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Russ Lorenson News
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March, 2007 |
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Friends,
Although a little late with the newsletter again
this month, it's because lots of exciting things
are going on with me, as usual. I'm continuing
in the run of
The Secret Garden, have a new nightclub
show coming up at the end of the month, and
Benedetto/Blessed has added more dates
around the country. Read on!
Russ Lorenson
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"Come to the garden..."
 There
are only 2 weekends left to experience the
marvelous production of
The Secret Garden
at
The Willows Theatre!
We have
a terrific cast,
and one of the most beautiful and innovative
sets I've ever worked on.
About the show
Friendship, belief in oneself, and the power of
nature come together to make magic in The
Secret Garden.
It is 1906, and spoiled, self-absorbed Mary Lennox
awakes in India to find her parents and everyone
else in her household have died of cholera.
Miraculously, she is found alive and returned to the
England she has never known to live with her uncle,
the reclusive Archibald Craven, a hunchback who has
been inconsolable since his wife Lily's death. Not
long after arriving at Misselthwaite Manor, her
mysterious uncle's enormous mansion on the edge of
the Yorkshire moors, Mary discovers a walled garden,
neglected and in ruins. The once-lush garden is now
overgrown, and Archibald has forbidden anyone to
enter it in the ten years since Lily's death. No one
can even remember where the door is, until a robin
leads Mary to its hidden key. It is in the "secret
garden" that Mary and her sickly cousin Colin find
the path to physical and spiritual health.
Based on the beloved Frances Hodgson Burnett book of
the same name, The Secret Garden
premiered on Broadway in 1991 and ran for over 700
performances. It was nominated for seven Tony Awards
and 13 Drama Desk Awards. But enough about the
Broadway version - here's what the critics have said
about our version:
"...a spectacular production..."
- Walnut Creek
Journal (read
the full review here)
"... a fine cast...outstanding voices...a stunning
piece of work..."
- Contra Costa
Times (read
the full review here)
"The Willows Theatre Company has pulled out all the
stops..."
-
TalkinBroadway.com (read
the full review here)
"...a lush and ambitious production..."
- East
Bay Express (read
the full review here)
The show runs Wednesdays-Sundays through March 25 at
The Willows Theatre in Concord, CA. Tickets are
$23.00 - $38.00, and are available through the
Willows Theatre Box Office.
Please note that The Willows Theatre has a very
large subscriber base, and the show is over 75%
sold, with many performances already completely
sold out! Please don't wait to get your tickets. |
A new show debuts
this month!
If you've seen Benedetto/Blessed,
you've heard me tell how Tony Bennett describes
himself and Rosemary Clooney as "the first
American Idols".
For the past couple of years, my good friend
from New York,
Jenna Esposito,
has been performing her tribute show A
Hint of Rosemary: The Songs of Rosemary Clooney,
garnering rave reviews along the way. Jenna and
I have been talking for quite a while about
doing a combined version of our Rosie & Tony
shows, and I'm happy to announce that we will
finally be doing it!
About the show
 Before
Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini...before Clay
Aiken & Ruben Studdard...and long before Taylor
Hicks and Carrie Underwood were even born -
there were Rosemary Clooney and Tony Bennett,
TV's first "American Idols." Join Jenna and I
as we pay tribute to these icons of American
music in our new show,
The First American Idols: The Music of Rosemary
Clooney and Tony Bennett.
Before the world had Simon, Paula and Randy,
Arthur
Godfrey's Talent Scouts, one of the first
and most popular TV talent competitions, ran on
CBS from 1946 until 1958. The concept for the
show was that Arthur Godfrey had several "talent
scouts" who brought their discoveries onto the
program to showcase their talents. In February
1948, two new "discoveries" - Rosemary Clooney
and Tony Bennett - competed against one another,
with Rosie beating Tony, in what she described
as "the only time I ever won anything against
Tony Bennett."
That competition sparked a lifelong friendship
between the two singers, who were both quickly
signed to Columbia Records, starred together on
two different television shows in the 1950's,
and went on to brilliant solo recording
careers. And as Mr. Bennett has said, "At the
time Columbia signed us, Rosemary Clooney and I
were really the first 'American Idols.'"
We will debut this new show at
Kelly's of Alameda
on Saturday, March 31 and Sunday, April 1 at 7:30pm
each night. Tickets are $10 in advance through
Goldstar Events, $20 at the door. There is a $15
food/drink minimum per person at Kelly's.
Reservations may be
made by calling (510) 769-1011, or
click here to get tickets in advance through
Goldstar Events.
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Benedetto/Blessed updates
The best is yet to come with new performances of my
tribute to an American music icon, the man whom
Frank Sinatra called "the best singer in the
business."
About the show
 He's
that regular guy from Astoria, Queens, who left his
heart in San Francisco. He's the civil rights
pioneer whose groundbreaking friendship with an
African-American Army buddy during World War II
caused his superiors to punish him by making him dig
graves. He's the postwar heartthrob who inspired
hundreds of young girls to wear black outside St.
Patrick's Cathedral on his wedding day. His first
music video - at age 67 - made him the darling of
the MTV generation. He's the consummate artist known
worldwide for his paintings. He's the recording
artist who's sold over 50 million records, 13 Grammy
Awards, and released the best selling album of his
career - at age 80! The world knows him as Tony
Bennett, but his birth name -
Benedetto - means "blessed", an accurate
adjective to describe both the man and his fans.
Here's what the press has had to say about my
tribute:
"...Lorenson's tribute is solid gold."
~ L. Pierce Carson, Napa Valley Register
"Lorenson sings these Bennett hits with heart.
You can tell that he really is into the music - his
soul won't let him do anything else. I might even go
so far as to say that Lorenson is possessed by
Bennett's hits."
~ Lee Hartgrave, BeyondChron.org
"Lorenson's voice is lighter than Bennett's...a
satisfying instrument for the genre of songs dear to
the heart of Bennett fans."
~ Peter Leavy, Cabaret Scenes
"...a handsome baritone with a lot of charisma...his
adoration for Bennett and that genre of songs is
admirable and the ingredients are all there."
~ John Hoglund, Backstage
"Russ Lorenson has brought the crooner style back
to the cabaret scene...reminiscent of those singers
that I used to hear when the 52nd Street cabarets
were the cat's meow."
~ Richard Connema, TalkinBroadway.com
Upcoming dates for the show (click on a show to
get full details):
April 28, 8:00pm, at COPIA - The American Center for
Wine, Food & The Arts in Napa, CA
October 17, 1:00pm, at the Sharon Lynne Wilson
Center for the Arts in Brookfield WI
We're adding more dates all the time so watch your
email for a show near you, or check out the
calendar on the website! |
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Book me for your
private party or corporate event!
Though I stay plenty busy, I am available for
private parties and corporate events. If you or
someone you know is looking for a way to make
your event something to remember, give RL
Productions a call at (415) 674-3863 and see how
affordable live entertainment can be!
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