Kiki & Herb to Hit Broadway!

The (in)famous Kiki & Herb are poised to make their Broadway debut in a four-week engagement at the Helen Hayes Theatre. The show, titled Kiki & Herb Alive on Broadway, will begin performances on August 11 and will open officially on August 15.

Written and performed by Justin Bond (Kiki) and Kenny Mellman (Herb), the production will mark the duo’s first New York appearance since their 2004 concert at Carnegie Hall. Subsequent to that event, they toured the world for two years, headlining their own shows and sharing the bill with the Scissor Sisters during their European tour. In March of this year, Kiki & Herb had a three-week run in the studio at the Sydney Opera House.

“Kiki” is a brash, boozy septuagenarian chanteuse who is wont to share her political opinions and social commentary with audiences. “Herb” is her stalwart accompanist. According to legend, the two met in the 1930s at the Erie Children’s Institutional, beginning an artistic collaboration and a close personal relationship that continues to this day. In Kiki & Herb Alive on Broadway, they will offer their own takes on songs by such artists as The Cure, Bob Merrill, the Wu-Tang Clan, Bright Eyes, Dan Fogelberg, and The Mountain Goats.

Justin Bond is an Obie, Bessie, and GLAAD Media Award winner, and was recently named one of England’s 50 Funniest People by Time Out London. His most recent solo show, Glamour Damage, had its world premiere at London’s Soho Theatre. Bond also performs with his band The Freudian Slippers, and has toured internationally with the avant-garde noise/cabaret band Pantychrist. His film credits include John Cameron Mitchell’s feature Shortbus, Imaginary Heroes, and Kiki & Herb Reloaded.

Kenny Mellman studied music composition at U.C. Berkeley and poetry at San Francisco State University. His work as half of Kiki & Herb has earned him several awards (see above) as well as a Helen Hayes Award nomination. He has performed with artist John Kelly in Paved Paradise (playing Georgia O’Keefe) in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Manchester, England, and he has appeared in Underground Goddess at HERE and the the Nuyorican Poets Theatre. His most recent work includes At Least It’s Pink, written and performed with Bridget Everett at Ars Nova in New York and at the Aspen Comedy Arts Festival 2006; and his solo show Kenny Mellman Is Grace Jones, seen at the TBA Festival in Portland, Oregon and various NYC venues.

The design team for Kiki & Herb Alive on Broadway includes Tony Award winner Scott Pask (sets), Jeff Croiter (lighting), Marc Happel (costumes), and Brett Jarvis (sound). The show is being produced by David J. Foster, Jared Geller, Ruth Hendel, Jonathan Reinis Inc., Billy Zavelson and Jamie Cesa, in association with Gary Allen, Anne Strickland Squadron and Melvin Honowitz. For more information, visit the website www.kikiandherb.com.