Press and Media

December 21, 2010

"Neil Berg's Broadway Holiday is a tasty treat for the holiday season."

New York comes to the Geffen Playhouse with Neil Berg's Broadway Holiday. Bringing five performers from Broadway and letting them strut their stuff across a stage decorated with Christmas trees and snowflakes, the prolific producer's variety holiday show is a little gem that will have most audiences giddy with the holiday spirit.

Mixing music from Broadway classics with classic holiday favorites, the performers belt out their numbers with style and grace, each with an assured use of their vocal instrument. The talent on display includes: Carter Calvert (most famous for her role as Grizabella in the National Touring company of Cats), Jeffrey Denman (the current "it" song and dance man who won the LA Ovation Award for Best Actor in a musical for On Your Toes), and Rita Harvey (who made her Broadway debut in the lead role of Christine Daee in The Phantom of the Opera). Rounding out the quintet are Marc Kudisch nominated for a Tony for his role in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Ivan Rutherford who has performed the role of Jean Valjean (Les Miserables) over two thousand times.

Backed by a three piece band (including Berg himself on the piano), the artists on stage are masters of their craft. Each gets their chance to wow as when Harvey performs "Think of Me" from Phantom, and Kudisch vamps it up as the Grinch. Incidentally, Kudisch steals the night with an energy and charisma that makes you want to see a whole show with just him.