Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Awards for Best Original Song. Many of his songs are standard repertoire for vocalists and jazz musicians. He co-wrote 850 songs.
He is best known for his collaborations with composer Richard Rodgers, as the duo Rodgers and Hammerstein, whose musicals include Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music. Described by Stephen Sondheim as an "experimental playwright", Hammerstein helped bring the American musical to new ... read more
Jonathan Tunick is an American orchestrator, musical director, and composer. Tunick’s stage career began with Take Five (1957). He went on to collaborate memorably with Stephen Sondheim, orchestrating shows such as Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures, Sweeney Todd, Merrily We Roll Along, Into the Woods, Passion, and Putting It Together. Additional notable Broadway credits include Promises, Promises; A Chorus Line; Nick & Nora; A Funny Thing...; Elaine Stritch at Liberty; Nine; A Gentleman’s Guide...; and 110 in the Shade. In 1997, he won his first Tony Award, for his work on the musical Titanic. This accomplishment gave ... read more
Ken Billington is a highly acclaimed lighting designer with over 50 years of experience in the theatre industry. Born in 1944 in Long Island, New York, Billington attended Hofstra University where he studied theatre and lighting design. After graduating, he began his career as a lighting designer in the Off-Broadway scene in the 1960s, eventually making his way to Broadway.
Billington has designed the lighting for over 100 Broadway productions, including the original productions of Sweeney Todd, Chicago, and The Drowsy Chaperone. He has been nominated for the Tony Award for Best Lighting Design 21 times, winning three times for his ... read more
Designs film and video for live events. Credits include Ring of Fire (Studio Arena Theater); 700 Sundays (Broadway and La Jolla); Dracula, The Musical (Broadway and La Jolla); The Elephant Man (Broadway); Manon Lescaut (Washington Opera); Allegro; One Red Flower and Hedwig (Signature Theater); Last Five Years (Philadelphia Theater Company) Company; Sunday in the Park With George and Merrily We Roll Along (Kennedy Center Sondheim Celebration), Spider-Man Live (national tour), Music From a Sparkling Planet (Drama Dept), Aeros (national tour) and Dinner with Friends (ACT). ... read more
Joe DiPietro won Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Score for Memphis, which was also awarded the 2010 Tony Award, Drama Desk Award and Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical. His other shows include All Shook Up; I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change (the longest running musical revue in off-Broadway history); The Toxic Avenger and The Thing About Men (both winners of the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway musical). His plays include the much-produced comedy Over the River and Through the Woods, The Art of Murder (Edgar Award winner for Best Mystery Play), Creating Claire ... read more
Jon Kalbfleisch enjoys a multi-faceted musical life as a conductor, pianist, award-winning music director, freelance musician and organist. Having conducted ballet, opera, symphonic music, choral works, contemporary music and Broadway musicals, he has an interest in a wide range of musical styles. In Oklahoma, after five years as its music director and conductor, he has guided the Lawton Philharmonic Orchestra to newfound heights both in terms of artistic success and community outreach. Symphony magazine recently highlighted the LPO’s Art Inspired by Music project; local students inspired by the music of Beethoven created some 4,000 original artworks. Previously, Jon was ... read more
