World Premiere of Hit Her With the Skates Begins Performances March 10 –Performances for the world premiere of Hit Her With the Skates begin March 10 at Chicago’s Royal George Theatre. The musical follows rock star Jacqueline Miller as she headlines her first national tour. Trouble arises when she agrees to kick off the re-opening of her childhood roller rink, Windy City Skates, forcing her to take a look back at her life growing up. American Idol finalists, and real-life couple, Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young star as Jacqueline and Blake/Russ, respectively. Rounding out the cast are Chris Walker as Jack/Danny, Nik Kmiecik as Brad, Amy Toporek as Jackie, Marvin Malone II as Scotty, Norrell Moore as Rebecca, Karl Hamilton as Hank, Kelly Felthous as Meghan, and Madeline Fansler as Tonya. Adia Bell and Adam Fane are swings. – Read more at Playbill
David Archuleta Lends Voice to NPR Children’s Story
It’s called “Song of the Horse.”
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to lend my voice and bring a character to life on @WBUR's @ComeCircleRound! It’s an NPR program for kids. The story is called "Song of the Horse" where I play a young shepherd, named Sohu, whose goal is to make music. https://t.co/w7evdXrkX2 pic.twitter.com/9QrEKiKLk9
— David Archuleta (@DavidArchie) March 10, 2020
American Idol’s Jovin Webb chats with Tpot and Speedy – Louisiana’s Jovin Webb is bringing his “barbecue sauce” to Hollywood after advancing through the American Idol tryouts. He stopped by the B97 studio and chatted with Tpot and Speedy about his audition, his musical background and much more. – Read more at b97.radio.com
‘The Voice’ Winner Jake Hoot Calls Growing up Without Electricity an ‘Adventure’ (Exclusive) – Season 17 winner of The Voice, Jake Hoot, definitely had an unconventional childhood. The Tennessee native spent much of his childhood in a remote area of the Dominican Republic, along with his eight siblings and parents, who were missionaries. His family moved to the Dominican Republic when he was 9 years old, forcing him to give up many of the things he was accustomed to, like electricity and running water, which he says became one of the biggest blessings in his life. “We were so young, we looked at it as like an adventure, not having electricity or running water,” Hoot told PopCulture.com. “Growing up here in the United States, especially now that I’ve been back for so long, it becomes a necessity. But when you’re over there it becomes … I always say it makes for a good story. Anytime anything goes wrong it makes for a good story. – Read more at Popculture.com
On TV singing contests, black women — whether rising stars or legends — seldom prevail – Aretha. Mahalia. Whitney. Black women have possessed some of the greatest voices of all time. Yet, when it comes to singing competitions and American television audiences, one would be hard-pressed to find black women singers celebrated.Only a few black women (including multi-racial contestants) have won across all the runs of contemporary top television singing competitions. “American Idol,” now in its 18th season, has seen three win the title: Fantasia Barrino in the third season, Jordin Sparks in the sixth and Candice Glover in Season 12. “The Voice,” meanwhile, also in Season 18, has produced just one black female winner: Jamaican singer Tessanne Chin back in Season 5. (The series’ first two winners were black men, and Chris Blue became the third in Season 12.) It’s not just emerging performers who are denied a crown for their vocal prowess. – Read more at Chicago Sun Times
