Join Playbill On-Line's Andrew McGibbon on Monday evening, March 9 at 9 PM (ET) when he will be joined by cabaret star and Broadway actress, Karen Mason.
Karen Mason kicked off 1998 with a two-week sold-out engagement at The Cinegrill cabaret in Los Angeles, capping a year filled in equal parts with theatre and cabaret. During the past year Karen has toured Japan with Skitch Henderson and the New York Pops Orchestra singing some of Broadway's best-loved songs; headlined at New York's elegant Rainbow and Stars, and returned to her hometown of Chicago to open the elegant new Le Cabaret at Cite. She also played 'Joanne' ("Ladies Who Lunch") in Company opposite Davis Gaines at Boston's Huntington Theatre. In 1998 Karen will appear at the 92nd Street Y on February 14, 15 & 16th in a Gershwin tribute as part of the Lyrics & Lyricist series; sing at the Broadway Cares "Nothing Like A Dame" benefit on February 23rd, and headline at Carnegie Hail on March 20th with Skitch Henderson and the New York Pops in "The Broadway Songbook with KAREN MASON."
Karen is best-known to theatre audiences as 'Norma Desmond' In Sunset Boulevard a role she has played to standing ovations on Broadway and in Los Angeles over 150 times. Her other New York theatre credits include: Jerome Robbin's Broadway (playing 'Mazeppa' and singing "Mr. Monotony,) Play Me A Country Song and Torch Song Trilogy on Broadway, and Off-Broadway in Carnival (1993 Drama Desk Award nominee for playing 'Rosalie',) And The World Goes Round (Outer Critics Circle Award) and Karen Mason Sings Broadway, Beatles and Brian. In regional theatre Karen has starred in Heartbeats by Amanda Mc Broom (Goodspeed Opera House,) Man of La Mancha, Oliver!, Funny Girl, Naughty Marietta, Company and in the World premiere of her own musical One Tough Cookie at the Chicago's Apple Tree Theatre.
An acclaimed cabaret and concert artist, Karen and her longtime partner composer/arranger Brian Lasser headlined at many clubs including The Russian Tea Room, the Algonguin, Eighty Eights, The Ballroom and Carnegie Hall in New York and the Cinegrill in Los Angeles. Last season Karen had the honor of both opening and closing the acclaimed ASCAP Sunday evening cabaret series at Rainbow & Stars (and in between she was a last-minute sub for an ailing Rosemary Clooney thereby 'standing by' for two leading ladies on the same night!) She has shared concert stages with Luciano Pavarotti, Rosemary Clooney, Liza Minnelli, Michael Feinstein, Jerry Herman, John Kander and Fred Ebb among others. Last year Jerry Herman asked Karen to appear in his all-star tribute in Los Angeles and to debut his latest song with him as accompanist.
Karen's CDs, "Better Days," which features songs by Brian Lasser, and "Not So Simply Broadway," including Broadway favorites, are available at Tower Records, HMV and other major music outlets across the country. Karen's other recordings include the soundtrack of "Jeffrey," the original cast album of And The World Goes 'Round and "Lost in Boston II."-- By Andrew McGibbon
