BROADWAY RECORDS RELEASES "IMMIGRANT DREAMS" ESSENTIAL VOICES USA

BROADWAY RECORDS RELEASES “IMMIGRANT DREAMS” ESSENTIAL VOICES USA

Judith Clurman, Conductor

FEATURING TONY WINNERS

RANDY GRAFF & BRIAN STOKES MITCHELL

Friday, October 26, 2018 – Broadway Records today announced Immigrant Dreams, with Essential Voices USA (Judith Clurman, conductor) featuring Tony winners Randy Graff and Brian Stokes Mitchell, is now available from www.BroadwayRecords.com, iTunes, Amazon.com and all streaming services.

In honor of the 132nd anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty on October 28, Emmy and Grammy-nominated musical director/conductor Judith Clurman conducts Essentials Voices USA in recordings of “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor” (Irving Berlin/Emma Lazarus, arr. by David Chase) with Tony Award winner Randy Graff (City of Angels) narrating, and “America the Beautiful/Wheels of a Dream (Samuel A. Ward/Katharine Lee Bates; Stephen Flaherty/Lynn Ahrens – arr. Larry Hochman), featuring soloist Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell (Ragtime).

Conductor Judith Clurman states, “These recordings honor the dreams of every immigrant who has made the United States of America their home.” She is especially proud that all the lyrics on these tracks are written by women.

Proceeds from “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor” will be used for EVUSA’s anti-bullying workshops in NYC Public Schools. Proceeds from “Wheels of a Dream” will be given to The Actor’s Fund.

Emma Lazarus’ sonnet, “The New Colossus” was written in 1883 to raise money for the construction of a pedestal for the Statue of Liberty. In 1903, her poem was cast onto a bronze plaque and mounted inside the pedestal’s lower level. Irving Berlin used a section of Lazarus’ poem in his song “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor” in the 1949 production of his show Miss Liberty. Here, Judith Clurman conducts Randy Graff narrating Emma Lazarus’ entire sonnet, “The New Colossus” with her Essential Voices USA; Lee Musiker, piano and Raman Ramakrishnan, cello. Members of EVUSA are Haley Abbott, Paul D’Arcy, Maria Becvar, Joseph Beutel, Margery Daley, Marc Day, Michael Douris, Margaret Dudley, Solange Gosselin, Nicholas Harbison, Dominic Inferrera, Alonzo Johnson, Linda Jones, Danya Katok, Helen Karloski, Kate Levin, Heather Petrie, Jamet Pittman, Gregory Purnhagen, Mikki Sodergren, Elisa Singer Strom, Kirsten Sollek, Michael Steinberger, Lee Steiner, Barbara Underwood, Tommy Wazelle, and Lewis White. The recording was produced by Silas Brown.

Brian Stokes Mitchell portrayed Coalhouse Walker Jr in the 1997 Stephen Flaherty/Lynn Ahrens musical Ragtime. Here, Judith Clurman conducts him singing an a cappella arrangement of “America the Beautiful” with her Essential Voices USA, as an introduction to a chamber orchestral version of “Wheels of A Dream.” Tedd Firth, piano; Kathryn Anderson, violin; Angela Pickett, viola; Michael Dahlberg, cello; Steve Lyon, oboe; and Rheagan Noleen, french horn are featured. Members of EVUSA are Laurel Cameron, Eileen Clark, Emma Clune, Margery Daley, Emily Eyre, Laura Green, Dominc Inferrera, Sylvie Jensen, Drew Martin, Neal Netherly, Charles Sprawls, John Tiranno, James Archie Worley, Amaranta Viera, and Lewis White. The recording was produced by David Frost.

Broadway Records (Van Dean, President) is the Grammy® winning record label dedicated to preserving musical theatre and theatre vocalists. Recent releases include the Grammy® and Tony Award-winning The Color Purple (2015 revival), the Grammy® nominated Matilda The Musical and Fiddler on the Roof (2015 revival), My Fair Lady, Anastasia, Bandstand, Once On This Island, Groundhog Day, The Lightning Thief and NBC’s television events, The Wiz Live! and Peter Pan Live!. The label’s critically-acclaimed “Live at Feinstein’s/54 Below” series features top Broadway stars including Patti LuPone, Aaron Tveit, Annaleigh Ashford, Norbert Leo Butz, Sierra Boggess, Laura Benanti, Emily Skinner & Alice Ripley, Adam Pascal & Anthony Rapp, Marin Mazzie and many others. Broadway Records launched the Broadway for Orlando initiative (in partnership with creators Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley) culminating in the all-star benefit single, “What the World Needs Now is Love,” which leaped to #1 on iTunes with no radio airplay. Broadway Records philanthropic endeavors also include the From Broadway With Love benefit concerts for Sandy Hook, Orlando (Emmy Award for Sound) and Parkland. To learn more, visit BroadwayRecords.com.