Free Performance Gage, Part One Tonight @ 7!

For the last week, I've been in rehearsals for a reading of the new pop/rock musical Gage, Part One. It's a cool show, with a great cast. We perform tonight at the Lion Theatre in Theatre Row, 410 W 42nd Street between 9th & 10th Ave. Email GagePartOne@gmail.com for complimentary tickets.

Details from Broadway World:

The new rock musical Gage, Part One receives its first reading on Wednesday, June 10th. Featuring a rock score by Ryan Mercy, lyrics by Christopher Barnes, and a book by Cameron Cole, Gage buzzes with a youthful energy and features an equally electric cast. Performers include Logan Lipton (Wicked, Cupid and Psyche), Kevin Greene (Grease: You‘re the One that I Want, A Tale of Two Cities), Auri Marcus, Kevin T. Curtis, Heath Calvert (Good Vibrations), Desiree Rodriguez, and Jessica Waxman.

The performance is directed by Ryan J. Davis (White Noise, Broadway Beauty Pageant).

Gage, Part One takes the genre of the superhero origin story and turns it completely on its head.

Ben is obsessed with comic books, so obsessed that he has been writing them since he was a teenager with his best friend and artist Noel. It is no surprise then that when Noel saves a stranger's life on the subway by pushing her out of the way of an oncoming train, Ben begins to believe that Noel is a true superhero. Thus begins the origin of Gage, a vigilante who can stop time by use of a special watch. Once a mere fictional creation of Ben, Gage is now brought to life by the real-life good-doings of Noel. Gage faces plenty of evil and danger but is finally forced to confront his greatest nemesis, Ben, when it becomes clear that all is not as it seems.

Gage, Part One is presented Wednesday, June 10th at 7:00 PM at the Lion Theatre in Theatre Row, 410 W 42nd Street between 9th & 10th Aves. Email GagePartOne@gmail.com for complimentary tickets.

Also, a nice article on Playbill. Hope to see some of you tonight!

Be Good to Mama!

Sunday is Mother's Day and if you have as great a mom as I do, and I have a pretty great mom, you have to do something special for her!



My friend Martin Giannini, who is also one half of the Street Lights producing team, is presenting a Mother's Day concert that benefits the LGBT Center. Lots of great performers, including Jenn Colella and Malcolm Gets. Details below, from the Playbill article. I'll be there!

Kerry Butler, Malcolm Gets, Jenn Colella and Alan Campbell will perform as part of When You're Good to Mama at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center on May 10.

Glen Roven created the 7:30 PM concert, which will honor the special bonds between LGBT individuals and their mothers. Adam Kensinger directs the fundraiser evening that is produced by Martin Giannini.

Currently announced to perform are Kerry Butler (Xanadu), Alan Campbell (Sunset Boulevard), Allison Case (Hair), Jenn Colella (High Fidelity), Malcolm Gets (A New Brain), Greg Jbara (Billy Elliot), Mark Kudish (9 to 5), Andrew Samonsky (South Pacific), Paige Davis ("Trading Spaces"), Mathew Schecter (Waiting For Godot), Glenn Seven Allen (The Light in the Piazza), Taylor Sternberg (Jersey Boys), Rachel Cobb (La Boheme), Ansel Elgort, Noah Galvin, Matthew Garrett, Benjamin Perry and the male ensemble of South Pacific.

For tickets, priced $25, visit GayCenter. The Center is located at 208 West 13th Street in Manhattan.

Mr. Broadway Is Tonight!

The 3rd Annual Broadway Beauty Pageant is tonight at 8PM! I'm headed to tech now, but I wanted to give you all a special $25 Ticket Code - RAC102. Purchase tickets here.

From today's Playbill:

Multiple Tony Award nominee Tovah Feldshuh, currently back on Broadway in Irena's Vow, hosts the third annual Broadway Beauty Pageant April 20 at 8 PM at Symphony Space in Manhattan.

The evening, according to press notes, features "male cast members representing their respective Broadway shows, competing for the title crown through talent, interview and swimsuit competitions. The contestants will go head to head in front of a panel of celebrity judges, but ultimately, the final vote is in the audience's hands." Celebrity judges include Beth Leavel, Seth Rudetsky, Ana Gasteyer and Charles Busch.

The 2009 contestants are James Brown III (Mr. Little Mermaid), Adam Fleming (Mr. Wicked), Anthony Hollock (Mr. Hair), Tony James (Mr. Lion King) and David Larsen (Mr. Billy Elliot).

Past winners include Frankie James Grande (Mr. Mamma Mia) and Marty Thomas (Mr. Xanadu), who are both set to perform.

The Broadway Beauty Pageant is written and conceived by Jeffery Self and directed by Ryan J. Davis, with musical direction by Sonny Paladino. The evening is produced by Ryan J. Davis, Jeffrey Self and Wil Fisher in association with Tim Hur.

Proceeds will benefit the Ali Forney Center, the nation's largest and most comprehensive organization dedicated to homeless LGBT youth.

The Next Two Weeks

I've got quite a bit going on over the next two weeks and wanted to let everyone know what's happening.

Broadway For Barack

I'm Executive Producing a benefit for Senator Obama's Presidential Campaign on Monday, February 11th.

Playbill Says:

Jenn Colella, Kate Rockwell and Manoel Felciano are among the performers to appear at Broadway for Barack: The Voices of Hope, a benefit concert at Off Broadway's Zipper Theatre.
Ryan J. Davis and Adam Wagner produce the one-night-only event scheduled to play the New York City venue Feb. 11 at 9:30 PM.
...
Performers currently scheduled include Aaron J. Albano (Bombay Dreams, Spelling Bee), Jenn Colella (High Fidelity, Urban Cowboy), Manoel Felciano (Sweeney Todd, Brooklyn), Adam Halpin, Kate Rockwell ("Grease! You're the One That I Want"), Caesar Samayoa (Hot Feet, Carmen) and Marty Thomas (Xanadu, Wicked).
They will sing tunes by Nick Blaemire (Glory Days), Joe Drymala (White Noise), Felciano, Kait Kerrigan and Brian Lowdermilk (Henry and Mudge), Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (Edges), Eric Svejcar (Caligula), Jeffrey Thomson and Jordan Mann as well as Zachary Dietz and Adam Wagner.

Broadway World covers the premier of Joe Drymala's new musical Street Lights as well:

Street Lights, a new R&B/Hip-Hop musical by Joe Drymala will receive its first public preview during the evening. "Barack Obama's been talking about the same things that inspired me to write Street Lights -- community organizing, fixing public education, bringing the promise of the American Dream to every American, and healing the divisions between us," author Joe Drymala said. "Watching his campaign catch fire all over the country has been the most extraordinary political event of my lifetime." Street Lights will feature performances by Timothy Anderson, Andrew Arrington, Krystal Brown, Kevin Curtis, Domonique Porter, Alessia Thompson, Dwayne Washington, & Natalie Weiss.

My Life On The Craigslist

Jeffery's hilarious one man show about finding love (or sex) on Craigslist returns to NYC for three performances only.



Broadway World covers it:

After a sold-out performance at Off-Broadway's New World Stages, My Life On The Craigslist returns to New York for three performances only! My Life On The Craigslist, a solo show written and performed by Jeffery Self (Mr. Broadway, Big Tent) and directed and developed by Ryan J. Davis (White Noise, Breaking In), will be performed Off-Broadway at The 45th Street Theater (354 W. 45th Street) for three Fridays: February 15, 22 & 29 at 11PM. Lights by Solomon Weisbard & Co-Presented by Chris Ryan.
"Jeffery Self plays Jeff Miller, who is sexually frustrated, terribly self-conscious and willing to do anything to spice up his life. After finding the "Men 4 Men" section, his sordid dreams become reality and he begins to live life 'On The Craigslist.' Dirty, sleazy, and funny - this is a one night stand you don't wanna miss," explain press notes.

Tickets are only $10, come check it out!

Tammy Faye Sings

The Tammy Faye Musical, Big Tent, that I directed a big reading of in May is returning for a night at New York's The Metropolitan Room.

Playbill has the details:

Tammy Faye Sings is the title of a Feb. 18 concert at the Metropolitan Room, which will feature songs from the musical Big Tent, which is tagged "The Tammy Faye Bakker Musical."

The 9:30 PM concert at the Manhattan nightspot will feature the talents of Wicked's Stephanie J. Block and Jersey Boys' Sebastian Arcelus as well as Leah Hocking, Jim Stanek, DB Bonds, Kate Rockwell, Jenny Hill, Natalie Douglas, Quiana Parler, Linda Balgord, Jodie Langel, Eric Briarley, Casey Clark, Ryan Driscoll and Hedi Weyhmueller. Jeffery Self, who penned the book for the Tammy Faye musical, will host the evening.

The band will feature Big Tent composers Ben Cohn and Sean McDaniel on, respectively, piano and drums as well as Ric Molina on guitar and Dave Kuhn on bass.

That's all the theater for the next couple of weeks.

Off topic - I've also become a political pundit for The Hill, a widely read political D.C. daily paper. Check out my post here.