The tribute will kick off Sept. 22 with "An Evening with Barbara Carroll: Songs of Dorothy Fields." The 6:30 PM concert will feature the jazz pianist/vocalist interpreting songs by the lyricist of "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," "Big Spender" and "On the Sunny Side of the Street."
Two screenings of "Swing Time" will be presented Oct. 7 at 3 and 7 PM. The film, featuring music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Fields, introduced the Academy Award-winning song "The Way You Look Tonight." Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers starred in the George Stevens-directed film, which was the inspiration for last season's Broadway musical Never Gonna Dance. Jerry Mitchell, who directed and choreographed Never Gonna Dance, will introduce the 7 PM screening of the classic film.
"With Each Word Your Tenderness Grows: The Life and Lyrics of Dorothy Fields" is the title of the Dec. 9 evening, which will boast Fields' son and daughter-in-law, David Lahm and Judy Kreston. Lahm, a jazz musician and composer, will reminisce about his famed mother at the 6 PM performance, with vocals by Kreston.
The centennial tribute to Fields will continue on May 9, 2005, with the debut reading of a new play about the late Fields written by Barry Day.
Born in 1905 Dorothy Fields became the first woman inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Fields collaborated with a host of popular composers, including Jimmy McHugh, Oscar Levant, Jerome Kern, Arthur Schwartz, Harry Warren, Harold Arlen, Cy Coleman and Quincy Jones, writing scores for more than 50 films, Broadway musicals and revues. Among her best-known songs are "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," "I'm in the Mood for Love," "Big Spender," "On the Sunny Side of the Street," "A Fine Romance," "I Won't Dance," "It's Not Where You Start," "The Way You Look Tonight" and "If My Friends Could See Me Now." In addition to her lyrics for such musicals as Stars in Your Eyes, Seesaw and Sweet Charity, Fields also penned the books for the Broadway musicals Annie Get Your Gun, Let's Face It, Something for the Boys and Mexican Hayride. All programs are held in the New York Public Library's Bruno Walter Auditorium, 111 Amsterdam Avenue. Admission is free, and seats are available on a first-come basis. For further information, call (212) 642-0142 or e-mail [email protected].
