MTC Presents “Hot Summer Nights”, A Cabaret Series Coming To MTC!

NORWALK, CT – Music Theatre of Connecticut MainStage, Fairfield County's professional award-winning theatre company, introduces its summer cabaret series: Hot Summer Nights! The series features the top award-winning talent from the finest New York City clubs and cabarets right here in Fairfield County.

The series opens on Saturday evening, July 13th and will feature Doris Dear in her award-winning show More Gurl Talk. 2-time MAC Award-winning singer, entertainer, comedienne and actress Doris Dear, “Americas Perfect Housewife”, has been seen on countless stages around the globe and in movies & TV shows such as “The Carrie Diaries”, “Boardwalk Empire”, “Men in Black 3”, “The Normal Heart” and more. Her shows, “Doris Dear’s Gurl Talk” and "The Doris Dear Mother's Day Special" are smash successes, and her annual show "The Doris Dear Christmas Special" is now celebrating its 3rd year of sold-out raves!

Next up will be 2018 MAC Award-winner for "Best Female Vocalist" Dawn Derow in My Ship: Songs from 1941 on July 20th. One of the most critically-acclaimed NY cabaret shows of 2017, "My Ship" earned Dawn Derow a 2019 BroadwayWorld.com Cabaret Award nominations for "Best Show" and "Best Vocalist." Cabaret Scenes Magazine raved: "A Perfect Storm of Entertainment."

Then in August we kick off with “Jeff Harnar Sings the 1959 Broadway Songbook” on Saturday evening, August 3. Harnar is the 2012 Winner of The Noël Coward Foundation Cabaret Award, a two-time winner of the Manhattan Association of Cabaret Award (MAC) as Best Male Vocalist, and three times been honored with the BackStage Bistro Award (Newcomer, Male Vocalist, Best Show). The 1959 Broadway Songbook is a musical collage of the 21 musicals that were playing in New York in 1959. "Gypsy," "The Sound of Music," "Fiorello," "West Side Story," "My Fair Lady," "The Music Man," "Flower Drum Song," "Bells are Ringing," & "Once Upon a Mattress" are among the shows is this tribute to what some have called the twilight of The Golden Age of Broadway. Songwriters represented include Jule Styne, Stephen Sondheim, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Harold Arlen & Yip Harburgh, Leonard Bernstein, Comden & Green, and Lerner & Loewe.

August 10th brings Tony-award nominee Willy Falk in his one-man show Willy Falk: Mostly Love. This show revels in richly-crafted interpretations of songs about love, coupled with stories from a thirty-five-year career on Broadway. Willy burst on the Broadway scene in Marilyn: An American Fable, a musical which attained cult-like status as one of the greatest flops of all time, but saw Willy receiving a standing ovation every night for his solo number: “You Are So Beyond.” When Miss Saigon first came to Broadway, he was chosen to play leading man “Chris,” receiving a Tony award nomination alongside Jonathan Pryce and Lea Salonga. His career spans seven Broadway shows and dozens of tours and regional productions.

Winner of 11 MAC Awards, 2 BroadwayWorld Awards and the prestigious Mable Mercer Foundation Margaret Whiting Award, Cabaret legend Natalie Douglas presents Sammy - The Songs of Sammy Davis Jr. with music director Mark Hartman on piano on Saturday, August 17th. Straight from NYC’s famed Birdland Jazz Club stage, Natalie Douglas - the acclaimed vocalist hailed as “a true, true star” by BBC London Radio, & “a true force of nature” by The Times (UK), is absolutely thrilled to bring to MTC’s Hot Summer Nights series, her hit show, SAMMY - the songs of Sammy Davis, Jr. Don’t miss Natalie and her longtime music director, Mark Hartman, as they present the songs & stories of this beloved & much missed mega-talent of Rat Pack fame, including iconic tunes such as “Too Close For Comfort,” “Gonna Build a Mountain,” “What Kind of Fool Am I?” and “Mr. Bojangles.” theater pizzazz described its debut as, “meticulously researched…sexy…breathtakingly exquisite…& (a) powerful and heartfelt love letter to the great Sammy Davis, Jr.”

Rounding out the series will be Mark Nadler on August 24th, presenting “Cole Porter After Dark”. Mark Nadler is an internationally acclaimed singer, pianist, tap-dancer and comedian. His recent off-Broadway hit, “I’m a Stranger Here Myself”, was honored with the 2013 Nightlife Award and was nominated for a Drama Desk Award and two Broadway World Awards. NYTimes Stephen Holden calls Mark Nadler “...a fire­breathing monster of uncontrollable, attention seeking talent emphasizing heart as well as heat”. “Cole Porter After Dark” explores the wit, the passion the romance and the randiness of Cole Porter’s late-night musings and includes such classics as “Let’s Do It”, “You’re the Top” and “Can­Can” to love song such as “In the Still of the Night”, “Begin the Beguine” and “Night and Day”.

Ticket prices are $30 or $40. Purchase tickets online by visiting www.musictheatreofct.com or by calling the box office at (203) 454-3883. MTC MainStage is located at 509 Westport Ave. in Norwalk, CT.

ABOUT MUSIC THEATRE OF CONNECTICUT and MTC MAINSTAGE

Music Theatre of Connecticut was founded in 1987 by Directors Kevin Connors and Jim Schilling. MTC's professional mainstage company has presented over 30 seasons of critically-acclaimed productions, including both new works and “buried treasures” of the American musical theatre. MTC is a recipient of the Connecticut Critics' Circle's highest honor, the Tom Killen Memorial Award for Outstanding Contribution to Connecticut Professional Theatre. MTC was also presented with a Connecticut State Legislative Citation to commemorate the Tom Killen Memorial Award. Productions presented at MTC have been nominated for Best Musical of the Connecticut theatre season and several others have gone on to have successful productions in New York and at other regional houses. MTC boasts a state-of-the-art black box theatre, rehearsal studios, scenic and costume design shops, dressing rooms, and beautiful lobby and public spaces. MTC is a 501(c)3 non-profit arts organization. For more information, visit www.musictheatreofct.com.