Baker will play Parthy Ann Hawks with Hadary as Cap'n Andy in the June 10 benefit for Carnegie Hall, which will be directed by The Little Mermaid's Francesca Zambello.
The duo join a cast that includes the previously announced Carolee Carmello (Julie LaVerne), Nathan Gunn (Gaylord Ravenal), Marilyn Horne (Old Lady on the Levee), Alteouise deVaughn (Queenie), Gavin Lee (Frank Schultz), Alvy Powell (Joe) and Celena Shafer (Magnolia Hawks). Show time is 8 PM.
Musical director Paul Gemignani will conduct the Orchestra of St. Luke's. The creative team will also feature Robert Longbottom (musical staging), Doug Wright (concert adaptation), lighting designer Alan Adelman, scenic designer Scott Pask and costume designer Gregg Barnes with sound design by Acme Sound Partners.
Show Boat has music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein and is based on the novel by Edna Ferber. The original Broadway production opened at the Ziegfeld Theatre on Dec. 27, 1927. Harold Prince directed the most recent Broadway production of the musical, which opened in 1994.
The musical was the first to tackle such weighty issues as racial prejudice, poverty and abandonment. The show's songs include "Make Believe," "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man," "Bill" and "Ol' Man River." Becky Ann Baker has been seen on Broadway in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, A Streetcar Named Desire, Titanic and Assassins.
A Tony nominee for his work as Herbie opposite the Rose of Tyne Daly in the 1989 revival of Gypsy, Jonathan Hadary has also appeared on Broadway in Awake and Sing!, All Shook Up, Gore Vidal's The Best Man, Guys and Dolls, As Is, Torch Song Trilogy and Gemini. Hadary currently stars in the Broadway production of Spamalot.
The gala evening will begin at 6 PM with dinner at Remi Restaurant (144 West 54th Street), followed by the 8 PM concert. Gala tickets, priced $1,000-$2,500, are available by calling (212) 903-9679.
Beginning April 21, a limited number of concert-only tickets, priced $36, $44, and $58, will be available by calling CarnegieCharge at (212) 247-7800.
For more information visit www.carnegiehall.org.
