On May 16th,at 7:30 The Stoneham Theatre will host local theatre company, Cellar Door Stage as they perform ‘Songs of Innocence and Experience: A Benefit Concert’. The concert will feature songs composed by Cellar Door members Andrew Barbato and Lesley DeSantis, and composer William Finn (A New Brain, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee).
Barbato and DeSantis teamed up in 2009 and composed their first musical ‘ALICE’ based off ofLewis Carroll’s beloved story ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass’. The musical premiered last June at The Stoneham Theatre and has since had two additional runs, both in Stoneham, MA and Danbury, CT this past January.
However, this is not the end for ‘ALICE’, and the show has been picked up by Erica Ruff Productions (www.ericaruffproductions.com), and will be featured at The Midtown International Theatre Festival in New York City this July. Barbato says “Lesley and I are both so excited and hope that people will come out to see this amazing concert and support our work.”
All the proceeds and donations from Cellar Door’s benefit concert in May will go toward producing ‘ALICE’ in New York City this summer. “We need to raise some funds for things like rehearsal space in New York, costumes, set's, marketing expenses, and things like that. This is a great way to show your support!” Barbato adds.
In addition to songs from ‘ALICE’, the concert will showcase songs from Barbato and DeSantis’ second musical, Tortoise and the Hare as well as the song “Christmas in NYC” which the duo wrote and performed in New York City’s Lincoln Center at their holiday concert this past year. The Concertwill include local performers, including Leigh Barrett (Reading, MA), a prominent theatre performer in the Greater Boston Area. She says, “As a professional singer/actor, who has been at this for quite a while it's thrilling to get a chance to be so inspired by the exciting youth coming up and I'm thrilled to be near it, let alone a part of it”. The show also features Andrew Barbato, Laura Graczyk, Samantha Hoecherl, Brad Jensen, Stephen Markarian, Marissa Miller, Bryan Miner, Emily Pinto, Brittany Rolfs, Peter Romagna and Rocio Del Mar Valles.
Tickets for the benefit performance are $12.00 each and can be either purchased at the door, or reserved by emailing info@cellardoorstage.org. For more information on The Midtown International Theatre Festival, visit www.midtownfestival.org.
