for the 2016-2017 TRUST Cabaret Series will go on sale today, Tuesday, May 3, 2016. Single tickets will go on sale Friday, August 19, 2016.  TRUST Cabaret Series performances begin at 7:30pm. Doors open at 6:00 p.m., Cabaret at Theater Square, 655 Penn Avenue. Series subscriptions include all five performances and are available as follows: Tables and Hi-top seating subscriptions are $300; Theater seating subscriptions are $250.  For subscription information call (412) 456-1390. Groups of 10+ call (412) 471-6930. Accessible services are available. Table and hi-top seating for single tickets: $65; Theater seating for single tickets: $55. Full tables are also available. 

For information, call (412) 456-6666, visit TrustArts.org/Cabaret Series or in person at Theater Square Box Office, 655 Penn Avenue.  Food and beverages are available for purchase at the Cabaret at Theater Square.  Enjoy fabulous entertainment, a great menu, delicious desserts, coffee and a full bar.  Theater Square also offers convenient parking.

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust gratefully acknowledges the Benter Foundation and Richard E. Rauh for their generous support of the TRUST Cabaret Series, which is arranged in cooperation with rj productions.

BILLY PORTER: BROADWAY AND SOUL | Monday, October 17Billy Porter won a

Tony Award for his performance as Lola in Kinky Boots. His other Broadway credits include Miss Saigon, Five Guys Named Moe, Grease, and Smokey Joe’s Café. Off-Broadway, in addition to appearing in the Signature Theatre Company’s acclaimed production of Angels in America, he was seen in The Merchant of Venice, House of Lear, and Radiant Baby (Public Theater), Birdie Blue (Second Stage Theatre), Songs for a New World (WPA Theater), King Lear and The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler (both for Exit, Pursued by A Bear), as well as his one-man show, Ghetto Superstar. His film and television credits include the Sundance Film Festival features The Broken Hearts Club and Intern, The Humbling, Noel, the CBS miniseries “Shake, Rattle & Roll” as Little Richard, “Twisted,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “Law & Order,” “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” “The Rosie O’Donnell Show,” and “The Tonight Show.” A Grammy Award winner, Porter’s concert credits include opening acts for Rosie O’Donnell and Aretha Franklin, performances at Carnegie Hall, with John McDaniel and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, as well as with The Buffalo Philharmonic, Peter Nero and The Philly Pops, and The Boston Pops. Also a writer, his play While I Yet Live was produced last year at Primary Stages. Starting March 2016, he will appear alongside Audra McDonald and Brian Stokes Mitchell in Broadway’s highly-anticipated Shuffle Along. In this intimate concert, BILLY PORTER: BROADWAY AND SOUL, Porter presents an evening of songs and stories from his experiences on the Great White Way. Along with James Sampliner, his long-time music director and collaborator, Billy has translated some of the most iconic Broadway music of the past eight decades into African American idioms, including soul, gospel, hip-hop, funk and R&B. A musical evening that will have you dancing in your seat!

KAREN MASON | Monday, November 14Karen Mason “has few peers when it comes to ripping the roof off with her amazing voice that knows no bounds!” (Chicago Tribune). She has starred on Broadway, Off-Broadway, television and cabaret, winning numerous awards that include 10 Manhattan Association of Cabaret Awards (MAC), an Emmy Award, an Outer Critics Circle Award, 3 Bistros Awards, a Nightlife Award, and a Drama Desk nomination. Karen received rave reviews when she stepped into the starring role of Norma Desmond in the Los Angeles and Broadway companies of Sunset Boulevard, and received critical acclaim as Tanya in the original Broadway cast ofMamma Mia! Other Broadway credits include Wonderland, Hairspray, Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, and Torch Song Trilogy. She has headlined at Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, and performed with major Symphony Orchestras in cities around the world that include New York, Tokyo, Osaka, London, Manaus (Brazil), Copenhagen, Long Beach (CA), Philadelphia, and Chicago. Karen has shared the concert stage with Michael Feinstein, Jerry Herman, Chita Rivera, Rosemary Clooney, Barry Manilow, Liza Minelli, and Luciano Pavarotti. Karen’s 7 highly-acclaimed recordings include: her new single and video, It’s About Time, Right Here/Right Now, The Sweetest of Nights, When The Sun Comes Out, Christmas! Christmas! Christmas!, Better Days, and her inaugural CD, Not So Simply Broadway. She has been featured on many soundtracks, including the original NY cast recordings of And The World Goes ‘Round, and Wonderland. And TV/film soundtracks of: Walk a Mile in My Pradas, The Christmas Bride, Jeffrey, and the NBC Rock-Opera: Auto-Tune/The Munsters.

JAMES MONROE IGLEHART | Monday, February 13

James Monroe Iglehart won the 2014 Tony Award® and Drama Desk Award for his

performance as the Genie in Aladdin. He originated the role of Bobby in the Tony®-winning musical Memphis. James started his career in his home state of California, attending Cal State Hayward and performing in Bat Boy at TheatreWorks and as Teen Angel in Grease at the American Musical Theatre. Other NYC: The 25th Annual…Spelling Bee and The Wiz. Regional: Porgy & Bess (Oakland EB Symphony), It Ain’t Nothing But the Blues (TheatreWorks, CA) and Smokey Joe’s Café (AMT San Jose). Film/TV: “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” (recurring), “Gotham”, “The Good Wife” and “The Electric Company” (the Silent E Soloist). James is a member of the hip-hop improv group Freestyle Love Supreme. James dedicates this show to Dawn, the best wife in the world!

JUDY KUHN | Monday, March 13Judy Kuhn is a four–time Tony Award nominee most recently for her starring role in Lisa Kron and Jeanine Tesori’s Tony award winning musical Fun Homedirected by Sam Gold. Also on Broadway she starred in the Roundabout’s 1993 hit revival of She Loves Me (Tony Nomination), Chess (Tony & Drama Desk Nomination), Les Miserables (Tony & Drama Desk Nomination), Rags (Drama Desk Nomination),Two Shakespearean Actors (Lincoln Center Theatre), Alan Menken & Tim Rice’s King David, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood (original cast). Most recent appearances include The Visit by John Kander, Fred Ebb & Terrance McNally at The Williamstown Theater Festival, the original production of Fun Home Public Theater (Lucille Lortell Award), Fosca in the much lauded CSC production of Stephen Sondheim & James Lapine’s Passion directed by John Doyle (Drama League Award nomination) and the inaugural season of Encores! Off-Center in The Cradle Will Rock directed by Sam Gold. Other theater includes: Three Sisters adapted by Craig Lucas and directed by Bartlett Sher (Intiman),Passion (Kennedy Center’s Sondheim Celebration); U.S. premiere of Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles; Ricky Ian Gordon’s Sycamore Trees (Helen Hayes Award/Signature Theater); Michael John LaChiusa’s The Highest Yellow, Eli’s Comin’ (Vineyard Theatre/Obie Award); The Ballad of Little Jo (Steppenwolf Theatre Co./Jeff Award Nomination); As Thousand’s Cheer (Drama Dept.); Tina Landau and Ricky Ian Gordon’s Dream True (Vineyard Theatre); The Glass Menagerie(McCarter Theatre), Martin Guerre (Hartford Stage), and Martha Clarke’s Endangered Species (BAM). In London’s West End she starred in Metropolis (Olivier Award Nomination).

LEA SALONGA | Monday, April 3Known across the world for her powerful voice and

perfect pitch, Lea Salonga is a singer and actress best known for her Tony Award winning role in Miss Saigon. In addition to the Tony, she has won the Olivier, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards, in the field of musical theatre. She was also the first Asian to play Eponine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway and returned to the beloved show as Fantine in the 2006 revival. Lea has most recently appeared on Broadway reprising her role in the highly anticipated musical Allegiance, which was inspired and developed by legendary actor George Takei. Allegiance tells the story of a Japanese American family forced into an internment camp during World War II. Lea garnered a Craig Noel nomination for Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical for her performance in the 2012 Old Globe production of the play. Lea is a judge on the Philippines version of “The Voice,” which was a huge hit, following in its predecessor’s footsteps. Mitoy Yonting, a member of Team Lea, was named the first season winner. She is currently filming the second season of “The Voice Kids.” For much of 2014, Lea performed with legendary “popera” quartet Il Divo, accompanying them in Asia, the United States, Canada, Mexico, and all through Eastern and Western Europe on their A Musical Affair tour, celebrating the band’s 10th anniversary. She can be seen on their latest DVD and CD bearing the same name.

TRUST Cabaret SeriesThe TRUST Cabaret Series is presented by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and provides a unique and intimate opportunity for audiences to experience the finest cabaret acts in the entertainment industry.  The series provides audiences with a rare opportunity to experience the finest cabaret artists and their outstanding musical accompanists at the intimate Cabaret at Theater Square, 655 Penn Avenue, in downtown Pittsburgh’s Cultural District. The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust gratefully acknowledges the Benter Foundation and Richard E. Rauh for their generous support of the TRUST Cabaret Series, which is arranged in cooperation with rj productions.

Pittsburgh Cultural Trust

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has overseen one of Pittsburgh’s most historic transformations: turning a seedy red-light district into a magnet destination for arts lovers, residents, visitors, and business owners. Founded in 1984, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a non-profit arts organization whose mission is the cultural and economic revitalization of a 14-block arts and entertainment/residential neighborhood called the Cultural District. The District is one of the country’s largest land masses “curated” by a single nonprofit arts organization. A major catalytic force in the city, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is a unique model of how public-private partnerships can reinvent a city with authenticity, innovation and creativity. Using the arts as an economic catalyst, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has holistically created a world-renowned Cultural District that is revitalizing the city, improving the regional economy and enhancing Pittsburgh’s quality of life. Thanks to the support of foundations, corporations, government agencies and thousands of private citizens, the Cultural Trust stands as a national model of urban redevelopment through the arts. For more information, visit TrustArts.org.

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