Chase, Harriell, McKay Join Cast of Brilliant Mistake Benefit

Lennon stars Will Chase and Marcy Harriell, plus pop songstress Nellie McKay, who will star in the upcoming Roundabout Theatre Company production of Threepenny Opera, have joined the cast of Brilliant Mistake: Broadway Sings Elvis Costello. The one-night-only benefit concert of Costello’s music will be presented at 8pm on Monday, October 31 at John Jay College’s Gerald W. Lynch Theater, located at 899 10th Avenue.

Among the other notables scheduled to appear are Justin Bond, Kevin Cahoon, Mario Cantone, Gavin Creel, Raúl Esparza, Eden Espinosa, Matthew Morrison, Adam Pascal, Billy Porter, Anthony Rapp, Molly Ringwald, Sherie Rene Scott, Tracie Thoms, Daphne Rubin-Vega, and Patrick Wilson. The event will feature such songs as “Alison” (performed by Rapp), “The Judgment” (Butz/Chase), “Everyday I Write the Book” (Rubin-Vega), “God Give Me Strength” (Esparza), “So Like Candy” (Scott), and “Pump it Up” (Cantone).

Proceeds from the concert will benefit Friends In Deed, a crisis center for people with HIV/AIDS, their families, and friends. Brilliant Mistake is being produced by Tony-winner Jeffrey Seller and directed by Jason Eagan, with musical direction and arrangements by Tom Kitt.

Costello has been one of pop music’s leading artists for more than 25 years, ever since he released his smash album My Aim is True. A member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the winner of the ASCAP Founders Award, he received a Grammy Award for “I Still Have That Other Girl” and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Song for “The Scarlet Tide” from the film Cold Mountain.

Concert tickets are priced at $100, $250 and $500; the $250 and $500 tickets include admission to a post-concert party. Halloween costumes are welcome!