Ahrens and Flaherty to Host NEO2 Concert; Block, Foa, Rashad, Tartaglia and More to Sing

By Andrew Gans
May 18, 2006

NEO2, a benefit concert for the York Theatre Company that celebrates emerging writers in musical theatre, will be held June 12 at the York's home in Saint Peter's Theatre.

Tony Award-winning composers Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty — of Ragtime and Once on This Island fame — will host the concert, which is scheduled to boast performances by Stephanie J. Block, Eden Espinosa, Barrett Foa, Cheyenne Jackson, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Janine LaManna, Christiane Noll, Phylicia Rashad, Michael Rupert, Jim Stanek and John Tartaglia. Attendees can expect to hear tunes penned by Jill Abramovitz and Joy Son, Scott Alan, Barbara Anselmi and Will Randall, David Austin, Neil Bartram, Jeff Blumenkrantz, Sam Davis and Georgia Stitt, Andrew Gerle, Jeff Hochhauser and Robert Johnston, Joe Iconis, Jihwan Kim and Sean Hartley, David Kirshenbaum and Adam Overett.

The gala evening is scheduled to begin at 7:30 PM with a "Dinner by the Bite" reception and silent auction. The 9 PM concert will be recorded live by JAY Records and will be followed at 10:30 PM by a champagne/dessert reception.

The first NEO concert — an acronym for "new, emerging, outstanding" — was held three years ago and was recorded by JAY Records.

Tickets for NEO2 are priced $125-$500 and are available by calling (212) 935-5820 or by e-mailing boxoffice@yorktheatre.org (write NEO tickets in the subject line). A limited number of $25 tickets are also available at the York Theatre box office, at 54th Street just off Lexington Avenue.

Visit www.yorktheatre.org for more information.