Let the medleys begin!
Well, no, that's not what the hosts and judges will announce when the Goodwill Games get underway in New York, July 19-Aug. 2. But Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals will be represented at the international sporting event, with 20-minute concerts by several theatrical performers. Here's the current line-up for the Global Pavilion (in Battery Park City):
July 20: "Broadway Shines," featuring Linda Eder joined by Douglas Sills, Chuck Wagner, Carl Anderson and Robert Evan. Composer Frank Wildhorn told Playbill On-Line (July 9), "It's going to have a kind of Broadway sound but also an edgy, real pop attitude. Linda will have her band there, to do songs from the show and her album." Added Eder (Wildhorn's real-life wife), "Bob Evan will do `This Is The Moment' from Jekyll & Hyde, Carl will sing `Sarah' from Civil War, Doug Sills will sing a song from Pimpernel; Chuck and I will sing Beauty and the Beast together, and Carl and I will duet on `You Are My Home.'" Eder will also sing tunes from her recently-released CD, "It's Time." An 8-piece band will back the proceedings, with Jeremy Roberts serving as musical director.
July 21: The cast of I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change (noon) and Titanic (5 PM).
July 22: The cast of Forbidden Broadway.
July 23 & 31: The cast of The Scarlet Pimpernel.
July 24 & 30: The cast of Bring in `Da Noise, Bring in `Da Funk.
July 25: Secrets Every Smart Traveler (12:30 PM)
July 28: High Society (5:15 PM).
July 29: Forever Tango (5 PM).
Pop performers will also appear on the mainstage throughout the day. Concert tickets are $5 for all events before 5 PM, $10 for the rest of the night.
Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde, The Civil War) has also composed the theme music for the Games as a whole. The composer reminds audiences the Goodwill Games were started 12 years ago, when the Cold War was still chilly. "When the Cold War ended," said Wildhorn, "the theme shifted to celebrating children around the world. I wrote a piece to that effect, which Natalie Cole will sing with Cece and Bebe Winans at the opening ceremonies on the 18th. A children's choir and 62-piece orchestra will accompany the tune. The orchestra will then join Wildhorn, who'll play his own "New York Suite" to celebrate the music of Manhattan. "It's a classical-jazz-Latin-Broadway number," said Wildhorn. Marguerite Derr will choreograph the opening ceremonies, which will also feature performances by Ray Charles, Brandi and Hootie and the Blowfish. -- By David Lefkowitz
