Saturday night, the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall will be filled with the sounds of Broadway.
Accompanied by Gulf Coast Symphony, “Broadway Hits with a Twist” features special guest vocalists Mark Sanders, Carolann Sanita, Whitney Grace and Raymond McLeod performing renowned numbers from “Les Miserables,” “Phantom of the Opera,” “Little Shop of Horrors” and more - but with a twist.
“’Broadway with a Twist’ is songs that you know, from a different perspective,” Mark Sanders explained. “It’s not just about men singing women’s songs and women singing men’s songs. It brings a … whole new perspective on what a Broadway song can bring.”
Cast mate Carolann Sanita wholeheartedly agreed.
“Singing songs in this way, with a little bit of a gender twist, brings a little bit of surprise, a whole lot of comedy and everything in between that you don’t want to miss.”
Of course, the presence of Maestro Andrew Kurtz and the Gulf Coast Symphony adds to the magic.
“It’s an honor to sing with a symphony at any time,” Sanders added. “It’s the excitement that this brings – because it’s just not the same old songs that you would hear. It is in such a different way, and I think that the audiences are going to love every second of it.”
The show starts at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, August 24. Tickets are on sale at the Barbara B. Mann box office.
MORE INFORMATION:
Tickets start at $39 per person.
For tickets, contact the Barbara B Mann box office at (239) 481-4849.
For all other inquiries, contact Sarah Anstett, Director of Marketing and Communications at (239) 277-1700 x 105.
Mark Sanders grew up in Marion, Illinois. After spending 15 years in New York City, Mark now makes Fort Myers his home.
Sanders currently presents his new concert series, “Celebrating Broadway,” at Arts Bonita in Bonita Springs, with an exciting new show premiering each month. He has become a favorite soloist with Gulf Coast Symphony, as well as the Naples and Bonita Springs Concert Bands. Mark can also be seen on tour with his solo show, “One Voice: The Music of Barry Manilow,” which he wrote and conceived. His brand-new CD of Manilow’s music is now available. Find out more at MarkSandersNYC.com and @MarkSandersOneVoice
Mark’s credits include Perchik on the Broadway National Tour of “Fiddler on the Roof” starring Theodore Bikel, Harry in “Mamma Mia,” Bud in “Bridges of Madison County,” Col. Ricci in “Passion,” Father in “Ragtime,” Michael in “Murder Ballad” (for which Mark earned a Carbonell Award), Dan in “Next to Normal,” Charlie in “Merrily We Roll Along” and Archibald in “The Secret Garden.” Mark also appeared in “Music Man” starring Jeff Goldblum, “Jesus Christ Superstar” and “Blood Brothers” starring Andrea McArdle.
Carolann M. Sanita has toured as Marian in the first national tour of “The Music Man” and internationally as Maria in the European and Asian tours of “West Side Story.”
Some of Sanita’s favorite credits include singing with Linda Eder in concert at the Palace Theatre on Broadway, “Encore’s No, No Nanette” at New York City Center, “Les Miserables” at Flat Rock Playhouse, “West Side Story” at Sacramento Music Circus, “The Boy from Oz” at TheatreZone, “Spamalot” at Arkansas Repertory Theatre, “Beauty and the Beast” at Artpark and “Urinetown” at the Geva Theatre.
Most recently Carolann Sanita discovered her inner diva playing an opera star in Ken Ludwig’s comedy “Lend Me A Soprano” at Olney Theatre Center. In addition to the Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra, Carolann has been a soloist with the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Santa Rosa Symphony Orchestra and the Southwest Florida Symphony Orchestra, as well as the Bonita Springs and Naples Concert Bands. She is part of the original symphonic concert show “A Tribute to Judy and Liza” at the Palladium, where she gets to sing all of Liza Minnelli’s iconic songs.
Carolann serves as part of the Voice Faculty at Florida Gulf Coast University and has founded her own private vocal studio, CSV Vocal Studio, LLC.
Founded in late 1995 by its current music director and CEO, Dr. Andrew Kurtz, the Gulf Coast Symphony (GCS) is now the second-largest non-profit performing arts organization in Lee County.
GCS endeavors to challenge convention—with its rich tradition of unique and innovative collaborations across multiple genres and disciplines, high-quality dynamic musical performances, active community engagement, and an intractable commitment to social change through arts education.
GCS is comprised of the Gulf Coast Symphony, the Gulf Coast Chamber Orchestra, the Gulf Coast Jazz Collective, and the Music & Arts Community Center (MACC) which opened in January 2021.
GCS presents over 100 programs featuring the best in classical music, jazz, world music, dance, opera, film, and musical theater. The Symphony performs at both the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall and its more intimate 300-seat theater at the MACC.
For more information, visit www.GulfCoastSymphony.org
To read more stories about the arts in Southwest Florida visit Tom Hall's website: SWFL Art in the News.