Theater News

Victoria Clark, Tyne Daly, Raul Esparza, Bebe Neuwirth, Kelli O’Hara to Celebrate City Center’s Encores!

Victoria Clark has starred in Encores! productions of <i>Juno</i>, <i>Follies</i> and <i>Bye Bye Birdie</i>.
Victoria Clark has starred in Encores! productions of Juno, Follies and Bye Bye Birdie.
(© Tristan Fuge)

A host of New York City Center Encores! alums — including Victoria Clark, Tyne Daly, and Bebe Neuwirth — will join the previously announced Raul Esparza and Kelli O’Hara to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the popular series on November 12.

The Gala Benefit, directed by Marc Bruni with musical direction by Rob Berman, will also include the talents of Sarah Uriarte Berry, Walter Bobbie, Rob Fisher, Christopher Fitzgerald, Debbie Gravitte, Jared Grimes, Judy Kaye, Rebecca Luker, Rob McClure, Megan Sikora, and Daniel J. Watts.

Each person on the bill has a storied history with the Encores! series, which produces fully staged concert versions of little-known or rarely seen musicals. Esparza graced the City Center stage in 2010 in Anyone Can Whistle; O’Hara performed in Bells Are Ringing a year later. Clark appeared in Juno, Follies, and Bye Bye Birdie; Daly in Call Me Madam; McClure in Where’s Charley?; Neuwirth in Pal Joey and Chicago, which she repeated on Broadway.

Encores! even served as an inadvertent match-making service for Fitzgerald, who met his wife Jessica Stone while appearing in Babes in Arms.

Berman has served as musical director of Encores! for six seasons and has conducted 16 of its productions including Merrily We Roll Along and On The Town. Bruni has helmed Pipe Dream and Fanny, and served as associate director of Finian’s Rainbow, No, No, Nanette, Applause, and Bye Bye Birdie.

Click here for more information and tickets to 20 years of Encores!.

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