Marilyn Maye to join UCO’s Broadway Tonight series
EDMOND — The University of Central Oklahoma’s Broadway Tonight opens its 2016-17 performance series this week with concerts featuring legendary recording artist Marilyn Maye.
Known as the “Queen of NYC Cabaret,” the 88-year old Maye will be joined by members of the Oklahoma Senior Follies.
Maye performed a record 76 times on “The Tonight Show” during Johnny Carson’s tenure as host. After one appearance, Carson turned to his audience and said, “And that, young singers, is the way it’s done.”
Maye’s Broadway Tonight concerts will begin at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the CHK/ UCO Boathouse, 732 Riversport Drive, in Oklahoma City.
The series continues Nov. 29 through Dec. 3 at Mitchell Hall Theatre at UCO, 100 N University Drive, with “Meet Me in St. Louis,” a collaboration with the UCO School of Music and Central Musical Theatre. This stage adaptation of the popular MGM film tells the story of the Smith family on the eve of the 1904 World’s Fair.
While the film’s score featured
Marilyn Maye contributions by numerous composers, a trio of songs by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane — “The Boy Next Door,” “The Trolley Song” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” — became major hits following the film’s 1944 release. The stage adaptation of “Meet Me in St. Louis” opened on Broadway in 1989.
Ann Hampton Callaway will be the featured soloist for the Jan. 13 and 14 concerts at the UCO Jazz Lab, 100 E Fifth. Callaway was the first performer to appear in concert there when it opened in 2002.
In addition to earning a Tony Award nomination for her appearance in the 2000 musical “Swing!,” Callaway composed and performed the theme song for the television series “The Nanny.”
Ann Hampton Callaway Equally at home in jazz, pop and musical theater, Callaway has devoted much of her career to the preservation of the Great American Songbook.
UCO’s Broadway Tonight draws to a close May 2 with an appearance by Lea Salonga at Mitchell Hall. A native of the Philippines, Salonga won Tony, Olivier, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for her role as Kim in the hit musical “Miss Saigon.” She also appeared in the Broadway productions of “Les Miserables,” “Flower Drum Song” and “Allegiance,” and
Lea Salonga portrayed the title character in an international touring production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella.”
“This year, in collaboration with some of the most dynamic arts organizations in the region, we present a powerhouse lineup of performers,” said Greg White, producer of UCO’s Broadway Tonight. “It’s a unique arts program that continues to enlighten, challenge and inspire our community with exceptional cultural and educational offerings.”
For more information, call 974-3375.