The series will kick off Jan. 12-14, 2008, with It's Magic: The Lyrics of Sammy Cahn. Tony Award winner Ted Sperling will be the artistic director for the concerts, which will explore "the wide variety of Cahn's lyric writing, the simplicity of songs like 'I Fall in Love Too Easily,' and the playfulness of novelty songs like '10432 Sheep.'"
Rob Fisher will be the artistic director for Life Is a Cabaret: A Tribute to Fred Ebb, which will be presented Feb. 23-25. Fisher was music director and conductor for the revival of Kander and Ebb's Chicago and also knew Ebb personally. The evenings will feature songs from such Kander and Ebb scores as Cabaret, The Happy Time, Zorba, Chicago, Woman of the Year, The Rink, Kiss of the Spider Woman and Curtains.
I've Got Your Number: Romance, The Rat Pack and Carolyn Leigh will feature artistic direction by Deborah Grace Winer, music direction by John Oddo and stage direction by Mark Waldrop. The March 29-31 concerts will pay tribute to Leigh, the lyricist of such songs as "Young at Heart," "Witchcraft," "The Best Is Yet to Come," "Rules of the Road" and "I Got Your Number."
Two cabaret favorites will close out the season. The 1959 Broadway Songbook will feature Jeff Harnar as artistic director, host and vocalist. One of Harnar's most acclaimed acts, the evenings celebrate the songs of 1959, including tunes from Gypsy, The Sound of Music, Fiorello, West Side Story, The Music Man and My Fair Lady. Harnar will perform May 3-5.
Harnar will be followed by Andrea Marcovicci, who is the artistic director, host and vocalist for Did the American Songbook End in 1965?. The May 31-June 2 concerts will feature musical director Shelly Markham on piano. The evenings will include songs written after 1965 that have become popular standards. Audiences can expect to hear tunes by Hal David and Burt Bacharach, James Taylor, Billy Joel, Joni Mitchell, the Beatles, Alan and Marilyn Bergman, Paul Simon and Stephen Sondheim. All shows are presented Saturday at 8 PM, Sunday at 3 and 8 PM and Monday at 2 and 8 PM. Individual tickets are $60 and $50; subscriptions to the entire series are $250 and $220.
The 92nd Street Y is located in Manhattan at 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue. Tickets are now on sale by calling (212) 415-5500 or by visiting www.92Y.org/lyrics.
