Twelve Songs of the Season
Holiday Special december 19 8pm ET
The Great American Songbook Foundation presents
twelve Songs of the Season: A Virtual Holiday Special Hosted by Michael Feinstein, founder Featuring alumni of the Songbook Academy Opening number: It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Edward Pola and George Wyle
Songs of the Season: I’ll Be Home for Christmas
Local Alumni - Featured Singers* & DAncers*
Nick Ziobro (2012 Ambassador)
by Walter Kent, Kim Gannon & Buck Ram
Winter Wonderland
by Felix Bernard and Richard Bernhard Smith
Merry Christmas Darling
by Richard CArpenter and Frank Pooler
My Favorite Things
by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II
Julia Bonnett (2009 Ambassador) Accompanied by Becky Menzie
Lucy Breedlove (2017, ’18 alumna)
Accompanied by the Breedlove family
Helena Beltrao (2016 alumna) Accompanied by Jacob Elder
Maddie Baillio (2014 Ambassador)
The Christmas Song
Accompanied by Beckie Menzie
by Robert Wells and Mel Torme
Quiana Morris (2020 alumna)
sleigh Ride
Accompanied by Beckie Menzie
by Leroy Anderson and Mitchell Parish
Have Yourself a Merry Little christmas
Sadie Fridley (2019 ambassador)
I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas
Annie Yokom (2010 Ambassador)
by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane
by John Rox
Anaïs Reno (2018 alumna)
A Christmas Surprise
Accompanied by Tedd Firth
by Billy Strayhorn
The First Noel/Let There Be Peace on Earth
William B. Sandys and Davies Gilbert, Jill Jackson-Miller and Sy Miller
Let it Snow
by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne
White Christmas by Irving Berlin
Closing Number: When you Believe by Stephen Schwartz
Encore Performance: Home for the Holiday
Original song by Julia Goodwin
2
Accompanied by Charlie Yokom
Michael FEinstein
Zach Connolly (2018, ’19 alumnus) & Shaymus Hanlin (2019 alumnus)
Accompanied by Beckie Menzie
Jillian Slade (2010, ‘12 alumna) Featuring pop duo: Shawn & Jill
Maya Jacobson (2013 alumna)
Accompanied by Beckie Menzie
Julia Goodwin (2013 Ambassador)
APPLY AT BiT.LY/SONGBOOK21
PROGRAM DATES: JULY 17-24, 2021
*Local Alumni – Featured Singers Olivia Broadwater (2018) Annie Flowers (2020) Mahesh Gupta (2020) Tara Lacy (2017, ’18) Griffin Scott (2018, ’19) Katie Swaney (2015)
Songbook Foundation Staff CEO – Jeffrey McDermott Executive Director – Chris Lewis Archivist – Lisa Lobdell Director of Programs – Renée La Schiazza Individual Giving Officer – Marissa Nielsen Program Coordinator – Chelsea Reynowsky
*Local Alumni – Featured Dancers Jack Ducat (2019) Hayden Elefante (2017, ’20) Sydney Greene (2019) Cynthia Kauffman (2017, ’19) Sophie Miller (2018) Samantha Shelton (2019, ’20)
Production Team director of production – Tim Todd Lead Video Engineer – Ben Dobler Lead Audio Engineer – Devin Schonsheck Technical Director, Studio Theater– Joe Wisner Graphic Designer – Kalie Clark
s i n o i t a c i l p Ap pen! o w o n
Video Messages: from Songbook Academy alumni across the country
Virtual Music Director/Accompanist: "I FELT SO MUCH MORE CONFiDENCE iN Beckie Menzie MYSELF AND OWNERSHiP OVER MY FUTURE."
Kyrie Courter, '13
Special Thanks: Michael Feinstein (Founder) for making everything we do possible.
Give the gift of music this holiday season by making a donation at TheSongbook.org/donate or texting "Songbook" to 91999.
Michael Feinstein 2
Five-time Grammy Award nominee Michael Feinstein is Artistic Director at the Center for the Performing Arts and Founder of the Great American Songbook Foundation and the Songbook Academy®. More than an acclaimed singer and pianist, he is recognized internationally for his commitment to the Great American Songbook, both celebrating its art and preserving its legacy for future generations. His television work has included the PBS series Michael Feinstein’s American Songbook, the primetime special Michael Feinstein at the Rainbow Room, and the Emmy-nominated special Michael Feinstein – The Sinatra Legacy, which was recorded live at the Palladium and aired across the country. 3
Beckie Menzie
Beckie Menzie has appeared at the legendary Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Birdland in New York, Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre and Park West, as well as concert halls and art series across the country. Hailed by WGN Radio as “indispensable to Chicago cabaret,” she has performed at many Mabel Mercer Cabaret Conventions in New York and Chicago and has served as a performer, director and musical director for the Chicago Humanities Festival. Having taught at Northwestern University for 17 years, she continues to conduct masterclasses across the country and tours regularly with vocalist Tom Michael. For more info please visit www.beckiemenzie.com. 4
Meet our Alumni!
hayden elefante, ‘17 & ‘20 featured dancer ball state university
tara lacy, ‘17 & 18 featured singer 5 indiana university
annie flowers, ‘20 featured singer park tudor high school
sydney green, ‘1 featured dancer indiana univers
sophie miller, ‘18 featured dancer millikin university
griffin scott, ‘18 featured singer carmel high sch
19 r sity
8 & 19 r hool
Olivia Broadwater, ‘18 featured dancer ball state university
jack ducat, ‘19 featured dancer carmel high school
mahesh gupta, ‘20 featured singer purdue university
cynthia kauffman, ‘17 & ‘20 featured dancer indiana university
samantha shelton, ‘19 & 20 featured dancer Herron high school GRad
katie swaney, ‘15 featured singer indiana university Grad
6
maddie baillio (2014) is the 2014 Great American Songbook Youth Ambassador. She studied Musical Theatre at Marymount Manhattan College in New York before starring as Tracy Turnblad in NBC’s Hairspray Live! alongside Ariana Grande, Jennifer Hudson, Kristen Chenoweth and Harvey Fierstein, among others. In 2018, Maddie made her Netflix film debut in the Dolly Parton music-filled comedy Dumplin’, and she will star opposite Idina Menzel and Camila Cabello in the new musical-comedy reimagining of Cinderella, coming to theaters in 2021. Fun fact: Her go-to karaoke song is “La Vie en Rose.”
helena beltrao (2016) is a Brazilian vocalist based in Boston, MA. Growing up half in Brazil and half in the United States, Helena’s musical journey was shaped by the musical traditions of both countries, from bossa nova and MPB (Brazilian popular music) in Brazil to jazz, blues and pop in the United States. During her Vocal Performance studies at Berklee College of Music, she has combined the two halves of her upbringing into a unique musical fusion that unites people from all cultures.
julia bonnett (2009) was the Great American Songbook Academy’s inaugural Youth Ambassador. This Hoosier has been seen in numerous local performances, including the grand opening of the Tarkington with Michael Feinstein and David Hyde Pierce, several concerts with the Carmel Symphony Orchestra, and theatrical productions with the Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre and Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre including Disney’s Beauty & the Beast (Belle), Little Women (Jo), Into the Woods (Cinderella) and more. Julia graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the Kelley School of Business and a Minor in Music from the Jacobs School of Music. Julia lives in Carmel, where she recently celebrated five years as Civic Theatre’s Director of Development & Administration.
lucy breedlove (2017-’18) participated in the Songbook Academy during the summers of 2017 and 2018, when she was on Team Beckie/ Elaine then Mel/Lynne. Hailing from the Washington, D.C., area, she and her parents, Graham and Kelly, began arranging and uploading songs for their trio during the initial national quarantine in March. Lucy is currently a sophomore Musical Theatre major at Otterbein University, where she sings the standards she learned to love at the Songbook Academy whenever she can.
7
zach connolly (2018, ’19) is a 20-year-old pursuing his associate degree in music at Clark College in Vancouver, Washington. He has grown up most of his life in Greentown, Indiana, and has been singing from a very young age. Now living in Washington, Zach plans to pursue a career in music and get more involved in the Portland music scene. In his free time, he enjoys singing and playing his saxophone. In addition, he enjoys outdoor activities like hiking and bike riding.
sadie fridley (2018, ’19), a 17-year-old high school senior from Fayetteville, New York, is the 2019 Songbook Youth Ambassador. Thanks to the Songbook Academy, she has had the opportunity to perform at venues like Feinstein’s/54 Below and at the 2019 Songbook Hall of Fame induction. She has most recently been seen performing a virtual concert series this summer, Driveway Jams, which raised money for national racial justice causes. Sadie is also involved in local theater such as At Rise Productions and the Redhouse Arts Center, is a local news Extraordinary Talent, and is a member of the 2020 National Honors Choir. When she’s not singing, Sadie loves to play the saxophone and piano, dance and read.
julia goodwin (2013), Applauded by The New York Times as “phenomenally gifted,” is a pop/contemporary R&B singer and songwriter from Syracuse, NY, who wears her heart on her sleeve. Alongside an A-list of award-winning singers from Freddy Cole to B.B. King, she has performed on some of the world’s most renowned stages: Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, Birdland, Feinstein’s/54 Below, Rainbow Room, NFL stadiums, Dolby Theatre and Radio City Music Hall. She was a quarterfinalist on Season 9 of NBC’s America’s Got Talent and has acquired a fan base online posting covers of popular songs. Goodwin graduated from Syracuse University, majoring in Music Industry with a concentration in Jazz/Commercial studies, and her singles “When I Wake” and “Home for the Holiday” are available now on all platforms. shaymus hanlin (2019) is a 19-year-old vocalist who recently moved to Portland, Oregon, to continue his music career. Growing up with the American Songbook in his heart, he fell in love with the music and began performing at age 13. Hanlin has appeared with many great musicians and performers such as Dave Bennett, Phat Cat Swinger, Yve Evans, Terry Myers, and the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Having been introduced to the music festival circuit at a young age with the Oregon Coast Lab Band and Bay City Swing, he has made many friends and mentors in the music business. With an old-school sound that brings nostalgia to audiences wherever he goes, Hanlin gives you his all at every performance. https://shaymushanlin.com
8
maya jacobson (2013) was most recently seen as Bielke in the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s Fidler Afn Dakh (Fiddler on the Roof), directed by award-winning actor/director Joel Grey. Other credits include Amerike: The Golden Land, and for television, Mordeo for Crypt TV and My Life as a Doormat (pilot). She is a graduate of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee and is the 2013 Southeast Regional Winner and National Finalist of the Songbook Academy. @_mayajacobson
Quiana Morris (2020) began her journey in music by singing in church and school choirs, including the Georgia Music Educators Association All-State and Honors Chorus. After transferring to Savannah Arts Academy of Visual and Performing Arts in the 10th grade, Quiana was cast in the role of Mama Morton in Chicago. Also a passionate jazz vocalist, Quiana is the inaugural 2018 winner of the Junior Americans Tradition Competition. After the competition, Quiana performed alongside fellow alumna Melinda Rodriguez, who encouraged her to audition for the Songbook Academy, where she had an amazing experience this past summer. She is now enjoying her senior year, using jazz and music to keep her going as she prepares to attend the University of Alabama in the fall.
Anaïs Reno (2018), is a 16-year-old Drama major at LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts. Active in the arts since age 8, she has won the 2016 Forte International Competition’s Platinum Award at Carnegie Hall, took first place at the 2019 Mabel Mercer Foundation competition, and received the Songbook Academy’s Inspiration Award. She has appeared with the NY Philharmonic in David Geffen Hall with her own compositions, made her Rose Hall debut at Lincoln Center in the Cabaret Convention, and performed from Birdland to Carnegie Hall to Feinstein’s/54 Below. Stay tuned for her upcoming album celebrating the music of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, accompanied by the Emmet Cohen Trio.
9
Jillian Slade (2010 & 2012) is beyond elated and honored to be reuniting with her Songbook Academy family once again. Jillian grew up in Iowa and attended the University of Michigan, where she received her BFA in Musical Theatre. Regional credits include: June (Gypsy), Dyanne (Million Dollar Quartet) and Miranda (The Tempest). Film/TV appearances include Adidas’ “How To Create” Campaign (national spot) and Sheryl in Present Day (Traverse City Film Festival). Jillian has performed on stages from Lincoln Center to the Kennedy Center, and appeared alongside brilliant artists like Kristin Chenoweth, Hunter Foster, Andrew Lippa, and Shoshana Bean. She now resides and works in Los Angeles, as well as touring in the acoustic pop duo Shawn and Jill.
Annie Yokom (2010) is so grateful to have been given the title of 2010 Great American Songbook Youth Ambassador. Annie attended the Chicago Academy for the Arts and graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a BFA in Musical Theatre. She took on the iconic role of Judy Garland in Beyond the Rainbow at Actors Theatre of Indiana and Farmers Alley Theatre in Kalamazoo. Last year she made her solo cabaret debut as “the Yokoms,” accompanied by her brother Charlie on piano, and performed around the Chicago area. Their videos can be seen at theyokoms.com.
nick ziobro (2012) was named the 2012 Great American Songbook Youth Ambassador and spent a year touring with his mentor, Michael Feinstein. Praised by the New York Times for “an easy swinging confidence and charm that suggested he could evolve into another Michael Bublé,” he has performed at venues including Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Feinstein’s/54 Below, Birdland, the Kennedy Center, the Kravis Center, and others, and even took his duo show with Julia Goodwin to Tuscany, Italy. Nick holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Rider University. In addition to his featured act on Season 10 of America’s Got Talent and Extraordinary (ABC Syracuse), he earned a role on the feature film Big Time Adolescence, now available on Hulu. www.nickziobro.com
APPLY AT BiT.LY/SONGBOOK21
PROGRAM DATES: JULY 17-24, 2021
s i n o i t a c i l p Ap pen! o w o n "I FELT SO MUCH MORE CONFiDENCE iN MYSELF AND OWNERSHiP OVER MY FUTURE."
Kyrie Courter, '13
Thank you!
Thank you to the following individuals and organizations that have contributed to the Great American Songbook Foundation annual fund during the past year. This list reflects gifts received through november 24, 2020. For more information, please contact the Development Office at 317.819.3520.
ANNUAL FUND Diamond Songbook Legacy ($100,000+) City of Carmel Marc Cherry Michael Feinstein & Terrence Flannery William M. Goodwin Sue & Paul Lowden Seedlings Foundation Bren Simon Songbook Society Platinum ($50,000-$99,999) Efroymson Family Fund The Music Man Foundation National Endowment for the Arts Gold Songbook Legacy ($25,000-$49,999) Robert & Melody Grand Stan & Sandy Hurt Francine A. LeFrak and the Samuel and Ethel LeFrak Trust Dr. & Mrs. Charles M. Simons Bill & Lynn Weidner Indiana Destination Development Corporation Institute of Museum and Library Services
10
Silver Songbook Legacy ($15,000-$24,999) Randy & Libby Brown Peggy Ford Vivian Serota Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation Indiana Arts Commission Central Indiana Senior Fund, a CICF Fund Ruth’s Chris Steak House The Ted Snowdon Foundation Bronze Songbook Legacy ($10,000-$14,999) Lisa & Paul Andre Mr. and Mrs. Terry W. Anker Beineke Memorial Fund, a fund of Central Indiana Community Foundation Gary Carnow Don & Pam Gottwald Karen & Doug Kelsey Riki Kane Larimer Maria Ferrer Murdock Izabela & Ersal Ozdemir Troy Payner & Cara Peggs Roger Schmelzer & Lucinda Phillips Sunny Sessa American Senior Communities Christel DeHaan Family Foundation Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation
Hollywood Musical ($5,000-$9,999) Diane & John Abrams Philanthropic Fund Melissa & Bradon Barnes Maureen Charles Michael Charles Hal Brody & Don Smith Cheri & Rollie Dick Michael & Margie Draper Bronwen & Marvin Ferguson William & Barb Hammer Jim & Ray Luther-Pfeil Jeffrey C. McDermott Jim & Ginny Purvis Brian and Kelly Smith Applegate & Dillman Elder Law Salon 01 Broadway Show ($2,500-$4,999) Carla Gordon Pat & John Schuler Dr. Pamela Steed James B. Winner Arts Midwest The Edward and Helen Oppenheimer Foundation Cabaret ($1,000-$2,499) Jack Bethards Mrs. Sydney Jeanne Book Helen M. Eby Howard Eigen Mr. & Mrs. Mark Fine
Sam & Mary Haskell Rick & Cindy Leffler Chris & Kelli Lewis Ruth Ann & Bob Loser Timothy S. Needler Dr. Michael & Sharon O’Hair Michael Pettry & John Mainella James & Lilah Rabe Bruce & Jan Reynolds Bruce Sloane Jon & Cleo Sonneborn Susan Springirth Sheila M. Stone Saundra & Mark Truett Mitch & Julie Tull Dr. Lawrence Weeda, Jr. Anonymous George Zimmerman Classical Concerts The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation Big Band ($500-$999) Tita Cahn The Di Leo Family Leslee & Wayne Feinstein Roger & Susan Frick Marianne Glick & Mike Woods Tom & Priscilla Johnson Marjorie Kimes Thomas Kinney Ron & Linda Maus Dr. Greg & Rose-Ann Mazanek Joe & Lisa Miller The Rains Family, Michael, Kathryn & Logan Rains Reese Family Foundation for Christ, Inc. Charles Richardson Michael Scott The Shelton Family Jerry & DeAnn Shrewsbury Joel Ulster & Michael Hertzman Robert Zaret Anonymous Peggy Lee Associates, LLC
Tin Pan Alley ($250-$499) Sheryl Anastas Ruth Bank Elbert Bradshaw Sheila Delaney Mr. & Mrs. Hector DesMoine Janice Fitzgerald Roger & Susan Frick Joan & David Golding Mary Kay Graham Brent & Linda Hartman Linda Hope Karen E. Kennedy Howard & Sarah Knight Steve & Joni La Schiazza Halle Lipton Lisa Lobdell Jerry & Harriet McDermott Mills Family Fund Robert Pullen & Luke Frazier Hesh Reinfeld John & Madelaine Schiering Family of Gigi Sierra Spirit Music Group Robert & Suellen Swaney Elayne Techentin Hal & Kathy Thurston Chad & Lynn Winston Barbara Wulfe
MATCHING GIFT COMPANIES Apple, Inc. Bank of America Foundation Eli Lilly and Company Foundation
In memory of Muriel & Bob Kennedy Karen Kennedy In memory of Mr. & Mrs. Adrian Levy, Jr. and Mr. & Mrs. Adrian Levy, Sr. The Edward and Helen Oppenheimer Foundation In memory of John Muldowny Sheila M. Stone In honor of Jan Reynolds Bruce Reynolds
LEGACY GIFTS The Legacy Society recognizes and thanks dedicated individuals who are leaving a future legacy to the Great American Songbook Foundation. The Family of Louis F. Edelman Peggy Ford Riki Kane Larimer Jeffrey C. McDermott Janis Paige Susan Springirth
MEMORIAL & HONOR GIFTS In honor of Michael Feinstein & Terrence Flannery Leslee & Wayne Feinstein In memory of Miss Ella Fitzgerald, the beloved First Lady of Song Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation
11
Happy Holidays from our Songbook family to yours!