The Alice Ripley Link-Up

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x

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RIPLEY, the band

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RIPLEY 's official page - Listen to their wicked, fierce pop punk songs!

Sept. 8th performance!!
11:30 pm, Joe's Pub, New York City

Catch Alice now, before she's off & running
up & down those whacky suburban stairs!

CD's available here, the RIPLEY EP & Outtasite,

as well as Alice's solo CD, Everything's Fine. Link also takes you to numerous cast recordings, her two CDs with Emily Skinner, & guest performances on several other albums.

RIPLEY is a self-produced pop/punk band with a sound that downtown NYC audiences have dubbed “Green Day in bed with Keely Smith”.

The band’s influences – Deborah Harry, David Bowie, the Pixies - include eccentrics from rock’s classic era, but RIPLEY's sound has a decidedly 21st century ring. Namely, the ring of a siren bell sounding for a generation lost in the shuffle.

Songwriter Alice Ripley most recently received multiple award nominations for her portrayal of Diana in Second Stage’s Next to Normal. Ripley made history in 1997 when she was nominated jointly for a Tony award honoring her work as Violet Hilton in Side Show.

With the newly sharpened edge of RIPLEY’s latest digital offering, Outtasite, the music rocks much harder and cuts the figure of an attention-getter with a killer voice. Ripley sings with a growl and a lilt for survivors of Susan Faludi’s “Backlash” era – the daughters of the single mothers who wanted it all. The result is a blazing trail of Blondies Pretending to DO it all.

The band also includes rock solid drummer Shannon Ford has performed, recorded and toured with a starry list of artists, including Paul Simon, The Gatlin Brothers and Phoebe Snow; Christopher Schelling is a new wave throwback whose keyboard styles range from "car alarm" to the ever-popular "Chopsticks"; and Paul Shellack on guitar.

* * * * *

excerpt about RIPLEY from an edgeboston.com article. Full article here

Sept. 22, 2005

In addition to taking her theatrical career in new directions, Ripley is expanding her musical career as well. With her husband (drummer Shannon Ford,) keyboardist Christopher Schelling, and bassist Skip Ward, she has formed a rock band, called RIPLEY (“The name wasn’t my idea,” she was quick to explain.) whose first album is scheduled for release in October.

“It’s rock music – and a complete departure from something like this. I guess I would describe it as a mix of Green Day and Queen. It definitely has a gritty, rock sound to it; but it has a syncopation in the lyrics and vocal delivery that has a slightly Keely Smith quality.”

The band has been a labor of love for Ripley, who sings the vocals and wrote the songs for the group.

“Someone told me that my music sounds like a cross between Keely Smith and Green Day, and that was a good thing to hear because it’s hard for me to talk about my music. It’s like talking about your child. It’s such a subjective thing for me to talk about my own music; but it has a gritty, rock feel and a smoother vocal delivery. I do lots of harmonies and effects with my voice.”

Taking her career in this new direction has certainly been a challenge for the actress, who has taken a second home in Los Angeles recently in order for her and her group to better position themselves in the music industry.

“I’m learning how to play the music business game, and as a producer hearing the sound we’ve created – because we’ve created a sound with the band that I haven’t heard anywhere else – and figuring out how to channel it. I’ve always been a song addict and music lover and have had many different influences over the years, and feel that I’m finding my voice as a songwriter. It’s liberating because as an actor you go in and audition and you wait for someone else to invite you to join the team, when you’re the source of the creative impulse you get everyone else to jump onto your idea, which is really refreshing to me after all the years of being an actor. Part of it is that I enjoy getting my own way, which is why we’re producing and releasing the album ourselves.”

* * * * *

I.M. interview excerpt
Feb. 24, 2003
full interview: Fynsworth Alley, Theater Chat

[ROBERT ARMIN] Niki asks: I've been hearing new album rumors? Are they true?

[ALICE RIPLEY] I have a long list of new songs that are way ready to go

We're trying to decide exactly what to do with them

[R.ARMIN] You write very personal songs.

[A.RIPLEY] Those are the ones I share.

But I write alot of made up songs too

[R.ARMIN] And have a very different sound than your Broadway fans are used to.

[A.RIPLEY] Yes! I think it's a good thing.

Generally, I'd say that theatre people would do well to open their view a little.

[R.ARMIN] It's quite wonderful to hear your different sides... and I don't mean the side with Emily.

[A.RIPLEY] Especially musically.

* * * * *

Past shows:

Broadway @ Birdland
Mon, Nov. 22, 2004

source: Q&A with Alice Ripley

* * * * *

a few pictures here

info, songs, lyrics & more pics at the official RIPLEY site

the Next to Normal website

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10 pages of everything N2N! Enjoy!

also, N2N at MySpace

and Facebook

Alice Ripley's official page

Next to Normal, the Musical & the Mindset

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

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I. ongoing

you can always listen to some RIPLEY songs at the official site: www.myspace.com/RIPLEYtheband

as well as "President Hillary" and "Beautiful Eyes" here: www.myspace.com/drasticalice

(a little trivia: Alice wanted to call the band Drastic Alice)

II. ongoing:

check out the recent RIPLEY concert:

Alice's band performed at The Kennedy Center last month. The concert is available for viewing, in its entirety, by going here:

Millennium Stage

then scrolling down to the search box on the right side; enter "ripley" and you'll find 4 concerts! - each an hour long.

ROCK OUT!

III. Ongoing: Internet show, "The Battery's Down" - Alice Ripley as a guest star, guardian angel, sings tidbits of "I Will Never Leave You" and "Meadowlark". Animated Alice - you have to see this!

IV. "Next to Normal" cast recording! The Arena Stage cast will be in the recording studio in mid-February. Then, keep an eye on www.sh-k-boom.com for more info.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

V. a work-in-progress, Alice is composing a musical/theater piece with Michael Roth called "Landscape the Tar Roof Tree". You can listen to a sample of "Mercy Ana M" at Roth's MySpace page

THEATER, etc. - alphabetical list below

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see Menu bar
<-----

chronological list - tba

9/9 @ 9 with Lance Horne

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Tues, Sept. 9, 2008 - 9:00 pm

Alice Ripley was a guest performer

at Ars Nova
511 W. 54th St. (just west of 10th Ave.)
New York City

Multi-talented musical visionary Lance Horne ushers in the fall with nine brand new songs written especially for this 9/9 show. Composed over the last nine nights of the Perseid meteor shower, these ethereal, ravishing compositions will sweep you into autumn on a wave of lyric-driven, piano infused sound. Horne's adrenaline-fueled music is equal parts sexy and sly, and will haunt you long into the cold winter nights. For one night only, he will be joined by all-star musicians Yair Evnine, Josh Giunta, Jessica Hershberg, Nick Wincenc and special guests Lea DeLaria and Alice Ripley.

Alan Cummings also joined us!

Footage of Lance Horne and Lea DeLaria singing "I Hate the Little Prince"

Playbill.com article

Lance Horne's website & MySpace page

source: RIPLEY official page

10-minute musical

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by Alice Ripley, 2004
(title?)

EDGE Boston article

“I want to be able to stand in the back of the house and watch others performing my work. I worked on a 10-minute musical in New York last year, and it’s the most incredible experience standing in the back of the house and listening to the actors sing my music. It was such an incredible feeling – It was an eye-opener in a way. I could have told them to sing anything, and they would do it. I had always been the actor on stage, but I’m interested in experiencing the theater from that side of the equation.”

source: Alice Ripley News

Actor's Fund Tribute to Cy Coleman

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Nov. 6, 2004

Luckman Fine Arts Complex
Los Angeles, CA

Alice sang "Lost and Found" from City of Angels

source: Q & A with Alice Ripley

Adulturer, The (film)

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2000 film

Emily Skinner has a cameo as "Bitchy Receptionist"

description at imdb.com

After Party, The (open mic)

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Aug. 29, 2008 - 10:30 pm - 2:00 am

The Laurie Beechman Theatre of the West Bank Cafe
407 W. 42nd St. (and 9th Ave)
New York City

Ms. Ripley performed:

1) "Somewhere That's Green" (Little Shop of Horrors)

2) "Don't Rain on My Parade" (Funny Girl)

3) "Rainbow High" (Evita)

4) "I Will Never Leave You" (a literally exceptional solo version)

5) "American Tune"** (a Paul Simon song)

*Don't Rain on My Parade

Book by Isobel Lennart; Lyrics by Bob Merrill; Music by Jule Styne

“Don't tell me not to live, just sit and putter
Life's candy and the sun's a ball of butter
Don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade
Don't tell me not to fly, I simply got to
If someone takes a spill, it's me and not you
Who told you you're allowed to rain on my parade
I'll march my band out, I'll beat my drum
And if I'm fanned out, your turn at bat, sir
At least I didn't fake it, hat, sir
I guess I didn't make it
But whether I'm the rose of sheer perfection
A freckle on the nose of life's complexion
The cinder or the shiny apple of its eye
I gotta fly once, I gotta try once,
Only can die once, right, sir?
Ooh, life is juicy, juicy and you see,
I gotta have my bite, sir.
Get ready for me love, ’cause I'm a ‘comer’
I simply gotta march, my heart's a drummer
Don't bring around the cloud to rain on my parade,

I'm gonna live and live now!
Get what I want, I know how!
One roll for the whole shebang!
One throw, that bell will go clang,
Eye on the target and wham,
One shot, one gun shot and bam,
Hey, world, here I am!

I'll march my band out, I’ll beat my drum,
And if I'm fanned out, your turn at bat, sir,
At least I didn't fake it, hat, sir,
I guess I didn't make it
Get ready for me love, ’cause I'm a ‘comer’
I simply gotta march, my heart's a drummer
Nobody, no, nobody, is gonna rain on my parade!”

**American Tune

Words & music by Paul Simon

Many's the time I've been mistaken
And many times confused
Yes, and I've often felt forsaken
And certainly misused
Oh, but I'm all right, I'm all right
I'm just weary to my bones
Still, you don't expect to be
Bright and bon vivant
So far away from home, so far away from home

And I don't know a soul who's not been battered
I don't have a friend who feels at ease
I don't know a dream that's not been shattered
or driven to its knees
but it's all right, it's all right
for we lived so well so long
Still, when I think of the
road we're traveling on
I wonder what's gone wrong
I can't help it, I wonder what's gone wrong

And I dreamed I was dying
I dreamed that my soul rose unexpectedly
And looking back down at me
Smiled reassuringly
And I dreamed I was flying
And high up above my eyes could clearly see
The Statue of Liberty
Sailing away to sea
And I dreamed I was flying

We come on the ship they call the Mayflower
We come on the ship that sailed the moon
We come in the age's most uncertain hours
and sing an American tune
Oh, and it's alright, it's all right, it's all right
You can't be forever blessed
Still, tomorrow's going to be another working day
And I'm trying to get some rest
That's all I'm trying to get some rest

Arlene's Grocery (venue)

2008-08-25T15:39:00.004-07:00

Wed. Nov. 5, 2008

RIPLEY gig at Arlene's Grocery

Previous RIPLEY gig at Arlene's Grocery - 2004

By Andrew Gans

May will be a busy month for the Tony-nominated co-star of Side Show, Alice Ripley. Ripley will begin a stint as a Las Vegas showgirl on "All My Children" May 17. TV Guide reports that Ripley will encounter Eric Kane (Emmy Award winner Susan Lucci), who travels to Sin City to begin a new life far away from Pine Valley. Kane will catch the eye of a producer, who casts her in one of his Vegas extravaganzas featuring Ripley. Chatterbox host Seth Rudetsky will also appear on the ABC soap, playing a choreographer. On May 2, the singer-actress will return to the concert stage when she and her band, Ripley, offer a program of all-new tunes at Arlene's Grocery. The New York hotspot is located at 95 Stanton Street, Manhattan.

x

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x

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Art Speak! (benefit)

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Sept. 29, 2004

Hollywood's (sic?) Alice Ripley to Offer Benefit Concert to ArtSpeak!

Side Show Tony nominee Alice Ripley will perform a benefit concert for ArtSpeak! Sept. 29. Ripley, who is currently starring in the world premiere production of Ken Ludwig's Shakespeare in Hollywood at the Arena Stage, will offer a 7 PM concert at Mimi's American Bistro in Washington, D.C. The concert will benefit ArtSpeak!, an arts education program that brings performing artists to Northern Virginia schools. Artists who have taken part in the program include such Broadway favorites as Kristin Chenoweth, Melissa Errico, Sally Mayes, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Tony-winning A Chorus Line composer Marvin Hamlisch.

Ripley will perform songs from her acclaimed solo CD, "Everything's Fine," as well as new songs and some surprise musical theatre favorites. Ripley, who recently headlined a production of Tell Me On a Sunday at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, earned a Tony nomination for her performance as conjoined twin Violet Hilton in the musical Side Show. She has also appeared on Broadway in The Rocky Horror Show, James Joyce's The Dead, Sunset Boulevard, The Who's Tommy, Les Misérables and in the City Center Encores! production of Li'l Abner as well as the concert run of King David.

The $35 ticket includes concert, dinner and wine. Reservations may be made by calling (202) 464-6464. Mimi's American Bistro is located in Washington, D.C., at 2120 P Street NW.

source: Alice Ripley News

Babes in Arms

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as "Billie"

Chicago, IL

source: filmreference.com

Baker's Wife, The

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NY Times review
excerpt: It is the "Genevieve" of Alice Ripley -- simmering with sexual desire, haunted by a love denied -- that makes this production directed by Gordon Greenberg cook.

Playbill.com photo/interview
excerpt: "The first time I stood at the piano with Stephen Schwartz playing 'Meadowlark,' explains Ripley, "I thought I was going to pass out. I was so blissed out — I was in heaven. I could have died right [there]," she adds with a laugh, "and I could really have said, 'I like the way I died. I was singing 'Meadowlark,' and Stephen Schwartz was playing the piano.'"

interview

"I remember the first moment when Stephen came in and sat down at the piano and said, 'So, do you want to do Meadowlark?' and I just looked at him like, uh, I think I'm going to pass out. And so I sang Meadowlark with him, and I thought I was going to faint. I knew that it was a significant moment for me, to be standing there singing Meadowlark with Stephen Schwartz playing the piano."

The Baker's Wife director Gordon Greenberg and star Alice Ripley

Photos, lyrics from composer Stephen Schwartz's site

Wikipedia info

In "The Schwartz Scene," an e-mail newsletter to Stephen Schwartz fans, the Tony-nominated composer writes, "Joe Stein and I have also done a little further sprucing up of The Baker's Wife, preparatory to next year's Paper Mill Playhouse production. Basically, we were very happy with the version done a couple of seasons ago at Goodspeed, but we felt we could still improve the writing of the relationship between the characters of Genevieve and Dominique. So Joe did some scene revisions, and I wrote some new lyrics (yet again) for 'Proud Lady.'"

A cult favorite, The Baker's Wife was a Broadway bound musical that never quite made it to Broadway in 1976. The musical, which features the cabaret classic "Meadowlark," is based on the film "La Femme du Boulanger" by Marcel Pagnol and Jean Giono. The musical's original cast included Paul Sorvino as the Baker and Patti LuPone in the title role. A revised 1989 production was mounted by Trevor Nunn in London. source: Alice Ripley News

Poem inspired by "Baker's Wife" - by Lisa K. of BackWard Press

Perspective is about the “what if”.
What if the real ballerina in the music box
is the one in the mirror?
What if twirling backwards to the music
is what makes her beautiful?
What if the most remarkable moment of all
is her eating to her heart’s content?

Playing is about the “what you do”
when your brain cries in short-circuited gasps,
when the bread lands (of course) butter side down,
when the meadowlark sings itself to death,
and when you find you’ve starred in a play
in which the last act ends in tragedy,
but the audience is wearing comedy masks.
You strum, pluck, and play it away.

Charming is about the “what you see”.
What do you see in the flaring of his eyes?
I see the light by which I see my beloved.
What do you see in the baker burning the bread?
I see the twinkle in his eye as he starts again.
What do you see in a misunderstood musical?
I see a heartbreak that, when tears clear, propels.
You charm happiness into your keep when you keep
your eye on the bright, the beginning, and the brave.

.

Barbara Cook Spotlight

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See "Side by Side: The Barbara Cook Spotlight"

.

Battery's Down, The

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Alice Ripley guest stars on this Internet show

Bright Lights, Big City - workshop

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1998

as "Megan"

New York Theater Workshop

Broadway @ Birdland

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source: Q & A with Alice Ripley

Broadway at the Summit

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Broadway stars come to Silverthorne

Tony-nominated performers Alice Ripley and Emily Skinner take the stage at Broadway at the Summit

By Kimberly Nicoletti
summit daily news
Summit County, CO Colorado

Sure, Broadway stars take the stage every night. But usually Coloradans have to fly to them. Tonight, they come to us.

For the past eight years, Lake Dillon Foundation for the Performing Arts has brought Broadway performers to Summit County for its gala benefit. Tonight, its 8th Annual Broadway at the Summit features Tony-nominated stars Alice Ripley and Emily Skinner at the Silverthorne Pavilion.

In 1997, Ripley and Skinner earned nominations for their roles in “Side Show,” in which they played conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton, a fairly well-known song-and-dance team. “Side Show” ran for two months, but Ripley and Skinner rehearsed for eight hours a day, six days a week for two months — proverbially joined at the hip, Ripley said. And, it paid off. The pair made Tony history; only one other time have two performers been co-nominated as a team for the same award.

Oddly enough, the performers didn’t really get to know each other until years later.

“At the end of the (rehearsal) day, instead of hanging out together afterwards like theater people often do, we would separate and sprint home alone when 6 o’clock rolled around,” Ripley said. “I feel like we’re just now getting to really know each other.”

These days, Ripley describes their rapport on-stage as relaxed and familiar — never formal.

“We like to kid each other, and I think the audience likes that. Also, the songs we sing in our show reflect an intimacy with each other and the material itself,” she said.

Performing arts director Chris Alleman is a big fan of theirs, and he thinks others will love their talent as well.

“They are very personable on stage and make a great connection with the audience,” Alleman said. “They have a wonderful show that they do together, and it is a great fit to some of the performances we have had in the past.”

While Ripley describes Skinner as “lovely, brainy, delectable, wry, shy, complicated, mesmerizing and generous,” Ripley herself has a bit more of a rock ’n’ roll side to her. Under the band name RIPLEY, she has been rockin’ in New York City since 2001, and she imagines Skinner would describe her as “nuts, stubborn and silly.” Her standard e-mail signature: “Destroy Logic and Come Alive.” Her favorite character she’s played: Diana, who suffers from bipolar schizophrenia.

“I learned a lot about myself through my exploration of Diana, and I was able to reveal aspects of my psyche with the audience that even I had never realized was there,” Ripley said. “Through this exploration, a wondrous and powerful healing is still taking place inside of me.”

Intriguing women, indeed. And, at $100 a pop, tickets are a bargain, considering what traveling and staying in New York City would cost. Alleman’s goal is to raise $30,000 tonight.

“This fundraiser is extremely important, as it raises roughly 7 to 8 percent of our operation budget,” he said. “Especially in the economic situation the country is in, the monies are more important than ever.”

article link

. Next to Normal

Broadway Cabaret Festival '06 & Oct. '08

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1) Oct. 21, 2006

"Emily Skinner and Alice Ripley Sing Broadway" was recorded and released as "Skinner/Ripley: Raw at Town Hall"

2) Oct. 19, 2008, info

"Broadway Originals", part of the Bway Cabaret Festival
Town Hall, NYC

article: Gay City News

article: BroadwayWorld

Broadway on Broadway

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free concert in Times Square

.

Broadway Originals

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2008

see: "Broadway Cabaret Festival '06 and '08"

Broadway Rocks

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When she finishes her run in the Kennedy Center's acclaimed production of Company, Ripley will perform several concerts throughout the country.

She will take part in the Carolina Arts Festival's Broadway Rocks for the Arts on Wednesday, July 3, 2002 in Cary, North Carolina. Ripley is one of many Broadway performers, including Anthony Rapp, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Lauren Mitchell and Terrence Mann, who will salute The Great White Way in the Festival's show tune evening.

On July 5, the former star of The Rocky Horror Show will perform at Rafters in St. Simons Island, GA., and July 7 will bring Ripley to Smith's Olde Bar in Atlanta, GA. She'll head to Jack Rabbits in Jacksonville, FL for a 10 PM concert on July 13, and August gigs include a 10:30 PM show at the Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, OH, on Aug. 3 and a return engagement at New York's Joe's Pub on Aug. 12.

Ripley will also offer a free concert at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage on June 24 at 6 PM.

source: Alice Ripley News

Broadway Romance

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Feb. 14, 2003
Shades Mountain Baptist Church
Vestavia Hills, Alabama

Ripley to Perform on Valentines Day

Alice Ripley, will team up with Robert Evan for an evening of Broadway Romance Feb. 14 in Alabama. The one-night-only concert will feature a mix of theater tunes as well as the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.

source: Alice Ripley News

Broadway Showstoppers

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The concerts will be held in the Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, which is located on Broad and Spruce Streets in Philadelphia, PA. For more information, go to

The 24th season of Peter Nero and the Philly Pops will conclude in May with an all-star "Broadway Showstoppers" concert.

Those scheduled to take part in the Broadway celebration include Alice Ripley, Liz Callaway, John Barrowman and Ron Raines. The concerts will feature the tunes of the Gershwins and Andrew Lloyd Webber from such musicals as The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Strike Up the Band and Evita.

—By Andrew Gans of playbill.com

source: Alice Ripley News

Canal Street Tavern

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Ohio

source: Alice Ripley News

Carousel

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regional

Cather County

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as "Nelly Bly"

Playwrights Horizons
New York City

source: filmreference.com

Chess

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concert, New York City

Children and Art, Tribute to Sondheim

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A Tribute to Stephen Sondhim on the Eve of his 75th Birthday

Mar. 21, 2005 - New Amsterdam Theatre

details here from the Internet Bway Database
full program list here

Alice Ripley, Brian d'Arcy James, and Ann Arvia sang Getting Married Today (from Company)

x

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Colorado concert?

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Company

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May 17 - June 29, 2002

The John F. Kennedy Center
Washington, D.C.

as "Amy"

video of Alice performing "Getting Married Today"

and video of the opening number

Former Side Show star Alice Ripley will star in the upcoming production of Stephen Sondheim's Company as Amy — the "[Not] Getting Married Today" bride. During her run in the Tony-winning musical, Ripley will offer an evening of her own compositions at the Center's Millennium Stage, where she performed previously in Nov. 2001.

Performances at the Millennium Stage are free to the public and begin at 6 PM. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is located in Washington, D.C., at 2700 F. Street. For more information, go to www.kennedy-center.org.

—By Andrew Gans of playbill.com

In the Kennedy Center revival of Company, Alice Ripley plays Amy, the harried bride who pleads for mercy from the audience as she begins her wedding ceremony in the patter song "Getting Married Today."

Stephen Sondheim's tale of a single man (Bobby) and his friendships with five married couples was originally produced on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre in 1970 and featured a book by Furth and such classic Sondheim tunes as "The Little Things You Do Together," "You Could Drive a Person Crazy," "Another Hundred People," "Getting Married Today," "Being Alive" and "The Ladies Who Lunch." At the Kennedy Center, John Barrowman stars as the confused bachelor Robert (Bobby) with award-winning actress Lynn Redgrave as the boozy, jaded Joanne. Company plays through June 29.

Connecticut concert?

2008-08-25T14:38:00.001-07:00

David Letterman Show, The

2008-08-25T14:37:00.001-07:00

.
.

click for video of the 1998 performance on the talk show, as the housewife of an astronaut, "with feet on the ground"

Letterman introduces it as a real musical. It's a parody of a musical, but it does feature real Broadway talent. The clip features Alice Ripley (Side Show), Rebecca Luker (The Sound of Music, Music Man, Mary Poppins), Daniel McDonald (Steel Pier), Marc Kudisch (Beauty and the Beast, Wild Party, Thoroughly Modern Millie) and Jonathan Dokuchitz (Tommy).

Written by Paul Shaffer and broadcast on May 21, 1998

Dead, The

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(see: James Joyce's The Dead)

Downtown (venue)

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Nov. 9, 2002

Downtown (venue)
Farmingdale, NY

Alice Ripley, who recently completed an acclaimed turn as Amy in the Kennedy Center mounting of Company, will be the opening act for Squeeze's Glenn Tilbrook at three concerts in November.

In addition to her numerous roles on Broadway, Ripley has been actively pursuing a career as a pop singer-composer during the past few years. In fact, her solo CD, "Everything's Fine" (Sh-k-Boom Records), features tunes written solely by the singer-actress.

Ripley's gigs with Tilbrook include Nov. 8 at the Tin Angel, Nov. 9 at Downtown, and Nov. 10 at the IOTA Club & Cafe.

—By Andrew Gans of playbill.com

source: Alice Ripley News

Drama Desk Awards

2008-08-25T14:35:00.002-07:00

1) tba

2)

3) not an A. Ripley article, but an amusing '07 one about the Awards season, in general: "Hug, Smile, Schmooze, Repeat"

Dreamgirls (benefit)

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Alice on right; photo from a fan page

Sept. 24, 2001

20th Anniversary Benefit Concert for The Actors Fund
Ford Center for the Performing Arts
24 W. Randolph St.
Chicago, IL

as one of the "Sweethearts", along with Emily Skinner

Alice sang "Cadillac Car (Recording Studio)" with Emily, Norm Lewis, Audra McDonald, etc.

[not sure if location & song info is correct; help welcomed]

much more info at Internet Bway Database

samples/concert recording/MP3 downloads here

Elegies for Angels, Punks, and Raging Queens

2008-08-25T14:33:00.000-07:00

benefit for the Momentum A.I.D.S. Project

"Angels, Punks, and Raging Queens"

"Celebrate", duet with Emily Skinner

Elephant Project, The

2008-08-25T14:30:00.003-07:00

elephantproject.org

My Story

My name is David Niederhoffer and I am 18 years old. I
started the Elephant Project after I raised money for
two years to benefit Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights
AIDS by selling the autographs I obtained from
celebrities (which included signed pictures, Broadway
playbills, scripts, etc.).

On May 29, 2006, my grandfather died after battling
Alzheimer's disease for the past few years. My family
asked for all people who wished to donate money in his
name to donate to the Alzheimer's Association. I
decided that I would continue to raise money once
again, but to donate all proceeds to the Alzheimer's
Association.

The Elephant Project

benefits the Alzheimer’s Association
founded by David Niederhoffer
for his grandfather, who died on May 29, 2006 after battling Alzheimer’s disease.

From David:
There is a phrase that says, "Elephants never forget." Alzheimer's disease is a form of dementia, which in turn victims never forget. That is why the elephant is the help of celebrities. As I live relatively close to New York City, I wait outside of Broadway theaters and other events to meet each celebrity. After explaining to them what I am doing, I ask each celebrity to sign a business card that was custom made for this project. I also ask the celebrities to pose with either Trumpet the Elephant beanie baby or Peanut the Elephant beanie baby.

All the pictures are printed out and auctioned off with the signed card. After I obtain a significant amount of signed cards/pictures, they are auctioned off on
eBay. Each auction package also comes with an elephant beanie baby!

.

Elevate Hope auction - Alice Ripley, Emily Skinner

2008-08-25T14:30:00.002-07:00

(update, 10/28/08 - no takers this first round, but I'll give it a go again at some point.)

--------------------------------------------------------

one CD - Alice Ripley signed her "Everything's Fine"

2 programs - Ms. Ripley signed 2; one is also signed by Emily Skinner

plus a bonus program thrown in for fun! (not autographed)

full details and photos here: Elevate Hope auction

sponsored by Next to Normal website

Fabulous Invalid, The

2008-08-25T14:30:00.001-07:00

2003

Cutler-Majestic Theatre
Boston, MA

Emerson College's production of this Kaufman and Hart musical

source: edgeboston.com

Feeling Electric (now Next to Normal)

2008-08-25T14:30:00.000-07:00

plot description from previous page at Wikipedia.org

Plot Summary

The story revolves around Diana Brown, a young mother from Seattle who suffers from schizoaffective disorder, with frequent manic and depressive episodes and hallucinations. She is cared for by her husband, Dan, but as her depression and hallucinations get worse, she begins to see a new psychiatrist, Dr. Madden. But her hallucinations persist, and she becomes increasingly suicidal, which leads to her being treated with electroconvulsive therapy. The play also addresses such issues as child loss, suicide, drug abuse, and ethics in modern psychiatry.

Synopsis

Act One
The story begins with the principal cast together, singing a song that seems to be full of hope and encouragement (Let There Be Light). Diana Brown is seemingly plagued with insomnia, her anxiety keeping her awake at night, and seems to be waiting for someone to come home (Night). Dr. Madden begins his narration by introducing "patient Q731: D. Brown", announcing the beginning of the plot by beginning the case history of the patient. Gabriel, Diana's son, comes home at 2AM, surprised that his mother waited up for him, as she hasn't done that in quite a long time. Diana is not distracted by her son's surprised reaction, instead relating all the (strange, unlikely) ways that he could have been killed while he was out this late, and as he had never called home, she wouldn't have had any idea what happened to him (So Many Ways to Die). Diana's husband, Dan, wakes up and asks what's going on. Diana tells Gabriel to go just as Dan comes out to check on his wife. He asks who she was talking to, and she claims she was just talking to herself, since she's crazy, and dismisses him, telling him she'll be up shortly for sex.

Dr. Madden continues his narration, remarking that while incidents occur at night, in the morning family issues prevail. While Diana, her daughter Natalie (who does not seem to want to get up), and Dan all lament their lives at present, only Gabriel seems ready to take the day head-on, but his intentions seem less than benevolent. While talking to his mother, he reveals that his father has been ignoring him, so Diana advises he should talk to him. Dan seems to confirm what Gabriel says as he asks Natalie about his favorite kid, to which she responds his favorite kid is dead (Just Another Day). As the family is finally up and ready, the cuckoo clock signals that it is only four in the morning and Diana has woken them all up far too soon, so Natalie dismisses herself to go back to bed. Dr. Madden explains that the patient's primary concern is family, which while seemingly normal, is not what it seems.

Later that day, Diana is grocery shopping at Costco, but as the trip goes on, she gets increasingly erratic and makes many impulsive purchases, before finally overwhelming herself and passing out in the store (Costco). We find out that Diana is, indeed, manic, and has had episodes like this in the store before. Dan suggests that they should get her medications adjusted. We also find out that Diana suffers from hallucinations, as she has a country-and-western fantasy about Dan and Dr. Fine, the psychopharmacologist (Up the Dose). Diana is getting her medications adjusted with Dr. Fine, whose instructions on what to take with what are complicated and sound like a logic puzzle, and she even hears him add a math word problem into the instructions. Diana reflects on how with her long history of medications, she has gotten to know Dr. Fine very well, almost intimately. Dr. Fine gives reports of Diana's progress as he frequently adjusts her medications over the course of five weeks, but her progress is sketchy at best. While Diana lists her medications, Dan reflects on the fact that he knows that he is also depressed, and wonders who is crazier: his wife, who is getting help, or himself, who ignores his problems (My Psychopharmacologist and I - Who's Crazy?). Dr. Madden notes that the patient first started having "nervous feelings" upon meeting future spouse at college in the late 80s, and a flashback to Dan and Diana's college years ensues, where we see that Diana has a long history of wild, erratic behavior, and also liked to frequently ditch class, taking Dan along for the ride (as he is her ride, and yields to her every request, especially since she gets upset if he does not). Back in the present, Diana is still musing on her relationship with her psychopharmacologist while Dan is still reflecting on whether he may be crazier than his wife. Dr. Fine announces that after five weeks and three medication adjustments, Diana is sinking back into her depression and anxiety (College Years - Who's Crazy? Part 2).

Dr. Madden notes that the patient's "roots of trauma" are an unplanned pregnancy, which resulted in Dan and Diana getting married. A flashback to their wedding, where the minister notes that the couple has written their own vows, and that this is an unusual ceremony for an unusual couple (and that the ceremony will be followed up by a reception at the circus). Dan's vows are touching and sentimental about how Diana has touched his life, and compares her to the Roman Goddess that shares her name (Electricity). Diana's vows are more upbeat and about how while Dan is not the most remarkable man, he makes her feel safe and good nonetheless (Dan Brown). Back in the present, at 2AM, she discusses these memories and her inability to feel happy with Gabriel, then tells him to go to bed, as tomorrow is his "special day". She threatens to hurt him if he does not, and he cryptically notes that she can't, but leaves anyway, telling her that he loves her. Alone, Diana admits that she misses her old life, and reflects on her current manic-depressive ways (I Miss the Mountains).

The next day, at school, Natalie is trying to transfer to art class, but is having trouble. First, they want her to submit a urine sample for drug testing (which she takes offense to), then they want her to get a parent or guardian's signature, which she explains is just not realistic. When encouraged to elaborate on why she can't do this, she describes just how crazy her home life is, especially in regards to her mother, who she obviously resents a great deal (Growing Up Unstable). At home again, Diana announces that she made dinner, since it is a special occasion. Natalie is wary, citing past culinary disasters, but Dan is optimistic, taking the fact that Diana wants to make dinner and have the whole family together as a good thing. He tries to spread the optimism to the rest of the family (It's Gonna Be Good). The whole family settles down for dinner, and Diana brings out a birthday cake, singing "Happy Birthday". Natalie is confused at first, then realizes what is going on and gets very upset: it is Gabriel's sixteenth birthday. Gabriel tells his mother he can't blow out the candles, but she seems unclear of why. Dan tries to gently explain to Diana what's going on: Gabriel is dead. He died sixteen years ago. As he tries to be understanding, Natalie gets more angry and upset with her mother, yelling at her about never doing anything like this on her birthday, and, in fact, never remembering her birthday at all. She leaves, and Dan is left to take care of his wife. He asks her about her medications, and Diana confesses she flushed them all down the toilet. Dan, undaunted, says they'll get more and tries to remain optimistic that they'll get over this together, but Diana is not convinced. She insists that Dan has no way of knowing how she really feels, describing what it is like to live her life and telling Dan there is no possible way he could understand this (You Don't Know). Dan's response is hurt, insisting that he has been with her this entire time, trying to help her, and how could he not understand what's wrong with her? Meanwhile, Gabriel is trying to get his father to acknowledge his presence in the room, turning Dan's statements to Diana back toward him (I Am the One).

Dan tells Diana they'll find a new doctor who can help her to not see Gabriel anymore. Diana insists that Gabriel is not a ghost, but agrees to see the new doctor. Gabriel explains what he is, insisting that he is really alive, and he's more complicated than a mere ghost or delusion (I'm Alive). The next day, Natalie finds herself in detention (a frequent occurrence) for being "unreasonable" in life skills class. She talks about reason, and even sympathizes with students responsible for school shootings. This attitude impresses a boy named Connor, called Tweak, who looks exactly like Gabriel. He tries to befriend Natalie, who is resistant to his attempts at first, but after confessing that she is sick of her life and is looking for any diversion, Tweak promises her that he can help her find a way to escape for a little while if she'll stick with him, and Natalie seems pleased with this offer, although it is clearly sex and drugs he is talking about (Blue Skies). Meanwhile, Diana is about to see a new psychiatrist. Dan mentions he came highly recommended by three women at work, but when Diana seems offended that Dan is discussing her problems at work, Dan distracts her by mentioning that Natalie did not get home until after midnight the night before. Dr. Madden appears and tells Diana that he will see her now.

Immediately after getting into Dr. Madden's office, Diana starts hallucinating that he is a super-sexualized rock star, and finds herself unable to pay attention to what he is saying as in her fantasy, he is singing, making therapy sound sexual and intimate (Open Your Eyes). Once the hallucination passes, Dr. Madden is able to speak to Diana, and gets her to discuss her past treatments, including medication and talk therapy. He also gets her to elaborate on her suicide attempt fifteen years ago, where she tried to overdose on her antidepressants, but couldn't keep them down. So she tried Pop Rocks and Coca-Cola, which did not work either, nor did sticking her head in an electric oven. So finally, she slit her wrists. She tells Dr. Madden that talk therapy has never worked for her in the past, and Dr. Madden assures her that if she wants to get better, then he can help her. Meanwhile, Gabriel is trying to get his mother to hold onto him and counteract Dr. Madden's therapy, criticizing his style and begging his mother not to let him go. Diana continues to see Dr. Madden for a month, making progress, not listening to Gabriel, and describing her eight week stay in a mental hospital following her suicide attempt. She also confesses that she only had Natalie in an effort to forget about Gabriel, and that Natalie knows this, but she has never been able to get close to or love her daughter for fear of losing her as well. Dr. Madden urges her to finally let go of Gabriel, but Gabriel continues to insist that he's alive, and Diana admits she does not think she can let him go. Dr. Madden continues to urge her away from him, and she admits she would like to finally move past her need for him (Feeling Slightly Fine - Catch Me, I'm Falling). However, Diana seems to have fallen into her old habit of telling therapists what they want to hear, as she reflects on the fact that she still wants to be with someone, and is willing to die to be with them...and it seems that someone is Gabriel (I Dreamed a Dance, Act One). Gabriel comes back, telling his mother that she can be without pain and finally be happy if she'll just join him, gently urging his mother toward suicide again (Come With Me). Diana takes his advice.

At the hospital, Dr. Madden reads the report of her treatment following her suicide attempt, which indicates she tried to commit suicide in all the same ways she did before, and is upset to find that she has been recommended for electroconvulsive therapy. Dan, who is meeting with Dr. Madden to talk about Diana, is surprised that ECT is still used, and Dr. Madden tries to explain to him why this is the best course of treatment, but Dan is not sure and, taking Dr. Madden's advice, decides to go home and sleep on it. At home, Dan thinks about Diana's suicide attempts, and struggles to understand why she would still want to die after everything he's done for her, in the face of everyone telling him he should let her go and move on, and admits he's afraid to keep living without her (I've Been). Natalie, who has been gone for days, comes home to find Dan cleaning up the remains of Diana's suicide attempt. Dan asks her if she's doing drugs, which she vehemently denies, and turns the question back onto her father, then makes spiteful comments about her mother. When Dan tells Natalie where her mother is, Natalie puts the pieces together and becomes upset. Dan tells her that Dr. Madden suggested they should try ECT next, and explains to her what it is as Dr. Madden is doing the same with Diana...purposely omitting key risks of the treatment, which Gabriel is taking upon himself to tell his mother, unbeknownst to Dr. Madden. Diana starts remembering movies she's seen where ECT was shown in a negative light and her reactions to them, while Dr. Madden continues to push her to try it, but Diana will not hear of it and refuses to give consent (Didn't I See This Movie?). Diana goes home, where Dan tries to gently persuade her to try it, promising her some semblance of her old life if she does, and although she still has her reservations, Diana finally consents (A Light in the Dark).

Diana goes back to the hospital for the ECT, where Dr. Madden is waiting, along with the team of specialists who are going to be performing the procedure (which Diana has already begun to hallucinate as rock star Dr. Madden's back-up band). As she is being anaesthesized, her hallucination of rock star Dr. Madden begins again, with him promising to help her, again making it sound sexual (Intro to Feeling Electric). Meanwhile, Tweak has taken Natalie to a party/rave, where he gives her "EKG", a drug cocktail made from Ecstasy, Ketamine, and Gamma hydroxy butyrate (E, Special K, and GHB). Dr. Madden's "act" continues with him sexualizing the ECT. Diana begins to feel a little high herself, and actually ends up joining Natalie in her own drug-induced hallucination, reprimanding her for doing drugs (while Natalie is angry that her mother is intruding on her hallucination). Dr. Madden finishes his act, and Diana wakes up from her treatment, summarizing it as "Wow" (Feeling Electric).

Act Two

Following the ECT, Diana is sent home to recover. She is greeted by Natalie, who is shocked to find that her own mother does not remember her at all. She does not remember her own home, either, and as Dan and Natalie relate more things she should remember, it is discovered that apparently, as a side effect of the ECT, she has forgotten everything that happened in the past sixteen years, starting with shortly after she met Dan (Song of Forgetting). Dr. Madden assures the Brown family that while this much memory loss is rare, it is not unheard of, and not to panic just yet. Diana muses on the fact that she is now left to live a life without any idea of why she is living like this, wondering if she should start over now that she has a clean slate, so to speak, or continue with her "old" life (Four Seconds, Sixteen Years). Meanwhile, Dan goes to speak to Dr. Madden, who continues to insist that this is normal and a part of her healing process, while Dan is understandably upset and does not want to just accept what happened. Dr. Madden suggests he tries to help Diana remember the good times they had, but when Dan mentions that there haven't really been many good times for them, Dr. Madden suggests that if that's the case, maybe Diana losing her memory was for the best, to which Dan takes offense (Four Seconds, Sixteen Years, Part 2). In a group therapy session for the Brown family, Dr. Madden asks Diana questions about her mental state, namely about whether she is still suicidal or suffering from delusions. Diana says that she is not, and that she can see things more clearly now. When asked who the members of her family are, Diana lists Dan, Natalie, and herself, and does not mention Gabriel, even when pressed. Natalie sees this as cause for celebration, but Dan is still worried about her memory loss and wants to know how to help her. Dr. Madden offers some tips, such as showing her things that she should recognize, telling her stories about her past, and keeping a positive attitude. Despite his advice not to lie to her, Dan stretches the truth a little to try to put a positive spin on things, while Natalie has some fun messing with her mother. Dr. Madden and the family's attitude starts to spread to Diana, who begins to believe that she is getting well for the first time (Getting Better).

However, not everyone is happy about Diana's apparent progress: Gabriel is still lurking, now cut off from his mother. He muses about his mother's recovery, and about whether the things that she's lost, including him, were really worth it in the long run. Diana finds some things of Gabriel's in the garbage, which Dan had thrown out so she couldn't see them, and Dan dismisses her insistence on knowing the truth, trying to get her to let it go and go to bed. Gabriel continues to seemingly sympathize with his mother, noting that although they've taken him from her memory he knows that she still feels a part of her is missing, and he is that part of her. Diana starts to remember things that happened sixteen years ago, namely the birth of her son, and being told that he was very ill but the doctor not giving her any answers about why he is so sick (Aftershocks). Gabriel's presence begins to gradually return to his mother's life after this (I Dreamed a Dance Reprise). The next day, Natalie is going out again with Tweak, who has come to pick her up, but ignored her order to stay in the car and wait for her, obviously because she did not want him to meet her parents. Diana comes out and sees Tweak, asking about him, to which Tweak makes her condition worse by being vague. As Diana is about to point out that he looks exactly like Gabriel, Natalie gets upset again, accusing her mother of being as nuts as ever and angrily accusing her of never loving her at all, of only loving Gabriel, or her idealized image of him. Diana tries to assure Natalie that she does, indeed, love her, but the attempt seems half-hearted at best, so Natalie decides to remedy the situation by leaving home for good (Superboy and the Invisible Girl). As they leave, Diana imagines she hears Tweak, or rather Gabriel, mention meconium aspiration syndrome, although he claims he said "see you later".

This leads to another troubled night for Diana, as she finally remembers the events surrounding her son's birth: that he suffered from meconium aspiration, which caused him to go into respiratory failure and die. Diana begged to hold him just one time, but her request was denied. She wakes up to Dan trying to soothe her, but Diana insists that she saw Gabriel, and that he told her what happened. Dan, panicking, firmly tells her that Gabriel really wasn't there, and insists that they call Dr. Madden, but Diana remembers more: when Gabriel was dying, Dan got to hold him, and she did not. Dan tells her that their son was already dead when he held him, and that Diana was so hysterical they did not think it would do her any good to. Diana asks Dan to tell her their son's name, as she still can't remember, but Dan insists that it is not important, since he was only alive for an hour, anyway, but Diana will not hear of it, and gets more upset. Dan urgently insists that they can get through this, that she'll go back on her medications, continue to receive therapy, and get more ECT, but Diana will not let the issue go, and a fight escalates between them (It's Gonna Be Good Reprise). After the fight's violent climax, Diana, still angry and upset, insists to know why Dan continues to stay with her when it would be better for him to leave her, and it might even be better for her as well (Why Stay?). Dan once again regains the calm he's always used when dealing with Diana, and gently, but in a heartfelt way, explains to her that when they got married, he promised to always care for her and never leave her, and that part of him is hoping that this will all be over someday and they can go back to the way they were back when they were first married (It's a Promise). But Gabriel is back with a vengeance now, once again insisting that he is really alive, and that if his parents will not deal with him, then he's not going anywhere. While he is coming back in full force, Natalie is telling Tweak to give her more and more drugs, insisting that she needs to forget everything in her life (I'm Alive Reprise).

Diana does go to see Dr. Madden, but she visits him in the middle of the night, obviously distraught over what is going on with her now. She is urgently recounts all of the things people have told her while treating her, including what she was told when she was recommended ECT, but suggests that maybe her problem is not mental at all, but it is actually her soul that is wounded, which is why none of the treatments have worked so far and never will (The Break). Dr. Madden tries to reassure her that she's just having a temporary set-back, but with more treatment, they can get through it, but Diana does not want any more treatments, which is about the only thing she can be clear on following the ECT. She thanks Dr. Madden for his services and bids him farewell, effectively ending their relationship as therapist and patient, and ignores Dr. Madden's insistence that more can be done as she leaves him for good. Diana is now left to realize that she was hoping that someone could help her, but now she knows that no one will. Gabriel takes this chance to urge her to come with him again (I Dreamed a Dance, Act II).

At the hospital, Dr. Madden is in for a surprise when he is called in to check on an overdose patient who displays evidence of prior self-destructive acts, as the patient turns out to be Natalie. She is equally surprised to see him, and wonders why a psychiatrist would be called if all she did was overdose, insisting that the scars on her arms are from previous experiments with cutting and that she does not do it anymore. Dr. Madden insists on checking her out anyway, despite Natalie's negative attitude toward any help he could possibly offer her, citing his failure with her mother, which is obviously still a sore spot for him. He tries to be patient with her, but she continues to push him into losing his temper, where he angrily tells her that it is true that life sucks, but in the end, it is better than killing yourself. Natalie is surprised by this outburst, and Dr. Madden gets a rein on his temper again, telling her that yes, life is going to be very difficult, and yes, things are not going to go her way, but if she sticks with it, things will ultimately pay off and she'll be glad that she stayed alive (Live Every Day). Back at home, Diana is leaving Dan at last, citing that although she knows Dan loves her, and she still loves him, that she needs a chance to live her own life now, and that staying together will just hurt them both in the long run (So Anyway).

Dan is left alone for the first time in his life, his biggest fear, and his depression is now weighing on him in full force. He thinks about all that he has done for her and how she ended up leaving him alone anyway, and once again, Gabriel is turning his words back onto him, trying to get his father to see him (I Am the One Reprise). Only this time, Gabriel succeeds, and Dan finally sees him. Panicking, he insists that Gabriel leave him alone and go with Diana, that he can't deal with this, but Gabriel and Dan realize they've had similar roles in each other's lives, no matter how short Gabriel's was, and Dan finally, tearfully, names his son (I Am the One Reprise, Part Two). With Gabriel's encouragement, and with him playing witness, Dan uses his experiences taking care of Diana after her suicide attempts to prepare for his own suicide (I've Been Reprise). Natalie comes home just as her father is about to kill himself and manages to stop him by catching him off guard, and he tells her that her mother is gone, and he does not know to where or for how long. Meanwhile, Dr. Madden's narration begins again, and we learn that "patient Q731: D. Brown" is actually Dan Brown, and the entire play was actually about Dan and his descent into mental illness, not his wife, as Dr. Madden notes sadly how long Dan has been depressed and how long it took him to seek help. Natalie offers her father words of encouragement, trying to get him to keep living, and Gabriel joins in, as does Dr. Madden. Even Diana does, and Dan finally joins in as well, as the play ends the same way it began (Let There Be Light Reprise).

____________

Musical Numbers

Act I

Let There Be Light
Night
So Many Ways to Die
Just Another Day
Costco
Up the Dose
My Psychopharmacologist and I - Who's Crazy?
College Years - Who's Crazy?, Part 2
Electricity
Dan Brown
I Miss the Mountains
Growing Up Unstable
He's Not Here
You Don't Know
I Am the One
I'm Alive
Blue Skies
Open Your Eyes
Feeling Strongly Fine - Catch Me, I'm Falling
I Dreamed a Dance, Act I
There's a World
I've Been
Didn't I See This Movie?
Light in the Dark
Intro to Feeling Electric
Feeling Electric

Act II

Song of Forgetting
Four Seconds, Sixteen Years
Four Seconds, Sixteen Years, Part 2
Getting Better
Aftershocks
I Dreamed a Dance Reprise
Superboy and the Invisible Girl
It's Gonna Be Good Reprise
Why Stay?
It's a Promise
I'm Alive Reprise
The Break
I Dreamed a Dance, Act II
Live Every Day
So Anyway
I Am the One Reprise
I Am the One Reprise, Part 2
I've Been Reprise
Let There Be Light Reprise

.

Five Flights

2008-08-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

Jan. 19, 2004 - Feb. 22, 2004 (extended to Feb. 29)
(previews started Jan. 13)

Alice Ripley Takes Five Flights Off-Broadway, Jan. 13-Feb. 22

By Andrew Gans, Playbill.com article
January 13, 2004

Side Show Tony Award nominee Alice Ripley begins performances Off-Broadway in Adam Bock's Five Flights Jan. 13.

The Rattlestick Theater production, which officially opens Jan. 19, will play through Feb. 22. Directed by Kent Nicholson (who directed the West Coast run in San Francisco), the cast also includes Joanna P. Adler, Kevin Karrick, Jason Butler Harner, Matthew Montelongo and Lisa Steindler. The play comprises five scenes, in which playwright Bock "uses birds as metaphors to describe a dysfunctional family who populate [the play] about siblings who must decide the fate of an aviary built by their recently deceased father."

Five Flights features set design by James Faerron, lighting design by David Szlasa and sound design by Drew Yerys. The performance schedule is Tuesday through Saturday evenings at 8 PM with matinees on Saturdays and Sundays at 3 PM.

Playwright Adam Bock also wrote Swimming in the Shallows, which was produced in San Francisco where it was awarded Best Overall Production, Best Original Script and Best Ensemble at the Bay Area Theatre Critics Awards. Recently commissioned by Playwrights Horizons, Bock received his MFA in playwriting from Brown University.

The Rattlestick Theater is located at 224 Waverly Place between West 11th and Perry Streets. Tickets: $37.50

Five Flights played Off-Broadway at Rattlestick Theater in 2004, after a five-month sold-out run at San Francisco's Encore Theater in 2002. The play won the Glickman Award, and was nominated for the American Theater Critics Award, the Elizabeth Osborn Award, and two BATCC Awards. It has been published in Breaking Ground, an anthology of new plays edited by Kent Nicholson.

source: playscripts.com

NY Times review

Curtain's Up review

Opening night party photos

Five Flights extension announcement, plus photo

"It's important, no it's necessary for people to believe in something. . .
it's necessary, necessary for them to be allowed to live in that belief."

-Olivia

For Russell by Russell

2008-08-25T14:28:00.003-07:00

Dec. 20, 2004

A cabaret tribute to Bill Russell (most notable for having written the book and lyrics to "Side Show," everyone's favorite musical about conjoined twins) goes by the hilarious name "Belters We Have Heard on High." Mr. Russell will be joined by Alice Ripley, among others; Ms. Ripley originated the role of Violet Hilton, the twin on the left - no, right? Anyone?

NYC, The Duplex, 61 Christopher Street, West Village; 7 p.m.; $10.

.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

2008-08-25T14:28:00.002-07:00

regional

Ghostlight Series - Joe's Pub

2008-08-25T14:28:00.001-07:00

(see: Joe's Pub - RIPLEY performance)

Great Joy! (benefit + CD)

2008-08-25T14:27:00.004-07:00

Dec. 15, 2003

New Amsterdam Theatre, New York City

There's a CD recording, but I don't know where to get it. Anyone?

The Actors' Fund of America, in association with Sh-K-Boom Records, presents Great Joy! A Holiday Celebration from Broadway, a concert featuring Michael McElroy's Broadway Inspirational Voices. Broadway Inspirational Voices is a gospel choir comprising 50 Broadway performers in New York City. By breaking racial, ethnic, and religious boundaries, the choir brings the power of Gospel Music to all who want to hear. They are joined by an All-Star cast including (cast information subject to change) Matthew Broderick, Gavin Creel, Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Jarrod Emick, Edie Falco, Tovah Feldshuh, Richard Kind, Eartha Kitt, Ricki Lake, Norm Lewis, Patti LuPone, Donna McKechnie, Terrence McNally, Alfred Molina, Bebe Neuwirth, Elizabeth Parkinson, Rosie Perez, Billy Porter, Phylicia Rashad, Roger Rees, Alice Ripley, Sherie Rene Scott, Brooke Shields, Lucy T. Slut, Stanley Tucci, Daphne Rubin Vega, Michelle Williams, cast members from nearly every show on Broadway, and many, many more...

photos (not of Ripley, but there's one of Norm Lewis of "Side Show")

A host of Broadway's finest talent — including Patti LuPone, Chita Rivera, Nathan Lane, Bebe Neuwirth, and Alice Ripley — will take part in Great Joy! A Holiday Celebration from Broadway.

The Dec. 15 concert will benefit the Actors' Fund of America and is designed to "become a new, annual tradition." The evening will feature original pieces written by Tony Award winners Terrence McNally and David Henry Hwang as well as appearances from cast members of most every Broadway show.

As of press time, those scheduled to take part in the event include the aforementioned LuPone, Rivera, Lane and Neuwirth as well as Matthew Broderick, Brooke Shields, Edie Falco, Eartha Kitt, Roger Rees, Rosie Perez, Phylicia Rashad, Norbert Leo Butz, Sherie Rene Scott, Alice Ripley, Mario Cantone, Gavin Creel, Richard Kind, Norm Lewis, Elizabeth Parkinson and Billy Porter. Michael McElroy and the Broadway Inspirational Voices will also take part in the star-studded evening.

The evening is being presented by the Actors' Fund in association with Sh K-Boom Records. In a statement Sh-K-Boom President Kurt Deutsch said, "With the exception of Radio City’s Rockettes and the Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting, New York has no annual event to commemorate the Christmas season, certainly none from the Broadway community. We aim to create a new and joyful holiday tradition for the City with our yearly Benefit concert, bringing together Broadway’s best and brightest stars, every Christmas, for a great cause." The creative team for the Dec. 15 benefit includes Lisa Leguillo, Paul Dobie, Michael McElroy and Seth Rudetsky.

Tickets range from $50-$1,000 and are available by calling (212) 221 7300, ext. 133. For more information visit actorsfund.org.

-Andrew Gans of playbill.com

source: Alice Ripley News

IOTA Club & Cafe

2008-08-25T14:27:00.003-07:00

Nov. 10, 2002

IOTA Club and Cafe
Arlington, Virginia

Alice Ripley, who recently completed an acclaimed turn as Amy in the Kennedy Center mounting of Company, will be the opening act for Squeeze's Glenn Tilbrook at three concerts in November.

In addition to her numerous roles on Broadway, Ripley has been actively pursuing a career as a pop singer-composer during the past few years. In fact, her solo CD, "Everything's Fine" (Sh-k-Boom Records), features tunes written solely by the singer-actress.

Ripley's gigs with Tilbrook include Nov. 8 at the Tin Angel, Nov. 9 at Downtown, and Nov. 10 at the IOTA Club & Cafe.

—By Andrew Gans of playbill.com

source: Alice Ripley News

Jack Rabbits (venue)

2008-08-25T14:27:00.002-07:00

When she finishes her run in the Kennedy Center's acclaimed production of Company, Ripley will perform several concerts throughout the country.

She will take part in the Carolina Arts Festival's Broadway Rocks for the Arts on Wednesday, July 3, in Cary, North Carolina. Ripley is one of many Broadway performers, including Anthony Rapp, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Lauren Mitchell and Terrence Mann, who will salute The Great White Way in the Festival's show tune evening.

On July 5, the former star of The Rocky Horror Show will perform at Rafters in St. Simons Island, GA., and July 7 will bring Ripley to Smith's Olde Bar in Atlanta, GA. She'll head to Jack Rabbits in Jacksonville, FL for a 10 PM concert on July 13, 2002. August gigs include a 10:30 PM show at the Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, OH, on Aug. 3 and a return engagement at New York's Joe's Pub on Aug. 12.

Ripley will also offer a free concert at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage on June 24 at 6 PM.

source: Alice Ripley News

James Joyce's The Dead - regional

2008-08-25T14:27:00.001-07:00

regional

source: broadwayworld.com

James Joyce's The Dead - Broadway

2008-08-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

Broadway; original musical
as "Miss Molly Ivors"

Belasco Theatre
Previews started: Dec. 14, 1999
Opening night: Jan. 11, 2000
Closing: Apr. 16, 2000

more info at Internet Bway Database
and Wikipedia

1) NY Times article here

excerpt: Alice Ripley and Emily Skinner find themselves on Broadway again in ''James Joyce's 'The Dead,' '' the musical adaptation of the Joyce short story that begins a limited engagement at the Belasco Theater tomorrow night.

The end result of which is that the former twins are once again sharing a dressing room, albeit with a little more room to breathe.

''It's amazing,'' said Ms. Skinner, pointing to Ms. Ripley's left cheek. ''I've only ever seen that side of her face.''

The roles the women play in ''The Dead'' are a far cry from their ''Side Show'' personae. Ms. Ripley plays Miss Molly Ivors, a spunky Irish lass whose flirtation raises the body temperature of Gabriel Conroy, the play's central character, played by Christopher Walken. Ms. Skinner, meanwhile, is Mary Jane, a kindly niece whose Christmas celebration sets the scene for the play. The two characters never speak directly to each other.

2) NY Times review

excerpt: The duet performed by the Conroys (with charming choreography by Sean Curran), in which Gretta exudes womanly warmth while Gabriel gives off a distancing awareness of his limitations, is a whole portrait of a marriage in miniature. The sexually tinged friction between Gabriel and the young, politically minded Molly Ivors (Alice Ripley) is provocatively limned in a rousing ditty about Parnell.

3) I.M. interview, Fynsworth Alley Chat

excerpt:

[Robert Armin] I told you how much I admired your work in The Dead. I felt that the whole show was about how much your character loved Christopher Walken's

[Alice Ripley] That makes me smile.

[Robert] But you were sooooo repressed. The character, that is

[Alice] Whew! boy

[Robert] It was fascinating to see how you brought out her love without a word being said

[Alice] yes, but wearing a corset every night means you can eat all the Krispy Kremes you want and it never shows until the show closes.

[Robert] Hah!

[Alice] Then it's a rude awakening.

[Robert] Never noticed a problem at the time.

[Alice] Thank you so much for the compliment (about Molly Ivors)

x

2008-08-25T14:25:00.004-07:00

Joe's Pub - 2002

2008-08-25T14:25:00.002-07:00

Sh-K-Boom Room* , part of the "Songwriter's Circle"

1) Aug. 12 & 27, 2002 at Joe's Pub
Manhattan, NY

2) Aug. 13, 2002 at South Paw
125 5th Ave
Park Slope neighborhood, Brooklyn, NY

Ripley, Tom Kitt (yay!) and Greg Naughton perform

The event is hosted by singer/songwriter/composer Jeremy Schonfeld, a Sh-K-Boom artist developing a new rock musical.

Sh-K-Boom's mission is to "bridge the gap between pop music and theatre" by way of their Sh-K-Boom Room live concert series. "The Last Five Years" marked the first musical cast-album recording for the label that has released solo albums by such theatre notables as Adam Pascal ("Aida" and "RENT"), Sherie René Scott ("Aida" and "The Last Five Years") and Ripley ("Everything's Fine" solo CD and "Little Fish" cast recording). The label boasts the first recording of the annual "Broadway on Broadway" event.

Ripley will concentrate on selections from her album of original pop material, Everything's Fine.

These concerts are part of Ripley's string of performances following her run in the Kennedy Center's acclaimed production of Company. Her schedule:

The Carolina Arts Festival's Broadway Rocks for the Arts on Wednesday, July 3, in Cary, North Carolina. Ripley is one of many Broadway performers, including Anthony Rapp, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Lauren Mitchell and Terrence Mann, who will salute The Great White Way in the Festival's show tune evening.

On July 5, the former star of The Rocky Horror Show will perform at Rafters in St. Simons Island, GA., and July 7 will bring Ripley to Smith's Olde Bar in Atlanta, GA. She'll head to Jack Rabbits in Jacksonville, FL for a 10 PM concert on July 13, and August gigs include a 10:30 PM show at the Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, OH, on Aug. 3 and a return engagement at New York's Joe's Pub on Aug. 12.

source: Alice Ripley News

Joe's Pub - Little Fish event; RIPLEY concert

2008-08-25T14:25:00.001-07:00

1) Little Fish cast recording release party

Mon., Sept. 8th, 2008 - 9:30 pm

footage from the 2007 Los Angeles production, starring Alice Ripley

amNY interview 9/4/08
excerpt:
What attracts you to the score? It's definitely challenging, but I think it's Michael John's most melodic show. The characters are wacky and familiar at the same time.

Joe's Pub (of The Public Theater)
425 Lafayette Street
between East 4th & Astor Place
New York City

A special one-night only concert event celebrating the music of Michael John LaChiusa, and the release of the World Premiere Recording of his musical “Little Fish.” The concert will feature music from many of his shows including , Bernarda Alba, and of course Little Fish, as well as songs from his Public Theater musical history See What I Wanna See and The Wild Party. The line up will include Alice Ripley, Lea Delaria and more!

Little Fish CD available for here

BroadwayWorld.com article

info about Joe's Pub

2) Followed at 11:30 pm by a RIPLEY performance!

same venue: Joe's Pub

official RIPLEY page - Listen to their wicked, fierce pop punk songs. Alice plays the guitar & wrote all the songs. The band includes her drummer husband, Shannon Ford. More info here

Joe's Pub - Tom Kitt & Friends

2008-08-25T14:24:00.005-07:00

see: Tom Kitt & Friends

Jubilee

2008-08-25T14:24:00.004-07:00

off Broadway, New York concert

source: broadwayworld.com

Kennedy Center - Andrew Lloyd Webber

2008-08-25T14:24:00.003-07:00

?
Nov. or Dec. 2004

music of Andrew Lloyd Webber

source: Q & A with Alice Ripley

Kennedy Ctr's Millennium Stage (4 times)

2008-08-25T14:24:00.001-07:00

free concerts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
2700 F. Street, Washington, D.C.

1) Nov. 2001

2) June 24, 2002

When she finishes her run in the Kennedy Center's acclaimed production of Company, singer-actress Alice Ripley will perform several concerts throughout the country.

She will take part in the Carolina Arts Festival's Broadway Rocks for the Arts on Wednesday, July 3. Tickets for the event — located in Cary, North Carolina — are available by calling (919) 834-4000. Ripley is one of many Broadway performers, including Anthony Rapp, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Lauren Mitchell and Terrence Mann, who will salute The Great White Way in the Festival's show tune evening.

On July 5, the former star of The Rocky Horror Show will perform at Rafters in St. Simons Island, GA., and July 7 will bring Ripley to Smith's Olde Bar in Atlanta, GA. She'll head to Jack Rabbits in Jacksonville, FL for a 10 PM concert on July 13, and August gigs include a 10:30 PM show at the Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, OH, on Aug. 3 and a return engagement at New York's Joe's Pub on Aug. 12.

Ripley will also offer a free concert at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage on June 24 at 6 PM.

3) Feb. 25, 2003

Alice Ripley, will return to the Kennedy Center for a free concert at the Center's Millennium Stage on Tuesday, Feb. 25. The 6 PM concert marks the third time the singer-actress has performed at the Millennium; her latest visit will feature her own compositions backed by husband/drummer, Shannon Ford.

-Andrew Gans of playbill.com

source: Alice Ripley News

4) Jan. 12, 2009

Kennedy Center Honors (TV)

2008-08-25T14:23:00.004-07:00

Alice Ripley performed on CBS Television on the the Kennedy Centers Honors Special. The Special saluted this year's winners; Chita Rivera, James Earl Jones, Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Simon.

Alice Ripley reprised her version of "Getting Married Today" from her stint in the musical Company, for honoree Elizabeth Taylor.

source: Alice Ripley News

King David

2008-08-25T14:23:00.003-07:00

Disney's "King David"

May 18-23, 1997 concert
as "Bathsheba"

New Amsterdam Theatre
New York City

music by "Little Shop of Horrors" composer, Alan Menken

Alice Ripley-Hunter Foster connections:
> Little Shop of Horrors
> Foster wrote the libretto for the off-Broadway musical, "Summer of '42"; Ripley appeared in early readings of the show. She sings " " from the musical on her CD _____

more info at Internet Bway Database

Landscape the Tar Roof Tree (Alice Ripley, composer)

2008-08-25T14:23:00.002-07:00

original musical/theater piece with Michael Roth and Joy Gregory

in progress

http://cdbaby.com/cd/michaelroth

and hear "Mercy Ana M" at Roth's MySpace page

Les Miserable (tour)

2008-08-25T14:23:00.001-07:00

Sept. 8, 1998 - Sept. 5, 1999
national tour as "Fantine"

more info on the 1990-2003 Broadway show itself

Li'l Abner

2008-08-25T14:22:00.001-07:00

concert

x

2008-08-25T14:21:00.000-07:00

Little Fish - Los Angeles

2008-08-25T14:19:00.000-07:00

2007, Blank Theater

order cast recording here: Sh-K-Boom Records

If for nothing else, get it for this picture:

Little Fish montage (pro-shot)

Little Fish rehearsal footage

Alice Ripley about the show, "It's about swimming, swimming as a way to relate to the earth, as a way to find your place in the big picture."

"The cast is young-er and sexier than me!"

.

Little Fish - CD release party

2008-08-25T14:16:00.000-07:00

(see Joe's Pub - Little Fish CD)

Little Shop of Horrors

2008-08-25T14:15:00.000-07:00

.

May 16 - June 15, 2003

The Actors' Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre
280 Miracle Mile
Coral Gables, Florida

as "Audrey"

Loving fans write loving reviews of Little Shop of Horrors & Alice Ripley

Alice, we've got your back!

Robert, webmaster of Alice Ripley News re: one this column's very favorite gals:
Ripley was scheduled to star in the Broadway production of Little Shop of Horrors but lost the role of Audrey when the show hired a new director (Jerry Zaks) after the developmental engagement in Coral Gables, Florida. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to see the Florida run, but friends and diva lovers who e-mailed me about the musical all agreed that Ripley's performance was spellbinding. Wrote one diva lover,

"When we saw the show, all 20 of us agreed, of all the cast, Alice was the one we would not have replaced under any circumstances. She was so sweet and charming and genuinely funny, and when she sang, the air around you crackled with intensity. We were all blown away. She was the biggest impression in the show — that's saying a lot, considering the 23 foot plant behind her! The control she had in every phrase was the kind other singers would be in awe of."

That said, I'm sure the new Little Shop production will be wonderful, but for this diva lover — who was eagerly awaiting Ripley's belty renditions of "Suddenly Seymour" and "Somewhere That's Green" — it will be a bittersweet experience.

from AR's Juno-Head: How much heartbreak can one girl take? I'd like to feed a couple of higher ups, you know, to a PLANT! Okay, more professional statement: Alice Ripley has come up swinging (belting). I've seen her perform "Somewhere That's Green" twice and it's such a sweet performance, though yes, it is bittersweet. Given that she's said that Audrey is perhaps the closest character to who she is* and that more than 5 years later, she chose to open a performance with "Somewhere That's Green", calling it "one of my favorite songs", she's still kickin' and stronger for it, she says (though this fan is still looking for someone to KICK).

Fans know the following litany and that the word "heartbreak" is well-chosen:

- sitting "at home in my pajamas" and crying / Sunset Blvd
- that misunderstood but beloved musical of misunderstood but beloved freaks
- Little Shop of Horrors (I'll say)

Alice has been, through and through, a person for me to emulate (so that the above rant is done only jokingly). Reaching for her level of class and intelligence has already taken me through some really tough, personal moments. I'd like to borrow her own words, used to describe Audrey, to describe Alice: "She's got a huge heart. She's a walking heart with legs.''

click -->

article in Miami Herald (prior to re-casting)
excerpt: Ripley, a beauty who is forever getting cast in classic ''Rodgers and Hammerstein leading lady soprano roles,'' is thrilled about the challenge of finding her own way into a great character role. ''It's difficult to think of a way to play Audrey that's different from Ellen. She made it her own. But I want to do it as Alice. It's the same character, but I can bring different shades of the same color,'' she says. "Audrey is so dear. She's got a huge heart. She's a walking heart with legs.''

A singer-songwriter in addition to being a Broadway star, Ripley is also relishing the chance to put her own spin on such Audrey classics as Somewhere That's Green and Suddenly, Seymour. ''This show has one of the best musical theater scores of the past 20 years,'' she says. "It's a true rock musical. It sounds like the Ronettes, and like Stevie Winwood in its bass lines and rhythm sections.''

Hunter Foster (played "Seymour"), who appeared opposite Ripley in the one-week Disney presentation of King David (which featured music by Little Shop composer Alan Menken) has been seen on Broadway in Grease!, Footloose, Les Miserables and in his current role of bright-eyed hero Bobby Strong in the Tony-winning musical Urinetown. He also starred in the national tour of the musical Martin Guerre.

Last season, he moved to the other side of the footlights as the librettist for the off-Broadway musical Summer of '42 (Ripley appeared in early readings of the show).

Synopsis:
Little Shop of Horrors centers on Seymour, a down-on-his-luck flower shop assistant who is love-struck by his blonde co-worker, Audrey. Seymour names an unusual plant in the shop Audrey II and begins caring for it. The plant grows into a huge Venus Fly Trap-like behemoth, winning Seymour media attention and respect. But when Audrey II's appetites grow out of control, the plant soon threatens Seymour's very existence. The tuner features music by Menken and book and lyrics by Howard Ashman.

The Little Shop revival will be directed by Connie Grappo, who was assistant to director Ashman on the original off-Broadway production which opened in 1982 and ran for more than 2,200 performances (She is also married to original Seymour Lee Wilkof). The Jim Henson Company has been tapped to create a puppet of Audrey II for the revival.

article: Little Shop of Horrors Cancels Broadway Engagement

photos: compiled by Ruthie Kim (Alice Ripley News)

written by Robert, of Alice Ripley News:
One of the shows I'm most excited about for the 2003 season is the revival (actually, it will mark the show's Broadway premiere) of the Off-Broadway hit Little Shop of Horrors. I remember seeing the show back in high school — a group of friends bought me tickets for my 17th birthday — and being totally entranced by the comic, melodic tale of a downtown flower shop and its array of kooky characters. It was already late in the musical's run, so I didn't get to see Ellen Greene's much-heralded performance, although the singer actress did get to repeat the role on film opposite Rick Moranis' Seymour (I remember thinking at the time that Bernadette Peters — who had just scored back-to-back hits in Sunday in the Park with George and Song & Dance — would have been a great screen Audrey, but it was nice that the original star did get to preserve her role on screen, a rarity in the world of Hollywood).

Recently, on my way back to NYC after a Fourth of July weekend in New Jersey, I had lots of time (well, a two-hour bus ride anyway) to think about who I'd like to see cast in the upcoming production. So, here goes: My top pick for Audrey — who gets to sing the show's best-known tune, "Suddenly Seymour" (a duet with Seymour) and the touching ballad "Somewhere That's Green" — would be ALICE RIPLEY. Audrey needs to be a bit ditzy, vulnerable, somewhat of a beauty, comedic and a great belter. Onstage Ripley can be all that and more. She fully explored the angst and somewhat ditzy nature of her character in the recent Kennedy Center production of Company; her vulnerability was never more evident than in Side Show, where she played conjoined twin Violet Hilton; she looked ravishing in the brief run of King David at the New Amsterdam Theatre; she displayed her flair for comedy in her Rocky Horror Show performance; and she possesses one of the most exciting belts of her generation. It would be a thrill to hear her sing "Suddenly Seymour," "Somewhere That's Green" as well as the rest of Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman's wonderful score.

As for Seymour, I can think of no better choice than the Tony-winning star of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Roger Bart. Bart's TV career — he recently left The Producers to begin filming the new CBS sitcom "Bram and Alice" — might interfere with another Broadway gig, but we can only hope.

Lucille Lortel Awards (+performance)

2008-08-25T14:13:00.005-07:00

May 5, 2008
Union Square Theatre, New York City

Playbill.com article

BroadwayWorld.com photos

excerpts:

Alice Ripley, Brian d'Arcy James, and Aaron Tveit performed "You Don't Know"/"I am the One"

Outstanding Musical
won: Adding Machine Original Music by Joshua Schmidt, Libretto by Jason Loewith and Joshua Schmidt
Produced by Scott Morfee, Tom Wirtshafter, and Margaret Cotter

nominated: Next to Normal
Music by Tom Kitt, Book and Lyrics by Brian Yorkey
Produced by Second Stage Theatre

Outstanding Featured Actor
won: Francis Jue, Yellow Face
nominated: Aaron Tveit, Next to Normal

Outstanding Lighting Design
won: Keith Parham, Adding Machine
nominated: Kevin Adams, Passing Strange
nominated: Kevin Adams, Next to Normal

Manhattan Christmas, A

2008-08-25T14:13:00.003-07:00

Alice Ripley, Julia Murney, Ann Harada, and more offer "A Manhattan Christmas" Dec. 22, 2003

Several Broadway favorites will take part in "A Manhattan Christmas" Dec. 22 at the Supper Club's King Kong Room. Those scheduled to lend their voices to this evening of "jazzy holiday standards" include Side Show's Alice Ripley, recent Chess star Julia Murney, Avenue Q's Ann Harada, Dance of the Vampires' Max von Essen and A Man of No Importance's Jessica Molaskey. The 7 PM concert will also boast a jazz quartet, featuring the talents of Danette Holden, Nina Henessey, Amy Luce and Michael Gruber.

Gruber and Steve Marzullo are responsible for the evening's arrangements. Marzullo will also be featured on the piano with Everett Bradley on percussion.

There is a $15 cover charge for the concert and a $15 food-drink minimum. The King Kong Room is located in Manhattan at 240 West 47th Street; call (212) 921-1904. Following the concert is Jim Caruso's Cast Party at 10:30 PM.

-Andrew Gans of Playbill.com

source: Alice Ripley News

Mikado, The

2008-08-25T14:13:00.001-07:00

done "right out of college"

with Cathy ____

Music Man, The

2008-08-25T14:11:00.000-07:00

1) as "Marian Paroo", her first leading role in high school.

2) Alice sings "My White Knight" on Unsuspecting Hearts CD

Next to Normal CAST RECORDING

2008-08-25T14:10:00.003-07:00

Next to Normal to Receive Cast Recording on Sh-k-Boom Records

Tom Kitt (composer) and Brian Yorkey's (Book writer and lyricist) rock musical Next to Normal closed on January 18th at Arena Stage in Washington, DC but, the show's fans have reason to rejoice with the news that Sh-KPost Options-Boom Records will be recording the cast this February for release on CD.

Kitt and Yorkey's musical which focuses on a family in crisis follows a high-profile Off-Broadway run at Second Stage Theatre. The collaborators include Kitt, Yorkey, director Michael Grief, and choreographer Sergio A.Trujillo. Next to Normal chronicles the story of a mentally unstable mother and the waves she creates in the lives of her husband and daughter and stars Tony Award nominee Alice Ripley (Side Show), who returns to the project as mom Diana.

Also part of the Arena Stage cast were Aaron Tveit (Wicked, Hairspray) as son Gabe; Jennifer Damiano (Spring Awakening) as daughter Natalie; and Adam Chanler-Berat (Broadway's Les Misérables) as Henry, a classmate. J. Robert Spencer (Nick Massi in the original cast of Jersey Boys) joined the cast as the harried father, Dan, and Louis Hobson played multiple roles, including doctors. Spencer was in the original Next to Normal workshops and has a rich history with the show. [Hobson also participated in an early reading of the show.]

The Off-Broadway production which played an extended, sold-out run at Second Stage Theatre received the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Score, as well as the following nominations: Outstanding Musical (Outer Critics Circle, Drama League, Lortel Awards), Outstanding Leading Actress in a Musical for Alice Ripley (Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle), Outstanding Score (Drama Desk) and Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical for Aaron Tveit (Lortel Award), among others.

For more information, visit http://nexttonormal.org and http://www.myspace.com/nexttonormal

and

http://www.sh-k-boom.com/

original article

.

a Broadway run in the wings?

2008-08-25T14:10:00.002-07:00

N2N excerpt:

There may be additions to the schedule before April 30, when eligibility ends for the Tonys. Producers of “Next to Normal” an unlikely pop-rock musical about a family coping with loss and mental illness, are considering a Broadway run, people familiar with the situation said.

The John Golden Theatre, one of Broadway’s smallest houses and the current home of “Avenue Q,” is a leading candidate for the show if it were to become available, according to people familiar with the producers’ plans.

‘Avenue Q’

Goodman produced “Avenue Q,” a 5 1/2-year-old, ribald puppet musical. She worked with the composer of “Next to Normal,” Tom Kitt, on 2006’s “High Fidelity.”

“I want Tom Kitt to have his show on Broadway, but not necessarily in my theater,” she said with a laugh. “’Avenue Q’ is doing fine right now. We don’t know what’s ahead.”

“Avenue Q” grossed $247,179 last week, down 15 percent from a year earlier, according to the Broadway League, a trade association.

Broadway Opens 40 Shows, Luring Ferrell, Gandolfini

By Philip Boroff

Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Broadway’s two dozen dark theaters won’t stay empty for long.

Defying the economic slump, producers are scheduled to present 19 Broadway shows in the next three months. If they all arrive ahead of the June 7 Tony awards, the 2008-09 season will go down as the busiest in two decades, with 40 new productions.

Broadway will have the most openings since 1986-87, when there were 43.

“It’s an embarrassment of riches, which is amazing in this economy,” said Robyn Goodman, a producer of “West Side Story,” which opens on March 19.

“Producers, God bless them, they are so optimistic,” Goodman said.

The emphasis is on star-driven plays, which cost a fraction of what it takes to produce a musical. Like “West Side Story” most of the upcoming big musicals are revivals that need no introduction, such as “Guys and Dolls” and “Hair.”

The multitude of famous actors onstage could pack the Rialto hangout Bar Centrale. They include Will Ferrell in “You’re Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush;” Jeremy Irons as a globe-trotting photojournalist in “Impressionism,” opposite Joan Allen; Jane Fonda, as a Beethoven-obsessed musicologist in Moises Kaufman’s “33 Variations;” Jeff Daniels, Marcia Gay Harden and James Gandolfini in French playwright Yasmina Reza’s social satire, “God of Carnage;” Oliver Platt and Lauren Graham in “Guys and Dolls” and Angela Lansbury in Noel Coward’s “Blithe Spirit.”

Hopeful Signs

Some shows may thrive amid the traffic jam. In the last three months of 2008, even as equity markets plunged and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. declared bankruptcy, a revival of “All My Sons” earned back its investors’ $3.25 million and “The Seagull” recouped its $2.55 million. Producers of the $2.26 million revival of David Mamet’s “Speed the Plow” said today that its investors were made whole. The show closes on Feb. 22.

There may be additions to the schedule before April 30, when eligibility ends for the Tonys. Producers of “Next to Normal” an unlikely pop-rock musical about a family coping with loss and mental illness, are considering a Broadway run, people familiar with the situation said.

The John Golden Theatre, one of Broadway’s smallest houses and the current home of “Avenue Q,” is a leading candidate for the show if it were to become available, according to people familiar with the producers’ plans.

‘Avenue Q’

Goodman produced “Avenue Q,” a 5 1/2-year-old, ribald puppet musical. She worked with the composer of “Next to Normal,” Tom Kitt, on 2006’s “High Fidelity.”

“I want Tom Kitt to have his show on Broadway, but not necessarily in my theater,” she said with a laugh. “’Avenue Q’ is doing fine right now. We don’t know what’s ahead.”

“Avenue Q” grossed $247,179 last week, down 15 percent from a year earlier, according to the Broadway League, a trade association.

Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5,” starring Allison Janney and based on the 1980 movie, is the only big new musical confirmed for the spring. Other newcomers are “Rock of Ages,” an inspired full- length skit from off-Broadway that mocks and celebrates rock anthems of the 1980s; and “The Story of My Life,” a two- character show described in a press release as an “original story about friendship, success and the choices we make at the turning points in our lives.”

Coward Returns

Noel Coward’s 1941 farce, “Blithe Spirit,” featuring Christine Ebersole, is having its first Broadway run in 22 years. Christopher Hampton’s “The Philanthropist,” which Frank Rich described in 1983 as “a most enjoyable toy of a play” and stars Matthew Broderick as a philology professor, returns to Broadway after 38 years.

Geoffrey Rush originated his role in the revival of Eugene Ionesco’s “Exit the King” in Australia. He plays opposite Susan Sarandon, as a king who left his country near ruin.

Playwright-screenwriter-director Neil LaBute has his Broadway debut with “reasons to be pretty,” an off-Broadway transfer. The Roundabout Theatre Co. stages “Waiting for Godot,” with Nathan Lane, John Goodman and Bill Irwin.

Irwin appeared in a starry Lincoln Center Theater “Godot” in 1988, with David Hyde Pierce as an understudy. This season, weeks after turning 50, Pierce opens in “Accent on Youth,” about a playwright who falls in love with a younger woman.

“Fela!,” a musical about Nigerian composer, musician and activist Fela Anikulapo Kuti, won’t come in this season. It received Broadway buzz and enthusiastic notices during its two- month run, ending in October, at 37 Arts off-Broadway. Since then, producers have wrestled with how to make an enterprise with 12 musicians and 20 performers viable. In addition to Broadway, they considered St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn.

“We’re trying to figure out what’s the best thing to do for the show,” producer Stephen Hendel said.

To contact the writer on this story: Philip Boroff in New York at pboroff@bloomberg.net.

original article link

Next to Normal Alice Ripley

Feeling Electric (now Next to Normal)

2008-08-25T14:10:00.001-07:00

(see: Feeling Electric)

Next to Normal - off-Broadway

2008-08-25T14:06:00.001-07:00

N2N website - TONS of info!

N2N on MySpace

The Safe Space Heard ’Round the World

December 10, 2008
Lisa Kasamoto
BackWard Press

"Next to Normal", the new musical at Arena Stage, stars Alice Ripley as a woman with bipolar disorder struggling to regain herself, while also dealing with the effects her losing battle is having on her family.
You don’t soon forget her voice.

Ms. Ripley has several CDs out and they are worth a listen because of her crystal clear range, but also because of her versatility in vocal styles. From song to song, her voice has a different sound, from Rebecca Luker to Natalie Merchant to Tricia Yearwood; it’s a curious talent. Also speaking to talent, she writes all of her own music and lyrics: strong-willed, poignant, intelligent – none of which are a given in the field.

But the sound that went straight to my heart was this cry of pain, defiance, and something all too real in "Next to Normal", as she sings of what only someone living inside the disorder can see, hear, and feel:

"Do you wake up in the morning and need help to lift your head?
Do you read obituaries and feel jealous of the dead?
It’s like living on a cliffside, not knowing when you’ll dive.
Do you know, do you know what it’s like to die alive?"

You don’t spend 16 years taking pills, further medicating the guaranteed side effects, but without a single guarantee of relief–

you don’t find yourself helpless to save your daughter from feeling, "It only hurts when I’m here, it only hurts when I breathe."–

you don’t reach for your son and have your husband step in the way–

you don’t reach within for laughter and love, only to find everything’s numb–

then reach for something sharper to connect with– without being forced to explode with the raw truth:

"You don’t know!"

In front of four hundred people eight times a week, we are given a voice and stage because she is there to speak for us. And that note is the most piercing one. Because of its octave, delivery, and undeniable truth, it overpowers the husband’s and son’s lines to strike an audience of bipolar souls and the ones trying to love them; the average ignorant who creates false distance by saying, I am sane, you are not; and the so-called doctors finally seeing a person who, up until now, has been a faceless recipient on the other side of a prescription pad.

"You don’t know.
I know you don’t know.
You say that you’re hurting, it sure doesn’t show.
You don’t know.
It lays me so low
when you say 'Let go' and I say, 'You don’t know!'"

Her voice penetrates and echoes out, over and onto the audience. The look on her face haunts me and I can’t stop staring because I’m looking at myself.

For every show that plays, there are people who are changed and that makes it a safer world for me. A show that shows me my life is a show that is saving it. From the gasping, crying, and holding on I hear all around me, I know it’s not just me.

A standing ovation is an easy thing to do for a show that’s brave, necessary, and rock-and-roll bold, that’s almost completely sung through for two hours, and lit in colors that fuel a continuous emotional journey, but what I saw for each of 10 nights, are people who’ve been hiding behind walls for too many dark years, standing for the first time.

Bravo and thank you.

.

Next to Normal - VA/D.C.

2008-08-25T14:00:00.002-07:00

Congratulations on a successful run
and amazing journey

Nov. 21, 2008 - Jan. 18, 2009

Everything is here:

N2N website

N2N on MySpace

Review:

The Safe Space Heard ’Round the World

next to normal on Broadway

2008-08-25T13:55:00.004-07:00

This page is no longer being updated due to time constraints.

please go to http://www.facebook.com/n2nbroadway

.

x

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x

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On the Twentieth Century

2008-08-25T13:50:00.000-07:00

Sept. 24 (or 25?), 2005

as "Lily Garland" or "Lilly Garland"?

The Cultler-Majestic Theatre
Boston, MA

a Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur comedy

source: edgeboston.com

Open All Night: Lance Horne

2008-08-25T13:49:00.004-07:00

Open All Night: The Songs of Lance Horne
Sept. 19-20, 2008
Hollywood, CA

Alice Ripley, Cumming, Warren, Thoms and More Will Sing Horne Songs Sept. 19-20

excerpt:
The Upright Cabaret in Mark's Restaurant in Hollywood, CA, will present two evenings celebrating the work of Lance Horne.

The Sept. 19 and 20 concerts will begin at 9 PM. Among those scheduled to join composer Horne are Alice Ripley (Next to Normal, Side Show), Jennifer Leigh Warren (Big River, "Lipstick Jungle") Tom Lowe (Les Misérables at the Hollywood Bowl), Julie Garnye (Actors Fund Hair concert), Tracie Thoms (Rent, "Cold Case") and special guest Alan Cumming (Cabaret).

Orchestra Underground

2008-08-25T13:49:00.003-07:00

Nov. 17, 2004
concert at Zankel Hall of Carnegie Hall

source: Q & A with Alice Ripley and American Composers Orchestra

Philadelphia Pops

2008-08-25T13:49:00.002-07:00

Alice Saves the Day!

I've heard of performers replacing under-the-weather singers before — Betty Buckley stepped in for Bernadette Peters a few years ago when Peters came down with bronchitis, and Patti LuPone similarly offered a few concerts at the now-defunct Rainbow & Stars when the late Rosemary Clooney fell ill — but I don't think I've never heard of a performer being asked to sing the other person's repertoire, especially on one day's notice!

Such was the case last weekend when the ever-busy ALICE RIPLEY — who is one of the luminaries set for this weekend's L.A. Richard Rodgers concert — was asked to replace LINDA EDER in concert with the Philly Pops. Eder was felled by laryngitis, and Ripley was asked to take over her weekend of Philadelphia concerts. Had I known about the diva switch — which I found quite extraordinary — I would have headed to Philly just to hear Ripley's interpretations of such Eder staples as "Someone Like You," "The Man of La Mancha" and "Bridge Over Troubled Water." In fact, several diva lovers wrote me about Ripley's performances, which they described as "thrilling," "unforgettable"; and, my favorite, "We were floored!" Ripley also offered a few of her own charmers, including Stephen Sondheim's "Broadway Baby" and Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Unexpected Song"; she'll soon perform the latter when the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts mounts Lloyd Webber's Tell Me On a Sunday, Dec. 17 through Jan. 12.

Ripley told me earlier in the week that the Philadelphia concert was "much like being shot out of a cannon, all the while knowing I was eventually going to land on my feet, still in one piece! I was eager to help create a solution to such an agonizing dilemma. I've been in [Linda's] position before," Ripley said, "and I know how heartbreaking it is to lose your voice. Knowing there is a capable back-up willing to give it a try always makes you feel better. And I really hope Linda is feeling better."

About the Philadelphia audiences, the singer-actress said, "[They] were extremely warm and generous, for which I am very grateful. At one point in the show I told them, 'I'm so sorry that some of you came a long way to see Linda today, only to hear the news that she would not be here. Just for the record, people sometimes come a long way to hear me sing, too!'"

source: Alice Ripley News

Rafters (venue)

2008-08-25T13:49:00.001-07:00

When she finishes her run in the Kennedy Center's acclaimed production of Company, Ripley will perform several concerts throughout the country.

She will take part in the Carolina Arts Festival's Broadway Rocks for the Arts on Wednesday, July 3, in Cary, North Carolina. Ripley is one of many Broadway performers, including Anthony Rapp, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Lauren Mitchell and Terrence Mann, who will salute The Great White Way in the Festival's show tune evening.

On July 5, 2002, the former star of The Rocky Horror Show will perform at Rafters in St. Simons Island, GA., and July 7 will bring Ripley to Smith's Olde Bar in Atlanta, GA. She'll head to Jack Rabbits in Jacksonville, FL for a 10 PM concert on July 13, and August gigs include a 10:30 PM show at the Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, OH, on Aug. 3 and a return engagement at New York's Joe's Pub on Aug. 12.

Ripley will also offer a free concert at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage on June 24 at 6 PM.

source: Alice Ripley News

RENT (songs from...)

2008-08-25T13:49:00.000-07:00

1) "Without You", a duet with Kirk Detweiler, appears on two CDs:

- Shades of Wrong
- Songs for the Jesse

2) singing "Take Me or Leave Me" with Anthony Rapp

Rhythm Inside, The - Feb. 17, 2009

2008-08-25T13:46:00.002-07:00

Triad
158 W 72nd St
New York, NY 10023
(212) 362-2590

Jason Loffredo - “The Rhythm Inside”
Tuesday, Feb 17th, 2009
8:00 PM - 9:30 PM

no cover; 2 drink minimum; make reservations at the website

Alice Ripley
Next to Normal
.

RIPLEY, the band

2008-08-25T13:46:00.001-07:00

click for info

x

2008-08-25T13:41:00.000-07:00

Rock Shore

2008-08-25T13:40:00.000-07:00

O'Neill Theatre Center

source: American Theatre Wing bio

Rocky Horror Show, The

2008-08-25T13:39:00.000-07:00

Broadway revival

Oct. 19, 2000-Sept. 30, 2001 as "Janet Weiss"

Circle in the Square Theatre
Previews started: Oct. 19, 2000
Ran: Nov. 15, 2000-Jan. 6, 2002

One of the shows to feel the aftereffects of the Sept. 11th tragedy, it went on hiatus Sept. 23, 2001; re-0pened Oct. 30th, 2001, closed Jan. 6, 2002.

more info
> post-Sept. 11
> Internet Bway Database
> Wikipedia

Alice isn't listed in the Wikipedia entry - if you can fix that, thanks...

also see Sept. 11th concert series for ground zero workers:

Occupying the Grable blonde-goddess niche [from the U.S.O. days] was Alice Ripley, who soon had audience members dabbing at their eyes with her rendition of ''Someone to Watch Over Me.''

Rosie O'Donnell Show, The

2008-08-25T13:37:00.001-07:00

May 26, 1998

(TV)

"I Will Never Leave You" from Side Show
with Emily Skinner

source: imdb.com

Second Stage benefit

2008-08-25T13:36:00.003-07:00

2008

September 11th benefit

2008-08-25T13:36:00.001-07:00

x

2008-08-25T13:31:00.000-07:00

Shakespeare in Hollywood

2008-08-25T13:29:00.004-07:00

previews started: Sept. 5, 2003
opening night: Sept. 12
closing: Oct. 19

Arena Stage, Washington D.C.

as "Lydia Lansing"

synopsis: In an enchanted wood on a Hollywood soundstage, a comedy of errors is brewing. While Groucho Marx and Tarzan rush through the commissary, a lovely up-and coming starlet dreams of fame and love on the set of A Midsummer Night's Dream. She is immediately smitten with the mysterious and beguiling Oberon — but like his Shakespearean counterpart, this spellbinding fellow causes rapturous mayhem wherever he goes.

in Ripley's own words (on her website at the time): "I am ecstatic to deliver the good news that I have been cast in a new play by Ken Ludwig called Shakespeare in Hollywood, which will play at the Arena Stage in D.C. this fall. When I got the news, I put my face in my hands and cried with happiness. The play is hilarious."

Arena Stage enters two worlds — Shakespeare's arcadia and Hollywood's dream factory — for the premiere of Shakespeare in Hollywood, Ken Ludwig's new comedy about the creation of the MGM film, "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

Broadway's Alice Ripley (Side Show, The Rocky Horror Show) makes her Arena debut playing a character named Lydia Lansing in the Kyle Donnelly-directed production, launching the 2003-04 season at the DC not for-profit.

Ludwig is known for Lend Me a Tenor, Moon Over Buffalo and the books to the musicals, Crazy for You and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Casey Biggs plays Oberon and Robert Prosky (a two-time Tony Award nominee) is famed Austrian stage director Max Reinhardt, who directed the film of the Shakespeare fantasia.

Shakespeare in Hollywood plays the Arena's Fichandler. "Shakespeare in Hollywood is the entertaining fusion of Hollywood glitz, classic theatrical productions and Shakespeare's poetry around an event in cinema history – the making of Max Reinhardt's 1935 'A Midsummer Night's Dream,'" according to production notes. "Reinhardt's film featured several legendary stars of American movies: Jimmy Cagney, Dick Powell and Joe E. Brown – all of whom feature prominently as characters in Shakespeare in Hollywood.

source: Alice Ripley News

Helen Hayes Award nomination

source: American Theatre Wing bio