Petty Fest returned to NYC last night (24 October) at Webster Hall for a night of Tom Petty covers with a huge lineup of contributors backed by The Cabin Down Below Band. Cyndi Lauper, Fred Armisen, John McEnroe and Alia Shawkat were surprise guests.
Cyndi Lauper took to the stage with Sammy James Jr and they sang Here Comes My Girl.
100% of Petty Fest 2012 ticket sale proceeds benefitted the charity Sweet Relief Musicians Fund to help struggling musicians.
Victor Garber will host the New York ceremony, where Arianda, Jackson, Jordan, Milioti, Ed Asner, Becky Ann Baker, Dylan Baker, Samantha Bee, Jon Bernthal, Matt Czuchry, Jared Gillman, Jesse Martin, Archie Punjabi, Margot Robbie, Kyra Sedgwick, Alison Williams, Henry Winkler, and Henry Zebrowski are expected to participate as awards presenters.
In addition, Cyndi Lauper and Jordan Roth will present Tony winner Harvey Fierstein with the 2012 New York Apple Award, which is given each year to “an individual who has made a special commitment to the New York entertainment industry through collaboration with casting directors.”
The Artios Awards for outstanding achievement in casting in film, television, and theater will be presented Monday 29th October 2012 in twin ceremonies at New York’s XL Nightclub and Los Angeles’s Beverly Hilton. Named for the Greek word meaning “perfectly fitted,” the Artios Awards are based on originality, creativity, and contribution of casting to the overall quality of a project.
Cyndi Lauper will once again be joined on stage by an array of incredible musicians and comedians in an effort to raise awareness about gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth homelessness.
The following are just SOME of the special appearances that you can look forward to at the 2nd Annual Cyndi Lauper & Friends: Home for the Holidays.
Sarah McLachlan
Whoopi Goldberg
Adam Lambert
Rosie O'Donnell
Roberta Flack
St. Vincent
Alexis Krauss of Sleigh Bells
Rita Coolidge
Hunter Valentine
Andy Cohen
HOSTED BY Carson Kressley
We also have a very limited number of VIP and Premier tickets available for the concert.
VIP Ticket: $500
Seat located in the second to fifth rows of the center orchestra. Pass to Exclusive VIP After Party Sponsored by WE tv
Premier Ticket: $2,000
Seat will be located in the first row of the center orchestra.
Meet & Greet with Cyndi Lauper
Pass to Exclusive VIP After Party Sponsored by WE tv Recognition in Concert Program Book
To purchase a VIP or Premier Ticket, please contact Gregory Lewis at 646-524-6860 or gregory@truecolorsfund.org
Pre-Sale begins on the 23rd October 2012 at 12 pm from Ticketmaster.com. Pre-Sale ends on the 25th October at 10 pm. Password: COLORS
Cyndi Lauper & Friends: Home for the Holidays is a star-studded benefit concert on Saturday, December 8th at New York City's historic Beacon Theatre to help raise awareness about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth homelessness and support the True Colors Fund's Forty to None Project.
The 59-year-old singer on feminist anthems, gay and transgender homelessness and Madonna
My mother loved opera. When I was a child she took us to see Medea in Central Park. When Medea kills her kids left right and centre. I thought: "Ma, what are you trying to tell us here?"
I survived the abuse I grew up around thanks to my heritage. I come from a line of great Sicilian women, and their mentality is to endure and push through to the other side.
My sister and I used to play at mass. I'd be the faithful parishioner and she was always the priest. She would give me white Necco candy and I'd gratefully receive it. Of course, if they really were serving Necco candy a lot more kids would have gone to communion.
"Free love" was a crock of shit. If you were a woman and you didn't put out you were frigid; if you did put out you were a whore. You didn't really have control over your own sexuality – when you were in the bedroom it was a negotiation.
Men and women are different. I don't think men grow a brain until 26 or even 30. Girls mature a lot quicker.
I wanted "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" to be a feminist anthem. It was written by a guy, but my producer said: "Think about what it could mean." In my head I saw my mother's face, I saw my grandmother's face, and I thought: "OK, I'm going to make an anthem for every woman of every colour to make sure they know they can have a free spirit and a heart that thinks."
Fame doesn't redeem you. It takes a long time to get there, and when you're finally there you realise you still have authority figures telling you what to do.
Bob Dylan told me he didn't like chicks in bands. I think some male rock stars were scared of me at the time; they saw me as this scary, unhinged woman. For that generation, women were just supposed to be in awe of these rock gods.
I never had a rivalry with Madonna. You don't knock another sister, ever. There's room for everybody on this planet; you don't have to be like anyone else. What did Oscar Wilde say? "Feel free to be yourself – everyone else is taken."
You don't put accountants in charge of music. When that happens, you just have shit-ass music that sells but doesn't have soul. Music is not just a fucking graph. It's a phenomenon. I didn't just want to have a hit bubblegum song – I wanted to lift people up with music that had a message. Even when I sang "I Drove All Night", I did that because there weren't any songs about women drivers.
Forty per cent of homeless kids are gay or transgender. They were either thrown out or ran away because of fear of violence or rejection. My friend was abused by his stepdad and his mother threw him out because she would rather deal with that monster than him. That's why I started the True Colors Foundation to raise awareness about homelessness in that community.
Cyndi Lauper: A Memoir (Atria Books, £18.99) is out now.
Published in The Observer on Sunday 21st October 2012.
Cyndi Lauper and Kinky Liqueur toasts the world premiere of the musical Kinky Boots, on Wednesday 17th October 2012 in Chicago. Photos by Barry Brecheisen/Invision for Kinky Liqueur/AP Images.
Feel-good ‘Kinky Boots’ is a step in the ‘Billy Elliot’ direction
Forget about the red licorice and Milk Duds. The lobby of Broadway’s Al Hirschfeld Theatre, where “Kinky Boots” is set to open in April, might very well have to be retrofitted to make room for a shoe concession — a little boutique where men, women and “those who have yet to decide” can do some serious shopping for 2½-foot tall, shiny patent leather boots perched on heavily reinforced stiletto heels.
While no one would mistake this new musical, which celebrated its pre-Broadway opening Wednesday night at Chicago’s Bank of America Theatre, as groundbreaking in any way, it is an ideally crafted, altogether feel-good show — something of a “La Cage aux Folles” for the recession-plagued, anti-bullying, “it WILL get better” generation. And its solid if predictable storytelling (Harvey Fierstein’s take on the popular little British film comedy of 2005), its accomplished and varied score (an impressive first Broadway effort by Cyndi Lauper, that petite paragon of pop, who has penned several numbers that are sure to become keepers), its conveyor belt-smooth flow (courtesy of director-choreographer Jerry Mitchell), and its strong, winningly genuine cast, all conjoin to make it an engaging entertainment.
“Kinky Boots” is no “Billy Elliot,” but it certainly follows in the tradition of that show as it spins a story of solid British working-class types opening themselves up to something just a little bit outside their traditional comfort zone, and thriving on the change of heart that comes with it.
It is set primarily in the brick-walled, Victorian era shoe factory of Price and Son in Northampton, England, where five generations of Prices have crafted solidly made brogues, and where in recent years sales have slumped to crisis levels, and nine out of 10 similar factories have closed. Only the innovators have survived.
Charlie Price (graceful, earnest, full-voiced Stark Sands) has already made a shaky break with the family business, heading to London with his upwardly mobile fiancee to work in real estate marketing. But then, unexpectedly, his dad dies, and he heads home to find all the factory workers he grew up with faced with unemployment.
Goaded on by one of them — Lauren (Annaleigh Ashford), the feisty girl who thinks he’s a bit of a twit, but also could easily fall for him — he determines to rescue the business. And his earlier chance encounter in London with Lola (the easily morphing and commanding Billy Porter, who glows in a sort of Tina Turner-meets-a mature Whitney Houston sort of way, and who has arms that might send Michelle Obama back to the gym) proves crucial.
Charlie, who tried to rescue Lola during a mugging, didn’t realize “she” was a drag queen rather than a woman in distress. But ultimately (though not before plenty of rejection and pain), she turns out to be the key to the transformation of the shoe line, as well as to the attitudes towards “difference” of everyone involved. Before it’s all over, both Charlie and Lola (a k a Simon) also find a certain peace in themselves despite never having achieved acceptance from their dads.
Lauper’s score, with its conversational lyrics and music that deftly reflects the characters and situations (the ideal arrangements and orchestrations are by Stephen Oremus), features several big production numbers, with “Sex Is In the Heel” kickstarting the first act after some “La Cage”-like retreads of drag numbers, and the brilliantly choreographed “Everybody Say Yeah” supplying a terrific first act finale. Not surprisingly, Lauper is at her very best when writing songs she could have sung herself — particularly “The History of Wrong Guys,” with which the utterly winning and easily funny Ashford easily stops the show. (It’s a classic.)
The show’s second act, which features everything from a playfully staged boxing match between Lola and Don (beefy, lovable Daniel Stewart Sherman), to a confessional aria for Charlie (“The Soul of a Man”), to the story’s heartbreaking penultimate number, “Hold Me in Your Heart” (performed beautifully by Porter), moves toward a big runway finale (“Raise You Up/Just Be”).
Invariably you can see where every moment in the show but one (I won’t disclose it here) is headed well before it happens. The preaching about women being more satisfied by drag queens can grow tiresome. And adding some sort of solidarity number for the workers wouldn’t be a bad idea. Nor would making Charlie’s fiancee, Nicola (Celina Carvajal), a bit more two-dimensional.
But the show — with a superbly handsome set by David Rockwell, lighting by Kenneth Posner and costumes by Gregg Barnes — is in very solid shape. And there is little chance of it breaking a heel on the way to New York.
'Kinky Boots' kicks up its colorful heels in pre-Broadway premiere
THEATER REVIEW: "Kinky Boots" at Bank of America Theatre ★★★½
A warm, likable, brassy, sentimental, big-hearted and modestly scaled Broadway musical, “Kinky Boots” updates the issues of “La Cage Aux Folles,” touts acceptance and tolerance, stands behind a fresh-and-zesty Cyndi Lauper score, rolls out some mighty fine drag queens (with none of Arthur Laurents' infamous female interlopers) and adds a dose of “Billy Elliot“-esque, Brit-style, emotional-industrial grit, only without the off-putting profanity and the raw politics. “Kinky Boots” won't change the Broadway world but it has the Chicago tryout audience on its side right from the shoe factory's first whir. And where Chicago goes first, New York usually follows.
If the work that needs to be done gets done, “Kinky Boots,” reviewed Wednesday night, will be a good, solid, highly enjoyable Broadway hit, replete with a pair of very stellar performances — one from the fabulous Billy Porter, who plays the factory-saving transvestite Lola and who drives this show with enormous skill and charm all night long, and a quirkier turn from the Chicago “Wicked” veteran Annaleigh Ashford. She acts as a love interest for Charlie (Stark Sands), the vanilla young man put in charge of a struggling shoe factory when his dad dies, and as a kind of onstage surrogate for Lauper, which, believe it or not, is exactly what this female-friendly show needs. Sands has some fine moments, but he has yet to find his character's way through a story that must, at all costs, stay sufficiently truthful that it can land in that commercial and critical sweet spot between “Once” and, say, “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.”
In her first Broadway score, the pop icon Lauper proves adept at the crafting of not only a hook-heavy, accessible, oft-danceable score, but also of a very viable song-suite that will surprise some on Broadway with its diversity of styles, its melodic fortitude and its lyrical audacity. For his part, the redoubtable, hugely witty and adorably preachy Harvey Fierstein has completed some unfinished business from “La Cage,” continuing his lifelong probing of what it really means to be a man with the fresher musical backdrop that Lauper has afforded him. He takes another look at his beloved drag queens (and, in the case of the lead character, a transvestite) with a slightly edgier sensibility (although this is a strikingly clean and upbeat show) and through the pleasures of an especially musical-friendly British movie that very few people over here have seen and thus will likely find narratively charming. The look of “Kinky Boots,” with a set by David Rockwell, reminds one of the Terry Johnson “La Cage” revival, which is just right.
Director Jerry Mitchell has made some other excellent decisions: He has cast an ensemble who look like actual British factory workers; he's picked drag queens who feel like drag queens (as distinct from Broadway dancers playing drag queens); he keeps the spectacle in check, offers up a fine sense of humor, an affecting message and an outgoing, cohesive sprit that proves exceptionally engaging.
Aside from the lack of an opening number — Lauper will need to write something to replace the currently uninspired melange — Act 1 is in excellent shape, as tryouts go. But Act 2 hits serious problems when a camped-up boxing match that takes place inside the shoe factory (Lola, a boxing transvestite, is fighting a shoe-making, reformable homophobe, deftly played by Daniel Stewart Sherman) is allowed to derail the credibility of the plot and the show suddenly lapses into Las Vegas-style “Peepshow” pastiche, which in turn lurches awkwardly into a long, melodramatic sequence where Sands' Charlie is suddenly revealed as maybe not the tolerant fellow we thought. Therein, Sands looks lost.
The show recovers — the last 20 minutes are terrific — but that problem in the first half of the second act is a major issue, because everyone seems suddenly to forget that “Kinky Boots” actually works because its core narrative of an old-fashioned British shoe factory in Northampton that overcomes recessionary pressures and changing tastes by retrofitting itself as a purveyor of fetishistic footwear for drag queens and other pleasure-seekers who prefer their footwear red and lacy to Burgundy and buttoned-down, was based on a true story.
The other main problem with the show at this juncture is that the stakes are just not high enough for the workers, who are a likable crew (the ensemble is a huge asset in this show) but who dramaturgically are overly passive. There has to be more at stake for them when the factory nearly goes under; right now, it feels mostly like another day at the office, except drag queens are showing up.
Fixing that (and dialing back the boxing match and making sense of Charlie's meltdown) make up Job One. Job Two is getting rid of a sentimental lads-and-dads finale visual that seems to undermine the show's message of self-determination. Job Three is to flesh out the villainous fiancee, gamely played by Celina Carvajal but too close to archetype for comfort. Job Four? Give a Brit or two a sweep of the book with an eye to authenticity, so we might avoid people “graduating” from high school and other little cultural errors. Unlike most film-to-musical transitions, Fierstein avoids being trapped in those musical-killing small cinematic scenes, lingering in the right theatrical spots. But he runs into trouble with the confusing switches back and forth to London. Why do we even need to go there? I spent my childhood not far from Northampton and there were plenty of little drag bars in those Northern towns; I used to hang out at one. Why can't Lola be from the same area? That would only deepen the connection Fierstein wants.
The 2005 film was one of several British movies of the era to celebrate fusty, repressed U.K. institutions (and thus, by implication, U.K. social attitudes) finally getting with a cool Britannia program. Fierstein recasts the main issue as not so much saving the shoe factory, but as two young men (Porter's Lola had an abusive dad), learning to step out from the shadow of their fathers and accept each other. This is, of course, ideal thematic territory for Lauper, who has stood for such things her entire career and who clearly found much in this story to inspire her music — the ballads “Hold Me In Your Heart,” “I'm Not My Father's Son” and “So Long, Charlie,” which segues beautifully into a song called “The Soul of a Man,” are all potent, as are the danceable disco ditties “Sex Is in the Heel” and “Raise You Up/Just Be.” Along with Fierstein and Mitchell's warmth and conviction, they will propel this show to success, as long as the soles become solid and the heels made true.
Kinky Boots has arrived and so has the first musical in over fifteen years that will have crossover chart success. This long awaited, much hyped show is based on the 2005 British film about the true story of a second-generation shoe factory owner that turns to making “fetish” footwear in order to save the company from closing its doors. More than that, it is a story about not living up to your father’s expectations and the childhood scars that are carried through adulthood, shaping the person you become.
Chicago audiences are the first to see Kinky Boots, which is now in its pre-Broadway tryout at the Bank of America Theatre and if opening night is any indication by its 5-minute standing ovation, this is a musical with long legs. Producers Daryl Roth and Hal Luftig have put together the perfect creative team for the material at hand with Harvey Fierstein, Cyndi Lauper and Jerry Mitchell as the talent that pours out of these masters of this genre is palpable.
Kinky Boots begins with a young Lola discovering his love of high heels and the instant disapproval of his father; countered by a young Charlie being groomed by his father to go into the family shoe manufacturing business. These two patriarchal relationships are the center of the lead character’s emotional arch. The story unfolds with Charlie (Stark Sands) unexpectedly inheriting the shoe business after his father’s untimely death. The factory is in financial straights and Charlie is forced to fire some workers including Lauren who happens to have a crush on her boss. Lauren tells Charlie to keep a look out for a niche idea that would give the factory a shot at staying open. To this end, Charlie travels to London where he attempts to rescue a “woman” in distress but his efforts are thwarted as he is cold cocked by the person he is trying to save. That person turns out to be Lola (Billy Porter), a drag diva (also known as Simon) who expresses disappointment with her shoes as the high heel keeps snapping off. Lola explains to Charlie that those types of shoes are made for women and not for men. The preverbal light bulb goes off and the niche Lauren spoke of is realized. With Lola as designer, Charlie leads the factory workers to design and produce drag shoes for a big fashion show in Milan. However, things begin to fall apart as Charlie’s girlfriend wants him to sell the company and convert the building to condos; male employees continually harass Lola and Charlie’s stress level rises as his workers being to revolt. By the end, relationships have evolved, prejudices are redressed and two men come to terms with accepting who they are what they have become, regardless of their father’s expectations.
Kinky Boots has something unique going for it that will add to its success; that is Billy Porter. Mr. Porter gives a star-turn, bravura performance as Lola. I would venture to say that Kinky Boots will do for Mr. Porter what Hello, Dolly did for Carol Channing, Funny Girl for Streisand; Phantom for Michael Crawford and Evita for Patti LuPone. This is will become a show and role that will be forever synonymous with Mr. Porter, and rightfully so. Mr. Porter’s charisma, unabashed talent and commanding presence make Lola a defining role of the American musical theater.
Porter moves effortlessly and his energy is infectious. At times his Lola reminds one of a cross between Isabel Sanford and Flip Wilson, but make no mistake, Mr. Porter always is in control and this is a unique and fabulous creation.
Alongside Mr. Porter is the equally engaging Stark Sands as Charlie Price. Though his character could stand a little more development in the second act, Sands has remarkable stage presence and chemistry with his co-star. This show is dependent on the Charlie/Lola relationship and it is within this context that Mr. Sands is perfectly cast. You can sense the camaraderie and trust they have in each other. When Porter and Sands finish singing “I’m Not My Father’s Son” they both gaze in silence at each other, and it is in that moment that the true emotional weight of the song is realized.
The other showstopper of the evening was Annaleigh Ashford (Chicago’s favorite Glinda) who brought down the house as lovelorn Lauren with her homage “The History of Wrong Guys”, which will surely be a pop hit outside of the show. Ms. Ashford’s comedic timing is sprinkled with just the right amount of pathos has she realizes that she falling in love with her boss.
The rest of the ensemble are also stellar, including a mega-talented chorus of drag queens that the two revivals of La Cage and the import PricillaQueen of the Desert could only hope for; Daniel Stewart Sherman’s Don is great as the factory bully who learns first hand, the power of a right upper cut of a professionally trained prize fighting drag queen.
The book for Kinky Boots is classic Harvey Fierstein, who always has the innate ability to create an environment where his characters can be bigger than life one minute, then intensely internal the next. This was the case in La Cage where over the top Zaza brings down the house with the heart breaking “I Am What I Am”. The same formula is at work here as vivacious creation of Lola is only but a front for the broken alter ego Simon.
Director and Choreographer Jerry Mitchell is right at home with Kinky Boots. The material at hand is perfect fodder for Mr. Mitchell to develop the environment to allow his actors to find their truth. This is not an easy task when you have these types of pre-determined characters. However, Mr. Mitchell digs behind the obvious grandeur to find the nuanced reality of compassion that makes the two lead characters real. He also has created one of the best dance numbers ever seen on stage with the rousing “Everybody Say Yeah” which places the cast, many in high heels, on synchronized conveyer belts.
A musical would be nothing without the music, and for this, Cyndi Lauper is a revelation. Her music and lyrics are among the best written of late. Ms. Lauper’s range and style is impressively varied, going from soaring ballads to rousing twelve o’clock numbers; to high energy full out chorus songs reminiscent of her 80’s pop hits. They are all melodic and memorable. Not since Rent has there been a musical that is poised to have at least three numbers cross over to the pop charts. Moreover, Ms. Lauper’s songs are uniquely character driven and her words give the actors singing them a great ability to expand their emotional truth.
Kinky Boots is also an ascetically and technically beautiful production to watch. Gregg Barnes costuming is exquisite; David Rockwell’s factory set is vast in its expansiveness yet still very intimate; Josh Marquette’s hair design is wild and wonderful as is Randy Houston Mercer’s make-up.
Kinky Boots still has some issues to work out prior to its move to Broadway in March. There are some awkward pacing problems, especially at the beginning of the musical. Charlie’s angry dissent in Act II needs to build up a bit more realized as it seems forced and unnatural as written. Finally, the characters of Lauren and Nicola need a little more stage time which would allow a more fully developed arch for the “Charlie” triangle.
That said, few musicals will leave you feeling as elated as Kinky Boots. The message is simple, “Be yourself because everyone else is taken.” Once we do that, I surmise the rest of life is easy. If not, at least we will have Lola to protect us!
★★★★★ Get ready, Broadway! Another new musical is making waves in Chi-town and lucky New York gets another major musical, “Kinky Boots the Musical” based on the “cult” film of the same name written by Tim Firth and Geoff Deane, has been taken to a new level, one that will start a whole new class of followers, tanks to the creative minds of Harvey Fierstein (book) and Cyndi Lauper ( music and lyrics). This smashing, energetic re-telling of the story, sharply directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, is sure to set New York audiences “on their heels”!
For those unfamiliar with the story, it takes place in England. Price and Son Shoe manufacturers make the finest of shoes, but because the demand has gone down for quality and now people want low cost imports, is near bankruptcy. Young Charlie Price, unaware of the situation, upon his father’s death is called back to Northern England to find a way of saving the company or disposing of it. Not wanting any part of the business at all, he goes off to London to find a buyer for all the stock they have in their inventory. A chance meeting with a Drag Queen named Lola changes everything for the company, for Charlie and for all those factory workers whose lives have depended on Price and Son to survive.
Both Charlie ( a solid performance by Stark Sands) and Lola ( a sensational turn by Billy Porter who on several occasions has the audience ready to give him a standing ovation, stopping the action to the thunderous applause- well deserved, by the way). These characters ( as young boys they are played by the adorable Josh Caggiano/Charlie and Marquise Neal/Young Lola )who show that a small bit can help create the character later played by Porter and Sands) While this story may appear to be about the struggle with dealing with Cross Dressers, Transvestites and other “gender situations, as well as finding a way to save a business and even more a town, there is a great deal more to this bright, comic musical- both boys were kept from being who and what they wanted to be by their fathers. Charlie, being a 4th generation Price, was destined to be in the shoe business; Lola, whose father was a boxer, trained him to be the next champion. Neither father ever asked their sons what they wanted. The workers in the town and the people who knew Charlie all their lives were unsure of what he was trying to do and if it would save their company, but as they learned more from “Lola” and her”posse”, they realized that the power of acceptance can change everything and turn negatives into positives and we all know that positive energy creates even more positive!
The music that Lauper created for this special story is a mixture of Rock, Ballads, love songs and “big Broadway Musical” numbers , some that will have you laughing( “The Land Of Lola”) , others that will bring a tear to your eye ( “I’m Not My Father’s Son) and many that will have you clapping your hands and tapping your feet( The Finale-”Raise You Up/Just Be” got the entire audience involved and on their feet). In fact, the first act finale “Everybody Say Yeah” was as strong as an act can go out on and the audience in the lobby,in line for refreshment or bathroom or in the aisles was abuzz for the entire 20 minutes. This is a WOW! of a musical and I only wish it would stay here longer, but I am sure the New Yorkers are waiting to see the work by this creative group of artists. David Rockwell’s set is simply divine as it transforms quickly from place to place with the factory always being there. Greg Barnes has designed some masterful costumes that will “blow your mind” and Josh Marquette ( hair) and Randy Houston Mercer ( make-up) show what truly “makes a man, a woman”. Kenneth Posner ( lights) and John Shivers ( sound) along with Stephen Oremus’ musical supervision and Brian Usifer as conductor are the icing on the cake so to speak.
Yes, this production has a lot of “frosting” on a sweet play filled with great new music that adds to the power of the story rather than just a song tossed in here or there to make it work. These songs do work! What makes a show truly effective, in particular one with the energy of this script and music, is a cast that feels the pulse of the story and make sit all seem real. This is a well rounded cast that does just what is needed.Annaleigh Ashford is delightful as Lauren, the factory worker who has always adored Charlie,the lovely Celina Carvajal as Nicola ( Charlie’s fiancee, who turns out not to have his best interest at heart), Daniel Stewart Sherman as Don, the factory worker who learns how to change, Marcus Neville as the plant foreman and of course, the Angels, Lola’s “girls”:Paul Canaan, Kevin Smith Kirkwood,Kyle Taylor Parker, Kyle Post, Charlie Sutton and Joey Taranto- singers, dancers, acrobats- and all beautiful! Their final number using conveyor belts truly shows their “stuff”. In fact, the entire cast of 32 is as solid as it gets- from start to finish, you cannot help but LOVE this new musical “Kinky Boots the Musical” now onstage at The Bank Of America Theatre, located at 18 West Monroe ( between Dearborn and State Street).
Cyndi Lauper and the cast of Kinky Boots have recorded a new version of Blue Christmas for charity.
Cyndi Lauper, Ricky Martin and Chita Rivera are just three of the high-profile stars who have teamed up to record Broadway’s Carols for a Cure, Volume 14. The holiday album hits stores on the 19th October 2012.
For 14 years, members of the Broadway and Off-Broadway theatre community have raised their voices and lifted our spirits with this wonderfully eclectic holiday music series. Mixing holiday classics and brand new original material, this 2-CD set offers us the companies of Evita, Once, Peter and the Starcatcher and Newsies, among others, ushering us into a spirited holiday season.
The holiday musical album benefits Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and will be sold during a six-week fundraising period from October through early December. Carols for a Cure has raised over $3 million dollars for the charity since the project began in 1999.
Track listing:
Disc 1:
Los Tres Reyes Magos - Evita Featuring Ricky Martin and Elena Roger
Call Your Mom - Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark
You Don’t Have To Be Alone On Christmas - Chaplin
For My Child’s First Chanukah - Lisa Yaeger
God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen - Newsies
Good Queen Wenceslas - The Mystery Of Edwin Drood
The Wexford Carol - Once
Dominick The Donkey - Peter And The Starcatcher
Outside The Box - The Phantom Of The Opera
The Wreath Of Kindness - The Lion King Blue Christmas - Kinky Boots Featuring Cyndi Lauper
Disc 2:
Angels We Have Heard On High - Bring It On
A Perez Hilton Christma s- Newsical Featuring Perez Hilton
Nye@The Venus Club - Rock Of Ages
The Birthday Of A King - Mary Poppins
Soul Cake- Mamma Mia!
Keep The Home Fires Burning - Rebecca
O Holy Night - Wicked<
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing - I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change At The John W. Engeman Theatre
Jolly Old St. Nicholas - Miracle On 34th Street At The Arvada Center
Have You Heard About The Baby/Glory To The Newborn King - Jersey Boys
Cyndi Lauper and Harvey Fierstein stopped by WGN Morning News earlier today, 17th October 2012 to discuss Kinky Boots and Cyndi briefly talked about her new book Cyndi Lauper: A Memoir.
Photos taken by Bill Richert at WTTW’s Grainger Studio in Chicago
Soundstage Presents Cyndi Lauper first premiered in the US in August 2004 and 8 years later the concert will premiere on UK TV.
Soundstage Presents Cyndi Lauper - Monday 22nd October @ 11pm on Sky Arts HD & Sky Arts 1
REPEATED: Saturday 27th October @ 3pm on Sky Arts HD & Sky Arts 1
Cyndi Lauper has her audience up and dancing on their seats, as she performs songs including her breakthrough hit Girls Just Want To Have Fun. While skipping up and down the aisles and offering humorous anecdotal asides, Cyndi also sings classics including True Colors and Time After Time.
The concert also demonstrates how the red-headed Grammy® Award winner who just wanted to have fun in the 80s evolved into a sensitive interpreter of sombre serenades, through brilliant renditions of songs including Unchained Melody, Walk On By and Edith Piaf's La Vie en Rose.
Soundstage is an American live concert television series produced by WTTW Chicago and HD Ready. The original series aired for 13 seasons between 1974 and 1985; a new series of seasons began in 2003, with the latest (Season 7) running through summer 2009, each presented in high definition with surround sound. Some performances have been made available on DVD. The performances are taped on stage at the WTTW television studio in Chicago, as well as large venues throughout the United States.
Girls aren’t the only ones who want to have fun in Palm Springs.
It turns out the volunteers who tirelessly worked, donors who generously contributed and others who loyally supported AIDS Assistance Program during the past 20 years also deserve to have a good time – and that’s what they’re likely to get with Cyndi Lauper.
The pop singer is slated to perform in May during AIDS Assistance Program’s 20th annual Evening Under the Stars. It was announced Sunday at the Jeannette Rockefeller Angel Program kickoff party that Lauper will provide the entertainment.
Evening Under the Stars will take place at 6 pm on the 11th May 2013 at the O’Donnell Golf Club in downtown Palm Springs. The Go-Go’s, Barbara Eden and Lainie Kazan were featured at the gala earlier this year.
The AIDS Assistance Program benefits more than 500 desert-area residents with HIV/AIDS.
Tickets for the gala are $395 or $500 per person. For more information, call (760) 325-8481 or go to www.aidsassistance.org.
Hosts of Good Morning America, The Talk; NBA, Times Square, DJ Pauly D, Days of Our Lives cast, Chaz Bono, Margaret Cho, Fran Drescher, Joel McHale, Maria Menounos and more pledge to wear purple to show support for LGBT young people
NEW YORK, NY, October 10, 2012 - Today anti-bullying advocate and Spirit Day ambassador Katy Butler launched a Change.org petition asking President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney to join GLAAD and millions of Americans by wearing purple on October 19, 2012 for Spirit Day. Participants wearing purple on this day to stand against bullying and show support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people. The petition is viewable here: glaad.org/purple2012
GLAAD also announced additional participants for Spirit Day including the hosts of ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS’ The Talk, Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live, the NBA, DJ Pauly D, Maria Menounos, Chaz Bono, and Facebook.
For additional participants and media coverage please link to glaad.org/spiritday
Katy Butler, a Michigan native who organized more than half a million people to call on the MPAA to change the rating of BULLY from ‘R’ to ‘PG-13’, was announced as a Spirit Day ambassador earlier this month joining celebrities such as Extra’s Maria Menounos, Shaquille O’Neal, Wendy Williams, Perez Hilton, George Takei Shay Mitchell and Avan Jogia, as well as LGBT leaders including Jennifer Tyrrell, Janet Mock, Jordan Addison, Tiq Milan, Shane Bitney Crone and ally Zach Wahls.
Additionally, celebrities including Louis Van Amstel, Bryan Batt, Chaz Bono, Bailey Buntain, Margaret Cho, the cast of Days of Our Lives, Fran Drescher, Kaya Jones, Jennifer Knapp, Kara Laricks, Cyndi Lauper, Joel McHale, D.W. Moffett, Sonja Morgan, Mary Murphy, Matt Nordgren, Melissa Peterman, DJ Pauly D, Cierra Ramirez, SallyAnn Salsano, Lindsey Shaw, Freddie Smith, Stephen Wallem and Bruce Vilanch will also participate by going purple on October 19.
Celebrity participants and Spirit Day Ambassadors are also encouraging fans and supporters to donate to GLAAD, GLSEN and The Trevor Project by texting ‘PURPLE’ to 80888 to make a $5 contribution. AT&T is the exclusive underwriter of the Spirit Day Text Purple campaign.
The Duke Energy Tower in Charlotte, NC will join the New York Stock Exchange, Thomson Reuters’ Times Square screen, the LAX Pylon Lights and JFK traffic tower in lighting up purple for Spirit Day on October 19.
GLAAD and Toyota Financial Services last week announced the release of the “Go Purple for #SpiritDay powered by Toyota Financial Services” apps for iPhone and Android. The app provides users with anti-bullying resources, calls to action, and a tool that can turn photos purple and share to Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The free app is now available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play. To download, visit: glaad.org/spiritday/app
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), the nation’s second largest school district with more than 640,000 students in over 900 schools, will participate by sharing information about Spirit Day with students on its website and through its social media channels. The National Basketball Association (NBA) and Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) will also participate through social media.
Corporations including AMC Entertainment, American Apparel, AT&T, atelier-lb, Caesars Foundation, Carat, Citi, Delta Air Lines, Draftfcb, Digitas, Facebook, Hewlett-Packard Company, Hyatt, Johnnye’s East Texas Soul, LBNY, Leo Burnett Business, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Marquee Las Vegas, MediaVest, MSL New York, Mobli, NBCUniversal, Nielsen, Omnicom Group, Publicis Groupe, Publicis Kaplan Thaler, PwC, Saatchi & Saatchi, Southern California Edison, StumbleUpon, Thomson Reuters, Toyota Financial Services, Viacom, Warner Bros., Wells Fargo, Yahoo! and Zenith Optimedia will also participate in Spirit Day. Participating companies will distribute information to employees about wearing purple and/or turn their logo purple on October 19.
Local and national groups and organizations including All Out; Athlete Ally; the BULLY Project; Campus Pride; CenterLink; Circle of Voices; Courage Campaign; Equality Florida; Equality Illinois; Equality Maryland; Equality Matters; Equality Michigan; the Equality Network; Equality North Carolina; Equality Ohio; Equality Texas; Fair Wisconsin; Familia es Familia; Forum for Equality; Freedom to Marry; FriendFactor; Forum for Equality; Garden State Equality; Georgia Equality; Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD); the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN); Gay Men of African Descent (GMAD); GMHC; GSA Network; Hispanic Black Gay Coalition (HBGC); Human Rights Campaign (HRC); Indiana Equality; It Gets Better Project; Latino Equality Alliance; Latino GLBT History; LGBT Faith Leaders of African Descent; Log Cabin Republicans; the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC); Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition (MTPC); National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC); the National Bullying Prevention Center by PACER; the National Council of La Raza (NCLR); National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR); National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE); the National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC); One Colorado; OutFront Minnesota; OutServe; Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG); Point Foundation; promo; Reaching Out MBA; Sean’s Last Wish; Service Members Legal Defense Network (SLDN); Straight But Not Narrow; The Task Force; Transgender Law Center; Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund (TLDEF); Trans People of Color Coalition (TPCC); Tennessee Equality Project; The Trevor Project; We Are Family; WikiQueer; and Youth Empowered to Act (YETA) will all participate by wearing purple on October 19, turning their social media channels purple, and encouraging members to participate.
In 2010, teenager Brittany McMillan called on her friends to wear purple as a way to memorialize those who lost their lives to bullying. With GLAAD’s help, Spirit Day has since garnered widespread support from celebrities, TV news and entertainment programs, corporations, organizations, schools, local communities, and even national landmarks. Spirit Day coincides with GLSEN’s Ally Week, as well as National Bullying Prevention Month.
"Showing support for your friends, family and teachers can make all the difference in the world to young LGBT people, whether they are going through a tough time or not,” said 17-year-old McMillan. “This year, Spirit Day is going to be bigger and better than ever, and I’m so thrilled to be going purple alongside some of my favorite celebrities, as well as millions of others in a united stand against bullying.”
“By going purple for Spirit Day, millions of Americans are helping to send a clear message that no one should be bullied simply because of who they are,” said GLAAD President Herndon Graddick.
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About GLAAD: The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) amplifies the voice of the LGBT community by empowering real people to share their stories, holding the media accountable for the words and images they present, and helping grassroots organizations communicate effectively. By ensuring that the stories of LGBT people are heard through the media, GLAAD promotes understanding, increases acceptance, and advances equality. For more information, please visit www.glaad.org or connect with GLAAD on Facebook and Twitter.
The 24,000 people came to see stars shine in the Carrier Dome on Tuesday night, 9th October 2012 for the One World Concert.
After an opening act and a speech by the Dalai Lama, a group of stars including Cyndi Lauper, Dave Matthews and Roberta Flack came onstage to sing Imagine, launching a show focused on convincing young people to contribute to the world in a positive way.
Artists such as Dave Matthews, Counting Crows, Nas, Natasha Bedingfield, Engelbert Humperdinck, Roberta Flack, David Crosby, and Nelly Furtado to name a few took to the stage for solo spots.
Cyndi Lauper took to the stage to a huge applause from the crowd and sang True Colors with Angelique Kidjo & David Sanborn. Cyndi Lauper and Kidjo traded and shared the rainbow lyrics with great affection as Sanborn's sax built a lush instrumental blanket underneath.
Celebrate New Year’s Eve with Cyndi Lauper at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT, on the 31st December 2012. Tickets go on general sale this Friday, 12th October 2012 at 10:00 am.
Please Note: The first day an event is on sale, the Box Office may only accept Player's Club points as a method of payment. All customers who wish to use other forms of payments may log onto ticketmaster.com, call Ticketmaster at 1.800.745.3000 or visit their local Ticketmaster outlet.
Win Free Tickets With Cyndi Lauper Picture Perfect!
SHE’S SO UNUSUAL: Call it a comeback—the 1980s siren reignites her career
Indelibly identified with her 1983 chart topper “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” Cyndi Lauper might be the world’s most inspired choice to pen the songs for a Broadway-bound musical about a drag queen with a shoe fetish. Based on the 2005 movie of the same name, the Harvey Fierstein–backed Kinky Boots has its world premiere in Chicago just as Lauper, 59, reignites her career: She released a memoir in September (Simon & Schuster, $26) and in 2013 will star in a reality show on WE TV. Chicago spoke with her about taking her chances on Broadway.
The last 1980s icon to venture into musical theatre was Boy George. In 2003, his Taboo got clobbered by Broadway critics and only ran for—
The music in that show was wonderful. Boy George’s story is Boy George’s story. I’m not focusing on what other people thought about that. I don’t have a crystal ball.
Why did you take on the writing of a musical?
I wasn’t doing anything at the time [in 2008]. Harvey just called me out of the blue—I remember I was home with the flu. He said he was writing a play and would I write the music and lyrics for it? I’ve admired him forever. I’ve always thought he was an inspirational spokesperson for the community [GLBT] that’s been such a huge part of my life for so long.
What have you learned from collaborating with him?
What he always says about writing for musicals is that when characters can no longer speak, they start to sing.
Chicago boasts a vibrant GLBT community, but Broadway in Chicago audiences tend to skew suburban, where things can be a bit more conservative. Do you think—
This isn’t necessarily a gay play. It’s a play about inclusion. Of everybody. There’s a big, fat beer-drinking straight guy whose point of view we definitely get. Kinky Boots is about people learning how not to judge. It has a huge heart.
The song “Sex Is in the Heel” sounds destined for the clubs. Is the music for Kinky Boots more dance-pop or show tunes?
Both. When I was a kid, there was overlap: You’d hear Broadway songs on the radio. It’s exciting to me to try and take music that’s on Broadway and put it in the club.
“Sex is in the heel”—what does that mean, exactly?
Oh, come on. It’s funny. And it’s true. Shoes aren’t just shoes. They’re an ism. They’re a lifestyle. Seduction’s in the thigh. The heel is the transmission.
Cyndi Lauper chatted with Morning Shift host Tony Sarabia on Tuesday, 2nd October 2012
about the path her music has taken her on, from empowering women to basically being responsible for the formation of Arcade Fire.
Below are a few excerpts from her interview; listen to the full interview below!
On her famous song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun":You've gotta remember, a man wrote it, and a man was singing it. What do you expect them to sing? So it was a guys song but [producer] Rick Chertoff thought, if a woman sang this song, it could be an anthem. And I said, 'An anthem about what?' So he just kept saying, 'Cin, just think about it. Think about what it could mean.' And as I said in the book, I saw my mother's face and my grandmother's face and my aunt's face: all women I had grown up watching be disenfranchised time and time again. And I thought to myself, 'Okay, I'll make an anthem. I'll make an anthem so big it'll be a movement. And I'll make it so much fun that no one will realize what it is until it's way too late.'
I made sure there was every color girl in that line-up that I could get so that every little girl, no matter what color skin was and ethnic background, could see herself and go, that she too is entitled to have a joyful life with a free spirit in her. Not, put the clamp on the brain, don't go to college you're going to get married anyway, don't learn, don't do this -- all the don'ts. I am so happy to be part of something that makes a little girl feel, 'Well, maybe I can.'
People used to ask me, 'Well are you a feminist?' And people would say, 'I'm a humanist.' Because they're afraid to say it. And I'll say, 'Hell yea, I'm a feminist. I'm a card-carrying, bra-burning feminist. You're damn right! You got a problem with that?' And one time Bob Dylan even said to me, 'Oh you're one of those feminists? One of those bra-burning feminists?' And I was thinking, woah. Mmhmm. I said, 'Well, Bob -- because I bit my tongue, of course, thank goodness, because I love him, he's a great artist -- if I am not interested in my own civil liberties, who will be?
How she got involved with Kinky Boots: I was just home and [writer] Harvey Fierstein called me up. And I think that Harvey, I'm actually a huge fan of his.
I'm just always reminded that he's a joy, he has integrity, and he knows how to tell a good story. And when he called me up and said, 'What are you doing?' And it just so happens I had finished Bring Ya to the Brink, that was an album I did for Sony, a dance album.
Photo: WBEZ/Andrew Gill
On record companies: I got tired of their whole political thing. At the beginning of my career I was one of three albums they were promoting that year. And when you're not, it's kind of like, that's why when you listen to the radio you hear three songs, because that's all they're doing.
And their quota of women. I guess they have a quota.
On her life philosophy: I've heard real people say all my life, 'Well I shoulda done that, I coulda done that, but I couldn't because you know, this happened to me.' And everytime something bad happened to me, let's say somebody did something bad to me, I'd think to myself, 'Well that ain't going to stop me.'
On her gay rights activism: I got tired of watching what I thought was wrong. I'm a friend and family member and I'm not going to stand by and shut my mouth when there are things going on that shouldn't go on and watch people stripped of their civil liberties one by one.
I grew up, I lived through the Civil Rights movement, to watch people be treated like that because of the color of their skin, and to me as a little kid, I didn't see it, even though they were saying horrible things, because I'm white, so you listen to the worst of it, because you're the same color, everybody feels really relaxed and comfortable to say whatever.
On influencing a new generation of musicians: When I did [the 1993 album] Hat Full of Stars...I met Arcade Fire, and I sat around with them -- I played the jazz festival -- and they said to me that they started their band because they were inspired by Hat Full of Stars. And that's why you can never guess what doing your work will inspire.
Cyndi Lauper dropped by Windy City Live this morning, 1st October 2012 to talk about her new Broadway musical Kinky Boots and her new book Cyndi Lauper: A Memoir. She also talks about her music, her life and Broadway.
The one and only Cyndi Lauper stopped by Wake Up with Taylor on the 25th September 2012 to chat about her new book, Cyndi Lauper: A Memoir.
The Fun Kids talked about what life was like before she stepped on the big screen and she was very candid about it saying she actually failed at all her other jobs before doing the singing thing.. How did she know singing would pay off? “Well, I failed at everything else, so”.. That works for us!
