The award-winning actor and musician Hershey Felder is bringing to life the music and personal stories of Irving Berlin and Leonard Bernstein in two musical-plays at The Other Palace this autumn.
Playing for alternating runs, Hershey Felder’s two shows will see him perform with a unique amalgamation of piano virtuosity and musical biography for two of the 20th Century’s great icons of music. Felder created, produced and directed last season’s critically acclaimed and box office hit, The Pianist Of Willesden Lane at the former St. James Theatre.
Hershey Felder As Irving Berlin (22-24 September, 27-28 September and 9-15 October) sees him perform some of the great composer’s most enduring songs, sharing the backgrounds behind their inception, including Alexander’s Ragtime Band, There’s No Business Like Show Business, Always, Blue Skies, White Christmas, Puttin On The Ritz and God Bless America.
Irving Berlin’s story begins as a child refugee from Russia, before rising as a songwriter in New York’s Tin Pan Alley, writing an estimated 1500 songs in a career spanning 60 years. He went on to become one of the most celebrated composers of Broadway musicals, top charting hits and scores for Hollywood movies, earning him eight Academy Award nominations and with George Gershwin calling him “the greatest songwriter that has ever lived”.
Hershey Felder as Maestro Leonard Bernstein (25-26 September, 30 September-7 October and 18-22 October) sees Felder reveal the behind-the scenes tale of a musical superstar, featuring selections from Bernstein’s musicals and orchestral works including West Side Story, Candide, On The Town and Wonderful Town, as well as compositions from those who inspired him including Beethoven, Mahler, Wagner, Copeland, and more.
Conductor, pianist, author, teacher, librettist, television star, and a composer of symphonies, operas, iconic film scores and many American musical classics, Bernstein had a life of personal turbulence and tragedy but also great triumph, pushing boundaries to become, as music critic Donald Henahan described him, “one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history.”
Recently named in TIME Magazine’s top ten theatre artists for 2016, Hershey Felder has broken box office records and received critical acclaim across America with his solo productions that bring to life the stories and music of Ludwig van Beethoven and Frédéric Chopin, Franz Liszt, Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and George Gershwin.
You can book tickets for his productions at The Other Palace through the venue’s website.