The Gershwins Who Could Ask for Anything More

Playlist

I Got Rhythm Group

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracists: George & Ira Gershwin

Fascinating Rhythm

But Not For Me

Christy Baggett

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracist: Ira Gershwin

Juan Unzueta

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracist: Ira Gershwin

S’wonderful Group

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracist: Ira Gershwin

Summertime

Kate Guyton Morgens

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracists: Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward

Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off Kate Guyton Morgens, Juan Unzueta

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracist: Ira Gershwin

A Foggy Day (in London Town)

Christy Baggett, Galen Crawley

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracist: Ira Gershwin

They Can’t Take That Away from Me

Galen Crawley

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracist: Ira Gershwin

Love Walked In Group

Composer: George Gershwin; Lyracist: Ira Gershwin

Composer George Gershwin (1898-1937), synthesized jazz, classical music, opera, and ragtime into his unique musical style. His brother Ira (1896-1983), collaborated with George as a lyricist, and together they wrote some of the most memorable songs of the 20th Century. Born Yakov and Israel Gershowitz to Ukrainian Jews in New York City, George and Ira had very different personalities. George was a charismatic extrovert who became a huge celebrity. When he attended parties, he was always at the piano or dancing. Ira was shy, bookish, and a dedicated family man. Together they changed American popular music.

Upper Level Members

Thank you to our members! The Breman greatly appreciates the generosity of our supporters.

LEVISON CIRCLE

($10,000)

The Spring and Tom (z”l) Asher Family

Spring Asher, Hugh Asher, Johanna Asher, Joey Asher, Juliet Asher, Michael Golden

PRESIDENT’S COUNCIL ($5000)

Janet Abrams

Arthur Blank

GUARDIAN ($2500)

Elaine and Miles Alexander

Shirley Blaine (z”l)

Carol and Laurence Cooper

Jean and Jerome Cooper

Sara and Robert Franco

CHAI ($1800)

Ellen Arnovitz and Michael Plasker

Sheryl Blechner

Judith and Ronald Cohen

Marilyn Ginsberg Eckstein

Jack B. Gordon and Peter Gordon

Jack and Lynne Halpern

Pearlann Horowitz

BENEFACTOR ($1000)

Diane and Kent Alexander

Beth and Joel Arogeti

Amy and Robert Arogeti

Janice and David Bauman

Stephen and Candy Berman

Marlene Besser

Shirley and Perry Brickman

Lisa and Ron Brill

The Cohen-Kogon Family

Wendy and Gilbert Deitch

Michelle Easton and Mark Williams

Howard and Sheila Fagin

Ellen and Howard Feinsand

The Blonder Family

Ann and Jay Davis

Laura and Marshall Dinerman

Elaine and Michael Gutenstein

S. Jarvin Levison

Lois Blonder, Suzanne Blonder, Jeff and Dale Dyer, Leslie and Doug Isenberg

Doris and Martin Goldstein

Barbara and Sanford Orkin

Judy Zaban Miller

Marlene Schwartz

Lori Shapiro and Cary Goldenthal

Lana and Richard Krebs

Dulcy and Jerry Rosenberg

Deborah and Charles Shelton

Judith and Mark Taylor

William Weiller

Robert and Connie Zerden

Barbara and Alan Kaplan

Drs. Jeffrey and Carol Koplan

Steve Kuranoff and Cathy Selig-Kuranoff

Mimi and Dan Maslia

Julian and Dedi Mohr

Jackie and Anthony Montag

Michael Morris

Linda and Stephen Selig

Ronit Walker and Matt Bronfman

Suzanne Wilner

Julie Zweig and David Friedman

Rachel and Curt Friedberg

Corky and Roger Gelder

Karen and Andrew Ghertner

Debbie and Richard Goldsmith

Barbara and Jerry Greenbaum

Lila and Douglas Hertz

Tom and Edwina Johnson

Jacob Kerker

The Kimerling Foundation

Carole and Sidney (z”l) Kirschner

Cathy and Jeffrey Korotkin

Sharon and Michael Levison

Sandy and Bob London

Steven and Simone Nehman

Brenda and Leon Novak

Cathy Papadopoulos

Daniel Pentecost

Marc and Robin Pollack

Patricia and Douglas Reid

Phyllis and Sidney Rodbell

Melissa and Philip Russ

Joyce and Henry Schwob

Phyllis and Stanley Slutzky

Kerri and Jeffrey Snow

Betty and Alan Sunshine

Jeannette and Michael Zukor

The Flying Carpet Theatre Company

ABOUT FCT

Incorporated in 2003, Adam Koplan (Founding Artistic Director) created The Flying Carpet Theatre Company (FCT) after spending formative time training at Playwrights Horizons in New York City and at Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris. Over nearly 20 years, The Flying Carpet Theatre Company has created and/or premiered 20+ original plays including early works by artists who continue to shape the American Theatre such as Robert Lopez ( Avenue Q, The Book of Mormon, Frozen) and Geoff Sobelle ( All Wear Bowlers, The Object Lesson, Elephant Room). We have performed our shows in our home bases of New York, NY and Atlanta, GA and have toured nationally to 15 states, and internationally to Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Dublin, Prague and Rome.

WHAT WE DO

We generate new theatre that uses American historical stage traditions — physical theatre, circus arts, vaudeville, puppetry, stage magic, cabaret performance, autobiographical storytelling, live music performance, and more — to tell stories about big ideas. American entertainment history reflects the best and worst of our society, and we utilize this tension to investigate flashpoints in our culture. By rooting our work in age-old theatrical forms, we pursue innovative theatrical experiences that connect us to our basic human need for telling stories while inspiring essential, complicated and deep discussion. We are committed to delighting, inspiring and challenging audiences by making performance art in collaborative, communal, non-hierarchical creative spaces and bringing our transformative theatre to communities across the globe.

Please visit our website flyingcarpettheatre.com to learn more.

The Creative Team of The Gershwins: Who Could Ask for Anything More? has previously created the following shows for The Breman:

Harold Arlen: Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Leiber and Stoller: Baby That’s Rock N Roll

The Songs of Marilyn and Alan Bergman

The Music of the Marx Brothers

Dorothy Fields: Sunnyside of the Street

Cast & Producers

Christy is thrilled to be part of the Molly Blank Concert Series again at the Breman! Favorite Atlanta credits: The Light in the Piazza, A Little Princess, Big River, Godspell (Theatrical Outfit); Mamma Mia, Sister Act (The Legacy); Ragtime, Hairspray, The Will Rogers Follies (Atlanta Lyric); John & Jen, Ordinary Days (Serenbe Playhouse); Honk, A Christmas Carol (Alliance Theatre). Christy has also appeared in productions with The Jennie T. Anderson Theatre, Horizon Theatre, Theater Emory, Actor’s Express, Aurora Theatre, Stage Door Players, Synchronicity, ART Station, Theater of the Stars, and Springer Opera House.

Galen is an AEA actor based out of her hometown: Atlanta, Georgia. She began acting classes with the Alliance Theatre and Atlanta Workshop Players while she was still in elementary school. As a teenager, she performed at the Fox Theatre with Theatre of the Stars and appeared in a number of commercials. She attended college in St. Louis and graduated from the Sargent Conservatory of Theatre Arts at Webster University with a BFA in Musical Theatre. Galen has performed throughout the southeast with the Alliance Theatre, Flat Rock Playhouse, Nashville Repertory Theatre, Studio Tenn, Aurora Theatre, The Atlanta Shakespeare Company, Actors Express, the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, and more. She has appeared in many commercials alongside the likes of Shaqille O’Neal, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and Tiffany Haddish. She was a supporting character in the film What’s The Matter With Gerald?, as well as episodes of The Carbonaro Effect and Disney+’s Encore (in an incredible coincidence, she was cast in the professional ensemble supporting the alumni cast of Oklahoma! at her very own high school)

Adam Koplan (writer/director) is currently serving as the Director of Performing Arts at The Westminster Schools. Adam is the founding artistic director of The Flying Carpet Theatre Company (FCT). Under Adam’s leadership, FCT premiered 24 productions, toured to over 19 states and across Europe. Recent writing commissions: 1001 Nights along with collaborators Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez for Twentieth Century Fox. Some favorite ATL productions as director: The Pitmen Painters, Perfect Arrangement and world premiere of The Dancing Handkerchief — a collaboration between Adam, Robert Lopez, and Geoff Sobellev — all at Theatrical Outfit. 1001 Nights: A Love Story About Loving Stories at Center for Puppetry Arts won two Suzi awards (best TYA production, best TYA ensemble). His production of Alpin Hong: Chasing Chopin appeared at Lincoln Center as well as played for over 11,000 people across the US on tour. His NY production of Rising to the Tap was named “Top 10 Dance-Performance Pieces of 2017” by Huffington Post. Currently an adjunct professor at Emory’s Dept. of Theatre teaching “Intro to Directing.” Training: M.F.A. from the University of Washington, B.A. from Swarthmore College. Ecole Jacques Lecoq. Member: Lincoln Center Director’s Lab, Writers Guild of America East.

GALEN CRAWLEY

ADAM KOPLAN

CHRISTY BAGGETT

KATE GUYTON MORGENS

Kate Guyton Morgens is the Director of Theater Arts at The Westminster Schools. Productions that she has directed there include Les Miserables, Something Rotten!, Fiddler on the Roof, Titanic, King Lear, Three Sisters, Arcadia, Pajama Games, and Noises Off. Kate received a BFA in musical theatre from the University of Michigan and an MFA in acting from New York University. Prior to living and working in Atlanta, Kate taught acting for eight years at CAP21: NYU/Tisch School of the Arts in New York City. As an actress in NY, Kate’s acting credits include the ABC’s Cashmere Mafia (playing Lucy Liu’s office assistant, Tracy), Cyrano de Bergerac (Broadway with Kevin Kline and Jennifer Garner), Entertaining Mr. Sloane (Broadway starring opposite Alec Baldwin), Three Penny Opera (with Alan Cumming and Edie Falco), Law & Order (with Jesse Martin), Law & Order: Criminal Intent (with Chris Noth), Fringe (with Anna Torv), Rescue Me (with Dennis Leary), Kidnapped (with Timothy Hutton), and Head of State (directed by Chris Rock, acting with Bernie Mac). Kate taught Lady Gaga at NYU, and she is proud to be mentioned in the recently released book about Avenue Q as the creators’ inspiration for the character of Kate Monster. Kate expresses deep gratitude for the support of her husband, Ned Morgens and her sons, Drew and James.

Greg “Suds” Sudmeier (Music Director, Arranger) created and conducted the “Skywalker Symphony” at Lucasfilm for many film, album and commercial projects such as the Grammy -nominated “StarWars Trilogy” album with John Williams, 6 albums with Linda Ronstadt, the band Journey, Arron Neville, Randy Newman, and movies like Predator 2, Soapdish, Mark Twain and Me, Member of the Wedding, House of Yes, Forrest Gump and many others. From 2012-2015 Greg served as Musical Director, Conductor for the Fremont Symphony, CA and is also the music director for The Diablo Ballet, Walnut Creek, CA. A CLIO award winner, Greg is producer for his own companies, Atlanta Audible and GSMP; scoring films, writing show themes and writing and conducting the Symphony Pops sets for the widely popular vocal quartet, The Blenders. Greg is also very glad to be on the board of the South Fulton County Film Commission, and he lives with his wife, Lee Foster, in Serenbe, GA (Chattahoochee Hills).

Juan is excited to be working with Adam Koplan and The Breman again! Atlanta credits: Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed: The Rock Experience, The Incredible Book Eating Boy, The Lizard and El Sol (Alliance Theatre); In The Heights, Christmas Canteen 2020-2022, País de Bicicleta, 2017 Suzi Award Winning TYA Production The Three Billy Goats Gruff, Beat Bugs A Musical Adventure (Aurora Theatre); Little Shop of Horrors, Merrily We Roll Along in Concert and Fun Home (Actor’s Express), Freaky Friday (Horizon Theatre); Guys and Dolls, Luminous and The Best of Broadway (Atlanta Lyric Theatre), Miss Bennet Christmas at Pemberley (Theatrical Outfit); Let’s Hang On (City Springs Theatre Company); NINE in Concert and Chess in Concert (Jennie T. Anderson Theatre); Songs for a New World (BUICEntennial Productions). Education: BFA, BA, University of North Florida. Other: Graphic Designer and Marketing Associate at Aurora Theatre, Film/TV/Commercial Representation by People Store. IG: @juancho181

Greg Sudmeier, drums; Francisco Lora, bass; Robert Strickland, piano

GREG SUDMEIER

Special Thanks

The Gershwins: Who Could Ask for Anything More? is presented by:

We wish to express our gratitude to the Performers’ Unions: ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION, AMERICAN GUILD OF MUSICAL ARTISTS, AMERICAN GUILD OF VARIETY ARTISTS, SAG-AFTRA through Theatre Authority, Inc. for their cooperation in permitting the Artists to appear in this program.

The Molly Blank Concert Series Celebrating Jewish Contributions to Music is made possible through the generosity of:

Spring & Thomas (z”l) Asher

Ann & Jay Davis

Marilyn Ginsberg Eckstein

AJ Robinson & Dr. Nicole Ellerine

Dulcy & Jerry Rosenberg

Ann & Marvin Goldstein

Elaine & Michael Gutenstein

S. Jarvin Levison

Sharon & Michael Levison

Erin & Mike Murphy

Judith & Mark Taylor

Jeannette & Michael Zukor

With Additional Support From:

Moving Atlanta Forward

Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners. This program is supported in part by the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs.

Thank you to Dulcy and Jerry Rosenberg for generously donating the wine for this year’s Molly Blank Concert Series.

The Breman 2023 Board of Directors

OFFICERS

Adam Koplan, Chair

Lana Krebs, Secretary

Mike Murphy, Treasurer

Lori Shapiro, Past Chair

DIRECTORS

Elaine Alexander

Imara Canady

Judy Cohen

Bonnie Cook

Marilyn Eckstein

Howard Fagin

Rachel Finglass

Curt Friedberg

Robin Friedrich

Elaine Gutenstein

Darby Israel

Joslin LeBauer

Mike Levison

Samara Minkin

Cathy Papadopoulos

Leanna Rinzler

Judith Taylor

EX-OFFICIO

Leslie Gordon

EMERITUS

Miles Alexander

Spring Asher

Thomas J. Asher (z”l)

Lois A. Blonder

Laura Dinerman

Gail H. Evans

Peter Fishman

Craig Frankel

Carole B. Goldberg

S. Jarvin Levison

Valerie Needle

Carol Nemo

A.J. Robinson

Jerry Rosenberg

Marlene J. Schwartz

Joyce Shlesinger

Norman Zoller