The cast and ensemble of Carnegie Hall’s production of Jerome Kern & Oscar Hammerstein II’s Show
Boat.
On
June 10, Carnegie Hall held a gala benefit production
of Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II’s renowned 1927 musical Show
Boat in the Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage. The gala
performance, produced by Carnegie Hall in association with The Rodgers & Hammerstein
Organization, will benefit the Hall’s artistic programming
and the music education initiatives of The Weill Music Institute
at Carnegie Hall.
Starring in the production were Becky Ann Baker (Parthy
Ann Hawks), Carolee Carmello (Julie LaVerne), Alteouise
deVaughn (Queenie), Gregg Edelman (Steve
Baker), Nathan Gunn (Gaylord Ravenal), Jonathan
Hadary (Cap’n Andy), Gavin Lee (Frank
Schultz), John Bedford Lloyd (Vallon), Alvy
Powell (Joe), Megan Sikora (Ellie May Chipley), Celena
Shafer (Magnolia Hawks), and Carly Rose Sonenclar (Kim).
Directed by Francesca Zambello (Broadway’s The
Little Mermaid) with musical director and conductor Paul
Gemignani (Assassins and the feature film Sweeney
Todd), the Carnegie Hall staging of Show Boat included
period costumes, dancers, and on-stage projections that enhanced this
special concert presentation featuring the Orchestra of St.
Luke’s.
Gala co-chairs for the benefit were Susan and Ed
Forst, Katherine and Stephen Howe, Dinny and Lester
Morse, Nelle Nugent and Jolyon Stern, and William
D. Rondina.
Show Boat is a milestone of American musical theater.
The epic masterpiece, composed by Jerome Kern with a libretto and lyrics by
Oscar Hammerstein II, features such magnificent standards as "Make Believe," "You
Are Love," "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man," and "Ol' Man River." Based
on Edna Ferber's sprawling novel and spanning the years from 1880 to 1927, Show
Boat concerns the lives, loves, and heartbreaks of three generations of
show folk as their floating theater, the Cotton Blossom, plies the
mighty Mississippi. Since its premiere in 1927, this seminal stage work has
continued to evolve along a journey that has reflected the ongoing development
of the lyric theater, confirming its status as a pivotal work bridging operetta
and the contemporary musical. This concert of Show Boat marked the
first time the musical has been heard in New York since its triumphant Broadway
revival more than a decade ago.
Ernst & Young LLP is proud to sponsor the Show Boat gala
evening. This presentation is also made possible, in part, by generous
gifts from The Alice Tully Foundation, Susan and Ed Forst, The Blanche & Irving
Laurie Foundation, Dinny and Lester Morse, Nelle Nugent and Jolyon
Stern, and William D. Rondina. Bank of America is the Proud
Season Sponsor of Carnegie Hall.
Gala co-chairs, sponsor Ernst & Young LLP, and cast.
Carnegie Hall executive and artistic director Clive Gillinson and Show
Boat director Francesca Zambello.
Gala co-chairs Stephen R. Howe, Jr., Katherine Howe, and Nelle Nugent.
Gala co-chairs Dinny and Lester Morse and mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne.
Clive Gillinson and actor Alec Baldwin.
Carnegie Hall trustees Lester Morse and Judy Francis Zankel.
Carnegie Hall trustees Judith Evnin and Mrs. Stanley Shuman.
John Pomerantz and Geri Cuile.
Carnegie Hall trustees Susan Rose, Lester Morse, and Elihu Rose.
Celena Shafer as Magnolia Hawkes and Nathan Gunn as Gaylord Ravenal.
