NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN’S Holiday Train Show Offers Green Gift to New York
By Tom Citrano
New York is brimming with holiday traditions. From the Rockefeller Center Tree, to the Radio City Holiday Show, to the ice-skating in Bryant Park, every family has activities they like to enjoy at this time of year. And over the last 18 years more than a million of them have ventured out to the New York Botanical Garden to enjoy the Holiday Train Show.
Popularity: 81% [?]
Simply Stamos: Twelve Before Eight
By Tom Citrano
Times Square is full of people from all walks of life. Some of them are New Yorkers. Most are from out of town. They’ve traveled here from across the country and around the world to enjoy the best our city has to offer. One of the things they would seem to have in common is their love for John Stamos.
Popularity: 5% [?]
Onstage, Montego Glover loves MEMPHIS but offstage she sings about her green and healthy-living life in New York City!
By Tom Citrano
Don’t be confused when walking down Shubert Alley and you hear strains of a Memphis-tinged fusion of blues and rock and roll. You’re still in New York, but what you might be hearing is the exciting, original score from Broadway’s newest musical hit, Memphis. Memphis is previewing at the Shubert Theatre, in preparation for an October 19th opening. Memphis takes place in the smoky halls and underground clubs of the 1950’s. Huey Calhoun, a young, white DJ, falls in love with everything he shouldn’t: rock and roll and an electrifying black singer, Felicia Farrell. 
Montego Glover plays Felicia Farrell. Montego made her Broadway debut in The Color Purple (playing Celie and Nettie) and has traveled across the country many times, appearing in touring productions and regional theaters in a wide variety of roles. She also has an expansive list of credits in TV, studio recordings, concerts and commercials. Montego originated the role of Felicia in the initial production of Memphis at the La Jolla Playhouse. Ms. Glover lives in New York and is excited about settling back into her own home for a long Broadway run, while performing in Memphis. Montego took a few minutes between rehearsals to talk to Natural Awakenings NYC about her healthy life outside Memphis.
Popularity: 5% [?]
Localfeature
Creative Expression and Healthy Living Play Big Role in
Real-Life of West Side Story’s Matt Cavenaugh
By Tom Citrano
This month Natural Awakenings’ theme is “Creative Expression.” And there is no better example of “Creative Expression” than the American musical theater classic, West Side Story. This enduring fan favorite was created over fifty years ago by a team of iconic geniuses who each individually changed the way we experience the arts. Together they created West Side Story, a work that has stood the test of time and redefined the medium. This team of theatrical superheroes included Leonard Bernstein (music), Stephen Sondheim (lyrics), Arthur Laurents (book), and Jerome Robbins (choreography).
Popularity: 5% [?]
BILLY ELLIOT’S GREGORY JBARA On Being a Dad, Onstage and Off
By Tom Citrano
This month’s cover features the Broadway show, Billy Elliot. Audiences and critics alike have embraced this stage adaptation of the well-received movie. Billy Elliot is played by a rotating group of talented young dancer-actors. Pictured on the cover are Kiril Kulish, David Alvarez and Trent Kowalik, who each won Best Actor in a Musical Tony Awards for their portrayals of Billy.
Popularity: 20% [?]
BETHENNY FRANKEL
NATURALLY CANDID
By Tom Citrano
Reality television fans know Bethenny Frankel from her scene-stealing performance on Bravo’s ratings powerhouse, “The Real Housewives of New York.” Her star-making presence has been acclaimed for its candor, wit and humor. But Bethenny is much more than a “Real Housewife.” She’s a self-proclaimed “health foodie” who attended the National Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts. What started out as a hobby, quickly became a career. After graduating Bethenny took her knack for making healthy food delicious and turned it into a career. Her company, Bethenny Bakes, featured a line of her low fat, wheat, egg and dairy-free products. Frankel also started a catering company and a private cooking service for Hollywood A-listers, including Mariska Hargitay, Denis Leary, Susan Sarandon and Alicia Silverstone. Bethenny’s first reality show “The Apprentice: Martha Stewart” provided audiences a glimpse of her formidable charm and culinary knowledge. Martha herself praised the “break-out star” for her skills in the boardroom and kitchen. Now in Bethenny’s new book, Naturally Thin, she shares her knowledge and passion for maintaining a healthy and balanced lifestyle.
Popularity: unranked [?]
HAIR – A Brief History of the American Tribal Love-Rock Musical
October 17, 1967
was opening night at the new Public Theater for the world-premiere of Hair. The show was considered to be a radical departure from the normal musical-comedy fare. Hair’s portrayal of the new counter-culture, complete with the controversial dress and lifestyle of the “Hippie” movement, including rock music, questionable language and a strong anti-war message foreshadowed what was to become the Public Theater’s mission statement; to bring the issues of the day, directly to their stages. The Public Theater still pursues that mission and Hair still rings true for audiences, forty years after it first opened.
Popularity: unranked [?]
9 to 5: The Musical
Is a
Green Way to
Make a Living
on Broadway
By Tom Citrano
It’s been 29 years since the movie 9 to 5, opened in movie theaters around the world. The comedic story of three underpaid women plotting revenge against their sexist boss, carried the torch of equality in the workplace into the 1980’s. That torch is still burning brightly and delighting theater audiences in the new Broadway smash, 9 to 5: The Musical at the Marriott Marquis Theater in New York City. This new musical comedy, based on the hit movie, features the memorable title song from the film, along with 18 original songs from multiple Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Dolly Parton, one of the original stars from the movie (along with Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin).
Popularity: unranked [?]
Tyler Florence Relies on Local Organic Foods to Keep His Family happy and healthy
By Tom Citrano
Tyler Florence leads a double life. By day and sometimes, by night, he is an internationally recognized chef, TV personality (Food Network star, Oprah guest contributor) and author. Tyler’s creative and sophisticated food is served at charity galas, festivals and food and lifestyle events in some of the most glamorous and exotic locations around the world. But there’s another side of Tyler, as far removed from the world of duck confit and foie gras as one can get.
Popularity: unranked [?]
SHREK Continues on Broadway
The Great White Way Goes Green
by Tom Citrano
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg recently announced the commencement of “Broadway Goes Green,” a partnership between New York City and the Broadway theaters. The intent of this new coalition is to shrink the Shrek- ian-sized carbon footprint of the Broadway community.
Popularity: unranked [?]