Justin Ritchie in Annapolis Next Weekend

Justin Ritchie is on the road

Hi Everyone,

 I’ve been invited by Ronald Giddings and Debbie Barber-Eaton to perform my solo show, “On My Way Here” for Standing O Productions’ summer cabaret series.  I will be sharing the stage that night with the lovely and talented Alicia Sweeney.  She has a wonderful show called “It’s Not Me…It’s You”

 

I know most of my peeps reside in D.C., but I could really use your support in Annapolis on Friday, July 16th and Saturday, July 17th @ 8pm.  Maybe make a day trip out of it on Saturday the 17th??  Annapolis is lovely this time of year.  Standing O Productions needs your support as well – your ticket price goes to funding the excellent work this theater company puts up each year.  Remember that your ticket price also includes a ticket for one free glass of wine or a beer.  You can’t beat that deal!

 

 What do you say?  I hope you can make it.  I’ve included all the details below.  It’s going to be a great night.

 

 Much love,

 

Justin

 

What:  ”On My Way Here”

When:  Friday, July 16th and Saturday, July 17th @ 8pm – doors open 7:30pm

***Reservations are high recommended.***

Where:  Chesapeake Academy Black Box Theatre

                1185 Baltimore Annapolis Boulevard

               Arnold, MD 21012  

               For tickets, reservations and more details go to www.standingoproductions.org or call(410) 647-8412 

Justin Ritchie at the Metropolitan Room

You know you’re at the right place in the cabaret world when you look up and see Julie Wilson there.  Last Saturday, at 5:00, that place was the Metropolitan Room for Justin Ritchie’s show, On My Way Here.

Justin presented a terrific variety of material, beautifully sung and emotionally expressed.  (Don’t take my word for it, see Jenna Esposito’s review in Broadway World.) 

Having seen an earlier iteration of the show, it was really nice to see how well Justin had settled into the material.  Favorite moments for me were the way he made the intro of the song But Beautiful really work, and the humor he got out of He Never Did That Before.  And he was endearing and spontaneous while accompanying himself on Mrs. Whitney.  Needless to say, for the rest of the show, Rick Jensen provided his typically wonderful and inventive music direction.

It was also great to see the contingent of people from DC who made the trip to see Justin including Mary Reilly, Lonny Smith, Maris Wicker, and Chris Cochran; plus Jill Leger made the trip down from Toronto.  So a lovely, lovely way to spend an afternoon !

Justin Ritchie at St. Margaret’s this Friday

Justin Ritchie in

On My Way Here

Accompanied by Howard Breitbart / Directed by Lina Koutrakos

A look at the events and journeys that make up life – good, bad or somewhere in between – told through the songs of Elton John, Jimmy Van Husen and Johnny Burke, Dolly Parton, Noel Coward and more. 

Friday December 4th at 8pm.

Maggie’s Cabaret – 1830 Connecticut Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20009

Tickets – $20.00 and available at the door only (includes coupon for one beverage).

Doors open at 7:15pm and the show starts at 8:00pm

Justin Ritchie at Sitar Arts Center

Thanks to Matt Howe for the pictures of Justin Ritchie and Rick Jensen at Justin’s terrific show, On My Way Here !

Justin Ritchie at Sitar Arts Center

Justin Ritchie in

On My Way Here

Musical director, Rick Jensen / Directed by Lina Koutrakos

A look at the events and journeys that make up life – good, bad or somewhere in between – told through the songs of Elton John, Jimmy Van Husen and Johnny Burke, Dolly Parton, Noel Coward and more. 

Friday November 13th and Saturday November 14th @ 8pm

Sitar Arts Center – 1700 Kalorama Road, NW – Washington, DC 202.797.2145

Tickets and more information available at www.onmywayhere.eventbrite.com

Tickets $15.00

In Full Light at Germano’s

Ron and I went up to see In Full Light at Germano’s last night, featuring Justin Ritchie, Terri Allen, and Lonny Smith.

It was really great to see the show again.  And it’s always especially nice to see a piece like this after the performers had the ability to get the show “in their skin” where they seem to be able to re-direct that bit of energy that worries about things like what song is next, what’s the patter, what will the pianist be doing, to giving a performance and connecting with the audience.  It especially showed in efforts like Terri Allen’s more focused take on Misery and Happiness and Lonny Smith’s I Could Be in Love with Someone.*

The three performers pretty much kept the same song order that they had in the two previous incarnations of the show, adding the We Can Make It (Justin) / Maybe This Time (Lonny) / Isn’t This Better (Terri) trio from And the World Goes Round as an encore.  And of course, Mary Sugar’s music direction made the venue’s upright sound like an entire Broadway pit band.

Germano’s remains a terrific venue, and Cyd Wolf who runs the cabaret series does an amazing job at making audience members welcome (and booking a pretty terrific series with local talent).  Oh, and the food is terrific.

*I’ve gotten feedback that this review seems negative about Justin by omission — he was terrific!

In Full Light at Germano’s on Friday

Lonny Smith, Terri Allen, and Justin Ritchie reprise their terrific In Full Light show Friday night, March 27th, at Germano’s in Baltimore.  From what I understand from Lonny, the group has restructured the show a bit and also added new material.

Additional information

Lina Koutrakos and Rick Jensen at Indigo

The amazing teacher / performer Lina Koutrakos and renown music director Rick Jensen bring their Cabaret Intensive workshop to town this coming weekend.  The workshop features two public performances at Indigo at the Atlas Arts Center that promise to be incredibly entertaining events at amazing prices:

Lina Koutrakos in Concert — Saturday, January 24th, 8pm.

The NYTimes writes, “In her heated interpretations of classic torch songs sensitively accompanied on piano by Rick Jensen, Ms. Koutrakos implies that the war between Venus and Mars may have reached a stalemate. “ 

TWO FOR ONE DISCOUNT – Jan 24th  8 p.m. performance with LINA KOUTRAKOS
at The Indigo Room.  2 tickets for $20 ($10 food/drink minimum applies). Rick
Jensen, music director. Tim Schall opens the evening. Available at door, night
of show.
 

Participant Showcase — Sunday, January 25th, 7pm.

The terrific line-up of local talent participating in the Cabaret Intensive put on a show directed by Lina Koutrakos with music direction by Rick Jensen.  Participants scheduled to appear include Debbie Barber-Eaton, Marilyn Bennett, Christy Frye, Emily Gleichenhaus Everson, Char James-Duguid, Justin Ritchie, Lonny Smith, Christy Trapp, and Steve Spar. 

$10 available at the door. (Food/drink minimum applies).

Indigo at the Atlas Arts Center, 1333 H St, NE, Washington DC

Two great shows this week!!! (Or, if a good man is hard to find, look in full light)

A Good Man Is Hard to Find

In Full Light

 

 When it rains, it pours.  Lonny Smith is involved with two shows and sends the following details:

A Good Man is Hard to Find – “an evening of cabaret about lassoing, leaving, and lamenting good men” – will play at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 15, and Sat., Jan 17 at 1409 Playbill Cafe at 1409 14th Street NW. Tickets are $10 – reservations can be made by email at goodmanreservation@gmail.com  The show features Lonny Smith, Alicia Steffman, and Elizabeth Keyes.

In Full Light – “a humorous but honest look at our world as it falls apart in plain view” – will play at 8 and 10 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 16 and 10 p.m. on Jan. 17 at the Playbill Cafe. Tickets are $15 – reservations may be placed by email at goodmanreservation.gmail.com.  The show features Lonny Smith, Terri Allen, and Justin Ritchie.

 

Musical direction is for both is by Mary Sugar, who recently appeared as pianist for the show, Broadway: Three Generations at the Kennedy Center.

Cabaret fans who wish to make a double feature of both shows may do so on Saturday for a discounted admission of $20.

Photos by Matt Howe. 

VoixDeVille — Past and Future

I went to VoixDeVille at Indigo at the Atlas Theater last Saturday.  I got my cheese plate and a Diet Coke!!!!  So things are looking up service-wise.

It was great to see Terri Allen, Lonny Smith, and Justin Ritchie do their In Full Light piece.  The three are terrific performers and I loved them singing their songs.  I also love a show where Help is the second-oldest song in the line-up.  And Mary Sugar provided fabulous musical support (but what else would one expect). I feel that these terrific performers have not yet achieved their full potential with this piece, especially in terms of show structure and connective  tissue.  So it’ll be interesting to see if there’s a next edition.

The rest of the evening was more of a mixed bag than the previous time I went.  But there was a pleasantly mixed crowd, so let’s hope we see more!!!  Congratulations to Scott Burgess — host and producer — to how far you’ve gotten this so far!

Here’s the line-up for Saturday:*

THE CROONER AND THE COMIC – pays tribute to America’s beloved show business duo, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Bringing this comical duet back to the stage are Eric Richardson as Dean Martin and Matt Macis as Jerry Lewis.  With their impeccable timing, world class vocals and over-the-top antics, this Martin & Lewis tribute will leave audiences caught up in this wild pair’s hijinx, begging for more!

ERIC RICHARDSON (The Crooner) -  is an actor, vocalist, celebrity impersonator and an overall master of “character” having played diverse roles ranging from Fagin in Oliver, to Sky Masterson in Guys & Dolls, to that homespun lawyer, Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. He has appeared on stage, in film and on several TV series. His approach to any character lies in his pursuit of detail, which makes every one of his characters unique and whole.
MATT MACIS (The Clown) -  began his professional career at age 16 in Ken Davenport’s Awesome 80s Prom. At age 19, he was deemed “a genuine find” by the Washington Post for his work in Bat Boy (Landless Theatre Co., DC). Now 20, his resume includes a national tour, TV, film, and work as the “Lewis” half of the Martin & Lewis Tribute. He is also the world’s youngest working professional Michael Jackson tribute artist. GOOGLE him!


John McBride
Comedian

John is half-black, half-Italian, mixed with a little Jewish, and probably some other stuff, but he is 100% funny. At least that’s what his mom says. John’s material inspired by the stupid things his friends say, his romantic misadventures, and food he doesn’t like – has been quoted in the Washington Post. McBride was a finalist in DC Improv’s Funniest Person in DC contest 2007. He has worked with comics Ted Alexandro, DC Benny, and Tony Rock, and is a regular at the DC Improv. He co-writes the popular blog “Not Hating Just Saying,” featured on Gawker.com

 Don’t Miss this on-going one ring circus of quality shows featuring performers who are making a different kind of noise. Experience something you cannot get in your living rooms, on any TV set, home theater or computer. VoixDeVille the voice of the city.

DISCOUNTS!: Check out capfringe.com for our special December Button Discount.

The Indigo Room
Atlas Performing Arts Center
1333 H St NE
Box Office 202-399-7993 x2
For booking information call Scott Burgess
202-399-7993 x121
The Atlas is accessible by MetroBus, Rail and Taxi
Contact the Box Office for Tickets and More Details

roomindigo.com or atlasarts.org

 

Doors: 7:30 pm
Performance: 8:00 pm
Tickets: 15.00 (buy on line at atlasarts.org)