Cabaret & Concert News‘Song and Dance Man’ Matthew Morrison Will Take Fans on a Tour of His Broadway CareerThe star of Glee and Finding Neverland will sing in NYC January 6–13 with guests including Kelli O’Hara.
By
Robert Viagas
January 03, 2018
Matthew Morrison
Shutterstock
Describing himself as “a song and dance man,” Matthew Morrison, star of Fox's Glee, Broadway’s Finding Neverland, The Light in the Piazza, and other shows, will hit the stage of Feinstein’s/54 Below January 6–13 in a recap of highlights from his stage career.
The Emmy-, Tony- and two-time Golden Globe-nominated star of stage and screen—and new father of son Revel James Makai—told Playbill he can’t wait to get back on Broadway. He even has his eye on a vehicle for his return.
For his club show, Morrison said, “I’ll be singing numbers from shows I was in, including South Pacific, along with standards I grew up listening to.” He was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance as Fabrizio in The Light In The Piazza, co-starred as Lt. Cable in the Tony-winning revival of South Pacific at Lincoln Center, and was featured as heartthrob Link Larkin in the Tony-winning musical Hairspray. He rose to wider fame as Will Schuester on Glee, which earned him Emmy and Golden Globe nominations, and returned to Broadway in the 2015 musical Finding Neverland.
He said the intimate stage of Feinstein’s/54 Below will compel him to focus on his singing: “It forces me to get intimate with my audience and connect with them at a personal level.”
From The Light in the Piazza, he plans to recreate his performance of “Il Mondo Era Vuoto,” adding “that show was the hardest I’ve ever done. It’s also the highlight of my career. I’m grateful my for all the great opportunities I’ve had in my career, but that show was the most challenging thing and the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done in my life.”
Morrison said, “I’ll also thrown in a couple of contemporary songs like [John Mayer’s] ’Waiting on the World to Change.’ I’m not going to get political in any way, but we’re in this interesting place in our world now. The lyrics really affected me, especially now that I have my son.”
He's planning to end the show with a nine-minute medley of songs from Hairspray.
Morrison said he will be joined by a series of guests who will play one or two performances each (schedule to be announced), including Piazza co-stars Kelli O'Hara and Victoria Clark, along with Jenna Ushkowitz, Jessica Vosk, and a surprise guest from Finding Neverland.
Matthew Morrison in HairsprayPaul Kolnik
As for the future, he teased, “I have my sights set on a revival of a show I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and I want to put a different twist on it as well. I’m trying to get the rights to a revival, but the rights are being held up in London right now. But If something else great comes my way, I will consider it. I appreciate the work ethic of Broadway , and that community, and living in New York.”
“I’m always planning to do another Broadway show,” he said. “I want to come back. That’s my first love. I’ve done TV and films, but Broadway gave me my start. They are my family. I will always come back.”
Tickets for Morrison’s Feinstein’s/54 Below show (all performances at 7 PM) cost $85–$175 and can be ordered here. Tickets on the day of performance after 4 PM are available only by calling (646) 476-3551. The club is located at 254 West 54th Street, beneath Studio 54, in Manhattan.
