Encores!

This article is about New York City Center's musical revivals. For other uses, see Encore (disambiguation).

Encores! is a Tony-honored concert series dedicated to reviving American musicals, usually with their original orchestrations.[1] Presented by New York City Center since 1994, Encores! has revived shows by Irving Berlin, Rodgers & Hart, George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, Leonard Bernstein, and Stephen Sondheim, among many others. Encores! was the brainchild of Judith Daykin, who launched the series shortly after becoming Executive Director of City Center in 1992.[2][3] Besides initiating Encores!, Daykin is credited for turning City Center from a rental hall into a presenting organization.[4] The series has spawned nineteen cast recordings and numerous Broadway transfers, including Kander and Ebb's Chicago, which is now the second longest-running musical in Broadway history.[5] Videotapes of many Encores! productions are collected at the Billy Rose Theater Collection of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. The series was led by artistic director Jack Viertel from 2001 to 2020; in October 2019, City Center announced that Lear deBessonet will take over as artistic director beginning with the 2021 Encores! season.[6]

From 2000 to 2001, City Center presented a short-lived sister series, Voices!, devoted to staged readings of infrequently-produced American plays and produced by Alec Baldwin. From 2007 to 2009, the spin-off series Encores! Summer Stars featured fully-staged productions of classic Broadway musicals, beginning with a production of Gypsy starring Patti LuPone, Boyd Gaines, and Laura Benanti. Gypsy received unprecedented attention for an Encores! show and eventually transferred to Broadway; LuPone, Gaines, and Benanti all won Tony Awards for their performances.

In 2013, City Center launched Encores! Off-Center!, a sister series devoted to groundbreaking Off-Broadway musicals. Led by founding artistic director Jeanine Tesori for its first four seasons,[7] Encores! Off-Center was subsequently led by Michael Friedman (2017), Tesori and Anne Kauffman (2018), and Kauffman (2019–2020).[8][9]

  1. ^ Corliss, Richard. "That Old Feeling: Bravo! Encores!", Time June 12, 2004.
  2. ^ Span, Paula (March 16, 1997). "ENCORES! THE THEATER'S LIVE ARCHIVE". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  3. ^ Newsweek Staff (May 14, 1995). "Bewitched, Not Bewildered". Newsweek. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  4. ^ Isherwood, Charles (June 12, 2002). "Daykin determines she'll retire from City Center". Variety. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  5. ^ Cox, Gordon. "Broadway’s Chicago Turns 20: Stars Reflect on Show’s Success", Variety November 14, 2016.
  6. ^ Paulson, Michael (October 29, 2019). "New Curator of Old Musicals: Lear deBessonet is to Lead Encores!". The New York Times.
  7. ^ Weinert-Kendt, Rob. "Musical Revivalists With a Cause", The New York Times July 3, 2013.
  8. ^ Paulson, Michael. "Michael Friedman to Be Artistic Director of Encores! Off Center" The New York Times April 18, 2016.
  9. ^ "Stage Directions: Anne Kauffman Reveals Her Plans for Encores! Off-Center 2019". September 4, 2018.