Broadway performers ‘Sing For Your Supper’ at Kingsborough

Stars of 'Jersey Boys,' 'The Addams Family,' 'Anything Goes' among the cast

December 2, 2013 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

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Performers who have appeared in some of the most memorable Broadway shows in recent years will be singing for their supper at Kingsborough Community College on Saturday night.

Matt Scott, who played Frankie Valli in “Jersey Boys,” is among the stage veterans lending their talents to “Sing For Your Supper,” a special concert featuring dozens of songs from Broadway musicals that will be presented on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 8 p.m., as part of On Stage at Kingsborough, a performing arts series at the community college.

The show will take place in the theater located on the community college’s campus at 2001 Oriental Boulevard in Manhattan Beach.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” Scott told the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in a recent interview. “There will be solos, duets, trios, and quartets. It builds up and it comes down again,” he said.

In addition to “Jersey Boys,” which marked his Broadway debut, Scott’s theater credits include “Sondheim On Sondheim,” a musical review featuring the work of legendary composer Stephen Sondheim. That show was written and directed by James Lapine, Sondheim’s frequent collaborator.

On Stage at Kingsborough is presenting “Sing For Your Supper” in association with the Merkin Concert Hall’s “Broadway Close-Up” series.

Cast members Scott, Heidi Blickenstaff (“The Addams Family”), Erin Mackey (“Wicked”), Mary Michael Patterson (“Anything Goes”), Lewis Cleale (“The Book of Mormon”) and the show’s producer/writer/host Sean Hartley, of the Theater Wing and the Kaufman Music Center, will take the audience on a journey through Broadway’s best songs and hidden gems, performing numbers from such classic shows as “West Side Story,” “Most Happy Fella,” “A Little Night Music,” and “Boys From Syracuse.”

The show celebrates the work of Irving Berlin, Stephen Sondheim, Frank Loesser, Rodgers and Hart, William Finn and other great Broadway composers.

But don’t expect a rehash of old material, Scott said.

“David Loud, our musical director, is one of the best there is on Broadway,” Scott said. “David approaches each project as an historian. He finds things other people might not have noticed and gives it an interesting twist,” he said.

Loud was the musical director for the recent acclaimed revival of “Porgy and Bess” on Broadway.

Noah Racey (“Curtains”) is the director of “Sing For Your Supper.” Loud is the musical director and Paul Masse (“The Scottsboro Boys”) is the pianist.

Anne Becker, executive director of On Stage at Kingsborough, said the goal of the performing arts program is to bring world class talent to southern Brooklyn for audiences to enjoy and for the community college’s students to be inspired by.

“We want to make the arts accessible to as many people as possible. We keep it at a quarter of the price of a Broadway show to provide arts and culture to the greater community,” Becker told the Eagle.

On Stage At Kingsborough has presented concerts by such Broadway performers as Faith Prince, Tommy Tune, and Lorna Luft. The program has also featured opera and film screenings.

“The artists don’t know what to expect. But they are often thrilled by Brooklyn audiences,” Becker said. And the college’s performance space “is a beautiful, state-of-the-art theater,” she said.

Whenever it’s possible, Kingsborough “tries to give our students exposure to the performers so that they can learn from them,” Becker said.

Scott said he and his wife, Kirsten Scott, who is currently starring in the Broadway musical “Big Fish,” believe in giving back to the community through educational programs. The Scotts coach college students as part of the Broadway Dreams Foundation, a non-profit organization that mentors young performers. “We try to the pull the absolute best out of the students,” Matt Scott said.

His advice to young people seeking careers in the theater? “Don’t do it. Become a doctor,” he said.

“Just kidding,” Scott said. “It’s hard. It’s a hard business. The advice I would give is that you have to embrace your own uniqueness. Don’t try to be like someone else,” he said.

Tickets for “Sing For Your Supper” are $35.00 and $30.00. Call 718-368-5596 or visit www.onstageatkingsborough.org for ticket information.

Free parking is available on the community college’s campus. Kingsborough is also accessible by public transportation. By Bus: Take the B1 or B49 bus straight to the front gate. By Subway: Take the B, Q, F, D, or N and transfer to the B1 bus for a short ride to the campus.