BROADWAY IS COMING TO EAST HAVEN

Broadway is coming to East Haven so get ready to celebrate cabaret Saturday, September 25 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Sunday, September 26 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. courtesy of WISP, the Wagner Iovanna Studio Performances. WISP is a non-profit arts initiative started in 2017 by gifted performers Robert Iovanna and wife Karen Wagner-Iovanna who have dedicated their talents to encouraging actors, young and old, to develop their skills on stage in the performing arts. To that end, the husband and wife team have provided the training and experience to showcase each one’s potential, resulting in many past and present participants going on to careers in the music industry as well as film/TV, Broadway, print, voice overs and have been accepted into top theater and conservatory programs across the country. They successfully incorporate professionals in the worlds of acting and singing with the new young talent they are cultivating, including special guest performers like the show’s narrator iheart radio’s John Cadillac Saville and New York City Opera’s Erich Simo as Jean Valjean. At the show, you will be treated to a trio of Broadway favorites. “Dear Evan Hansen” tells the tale of a boy who feels invisible and desperately wants to be accepted. When another student at his high school commits suicide, Evan is swept into a web of lies not of his own making but which have the power to change his life and give him all the acceptance he so desires. Will he accept this unanticipated chance or admit the truth of the fabrications? Songs like “So Big/So Small,” “Requiem,” and “Sincerely Me” propel the action. Venture next into the cellblocks of the 1920’s when women are celebrated for the brazenness of their murders as Roxie and Velma vie for top billing, belting out tunes like “Cell Block Tango,” “Mister Cellophane” and “All That Jazz.” Completing the program are the majestic melodies of “Les Miserables,” the tale of an honest man who steals a loaf of bread and is imprisoned for years. Even when he is finally released Jean Valjean is haunted by a determined policeman Javert who wants him never to know freedom’s sweet taste. Every song like “I Dreamed a Dream,” “One Day More,” “Master of the House” and “Castle on a Cloud” are memorable. The show’s directors are Rob Iovanna and Karen Wagner-Iovanna, with Lauren Celentano as choreographer and James Teti as musical director. For tickets ($25, $20 for children under 7), to the performances at the Old Stone Church, 251 Main Street, East Haven, call 203-494-1633 or go online to https:/buy.tututix.com/WISP or visit www.wisperformances.org. The Fellowship Hall at the church is newly renovated, air conditioned, wheelchair accessible and provides socially distanced seating. This show is dedicated to their beloved cast member Shauna Clifford who was in an auto accident that prevents her from being Heidi Hansen, Evan’s mom. They look forward to her being back on stage in October for “Spooktacular Halloween Cabaret.” Come to the cabaret and cheer on the WISP stars of today and tomorrow as they bring Broadway right to your table.