The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents

A Tribute to the Music of Peter, Paul & Mary
with “A Band Called Honalee”
Friday, Apr. 19 at 7:30 p.m.

Honalee brings together three gifted young artists
whose passion and enthusiasm for folk music sparks
a nostalgic return to the Folk era – on the DHPAC stage

March 19, 2013, Dix Hills, New York – The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center is pleased to present A Tribute to the Music of Peter, Paul and Mary with “A Band Called Honalee,” Friday, April 19 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20. This show is being produced by Broadway’s Aaron Gandy, formerly Musical Director for Lion King on Broadway. .

In addition to the iconic music of Peter, Paul and Mary, the evening will include a number of songs written by folk legends Bob Dylan, The Birds, Pete Seeger, Joni Mitchell, the Mamas and the Papas, Joan Baez, The Weavers, Judy Collins and more.  The repertoire will include “Leaving on a Jet Plane,” “Early Morning Rain,” “If I Had a Hammer,” “Puff the Magic Dragon” – from which the band takes its name, and “Turn, Turn, Turn” just to name a few.

Sarah, Chris and Eli offer a fresh take on American Folk Music, enlivening it with today’s version of the same youthful energy that first sparked the Folk movement. Their inventive arrangements of Folk favorites honor the past, while bringing a new appreciation to long-time Folk fans and new audiences alike.

Sarah Randall Hunt (vocals) is an accomplished singer, actress and budding ukulele player.  She has toured nationally with Theater Works USA. Her credits include “The Colbert Report,” “Broadway Backwards 3,” and Susan in Ira Levin’s “Veronica’s Room.”

Chris Ware (vocals and guitar) is an actor, singer and songwriter living in New York. He has played to packed houses nationwide, and has performed in numerous musicals and plays in New York and regionally.

Eli Zollar (vocals and guitar) is an actor, guitarist, music director, orchestrator, teacher, and recording artist in New York City. He was in the York Theater’s production of “Carmelita,” the regional premiere of “Happy Days, the Musical,” starring as Arthur “the Fonz” Fonzerelli, and “Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story.”

Peter, Paul and Mary, comprised of Peter Yarrow, Paul Stookey and the late Mary Travers, enjoyed an incredible 50-year run as the reigning kings and queen of American Folk Music. Their music not only inspired many musicians to follow, but gave boosts to the careers of young musicians including Bob Dylan and John Denver, among others. Similarly, Peter, Paul and Mary followed in the paths of their influences including Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and The Weavers.

Bursting on the scene in 1961, a creation of Albert Grossman who would later manage Bob Dylan’s career, Peter, Paul and Mary’s first album included such timeless Folk classics as “Lemon Tree,” “500 Miles,” “If I Had a Hammer,” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone,” – four of the biggest hits in Folk history. The trio was said to have “given a voice” for their generation through their music. Today, a new generation of fans is discovering their extensive body of work through bands like Honalee.

“We are delighted that Honalee will be playing at the Center and giving Long Island audiences the opportunity to re-live – or, in some cases – discover the timeless music and storytelling of the Folk era,” said Sandy Hinden, Director of the Center. “We are looking forward to a great show, with something for everyone.”

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents

“Steven Maglio Performing Hits from
the Frank Sinatra Songbook”

Singer who “fools” audiences with his Sinatra-like voice,
brings Manhattan club sound to Dix Hills audience

The Dix Hills Center for the Performing Arts will present: “The Music of The Frank Sinatra Songbook with Steven Maglio,” Saturday, April 20th at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range in price from $25 to $35. Maglio’s voice sounds distinctively like Sinatra’s, and has actually “fooled” audiences, who first thought it was coming from a recording of Sinatra himself.

Steven Maglio performs two shows regularly: “Sinatra Songs” and “Sinatra: Remembering The Sands” every Saturday evening at The Carnegie Club in Manhattan. On April 20th, Maglio will add The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center to this list.

Maglio was not born in Hoboken, but East Harlem, NY. His family soon moved to the Bronx, where Maglio had to walk to and from school by himself every day. It was here where he first heard Sinatra’s “My Kind Of Town” on record, and began to sing the song to himself to pass time between school and home.

“I would sing it to myself over and over,” he says. “After a few days, I decided I needed another song and began to explore the only Sinatra album we owned at the time, A Man and His Music. This was the beginning of my addiction, not only to Sinatra, but to that whole world of standard songs and singers.”

Maglio always knew that he wanted to sing, but at age 35 he realized he had better get started. “I stopped smoking, had a deviated septum repaired and started my lessons. After six years of studying with Cindy Varrichio, at Varrichio Studios in Highland Park, New Jersey and then two more years with the late Rod Hausen at the New Jersey School of Performing Arts, in Fords, I finally got the nerve to get on stage at a karaoke bar.”

Maglio became friends with Artie Leandro and Lorri Cropley of “Almost Original Karaoke,” and performed a few shows with them for friends and family members using pre-recorded music.

By April 2002, ready to try singing with live musicians, Maglio joined his friend saxophonist John Ruta at a rehearsal with the big band he was working with. He sang three songs for “The New York Big Band” with founder and trumpet player Joe Battaglio, and was soon in his now trademark tuxedo, singing “Summer Wind” in front of the band at Manhattan’s iconic “Tavern on the Green.”

Since then he’s made a CD, appeared in movies, joined The Friars Club, performed with The Symphony Orchestra of Guayaquil, Ecuador, and recorded “The Danny DeVito Limoncello Song,” among other highlights. But he truly enjoys singing Saturdays at “The Carnegie Club,” where he has headlined since 2004.

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents:

Giada Valenti & Her Orchestra
Saturday, March 23 at 7:30 p.m.

Renowned Italian songstress and entertainer will appear on the DHPAC stage performing popular Italian songs as well as top romantic hits from the 1960s through ‘80s

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center is pleased to present singer Giada Valenti and her Orchestra, Saturday, March 23, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $25 to $45 for this very popular show. The celebrated Italian songstress and entertainer will sing popular Italian songs as well as best-loved romantic songs from the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s.

Her most recent CD release is called And I Love You So and features the songs of some of Giada’s favorite songwriters. These hits include: “It’s Impossible”, “Lo Che Non Vivo Senza Te” (the original Italian version of “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me”) and “Grande Grande Grande.”

Recognized for her voice and stage presence, Giada continually appears to sellout audiences at Atlantic City and is a regular performer at Feinstein’s at the Regency, New York City’s premier cabaret room. In December 2005, Giada’s self-released CD Italian Signorina was launched in the United States to great reviews.

Giada has performed on the red carpet at New York’s Columbus Day Parade since 2005. Over the past seven years, Giada also performed her own original shows La Dolce Vita Swings and Moonlight & Romance, in sold out-theatres in New York. During these shows, she takes her audience on a “journey across the Atlantic”, performing Italian and American love songs. Giada also performed at the Sergio Franchi Memorial Concert.

In June 2007, Giada made her debut at the premiere cabaret room in the U.S.: Feinstein’s at the Regency in New York City.

In 2009, Giada introduced her new show Tribute to Love in the United States. With her great storytelling and emotional vocal skills Giada takes her audience on a trip through the most romantic places in Italy, performing love songs from the Italian and American songbook. Her selections are a blend of the past and the present and many feature new arrangements, with an adult contemporary pop sound, enhanced with elements of jazz and rock.

Producer Sonny Grosso and Director Phil Ramone, a legendary record producer, selected Giada for a role in the Broadway Musical Be My Love based on the life story of tenor extraordinaire Mario Lanza.

An active supporter of Italian causes and organizations, she was named woman of the year by the Organization of Italian Charities in America, and was honored by the Order of the Sons of Italy of America for being an outstanding role model to young Italian-Americans.

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents:

“Dr. K’s Motown Revue”

Return of the seasoned array of musicians transports
Audience members back to Motown era

As Motown The Musical opens on Broadway March 11, charting Berry Gordy’s journey from featherweight boxer to the heavyweight music mogul who launched the careers of Diana Ross and the Supremes, Michael Jackson and The Jackson Five, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, Marvin Gaye and many more, the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents Dr. K’s Motown Revue three days later, an authentic recreation of Motown performances live on stage, March 15 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $35, $30, $25 and $20.

The popular trend for bands to pay homage to historic musical artists and genres with elaborate tribute productions doesn’t fully-express Dr. K’s Motown Revue as a “tribute” because individual band members have performed, recorded or composed songs for or with many of the artists they honor. The musicians not only have the “chops” or skills, but the Motown album credits to back up their authenticity.

The Motown sound has left an indelible stamp on the heart, soul and mind of several generations of fans worldwide. Over the years many of the artists and writers responsible for bringing to the world this incredible body of work have passed on. The danceable party music however, lives on through movies, radio, television commercials, collectible CD’s, dance halls, weddings and karaoke clubs.

It’s not just the songs but the memories associated with them that have forever imprinted the Motown sound in the hearts and souls of music fans. The music lives on with style in Dr. K’s Motown Revue, founded by Paul “Dr. K” Korman, a talented rock bassist and Motown fan from Brooklyn, who toured for years in bands including two iterations of “Mama Ray,” a rock tour de force backing up headliners from Blue Oyster Cult to Eric Burden.  Then he met veteran session keyboard player Marvin Floyd in 2004 and something just clicked.

Since then Dr. K’s Motown Revue has performed in Central Park, headlined at B.B. Kings, the Downtown and the Sugar Bar in New York City – to rave reviews. This led to a long-term stint as the “house” band at the Wolf Den club at Mohegan Sun, where they were a fixture for years, honing their act and line-up in preparation for taking things back on the road.

At the Center, this group of very talented musicians will perform hits by The Supremes, The Temptations, Martha and the Vandellas and many others. Dr. K’s Motown Revue not only delivers the best in Motown music, but will engage the audience with Motown trivia.

Today the band is comprised of Dr. K; vocalist Stephen Moore; Motown session guitarist Marvin Miller Jr. who wrote songs for the Supremes; Venlo Odom on drums and vocal arrangements who toured with Barry White and the Ojays;  artist Charlene Simmons who won an award for her vocal performance at the Apollo Theater; Long Island born and raised vocalist Natashia Thomas and vocalist MelsoulTree who has toured internationally and has sung with The Duke Ellington Orchestra and had a lead role in “Raisin’ Hell,” a musical by Smokey Robinson and Mickey Stevenson. The band also features Clayton Zeno “Silverhands” Johnson on keyboards; Mike Lewis, who toured with Buddy Rich’s Big Band, on trumpet; Harold B. Lee on percussion, Wayne Cobham on trumpet; and Nirvana Lucie on vocals.

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents:
Long Island’s own
Copperline playing the music of
James Taylor

Tribute band draws on JT’s “greatest hits” catalog as it pays homage
to one of the greatest singer-songwriters of our time

February 2, 2013, Dix Hills, NY – “When this old world starts getting you down,” head to the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center where Copperline, one of the top James Taylor tribute bands, will recreate many of JT’s greatest hits and even some of his more obscure songs that made him the country’s preeminent folksinger of the ‘60s folk era and beyond. The performance will be Friday, Feb. 22 at 7:30. Tickets are just $35, $30 and $25.
Copperline performs JT’s songs from his career with great fidelity to the original. The band was founded by Canadian Norman Vincent who moved to Long Island almost 25 years ago. Greatly influenced by both James Taylor and Neil Young, he created Copperline to bring Taylor’s music closer to the New York area.
James Taylor returned to the music scene after dealing with some personal issues and was playing acoustic folks songs instead of electric guitar as he had in his previous band. He moved to London to get away from his past and approached Apple Records A&R man Peter Asher, whose sister was then engaged to Paul McCartney, after seeing an ad in the paper seeking young talent.
Playing acoustic, Taylor’s sound was markedly different from the others who applied for artistic support from Apple. This led Taylor to become the first non-Beatle ever to release a record on the Beatles’ label. But despite the fact that the Beatles gave Taylor studio time they had booked to record the White Album, James was not happy at how things were going. He needed a hit song to make it work.
This changed suddenly as he learned a close friend had died, and the song he wrote in response to her death (and the breakup of his former band Flying Machine), “Fire and Rain,” hit number three on the Billboard charts. His single “You’ve Got a Friend,” written by Carol King, would hit number one. By 1976 his Greatest Hits album would sell 12 million copies in the United States alone. By the ‘80s, he and then-wife folksinger Carly Simon were the country’s top earning couple in entertainment.
Copperline is a nine-piece band performing the best of James Taylor. The band’s attention to detail in recreating the James Taylor experience is evident in its live shows and in the audiences’ reactions. The band has established itself as the premier JT tribute band, as its many fans will attest.
Norman founded Copperline with Sal and Chris Mingoia, previous members of Triple Play, 2010 to put together amazing musicians and singers in an effort to recreate the James Taylor sound as if you were attending one of his live shows, as Taylor’s band is known to have some of the world’s best session players – from Russ Kunkel on drums to Leland Sklar on bass. Paul McCartney and George Harrison sang backup on Taylor’s early hit “Carolina in My Mind.”

The band is led by Norman Vincent on vocals and acoustic guitar and features Margaret Carton on vocals, Colleen Cripps Daly on vocals, Sal Mingoia on guitar and vocals, mandolin, nylon string guitar, Chris Mingoia on drums and vocals, Brian Connolly on piano, and Hammond Organ, William “Chilly Willie” Scoppettone on saxophone and keyboards, Robert Hintz on bass guitar and Justin Scheidling on percussion.

For more information and ticket sales, please contact The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center box office at (631) 656-2148

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents:
The return engagement of
“The Amazing Accordion Kings”

World-renowned musicians take the audience on a “musical world tour,” in this masterful and exciting program, February 17, 2:00 pm

February 2, 2013, Dix Hills, NY – The accordion is one of the music world’s most versatile instruments. Its sound instantly conjures an ethnic celebration – though the ethnicity could be Italian, Jewish, Polish, Gypsy, Brazilian, Argentinean, American Jazz or nearly any other.

Audiences at the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center will have the opportunity to enjoy the music of the world-renowned Accordion Kings, three master musicians who have created beautiful arrangements and cover the spectrum from opera to jazz. Angelo DiPippo, Frank Toscano and Manny Corallo masterfully perform music from around the world with amazing virtuosity. The performance will be Sunday, Feb. 17 at 2 p.m. here at the Center.
Angelo DiPippo was voted best accordionist in America by the readers of Keyboard magazine and began playing accordion at eight years of age. He is a graduate of Holy Cross College with a Masters degree from C.W. Post College and an honorary Doctorate from Five Towns College. Well known as an arranger, DiPippo recently arranged music for the Woody Allen film To Rome with Love.
Angelo has played on thousands of recordings for some of the music industry’s most notable artists, including Peggy Lee, Billy Eckstein, James Earl Jones, Judy Collins, Roberta Peters, The Ramones, Robert Merrill, Harry Belafonte, Debbie Reynolds, Donald O’Connor, Randy Newman, Theodore Bikel, Frankie Avalon, Jimmy Roselli, Enzo Stuarti and many others.
Angelo and his Jazz Group have made appearances at the Newport Jazz Festival and many other Jazz venues, including Birdland, the Café Bohemia, and Lincoln Center in New York. His appearances include: The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, The Today Show, The Regis Philbin Show, The New York City Ballet, Sesame Street and The New York Pops with Skitch Henderson. For seven years, he played with The Jackie Gleason Show’s musicians, Sammy Spear and his Orchestra.
Frank Toscanoalso has played the accordion since age eight and credits his upbringing in New York in an Italian family with helping to foster his love of music. Music was valued in the home and his father encouraged him to take accordion lessons from Emilio Chiesa, who ultimately inspired Frank to make it his life. But instead of studying accordion at an established music school, at age 21 he founded his own, the Frank Toscano Music School on Steinway Street in Queens. He has performed live with (and for) many artists including Mikhail Baryshnikov and Aidan Quinn and can also be heard on many recordings of other artists. He has also performed with Joe Piscopo and vocalist Debra Toscano. Frank has performed many steady engagements at many prominent clubs in the Tri-State area such as the North Hempstead Country Club, Rockland Country Club and many more.
Manny Corallo began his musical career even earlier. At age four, he started playing drums, but soon switched to accordion like his dad, and later studied under his father’s teacher, Frank Toscano. Frank provided Manny with proper classical training, but he had a strong love for jazz and Manny developed the same love for it. Later inspired by Angelo’s accomplishments and albums, Manny found out that he too had an interest in arranging and began his career arranging for tenor Peter Colombo, and accompanied him on his Catskill Mountain tours as his piano conductor. Soon after the tours, Manny met record producer and engineer Gerry “Doc” Comito of Sonic Sound Recording Studio in Freeport, NY. Manny’s next couple of projects enabled him to write for live strings – something he still loves to do. His dance band, ‘Prime Time Live’, has opened in Atlantic City for comedians Sal Richards and Paula Poundstone, and at the Brookhaven Amphitheater as the opening act for the Count Basie orchestra. He has since branched into music composition and has scored a number of animated television series before recording with the Amazing Accordion Kings.

For more information and ticket sales, please contact The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center box office at (631) 656-2148

The Dix Hills Center for the Performing Arts presents:

 “A Tribute to the Great Jazz Organists, Nancy Wilson and Tap”

Jazz Pianist and Organist TW Sample, a rising star in Jazz,
will appear with two other young greats, vocalist Charisa Rouse
and tap dancer Maurice Chestnut

January 4, 2013, Dix Hills, NY– The Dix Hills Center for the Performing Arts will present “A Tribute to the Great Jazz Organists, Nancy Wilson and Tap” featuring renowned Jazz artist TW Sample on keyboards with vocalist Charisa Rouse and tap dancer Maurice Chestnut, Feb. 1, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are just $20.

The three will collaborate, Cabaret style, to perform the artistry of Nancy Wilson, Sarah Vaughn and many other jazz greats.

Sensational Jazz organist and pianist TW Sample has a style that reaches from Jazz to Gospel to R & B. The extraordinarily talented TW Sample is surely to become one of the Jazz Greats of the future, and will now be thrilling Long Island audience members, swinging the great standards and most popular jazz organ music of all-time. A native of Memphis, Tennessee, TW Sample graduated from The Ohio State University with a BA in Music Education, a Masters of Arts in Jazz Performance from William Paterson University, and soon, a Doctor of Musical Arts in Music Performance at Five Towns College.

Nancy Wilson is an American singer with more than 70 albums, and three Grammy Awards, and has been labeled a singer of blues, jazz, cabaret and pop; a “consummate actress”; and “the complete entertainer.” Renowned Vocalist and performer Charisa Rouse, known as both a vocalist and the “Violin Diva”, began her musical journey in a small public school program at the tender age of four, and so began a life-long love affair with music. Born and raised in Maryland, her earliest musical influences range from traditional Gospel to swinging Jazz and classical symphony. She has collaborated with some of the Jazz world’s most dynamic artists including Wynton Marsalis, Savion Glover, Diana Krall, Terence Blanchard and Quincy Jones.

One of tap dancing’s brightest young stars, Maurice Chestnut is an original member of the New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble. His extensive list of credits includes his appearance at Carnegie Hall and throughout Europe with the Geri Allen trio as a featured soloist and his performances in productions with Savion Glover such as Broadway’s rousing Bring in ‘Da Noise, Bring in ‘Da Funk, Improvography, Classical Savion, Tappin’ Into Monk, Invitation to the Dancer and on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars.

“We are thrilled to be able to bring these three very talented and acclaimed performers to our stage to pay homage to some true Jazz greats,” said Sandy Hinden, Director of the Center. “This show is a must see for anyone who loves Jazz and who wants to be thoroughly entertained. We look forward to welcoming them back again and again.”

For more information and ticket sales, please contact The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center box office at (631) 656-2148

Joe Piscopo, Mostly Moptop and the theatrical comedy “The Nerd”
take center stage to highlight an exciting new season

January 7, 2013, Dix Hills, NY– The Dix Hills Center for the Performing Arts will present A New Year of sparkling entertainment this winter, as the Center kicks off a new season. Highlights include:

Jan. 19at 7:30 p.m. “The Wild Women of Comedy.” The Center will present a showcase of exceptional female comedians produced by seasoned comics Kit Stewart and Anne LiPuma.

Jan. 20 at 2 p.m. “The Magic of Thaddeus.” Thaddeus, Long Island’s most popular children’s magician, returns to the Center with an all-new musical magical adventure.

Jan. 26 at 7:30 p.m. “Joe Piscopo’s Thrill Ride of Song, Stylings & Very Funny Stuff,” Joe Piscopo, one of America’s most popular comedy concert attractions, comes to Dix Hills for the first time. He will be joined by his top-notch band.

Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m.“Tribute to the Great Jazz Organists, Nancy Wilson and Tap!”A cabaret-style evening featuring pianist-organist TW Sample, vocalist Charisa Rouse and tap dancer Maurice Chestnut.

Feb. 2 at 7:30 p.m.Mostly Moptop in“Two of Us: The Ballad of John & Paul,”Mostly Moptop returns to the Center with a shared commemoration of Paul McCartney’s 70th birthday and the annual February anniversary of the Beatles’ arrival in America in 1964. The show will perform the greatest of Lennon & McCartney’s Beatles-era music, while also taking the audience through each icon’s music.

Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m. “Arnie Gruber Sings My Funny Valentine and other Great Songs,”featuring Arnie Gruber and his Band performing the greatest love songs of Porter, Rodgers, Mercer, Bacharach, Sondheim and more.
Feb. 9 at 7:30 p.m. “Horn Power Tribute to Tower of Power, Steely Danand More”with Uppercut, a nine-piece high-energy funk, rock and R&B group whose repertoire is dedicated to the great horn bands of the last 40 years.

Feb. 10 at 2:00 p.m. Gathering Time presents “Great Love Songs of the 1960s.” Get back to the days of young love with timeless, memorable and melodic songs, featuring the music of the Beatles, The Monkees, America, Joni Mitchell and more.

Feb. 16 at 2:00 p.m.“Eagles Tribute with Desert Highway.” Join us for Desert Highway, which has earned a reputation as one of the truest sounding Eagles tribute bands in America.

Feb. 17 at 2:00 p.m. “The Amazing Accordian Kings,”featuring Frank Toscano, Angelo DiPippo and Manny Corallo, three master musicians who have created beautiful arrangements and cover the spectrum of music styles from opera to jazz.

Feb. 22 at 7:30 p.m.“James Taylor Tribute with Copperline,” featuring nine musicians leading you through decades of J.T.’s most memorable songs including favorites such as “Fire and Rain,” “Carolina on My Mind,” and “Shower the People.”

Mar. 7-10, “The Nerd,” a Theatrical Comedy.

Mar. 15, at 7:30 p.m. “Dr. K’s Motown Review” with seven musicians and four lead vocalists who will transform the audience back to the Motown era, performing hits by The Supremes, The Temptations, Martha and the Vandellas and many others.

Mar. 16 at 7:30 p.m. “The Music of Billy Joel featuring Captain Jack,” performing Billy Joel’s acclaimed repertoire, delighting audiences with its energetic performance, style and banter of timeless rock’n’roll music.

Mar. 22 at 7:30 p.m. “Suffolk Horns,” one of Long Island’s top bands makes its Dix Hills premiere, playing the best of Chicago, James Brown, Johnny and Edgar Winter, The Blues Brothers and more.

Mar. 23 at 7:30 p.m. “An Evening with Vocalist Giada Valenti.” The master songstress Giada returns to center stage in Dix Hills, performing popular Italian songs as well as top romantic hits from the 1960s through ‘80s

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center at Five Towns Collegeis one of Long Island’s most vibrant cultural organizations, combining the finest in world-class music and performance education in our acoustically superior theater. Five Towns College, founded in 1972, as a community resource for jazz/commercial music education, and today’s Dix Hills Performing Arts Center, provide entertainment, education and inspiration for more than 20,000 Long Islanders each year.

For more information and ticket sales, please contact The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center box office at (631) 656-2148

 Mostly Moptop
“Two of Us: The Ballad of John & Paul”
February 2, 2013 at 7:30 p.m.

January 2, 2013, Dix Hills, NY – In shared commemoration of Sir Paul McCartney’s 70th birthday and the annual February anniversary of when The Beatles first came to America in 1964, the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center and The John Lennon Center for Music & Technology will present “Two of Us: The Ballad of John & Paul,” the ambitious and sensitively-prepared new show from Long Island’s top Beatles tribute band Mostly Moptop.

The concert will explore the legendary songwriting partnership of John Lennon and Paul McCartney—a fascinating interpersonal and creative relationship that began when the two were just boys in Liverpool, England. “Through the songs in the show, the audience will see and hear how John and Paul thrived and matured as they grew into manhood—only to then maintain separate but equal lives as artists, husbands, and fathers on their own up to the time that Lennon was tragically killed in 1980,” says Anthony Pomes, frontman for Mostly Moptop and Advisory Board member of The John Lennon Center for Music & Technology at Five Towns College. It was Pomes who planned and created the newest of the group’s “concept concerts” primarily with fellow bandmate John Tabacco.

When asked about how the new show was planned, Pomes recalls that “John and I spent months this past summer compiling notes and sifting through every song that John and Paul wrote or sang before, during, and after the Beatle years and leading up to Lennon’s death.” The songs were selected, according to Pomes, “very carefully with an ear aimed towards how the music worked together as a whole—as a result, the show is very much a call-and-response between the words and music of each composer . . . particularly when those words and music signal direct collaboration between the two Beatles.” Examples of this special musical kinship between Lennon and McCartney will be heard throughout the show in songs like “She Loves You,” “We Can Work It Out,” “A Day in the Life,” and “I’ve Got a Feeling,” among others.

The occasion of Paul McCartney’s 70th birthday this past June 18th held a special poignancy for Tabacco, who traditionally handles most of the McCartney vocals when the band performs. “I felt the time was right,” Tabacco says, “to also shine a light more fully on the special contributions that Paul brought to the music and memories of The Beatles.” A good example, according to Tabacco, is the song “Tomorrow Never Knows” from the 1966 album Revolver: “While the song isdefinitely a Lennon track,” observes Tabacco, “the psychedelic tape loops heard throughout were definitely brought to the table by McCartney, who had been experimenting with London’s avant-garde movement for months before Lennon’s track was even recorded.”

Just as Lennon and McCartney could not be the Beatles without George Harrison and Ringo Starr, both Pomes and Tabacco knew that the intricacies of the new show would not be possible to execute until they started to work and rehearse the material with their Mostly Moptop bandmates Edward Franz and Paul Michael Barkan. “It’s one thing to plan a show in your mind and on paper,” states Pomes, “but it’s something else completely once you throw that show out into the air and try to make everything flow smoothly.” Pomes and Tabacco both commend the talents of Franz, who they credit with “keeping us aware of how the material would work—or not—in front of a live audience,” and with Barkan, whose deeply visionary work with his own excellently-reviewed Beatles Magical Orchestra concerts was key to the band’s collective grasp of all song details.

Barkan was also responsible for bringing a new musical guest to the party on this show. In addition to longtime Moptop concert collaborators Don Larsen and Barbara Maurer-Raniere, the group will be joined by brilliant local multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Andrew Lubman, whose own inspired series of YouTube videos (in which Lubman is shown performing classic Beatles tracks note-for-note, and instrument-by-instrument) have achieved their own unique and quickly-growing popularity. “Andrew is like a long-lost Moptop brother to us,” quips Pomes, who knew Lubman was perfect for the show within 30 seconds of their first spirited rehearsal together. “He thinks the same way we do about all things Beatle,” Pomes goes on to say, “and his obsessive attention to detail mirrors that of everyone in our band. People are going to be blown away when they hear what we are doing with Andrew aboard.”

In the end, however, the true center of the concert comes from those two most crucial of emotional states—sadness and joy. “When John met Paul all those years ago, the mutual loss of their mothers brought deep sadness to them both,” says Pomes. “Out of that shared inner place of loss, I like to think that John and Paul helped each other to find a special kind of joy through music.” In the months following the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963, the joy of Beatlemania helped wipe away much of the nation’s sadness. “In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, which has caused so much damage and heartache recently,” Tabacco says, “we hope to bring some of the joy that John and Paul found together to our audience.”

MOSTLY MOPTOP is comprised of: Anthony Pomes (rhythm and lead guitar, bass, piano, and vocals); John Tabacco (drums, piano, and vocals); Edward Franz (lead and rhythm guitar, bass, and vocals); and Paul Michael Barkan (bass, keyboards, miscellaneous instruments, vocals).

Tickets for the February 2, 2013, 7:30 p.m., performance are $35, 30, 25. For more information and ticket sales, please contact the Dix Hills Center for the Performing Arts Box Office at (631) 656-2148

Joe Piscopo’s Thrill Ride of Songs, Stylings & Very Funny Stuff
Saturday, Jan. 26th

The First Saturday Night Live Alumnus to Play Dix Hills,
Piscopo brings his popular voice and antics to the main stage

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center presents “Joe Piscopo’s Thrill Ride of Songs, Stylings & Very Funny Stuff,” featuring famous Comedian Joe Piscopo and his band, Saturday, Jan. 26th at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $60, $50, 45, $40 and $35.

Television, film, theater, and nightclub – they’re all fields in which Joe Piscopo has won the acclaim and affection of millions. For more than 25 years, Joe conquered one medium after another. After stints as a disc jockey and dinner-theater performer, Joe turned to comedy in 1980, when he joined the ensemble cast of Saturday Night Live, tasked with replacing the original cast members.

By the time he left the show in 1985, Joe had left his mark on the program and the nation thanks to his wide range of hilarious original characters and celebrity impersonations, from The Sports Guy and Doug Whiner to David Letterman and, of course, the late, great Frank Sinatra, who repeatedly endorsed Joe’s portrayal of him, even referring to Joe as ‘The Vice-Chairman of the Board.’

Joe’s work on SNL led to Hollywood, and starring roles in films like Wise Guys with Danny DeVito and Johnny Dangerously with Michael Keaton. Other film credits include Dead Heat, Sidekicks and the independent feature films Two Bits & Pepper, Roger Corman’s, Demolition Day and a dramatic, critically acclaimed performance in Jonathan Parker’s Bartleby.

In January 1996, Joe starred on Broadway as disc jockey Vince Fontaine in the popular revival of Grease! Ever the trouper, Joe insisted on performing opening night, despite conditions created by one of the worst blizzards in NYC history, and indeed Grease! was the only Broadway show to open that night.

Joe has long been one of America’s most popular comedy concert attractions, filling arenas and casino showrooms from coast to coast and in Canada. Joe tours with his own original Big Band tribute to Frank Sinatra, as well as his multimedia comedy show. He also appeared in several innovative television commercials including his famed Miller Lite campaign to GNC, Bally’s and even touting Ragu (with his Italian Mom’s permission, of course!) Joe won acclaim for his dramatic guest-starring roles on the NBC drama “Law and Order” and has been a frequent guest on The Late Show with David Letterman. Joe is also a co-host of NYC’s famous Columbus Day Parade.

Though busy with appearances, Piscopo devotes much of his time to charitable causes and is the founder of “The Positive Impact Foundation,” creating positive media for at-risk youth including the syndicated television show for teens, “Positive Impact TV”. This groundbreaking series mixes education and entertainment to reinforce positive behavior and lifestyles among at-risk youth from both urban and suburban backgrounds. Joe recently merged his foundation with the Boy’s and Girl’s Clubs of New Jersey for which he is the statewide spokesman.

Joe also was recently honored by the NYPD Columbia Association and received the Commendation Medal, the highest civilian award from the state of New Jersey. He has performed concerts for the NJ National Guard and the NJ WWII Memorial — his dad was a Major is the US Army Air Corp in the Second World War. The son and grandson of immigrants, Joe received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor. He was also named Father of the Year by both the National Father’s Day Council and the New Jersey Council on Children’s Rights.