HOLIDAY ACTORS FUND BENEFIT AT FEINSTEIN'S

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OFF BROADWAY PICKS

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Hunter Ryan Herdlicka

On Sunday, December 9th, at 8 PM, Feinstein’s at Loews Regency unwraps MY GIFT OF THANKS: New Songs for the Holidays to benefit The Actors Fund. Backed by the jazz musicians of FIVE PLAY, the holiday spirit will really swing with dynamic performances by Ann Hampton Callaway, (Swing), Jordan Gelber ,(Elf, Avenue Q) , Alix Korey (All Shook Up, The Wild Party), Tony Nominee Norm Lewis (Porgy and Bess), Julia Murney (Wicked), Hunter Ryan Herdlicka (A Little Night Music), Randy Redd (Million Dollar Quartet, Parade) Adrienne Warren (Bring it On) and other show-stopping guests. The evening’s program features the lyrics of two-time Emmy Award winning songwriter William Schermerhorn and the music of Milton Delugg, Michael Feinstein, Matthew Sklar, Wesley Whatley and more. Join us as friends and family raise both glass and voice an unforgettable night in support of the Actors Fund. It’s a musical gift for everyone to share. 

ABOUT WILLIAM SCHERMERHORN

Two-time Emmy Award-winning songwriter Bill Schermerhorn is no stranger to large-scale, theatrical events on a national level. As VP/Creative Director of Macy’s Parade & Entertainment Group, Bill has the opportunity to promote the Macy’s brand in a truly unique and exhilarating way: For nearly three decades, Bill has brought his vision to the world-famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and America’s largest Independence Day pyrotechnic display, the awe-inspiring Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks. From the initial concept through the development and staging process, Bill leads the creative team responsible for producing these world-class events and numerous other Macy’s productions.

Bill has written the book and lyrics for several musical endeavors and has created original material for performers as diverse as Julie Andrews, Harvey Fierstein, Anthony Rapp, Whoopi Goldberg and the Texas State University Strutters. He won a 2011 Daytime Emmy Award in the “Outstanding Original Song” category for the song “Yes Virginia (There’s A Santa Claus)” with composer Wesley Whatley and a second consecutive Daytime Emmy Award for “(Won’t You) Join Our Parade” with composer Doug Katsaros in 2012. He received a 2009 “Outstanding Original Song” Daytime Emmy nomination (lyrics) with Wesley Whatley (music) for the Christmas song “I Believe,” which was first performed by Kermit the Frog; and a Daytime Emmy nomination in 2012 for “Jolly Dream Pirates” with composer Michael Feinstein.

Recent projects include a new musical adaptation of the CBS animated special Yes, Virginia with music by Wesley Whatley, which will be presented in over 100 middle schools across the country this holiday season, a puppet theatre production of Miracle on 34th Street… at Macy’s, featuring the voices of an all-star Broadway cast led by Tony Award winners Brian Stokes Mitchell and Victoria Clark; and the premiere of American River Suite, a five piece musical tone poem, with music by Tony award-winning composer Stephen Flaherty, which debuted at Carnegie Hall with Broadway and recording artists Idina Menzel, Anika Noni Rose and The New York Pops. Other song-writing collaborators include Brian Besterman, Milton Delugg, Mary Ehlinger, Michael Feinstein, Lance Horne, Doug Katsaros, Andrew Lippa, and Matthew Sklar. He is currently working on a Greek myth-based musical Beyond the Dream.

Bill served as Artistic Director/Script Writer for the League of American Theatre & Producers’ Broadway on Broadway (1996) and Stars in the Alley, and he produced a show for recording legend Darlene Love and the US Air Force Band of Liberty as part of the 32nd Annual Dorothy Curran Wednesday Evening Concert Series on Boston’s City Hall Plaza. In August 2010, the Americana revue Free to Dream: The Songs of Katsaros & Schermerhorn premiered at Joe’s Pub in New York City and was performed at the Kimball Theatre in Williamsburg, Virginia in 2011. Bill recently joined the board of the New York Pops and served as the organization’s spring gala co-chair in 2009 and 2010. He is a member of The Dramatists Guild, Inc. Bill is a proud graduate of the College of William & Mary with a BA in History and serves on the National Advisory Council of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. He was made an honorary U.S. National Park Ranger in 2011. Bill was born on the 4th of July.

In 2012, he was honored to make the notable OUT 100 list.

Bill and his partner Dan Dutcher reside in New York City.

ABOUT THE ACTORS FUND

The Actors Fund is a national human services organization that helps everyone—performers and those behind the scenes—who works in performing arts and entertainment, helping more than 12,800 people directly each year, and hundreds of thousands online. Serving professionals in film, theatre, television, music, opera, radio and dance, The Fund’s programs include social services and emergency assistance, health care and insurance, housing, and employment and training services. With offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Actors Fund has—for 130 years—been a safety net for those in need, crisis or transition. Visit www.actorsfund.org.

ABOUT FIVE PLAY

FIVE PLAY, Sherrie Maricle - drums/leader, Noriko Ueda – bass, Brenda Earle – piano, Janelle Reichman - Tenor Sax/Clarinet, Jami Dauber – Trumpet, the sister group of the world-renowned DIVA Jazz Orchestra, was formed in 1999. The quintet is comprised of the large ensemble's rhythm section and two of its foremost soloists. FIVE PLAY is rooted in the jazz tradition and is fueled and inspired by the members' collective, creative vision to swing through the 21st Century. The quintet's repertoire is comprised of innovative arrangements of classic and contemporary standards, as well as original music composed and arranged by band members. The group's library was conceived to highlight the distinctive styles of each individual and to create a unique, fresh, exciting and powerful ensemble sound.

FIVE PLAY has performed at many of the most prestigious concert halls, music festivals, universities and jazz clubs in the United States, including Carnegie Hall and The Kennedy Center. The group has also performed at major festivals in Israel, Japan, France, Germany, Spain and Portugal. In 2004 the quintet and its members were highly ranked in Downbeat Magazine's Annual Readers' Poll. FIVE PLAY's premier recording, On the Brink (Arbors Records), was voted #1 by Nat Hentoff in Jazz Times' 1999 Year in Review issue. The follow-up release, Five Play Plus (Arbors Records), was voted one of the Top 10 CDs of 2005 by Coda Magazine. The quintet also partnered with Portuguese vocalist Maria Anadon on her Arbors CDs A Jazzy Way (2006) and Smile (2010). FIVE PLAY's most recent recording, What the World Needs Now(Arbors Records), was released in June 2008 to critical acclaim.

TICKETS

VIP seats $100, GENERAL $60, with food and drink $25

Please call 212-339-4095 to reserve with Michelle Rizzo, Senior Feinstein’s Coordinator, Loews Regency Hotel, ,540 Park Avenue, Tickets are available HERE. 

Photo By: Walter McBride/WM Photography