k.d. lang makes her Broadway debut in the new musical After Midnight as Special Guest Star vocalist beginning this Tuesday, February 11, and continuing through Sunday, March 9, 2014. After Midnight, which celebrates Duke Ellington’s years at the Cotton Club using his original arrangements and performed by a big band of 17 musicians hand-picked by Wynton Marsalis, began performances last fall with Fantastia in the role, reintroducing the Cotton Club's tradition of welcoming stars in limited engagements throughout the musical's run. The New York Times says the show is "hot, sweet, and altogether glorious." New York magazine calls it "pure joy ... an unmitigated pleasure."
k.d. lang makes her Broadway debut in the new musical After Midnight as Special Guest Star vocalist beginning this Tuesday, February 11, and continuing through Sunday, March 9, 2014. After Midnight began performances at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre (256 West 47th Street) last fall with Fantastia in the role, reintroducing the Cotton Club's tradition of welcoming stars in limited engagements throughout the musical's run. The New York Times says the show is "hot, sweet, and altogether glorious." New York magazine calls it "pure joy ... an unmitigated pleasure."
Innovation, experimentation and a talent for subverting genre have marked k.d. lang’s career. Her pioneering alt-country album Absolute Torch and Twang garnered lang her first Grammy Award and mainstream recognition. As a follow up, she switched musical hats from country to a fiery brand of adult contemporary and released Ingénue, which featured the hit “Constant Craving” and went platinum in Canada and the US. Her unforgettable interpretation of Leonard Cohen's “Hallelujah” has become, along with her breathtaking cover of Roy Orbison's “Crying,” an in-concert showstopper. lang has collaborated with such musicians as Orbison, Bonnie Raitt, Elton John, Loretta Lynn, and Tony Bennett. “She’s the best singer of her generation,” observed Bennett, who has frequently performed with lang. Her most recent album, Sing It Loud, released in 2011 on Nonesuch Records, is a return to the more raucous, dramatic side of her range.
Refracted through a contemporary lens, After Midnight celebrates Duke Ellington’s years at the Cotton Club using his original arrangements and performed by a big band of 17 musicians hand-picked by Wynton Marsalis. The timeless tunes set against a narrative of Langston Hughes poetry provide an authentic backdrop for an array of cutting-edge performances by 25 vocalists and dancers, including special guest stars. Conceived by Jack Viertel, After Midnight features direction and choreography by Warren Carlyle, musical direction by Wynton Marsalis and musical supervision by Daryl Waters.
For more on the show and tickets, visit aftermidnightbroadway.com.
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