Andrew Gerle may very well be the next Steven Sondheim of the Broadway stage. As a composer, lyricist, playwright and author, Gerle is a three-time recipient of the Richard Rodgers Award for new musical writing administered by the American Academy of Arts and Letters for “The Tutor” and recently took home his fourth for his original musical “Gloryana.” He won a 2006 Jonathan Larson Award for the music of “Meet John Doe,” which had its world premiere at Washington’s Ford’s Theatre in 2007 and was nominated for seven Helen Hayes Awards. Recently he was heard as the “hands” of Coalhouse Walker Jr. in the Tony Award-winning revival of “Ragtime” at the Neil Simon Theatre.
On Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, however, it won’t be another award for this Broadway baby. Tonight, it’s all about the music.
| Onstage |
| Broadway’s Andrew Gerle |
| Where: Millennium Stage, Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW |
| When: 6 p.m. Sunday |
| Info: Free; 800-444-1324 or 202-467-4600; kennedy-center.org |
“I’m so excited because we have an hour to do whatever I want to do, Gerle explained. “I have two incredible performers; Karen Ziemba, a Tony Award winner, a huge Broadway star and very dear friend, who’s been doing reviews of mine here in New York. And joining us will be Betsy Wolfe, a fantastic new voice on the Broadway scene.”
Since the evening is part of ASCAP’s “Songwriters: the Next Generation” series, the performance showcases the works of a particular lyricist for the audience to enjoy.
“We’ll be doing solos and duets from [several] of my shows with a few songs from my new one, ‘Gloryana,’ ” Gerle said. “I’ll introduce some of the songs; some songs stand alone, others require a little background.”
While Gerle accompanies his singers on piano, there will also be a bass player and a drummer for added musical dimension.
But even as audiences leave theaters humming the show tunes they just heard, that phenomenon is simply one-half of the Broadway musical pie.
“Musical theater is great storytelling,” Gerle explained. “I think musicals will always be with us as long as there is great music [with] great stories.”
