Pride Anthems program

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS (continued from page 12) Robert Brooks

Suzanne Putnam

Roberta G. Cohen M.S., R.N., C.S.

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PERFORMERS

90’s FREEDOM 90/TAKE YOUR MAMA (George Michael/Scissor Sisters)

Amy Jo Jackson

Sean Murphy, Electric Bass

Kevin Smith Kirkwood

Will Shishmanian, Electric Guitar

Marty Thomas

Dena Tauriello, Drums

Brian J. Nash, Musical Director

VOGUE/SUPERMODEL (Madonna/RuPaul) CONSTANT CRAVING (k.d. lang) COME TO MY WINDOW (Melissa Etheridge) LOVE IS ON THE WAY (Billy Porter)

PRIDE ANTHEMS SETLIST Theatre Opening I’M COMING OUT/JUST BE (Diana Ross/Kinky Boots)

I AM WHAT I AM (La Cage Aux Folles) I’LL COVER YOU (Rent)

Disco

RING OF KEYS (Fun Home)

ON THE RADIO/I FEEL LOVE (Donna Summer)

WIG IN A BOX (Hedwig & The Angry Inch)

MIGHTY REAL/GOT TO BE REAL/I WILL SURVIVE (Sylvester/Cheryl Lynn/ Gloria Gaynor)

TIME WARP (The Rocky Horror Picture Show)

New Queer Visibility HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN/GET HAPPY (Judy Garland/Barbra Streisand)

THE JOKE (Brandi Carlile)

AIDS Crisis

BELIEVE (Cher/Adam Lambert)

WILL I/LOVE DON’T NEED A REASON (Rent/Peter Allen)

STAY WITH ME (Sam Smith)

THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR (Dionne Warwick/Elton John/Stevie Wonder/ Gladys Knight)

GRACE KELLY (Mika)

80’s Icons

Finale OVER THE RAINBOW/SOMEWHERE (The Wizard of Oz/West Side Story)

UNDER PRESSURE (David Bowie/Freddie Mercury) EXPRESS YOURSELF/BORN THIS WAY (Madonna/Lady Gaga) I WANT TO BREAK FREE/A LITTLE RESPECT (Queen/Erasure)

ABOUT THE SHOW Join us as we celebrate Pride Month with a journey through the past 50 years of Pride Anthems. From Donna Summer and Queen to George Michael, Erasure, Madonna, Lady Gaga and much more, these essential songs take us from disco to the present day. The story of the fight for LGBTQ+ equality is linked to this music, which evokes the struggles, heartache, and liberation of queer lives then and now.

Pride Anthems creates a vibrant musical experience that celebrates, inspires and commemorates the legacy and power of the Stonewall Riots, and takes you on a musical and cultural journey through the past 50 years to today. Featuring Kevin Smith Kirkwood (Kinky Boots), NYC cabaret artist Amy Jo Jackson, and Grammy-nominated recording artist and actor, Marty Thomas, with musical direction by Brian J. Nash, Pride Anthems is a show for all ages to come together in song and celebration of where the LGBTQ+ community has come from and how far it has come since Stonewall!

Pride Anthems is produced in partnership with Pride Live. A portion of the proceeds benefit Pride Live and the Stonewall National Monument Visitors Center (SNMVC) which will open in June 2024. To learn more about Pride Live, please visit, pridelive.org

ABOUT PRIDE LIVE Pride Live is a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to accelerating awareness and support for the LGBTQ+community via social advocacy and community engagement to advance the fight for full equality. Our mission is to elevate awareness and support for the LGBTQ+ community. For us, that means having a positive impact and encouraging engagement from as many members of the community and allies as possible to continue the fight for full equality.

From working with our most marginalized and underrepresented organizations, to supporting the effort leading up to the declaration of Stonewall National Monument, launching the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion with a surprise performance

by Madonna at the Stonewall Inn, to conceptualizing Stonewall Day – Pride Live works in service of the LGBTQ+ community.

MEET THE ARTISTS AMY JO JACKSON (THEY/SHE) Amy Jo Jackson (they/she) is an award-winning cabaret artist for their acclaimed Tennessee Williams solo show The Brass Menagerie (2022 Bistro Award). Film credits include Sister Tammy in Dicks: The Musical (A24), and the singing voice of an animated crab from New Jersey in Under the Boardwalk (Paramount). Fav stage: Singin’ in the Rain (Weston), Fun Home (SpeakEasy Stage), Matilda (Constellation), Little Mermaid (Arkansas Rep), Cymbeline (Opera House Arts), Boeing-Boeing (Seven Angels). As a text/dialect coach, they’ve worked extensively in NYC and regionally, most notably on Broadway’s Kinky Boots. Their work as a kabarettist and nightlife artist has found them on just about every cabaret and comedy stage in NYC. Amy Jo is also a playwright and composer/lyricist (@hatchetationthemusical).

KEVIN SMITH KIRKWOOD Kevin Smith Kirkwood most recently appeared onstage in the Off-Broadway revival of Kinky Boots as the ‘Referee Angel’ and as ‘Victor’ in the Fulton Theater’s production of Smokey Joe’s Cafe to rave reviews. He was seen on television in The CW’s Katy Keene, and also appeared as a featured performer in the 2019 World Pride Parade on the Procter & Gamble float.

Kirkwood made his Broadway debut in the Tony Award-winning musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and earned a 2005 New York Innovative Theater Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor for It’s Karate, Kid! Kirkwood would go on to receive a New Hampshire Theater Alliance Award Nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor for Violet and won the award for Outstanding Supporting Actor for his performance in RENT. After performing in the entire Broadway run of the Tony Award-winning musical Kinky Boots, Kevin went on to play the role of the ‘Scarecrow’ in the Broadway at Sacramento Music Circus production of The Wiz, which received rave reviews.

On film, Kirkwood stars as ‘Roxy’ in the horror feature film entitled Condemned (written and directed by Eli Morgan Gesner and also starring Dylan Penn and Lydia Hearst). He can also be heard voicing the character DJ on season two of the podcast Marvel’s Wolverine: The Lost Trail.

Kirkwood created and stars in the wildly popular and critically acclaimed solo show, CLASSIC WHITNEY: ALIVE! which has played to sold out houses at Joe’s Pub, The Cutting Room, on cruise ships around the world, and even a command performance at the Whitney Houston estate.

MARTY THOMAS Marty Thomas is a Grammy-nominated recording artist and actor who made his Broadway debut at age 11 as Colin in The Secret Garden. His first major label recording was singing backing vocals for Carly Simon at the age of 12. That same year, Marty was named a Junior Vocalist Champion on Ed McMahon’s Star Search, beating out a then-unknown Britney Spears. Marty used his success as a child actor to parlay a very successful stage career on and off Broadway. He performed in the Broadway smash hit musicals Wicked and Xanadu. Marty was featured in the independent film Big Gay Musical, played Damon on the CBS sitcom Two Broke Girls and Charlie on the Netflix series Grace and Frankie. He has toured internationally with groups like The Harlem Gospel Singers and Postmodern Jukebox. He has sung with the likes of Billy Porter, Grace Jones, Patti LaBelle, Barry Manilow, Johnny Cash, Kristin Chenoweth, Jessica Vosk and many more. Marty has three full-length albums available on all streaming platforms. He has appeared on every major cruise line and has sung the national anthem for the New York Islanders and the Brooklyn Nets. Marty has appeared on MTV, VH1, The Oxygen Network, The Today Show, and The Tony Awards. Follow on Instagram @Martythomaslovesyou and read more at Martythomas.com.

BRIAN J. NASH Brian J. Nash is an award-winning pianist, singer, musical director, orchestrator, and producer who has been based in New York since 2002. Brian has been the Music Director of many off-Broadway and regional musicals, and works in concert with Jennifer Holliday, Deborah Cox, Andy Bell (Erasure), Ana Gasteyer, Laura Benanti, Tiffany, Shoshana Bean, Natalie Joy Johnson, Ada Vox, Christina Bianco, and many others. Brian recently sold out a run at the Sydney Cabaret Festival, performs around the world as both an award-winning solo artist and music director, and from March 2020 to September 2022 performed a weekly series of streaming all-request shows. As a record producer, he has produced and played on pop and rock records for Justin Tranter, Shanna Sharp, Boys Like Girls, Peppermint, and Stacy Allyn Baker, and many cabaret and cast albums. He holds a degree in opera performance from Boston Conservatory and has taught master classes in song interpretation all over the world. His collaboration with Natalie Joy Johnson has resulted in two multi-year residencies in NYC and recordings with their band, Miss Natalie. His solo album, Forever/After, is available on iTunes. For more info, please visit BrianJNash.com.

SEAN MURPHY Sean Murphy is a bassist living in NYC who has performed with artists such as Ana Gasteyer, Christina Bianco, Natalie Joy Johnson, and Julian Fleisher. Recent sub credits: Suffs, The Notebook, Spamalot, Shucked, New York, New York, A Beautiful Noise, 1776, Radio City Christmas Spectacular. National Tours:

Finding Neverland, Beauty and the Beast. Off-Broadway: ¡Americano!, Felix Starro.

Regional: Evita and Camelot at Bay Street Theatre, La Cage aux Folles at Riverside Theater. Sean is also a huge tech geek and loves photography. @bassmurphy

DENA TAURIELLO As a studied musician of several decades, Dena Tauriello’s versatility has afforded her opportunities to play in a variety of settings - from arenas to rock clubs and Broadway theaters to recording studios. She has been highlighted in several drum publications, including the September 2018 issue of Modern Drummer Magazine. Dena has held the drum chair for the following Broadway and Off-Broadway productions: Little Shop of Horrors; Kristin Chenoweth: For the Girls; Head Over Heels; Cher Show (sub drummer); Magic Mike the Musical. Dena is also a sub-drummer for the following Broadway productions: Hamilton, Six and Beetlejuice.

Prior to her transition to Broadway, Dena spent nearly 20 years with the all-female rock band Antigone Rising. The band toured constantly for several years, racking up 260+ shows per year. They were signed by Lava/Atlantic Records and released From the Ground Up in conjunction with Starbucks’ Hear Music Debut Series, which has sold well over 250,000 copies. Other opportunities included a VH1 Special, appearances on the Today Show and Tonight Show, A&E’s Breakfast with the Arts and Emeril, as well as twice serving the US State Department as Arts Envoys to Israel, Palestine, and Vietnam. Dena also worked with Matchbox 20 front man Rob Thomas for several years as a member of the RT Quartet.

WILL SHISHMANIAN Will Shishmanian is a composer/lyricist/guitarist based in NYC. He wrote Amberland: A Folk Musical, which was performed in concert at Hope Mill Theater in 2022 and was featured in Playbill’s Songwriter Series in November 2023. He co-wrote A Piece of the Past with collaborator Brooke Trumm for Prospect Theater Company’s Musical Theater lab in 2023, which was performed again at SOUND BITES 11 in May 2024. Will plays guitar for concerts, readings, and recording sessions around the city, and is thrilled to be on guitar for Pride Anthems for the second year. His solo music can be found under the artist name Will Shish @willshish.