Tag Archives: Cincinnati Arts Association

EDDIE IZZARD: FORCE MAJEURE
WORLD TOUR COMING TO THE U.S.
MAY 28, 2014 – ARONOFF CENTER

Tickets Go On Sale Tuesday, February 4, 10 AM 

“Sheer Comic Genius. He is the most brilliant stand-up comedian of his generation.” – The New York Times 

“The funniest man in, well, pretty much all of the known universe”
– The Los Angeles Times 

“The greatest British standup comedian of his generation”
– The London Sunday Times 

“A national treasure” – The Guardian 

Eddie Izzard Force Majeure Tour.

January 27, 2014 — Eddie Izzard will bring his massive Force Majeure world tour to the U.S., visiting 32 cities through the spring with more dates to be announced later this year. The much-anticipated tour plays Cincinnati’s Aronoff Center on Wednesday, May 28 at 8:00 PM. Tickets range between $47-$60 and go on sale Tuesday, February 4 at 10:00 AM at www.CincinnatiArts.org, (513) 621-ARTS [2787], and the Aronoff Center Ticket Office.

Presented by WestBeth Entertainment, a full list of U.S. tour dates with links to tickets is available at www.EddieIzzard.com. Follow Eddie here.

Force Majeure is the most extensive comedy tour ever; launched in March of 2013, the tour will take Izzard to 25 countries on five continents. From Cardiff to Kathmandu and Moscow to Mumbai, Force Majeure will play throughout Europe, Africa, Russia, the U.K., Canada, the U.S., India, Nepal, The Far East, and Australia. Izzard recently completed runs in France, performing entirely in French, and in Berlin, performing entirely in German.

One of the most acclaimed comedians of his generation, Izzard’s unique, tangential, absurd, and surreal comic narratives are lauded for their creativity and wit, earning him a New York Drama Desk Award and two Emmy® Awards for Dress to Kill, two British Comedy Awards for Top Stand-Up Comedian, and an Olivier Award nomination for Outstanding Achievement.

In the U.S., Izzard is the first solo stand-up comedian to perform at the Hollywood Bowl; has sold-out three consecutive nights at Radio City Music Hall, and toured arenas throughout the U.S., including a sold-out show at Madison Square Garden.

On TV, Izzard most recently guest starred in the series, Hannibal, on NBC. He starred in and served as a producer on the critically acclaimed FX Network Show, The Riches, opposite Minnie Driver, guest starred in the final season of Showtime’s United States of Tara, and his 2010 documentary, Believe:The Eddie Izzard Story, received an Emmy® nomination.

His long list of film and stage credits includes Valkyrie opposite Tom Cruise, Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Thirteen and Ocean’s Twelve opposite George Clooney and Brad Pitt, David Mamet’s Race and The Cryptogram, the title role in Marlowe’s Edward II, and A Day in the Death of Joe Egg in London and on Broadway, which won him a handful of awards, including a Tony® nomination for Best Actor.

WESTBETH ENTERTAINMENT is a producing organization that has successfully and consistently produced critically acclaimed, financially successful, groundbreaking entertainment for 30 years. WestBeth has produced, presented, and managed diverse productions and tours that have played such venues as Madison Square Garden, Broadway, Radio City Music Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, Toronto’s Massey Hall, San Francisco’s Curran Theatre, Chicago’s United Center Arena, the Chicago Theatre, and many music and performing arts centers around North America.

WestBeth is currently producing La Soirée in New York City and an upcoming Australian tour of Puppet Up! – Uncensored.

Recent productions include the Canadian tour of Eddie Izzard’s Force Majeure, and Dylan Moran’s Yeah, Yeah in cities across the U.S. and Canada. WestBeth also produced the six-week off-Broadway run of South African comedian Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime; Eric Idle’s What About Dick at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles; and the national tour, Off-Broadway, and 2013 Edinburgh Fringe Festival runs of Puppet Up! – Uncensored (aka Stuffed & Unstrung) with The Jim Henson Company.

Other notable productions include John Leguizamo’s Ghetto Klown on Broadway and in the West End and Colombia, South America; British comedian Simon Amstell’s one man show NUMB in New York and other cities around the county; Billy Connolly’s tour The Man Live in New York and San Francisco; Eddie Izzard’s Dress To Kill, Circle, Sexie, Stripped—a 35-city U.S. tour and tour of Canada, Stripped Too: US Arena tour, Stripped to the Bowl, Stripped to the Shore; Billy Connolly’s Too Old To Die Young tour in America and Canada; and Lewis Black’s Nothing Sacred show at New York’s Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall, as well as Lewis’ Dual Citizenship Tour in Canada and ‘In God We Rust’ at City Center in New York.

Bill Cosby Makes a Rare Appearance
at the Aronoff Center, Saturday, June 14 in
Comedy Central’s “Far From Finished Tour

Tickets go on sale, Friday, Jan. 31 at 10:00 AM at
www.CincinnatiArts.org, (531) 621-ARTS (2787), and the Aronoff Center Ticket Office.

Bill Cosby.

Cincinnati, OH (Jan. 24) – One of America’s most beloved comedians of all time, Bill Cosby, whose comedy transcends age, gender, and cultural barriers, is making a rare appearance at the Aronoff Center, Saturday, June 14 at 8:00 PM. Cosby has captivated generations of fans with his comedy routines, iconic albums, and best-selling books, including Fatherhood, Time Flies, and his current bestseller, I Didn’t Ask to Be Born, (But I’m Glad I Was).

Tickets range between $36.50 – $66.50 (plus applicable fees) and can be purchased at www.CincinnatiArts.org, (531) 621-ARTS (2787), and the Aronoff Center Ticket Office.

Bill Cosby broke television’s racial barrier with I Spy, becoming the first African American to co-star on a television series, while winning three consecutive Emmys® Awards. He created and produced the Emmy®-winning animated series Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, which began airing in the 1970s and was made into a film in 2004. The show, based upon Cosby’s childhood in Philadelphia, was designed to educate and entertain.

The former Navy serviceman’s illustrious list of accomplishments includes roles on the children’s educational show Electric Company and creating and producing the Emmy® Award-winning Little Bill, which is based on his bestselling book series. Cosby has received the Kennedy Center Honors, the Presidential Medal of Freedom (America’s highest civilian honor), the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, and the Marian Anderson Award. Among his many awards for his stand-up comedy albums are five Grammy® Awards, and eight Gold and five Platinum records.

Perhaps Cosby’s greatest contribution to American entertainment and culture is The Cosby Show, about a close-knit, upper-class black family. Cosby said his intent was to portray an American family. Time magazine called the show “an encouraging sign of maturity in matters of race.” The Cosby Show dominated the No. 1 spot for years, earning nearly unanimous critical praise. Life magazine described the program as “a gentle, whimsical, warmhearted” show whose “delicious ordinariness of pleasures and tribulations has given millions a fresh, laughter-splashed perspective on their own domestic lives.”

Don’t miss the iconic Bill Cosby at the Aronoff Center on his Comedy Central “Far From Finished Tour,” Saturday, June 14 at 8:00 PM! Purchase tickets at www.CincinnatiArts.org, (531) 621-ARTS (2787), and the Aronoff Ticket Office

Get your tickets while they last!

Official website: www.billcosby.com

CINCINNATI, OH – Who will be voted Cincinnati’s best celebrity dancer? Which stars have the right moves to rule the dance floor? Find out on Saturday, April 12, 2014 when the Cincinnati Arts Association (CAA) presents its eighth annual Dancing for the Stars at the Music Hall Ballroom to benefit CAA’s Overture Awards – the nation’s largest locally-run high school arts scholarship competition.

Inspired by the hit ABC-TV show Dancing with the Stars, Dancing for the Stars will feature eight Cincinnati celebrities paired with some of the area’s finest professional dancers in a competition program, at which the audience will vote for their favorite celebrity dancer. The competitive dance for the evening will be Swing, and each dance pair will have 90 seconds to woo the crowd and the judges.

In addition, Dancing for the Stars will feature:

• Silent auction
• Showcase performance by a 2014 Overture Award finalist in dance
• The swinging sounds of Sound Body Jazz Band
• Pre-event reception and wine tasting
• Open dancing before and after the competition
•  Lite bites provided by some of Cincinnati’s finest restaurants and caterers
• Cash bar

New to the event this year is the Dancing for the Stars Fundraising Champion – the celebrity dancer who raises the most revenue toward the event’s fundraising goal through table/ticket sales and donations from fans, who can add a donation under their favorite celebrity’s name at the time of ticket purchase, or simply make a donation if they cannot attend the event. These donations will help one of the fans’ favorite celebrities win the Dancing for the Stars Fundraising Champion award, which will be announced the evening of the event. These direct donations (outside of the event ticket price) are 100% tax deductible.

The event will benefit the stars of tomorrow – the talented high school artists who participate each year in CAA’s Overture Awards. The Dancing for the Stars committee includes: Dr. Tracey Skale (chair, Dancing for the Stars 2011 winner), Phil Schworer, Christina Bolden, Terry Foster, Sue Gilkey, Jim Howland, Ginger Loftin, and Rosemary Schlachter.

Tickets are currently on sale at the following levels (a portion of the ticket price is tax-deductible):

• $100 – Patron (includes pre-event reception and two drink tickets)
• $1,000 – Corporate Table (ten Patron level tickets and a half-page black-and-white program ad)
• $1,500 – Celebrity Circle Table (premium “first-row” viewing of competition area, ten Patron level tickets, full-page black-and-white program ad, recognition on event signage) 

RESERVATIONS AND INFORMATION:

• (513) 977-4104
• Aronoff Center Ticket Office
• www.CincinnatiArts.org 

THE STARS:

• Linda Bessey (Faux Painter)
• Devinder Mangat, MD, FACS (Founder, Mangat -Kuy-Holzapfel Plastic Surgery Centers)
• Britney Ruby Miller (Director of Operations, Jeff Ruby Culinary Entertainment)
• Rick Pawlak (Managing Director, Ultimate Air Shuttle)
• Neal Schulte (Founder & President, Schulte Financial Group, LLC)
• Kay Smith-Yount (Philanthropist; Wife of The Cincinnati Herald Editor-in-Chief, Dan Yount)
• Christianna Stephens (Philanthropist; Wife of Mercy Health-West Market Leader and President, Michael Stephens)
• Keith Wilson, MD, FACS (Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology, UC Health) 

THE PROS with Star pairing:

• Leigh Bradshaw (Cincinnati Ballroom Company) – Neal Schulte
• Bonita Brockert (Independent Dance Instructor) – Devinder Mangat, MD, FACS
• J. Patrick Clements (Step-n-Out Studio) – Britney Ruby Miller
• Grace de Guia (Dare to Dance) – Rick Pawlak
• Brian McNamee (Cincinnati Ballroom Company) – Christianna Stephens
• Jeremy Mainous (Arthur Murray Dance Studio – Cincinnati) – Linda Bessey
• Desiree Mainous (Arthur Murray Dance Studio – Cincinnati) – Keith Wilson, MD, FACS
• Jozsef Paragh (Independent Dance Instructor) – Kay Smith-Yount 

THE HOSTS: Chris O’Brien & Janeen Coyle (“Married With Microphones,” 103.5 WGRR-FM)

THE JUDGES:

• Douglas Beal (Independent Dance Instructor)
• Doreen Beatrice (Step-n-Out Studio)
• Dr. Michael Leadbetter (Cosmetic Surgeon, Plastic Surgery Group; Dancing for the Stars 2012, star) 

EVENT SPONSORS: Stock Yards Bank & Trust, Arthur Murray – Cincinnati, Cincinnati Ballroom Company, Dare to Dance, Step-n-Out Studio, Bonita Brockert, and Jozsef Parragh.

THE OVERTURE AWARDS
The Overture Awards Scholarship Competition is the largest locally run arts scholarship competition in the country. The program annually provides a $3,500 scholarship to six area high school students for education and training, with 18 finalists each winning a $750 scholarship. Each year, more than 450 students are nominated by their schools to compete in one of six artistic disciplines: Creative Writing, Dance, Instrumental Music, Theater, Visual Art or Vocal Music. There are three levels of competition: Regional, Semi-Finals and Final.

The Overture Awards was developed to recognize, encourage and reward excellence in the arts among Tri-state students in grades 9-12. It also provides students an opportunity to share their talents and interests among their peers in a supportive environment outside of their individual schools. Now in its 18th year, The Overture Awards was launched in 1996 by the Cinergy Foundation and Leadership Cincinnati (a Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce program).

CINCINNATI ARTS ASSOCIATION
Founded in 1992, the Cincinnati Arts Association (CAA) is a not-for-profit organization that oversees the programming and management of two of the Tri-state’s finest performing arts venues – the Aronoff Center for the Arts and Music Hall – and is dedicated to supporting performing and visual arts. Each year, CAA presents a diverse schedule of events; serves more than 700,000 people in its venues; features the work of talented local, regional, and national artists in the Weston Art Gallery (located in the Aronoff Center); and supports the work of more than one dozen resident companies, including Cincinnati Ballet, Cincinnati Opera, Cincinnati Symphony/Pops Orchestras, May Festival, and Fifth Third Back Broadway in Cincinnati. Since the inception of its acclaimed arts education programs in 1995, CAA has reached more than 1.3 million students.

Comedian Jim Jefferies Announces New Live Tour
‘Day Streaming’ 

****** 

**NEW DATE JUST ANNOUNCED**
Thursday, September 11, 2014 at 8:00 PM
Music Hall Ballroom

CINCINNATI, OH –  Due to unexpected film and TV commitments, the Jim Jefferies performance originally scheduled for June 5, 2014 at Cincinnati Music Hall Ballroom has been rescheduled to Thursday, September 11, 2014, 8:00 PM at the Music Hall Ballroom. 

Ticket holders will be sent new tickets with the rescheduled date and time. These tickets will be mailed on Wednesday, April 16, 2014. Ticket holders who are unable to attend the rescheduled performance, would like to purchase additional tickets, or have  questions may contact the Aronoff Center Ticket Office at acbox@cincinnatiarts.org or (513) 621-2787, Monday through Friday, between 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM

Actor, writer, producer, and comedian Jim Jefferies announces his new live tour ‘Day Streaming’ set to stop at 31 cities during Spring 2014, including Cincinnati’s Music Hall Ballroom on Thursday, June 5, 2014 at 8:00 PM. ‘Day Streaming’ will be Jefferies first full North American tour and kicks off February 14 at Variety Playhouse in Atlanta, GA. The tour is produced by AEG Live.

Tickets go on sale Friday, December 13 at 10:00 AM at the www.CincinnatiArts.org, (513) 621-ARTS [2787], and the Aronoff Center and Music Hall Ticket Offices.

Jefferies is the creator and star of Legit, an edgy, controversial original comedy series which returns to FXX for a second season on January 8. In Legit, Jefferies portrays a heightened version of himself as a comedian from Australia who realizes there’s more to life (and his career) than the rock-and-roll lifestyle of stand-up comedy. Prior to Legit, Jefferies has appeared on numerous TV shows in England including Channel 4’s The History of Offensive Humor, BBC1’s Heaven and Earth, and ITV2’s Comedy Cults. U.S. audiences got their first taste of Jefferies when he appeared on HBO’s Down and Dirty with Jim Norton, which in turn lead to his critically-acclaimed and international hit one-hour HBO special, I Swear to God. He followed that up with a Showtime special titled Alchoholocaust and Fully Functional on The EPIX Network.

A headline performer in North America, Asia, South Africa, and Europe, Jefferies got his comedy footing while performing stand up in Britain. His numerous festival performances put events such as The Edinburgh Fringe, Just For Laughs, The South African Comedy Festival, Reading and Leeds Festival, and The Glastonbury Festival on the map.

About AEG Live:
AEG Live, the live-entertainment division of Los Angeles-based AEG, is dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performance. AEG Live is comprised of touring, festival, broadcast, merchandise and special event divisions, fifteen regional offices and owns, operates or exclusively books thirty-five state-of-the-art venues. The current and recent concert tour roster includes artists such as Alicia Keys, Bruno Mars, Bon Jovi, Carrie Underwood, Cher, Enrique Iglesias, J Cole, Jennifer Lopez, Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Kenny Chesney, Leonard Cohen, Paul McCartney, Taylor Swift, The WHO, Trey Songz, and Juanes. AEG Live has produced many comedy tours including Flight of the Conchords, Portlandia, The Kids In the Hall, Ricky Gervais, Jim Jefferies, Bo Burnham, Chris Hardwick, Tim & Eric, and The Shaquille O’Neil All-star Comedy Jam. The company is also currently producing residency shows at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas including Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, and Shania Twain, and is the exclusive promoter at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas. AEG Live is also the largest producer of music festivals in North America from the critically-acclaimed Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival to Stagecoach Country Music Festival and New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. www.aeglive.com.

MEN ARE FROM MARS – WOMEN ARE FROM VENUS LIVE!

PLAYS THE ARONOFF CENTER’S JARSON-KAPLAN THEATER

SECOND SHOW ADDED WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26
THURSDAY, MARCH 27, 2014 SOLD OUT

“You’ll leave the theatre with the intent to live in harmony with your partner. Not to be missed!”–Elle Magazine

Tickets On Sale Friday, January 10 at 10:00 AM!

[Cincinnati, OH] – Men Are From Mars – Women Are From Venus LIVE!, the one-man fusion of theatre and stand-up starring Peter Story, is a light-hearted theatrical comedy based on the New York Times #1 best-selling book of the last decade by John Gray.  The show will play the Aronoff Center’s Jarson-Kaplan Theater on Thursday, March 27, 2014 at 7:30 PM.  Moving swiftly through a series of vignettes, the show covers everything from dating and marriage to the bedroom.

Tickets go on sale on Friday, January 10 at 10:00 AM at www.CincinnatiArts.org, (513) 621-ARTS [2787], and the Aronoff Center Ticket Office.  The show is being presented by the Cincinnati Arts Association as part of its 2013-14 Season.

Men Are From Mars – Women Are From Venus LIVE! is more than just the book.

After beginning in Paris in 2007, Men are From Mars – Women are From Venus LIVE! has been seen by more than one million people around Europe. It debuted in the United States in February 2013 in Raleigh, North Carolina and will be playing to audiences around the United States and Canada throughout the year.

This hysterical show will have couples elbowing each other all evening as they see themselves on stage. Sexy and fast paced, this show is definitely for adults, but will leave audiences laughing and giggling like little kids!

Starring in this theatrical comedy is PETER STORY. Peter has appeared in prime-time shows on all three major networks – some of his favorite credits include CSI (directed by Quentin Tarantino), Without a Trace, Ugly Betty, and recurring roles on Jay Leno’s The Tonight Show and Rob Lowe’s The Lyon’s Den.  He stars opposite Steve Guttenberg in the cheesy horror film, Cornered, and can be seen opposite Weed’s Elizabeth Perkins in the hilarious short, Le Chat Est Mort.  He is proud alum of the New Harmony Project and an avid storyteller with The Moth.

Peter’s story of how he and his wife won a dream wedding competition was just featured nationally on NPR’s The Moth Radio Hour, a show featuring the country’s best storytellers.

Commenting on Men Are From Mars – Women Are From Venus LIVE!, Peter said, “It’s a great recipe for a night out: a little storytelling blended with some comedy and a dash of sage wisdom from the book. A delicious evening of entertainment.”

When Mars and Venus collide, the adventures are earth-shatteringly hysterical.

________

Since being published in 1992, John Gray’s “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus,” exploring the differences between the sexes, has sold in excess of 50 million copies, been translated into 40 different languages and is one of the most recognizable titles in the world. Gray has written 17 books and become one of the most trusted relationship authors today, appearing on the national lecture circuit and on such TV shows as Good Morning America, Oprah, and Larry King Live.

Producer, St. Louis-based Emery Entertainment, has produced or promoted thousands of events around the globe, including superstar attractions Blue Man Group, David Copperfield, and James Taylor.

The talented team assembled for this production continues with the award-winning playwright Eric Coble, direction by Broadway veteran Mindy Cooper, and animation & video production by the talented animators at Bazillion Productions.