Program Notes

PATTI LUPONE Winner of the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Actress in a Musical and the Drama League Award for Outstanding Performance of the Season for her performance as Madame Rose in the critically acclaimed Broadway production of Gypsy, Miss LuPone’s other recent stage credits include her debut with the Los Angeles Opera in Weill-Brecht’s Mahagonny, the world premiere of Jake Heggie’s opera To Hell and Back with San Francisco’s Baroque Philharmonia Orchestra, Mrs. Lovett in the Broadway production of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd (Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle nominations; Drama League Award for Outstanding Contribution to Musical Theatre),the title role in Marc Blitzstein’s Regina, a musical version of Lillian Hellman’s The Little Foxes at the Kennedy Center, a critically acclaimed performance as Fosca in a concert version of Sondheim’s Passion, which was also broadcast on PBS’ Live From Lincoln Center,  and a multi-city tour of her theatrical concert Matters of the Heart. She has also performed Matters of the Heart internationally, including runs at Australia’s Sydney Festival and London’s Donmar Warehouse. Miss LuPone also performs three other solo concertsCoulda, Woulda, Shoulda (with which she made a triumphant solo concert debut at New York’s Carnegie Hall)and The Lady With The Torch (which she also premiered at Carnegie Hall) and The Gypsy In My Soul. Her other New York stage appearances include the City Center Encores! production of Can-Can , the NY Philharmonic’s productions of Candideand Sweeney Todd (NY Phil debut) and performances on Broadway in Michael Frayn’sNoises Off, David Mamet’s The Old Neighborhood, Terrence McNally’s Master Class, in her own concert Patti LuPone On Broadway and three sold-out solo concerts at Carnegie Hall.  Beginning in 2000 she’s appeared regularly in the Ravinia Festival’s critically acclaimed Sondheim series, starring as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd, as Desiree in A Little Night Music, Fosca in Passion, Cora Hooper in Anyone Can Whistle, Madame Rose in Gypsy and in two different roles in Sunday in the Park with George. A graduate of the first class of the Drama Division of New York’s Juilliard School and a founding member of John Houseman’s The Acting Company, her subsequent New York credits include Dario Fo’s Accidental Death of An Anarchist, David Mamet’s The Water Engine, Edmond and The Woods and Israel Horovitz’s Stage Directions and performances in the musicals Pal Joey for City Center Encores!, Anything Goes, The Cradle Will Rock, Oliver!, Evita (Tony and Drama Desk Awards- Best Actress in a Musical), Working and The Robber Bridegroom. In London, she won the Olivier Award for her performances as Fantine in the original production of Les Miserables and in the Acting Company production of The Cradle Will Rock. She also created the role of Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard and recreated her Broadway performance of Maria Callas in Master Class. Films include: City By The Sea, David Mamet’s Heist andState and Main, Summer of Sam, Driving Miss Daisy, Witness.  TV includes: 30 Rock, Ugly Betty, NBC’s Will & Grace (as herself), the Emmy Award winning PBS broadcasts ofPassion and Sweeney Todd, PBS Great Performances’ Candide, Oz , the TNT film Monday Night Mayhem, Frasier (1998 Emmy nomination), Law & Order, An Evening with Patti LuPone (PBS) and ABC’s Life Goes On. Recordings include: the 2008 Broadway cast recording of Gypsy, The Lady With the Torch, Sweeney Todd (both the 2006 Broadway revival cast recording and 2000 live performance recording on NY Philharmonic’s Special Editions Label), Matters of the Heart (cited as one of the best recordings of 1999 by bothTime Out/NYand The Times of London), Pal Joey, Heatwave with John Mauceri and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Sunset Boulevard and Patti LuPone Live. www.pattilupone.net.

MANDY PATINKIN.  In his 1980 Broadway debut, Mandy won a Tony Award for his role as Che in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita and was nominated in 1984 for his starring role as George in the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, Sunday in the Park with George.  In 1991 he returned to Broadway in the Tony Award-winning musical The Secret Garden and in 1997 played a sold-out engagement of his one-man show, Mandy Patinkin in Concert, with all profits benefiting five charitable organizations. Mandy’s other solo concerts, Dress Casual, Celebrating Sondheim and Mamaloshen have been presented both on Broadway and Off. He recently celebrated the 20^th Anniversary of performing his solo concerts with a two-week run of all of his concerts in rep at New York’s Public Theater, the very space he began his concert career twenty years ago.  Mandy continued the celebration with a critically acclaimed two-week run of Mandy Patinkin in Concert in London’s West End at the Duke of York’s Theatre.  January 2010 marks Mandy’s stage debut at Yale Rep in the world premiere of Compulsion, written by Rinne Groff and directed by Oskar Eustis. Other stage credits include playing Prospero in The Tempest with Classic Stage Company, The Wild Party(2000 Tony nomination), Falsettos, The Winter’s Tale, The Knife, Leave It to Beaver is Dead, Rebel Women, Hamlet, Trelawney of the ‘Wells,’ The Shadow Box, The Split, Savages, and Henry IV, Part I.  Feature film credits include: Everybody’s Hero, The Choking Man,Pinero, The Adventures of Elmo In Grouchland, Lulu on the Bridge, Men with Guns, The Princess Bride, Yentl (1984 Golden Globe nomination), The Music of Chance, Daniel, Ragtime, Impromptu, The Doctor, Alien Nation, Dick Tracy, The House on Carroll Street, True Colors, Maxie, and Squanto: Indian Warrior. He won a 1995 Emmy Award (as well as a Golden Globe nomination) for his critically acclaimed performance in the CBS series“Chicago Hope”, and recently starred in the CBS series “Criminal Minds” as FBI profiler Jason Gideon and in the Showtime Original Series “Dead Like Me” as the reaper Rube Sofer.  His other television appearances include the role of Kenneth Duberstein in the Showtime film “Strange Justice,” playing Quasimodo opposite Richard Harris in the TNT film presentation of “The Hunchback,” a film version of Arthur Miller’s “Broken Glass” for BBC/WGBH-Boston and episodes of “The Larry Sanders Show” (1996 Emmy nomination), “Law & Order”, “Boston Public”, “Touched by an Angel”, and “The Simpsons”.  In 1989, Mandy began his concert career at Joseph Papp’s Public Theater.  This coincided with the release of his first solo album entitled Mandy Patinkin.  Since then he has toured extensively, appearing to sold-out audiences across the United States, Canada, London and Australia, performing songs from writers including Stephen Sondheim, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Irving Berlin, Randy Newman, Adam Guettel and Harry Chapin, among others.  In 1990 he released his second solo album entitled Mandy Patinkin In Concert: Dress Casual on CBS Records.  His 1994 recording, Experiment, on the Nonesuch label, features songs from nine decades of popular music from Irving Berlin to Alan Menken.  Also recorded on the Nonesuch label is Oscar & Steve and Leonard Bernstein’s New York.  In 1998 he debuted his most personal project, Mamaloshen, a collection of traditional, classic and contemporary songs sung entirely in Yiddish. The recording of Mamaloshen won the Deutschen Schallplattenpreis (Germany’s equivalent of the Grammy Award). In 2001, Nonesuch Records released Kidults, a collection of beloved songs, designed – as the title suggests – for the kid in every adult.  And, in 2002, Nonesuch Records released the live recording ofMandy Patinkin Sings Sondheim, a figurative journey through Sondheim’s music and lyrics. In October 2007, Mandy debuted his newest concert with dear friend Patti LuPone and they began touring their show An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin throughout the US, Australia and New Zealand.  Mandy resides in New York City with his wife, actress and writer Kathryn Grody, and their two sons. www.mandypatinkin.org

ANN REINKING received the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards forChicago. Choreography credits include the national tour of Applause, Chicago for Encores! NY City Center, “Bye-Bye Birdie” for ABC-TV, Legends for the Joffrey Ballet Chicago, Nilsson/Schmillson – Seattle’s Spectrum Dance Theatre, Threepenny Opera- for the Williamstown Theatre Festival, Chicago starring Bebe Neuwirth and Juliet Prowse for the Civic Light Opera of Long Beach (L.A. Drama Critics Award), Suite to Sondheim for Pacific Northwest Ballet, Pal Joey for the Goodman Theatre of Chicago (Jefferson Award). Theatre credits include Roxie Hart in Chicago (Encores! NY City Center),national tour ofBye-Bye Birdie opposite Tommy Tune, Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ (Tony nom.), Sweet Charity(revival), Roxie Hart in Bob Fosse’s Chicago; Pippin, Coco, Maggie in Over Here! (Theatre World, Clarence Derwent and Outer Critics Circle Awards), Goodtime Charley (Tony nom.), The Unsinkable Molly Brown.  Feature Film credits include All That Jazz, Annie, Micki and Maude, Movie, Movie.

ABOUT THE MAHAIWE

Located in downtown Great Barrington, Massachusetts, the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center is the year-round presenter of world-class music, dance, theater, classic films, “Live in HD” broadcasts, and arts education programs for the southern Berkshires and neighboring regions. The intimate jewel box of a theater opened in 1905 and has been in continuous operation for over 100 years. In 2005, the theater experienced a renaissance as a beautifully restored 681-seat venue to offer a broad range of cultural and community events. Today’s “Mahaiwe Mix” of diverse, high quality programming strives to provide meaningful, memorable entertainment for all ages and interests.