The S.T.A.G.E. Too concert, which will benefit the Actors' Fund of America, will be held at 8 PM at the Harriet and Charles Luckman Fine Arts Complex, located on the campus of Cal State University Los Angeles. David Galligan will direct the company, and the evening will feature musical direction by John McDaniel.
As of press time, those scheduled to interpret the songs of Arlen include Ian Abercrombie, Paul Ainsley, Susan Anton, Sam Arlen, Loretta Devine, Kevin Early, David Engel, John Glover, Ilene Graff, Sam Harris, Mimi Hines, Jane A. Johnston, Melissa Manchester, Rod McKuen, Sharon McNight, Barbara Morrison, Kevin Odekirk, Tonya Pinkins, Henry Polic II, Billy Porter, Alice Ripley, Sally Struthers, Lillias White and Wesla Whitfield.
The evening will also include the presentation of The Nedda Harrigan Logan Award to Robert Greenblatt, president of Showtime Networks, Inc.
Harold Arlen, perhaps best known for his score to "The Wizard of Oz," also wrote the music for Broadway's Bloomer Girl, St. Louis Woman, House of Flowers, Jamaica and Saratoga. Some of the composer's many songs include "I've Got the World on a String," "Last Night When We Were Young," "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea," "Blues in the Night," "It's Only a Paper Moon," "My Shining Hour," "What's Good About Goodbye," "If I Only Had a Brain," "Over the Rainbow" and "Stormy Weather."
The first S.T.A.G.E. benefit took place in October 1984, honoring the music of Leonard Bernstein. Subsequent presentations have paid tribute to Stephen Sondheim (1985, 1987, 1996), Jule Styne (1988), Jerry Herman (1989), John Kander and Fred Ebb (1990), Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein (1991), Irving Berlin (1992), George and Ira Gershwin (1993), Harold Arlen (1995), Cole Porter (1997), Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe and Burton Lane (1998), Richard Adler, Jerry Bock and Cy Coleman (1999), Charles Strouse, Arthur Schwartz and Stephen Schwartz (2000), Jerome Kern (2001), Johnny Mercer (2002), Frank Loesser (2003), Andrew Lloyd Webber (2004) and Marvin Hamlisch and Harry Warren (2005). S.T.A.G.E. Too benefits include "Kurt Weill: The Centennial" (2000), "Tap You Troubles Away: The Words and Music of Jerry Herman" (2001), "Something Wonderful: The Richard Rodgers Centennial" (2002), "Sing Happy: The Words and Music of John Kander and Fred Ebb" (2003) and "The Best is Yet to Come: The Music of Cy Coleman" (2004).
For further information call the Actors' Fund at (323) 933-9244, ext. 54 or ext. 35, or visit www.actorsfund.org.
