Bio
LATE NIGHT WITH LEONARD BERNSTEIN
A Multi-Media Cabaret
with Jamie or Nina Bernstein, narrator; Amy Burton, soprano; and Michael Boriskin and John Musto, pianists
conceived of by George Steel
written by George Steel and Jamie Bernstein
produced by Copland House
Late Night with Leonard Bernstein is an affectionate portrait of the personal side of one of the 20th-century’s most charismatic and public figures. Hosted by his daughter Jamie and featuring three stellar performers – soprano Amy Burton and pianists John Musto and Michael Boriskin – this acclaimed Copland House production celebrates Bernstein’s non-stop creativity and the entertaining he did at all-hours at home. A well-known insomniac for whom night was a time for creativity and friendship, deep introspection and revelry, Bernstein worked incessantly, often dazzling friends and guests until daybreak with charismatic performances across a wide range of musical styles.
This delectable multi-media cabaret traces Bernstein’s journey back to his years as a prodigiously-gifted undergraduate who loved jazz, classics, and thorny modernists with equal passion, and his early efforts as an aspiring composer and arranger of musicals, dance, and pop novelties. Several of his most intimate works are performed, along with some of his favorite compositions by Aaron Copland, Noel Coward, Zez Confrey, Franz Schubert, Edvard Grieg, Ernesto Lecuona, and others. Brief audio and video excerpts of the Maestro himself are among the program’s many highlights. The evening was created by Bernstein protégé George Steel, and is woven together through the warm-hearted, revealing script by Steel and Jamie Bernstein, and a video slide slow of rare photographs of the legendary artist and his family, friends, and colleagues. As The New York Times noted, “here were lots of little surprises … early bits of aborted projects that later surfaced, re-imagined, in famous works like West Side Story and Mass; a tongue-twisting parody [of Tchaikovsky’s 4th Symphony] by Bernstein‘s buddy Adolph Green; a film clip of Bernstein at the piano, singing a Marc Blitzstein novelty number.”
A well-known insomniac for whom night was a time for creativity and friendship, deep introspection and revelry, the iconic Leonard Bernstein loved to work at all hours, often entertaining friends and guests late into the night and dazzling them with charismatic performances across a wide range of musical styles. Late Night with Leonard Bernstein is hosted by his daughter Jamie and features three internationally-acclaimed artists – soprano Amy Burton, and pianists John Musto and Michael Boriskin. A scintillating, and affectionate multi-media portrait of the personal side of this charismatic, singularly public figure, this vibrant Copland House production has captivated sold-out audiences across the U.S. since it premiered at Lincoln Center. The program was created by Bernstein protégé George Steel, and is woven together through the warm-hearted, revealing script by Steel and Jamie Bernstein, and a video slide slow of rare photographs of the legendary artist and his family, friends, and colleagues, and features Bernstein’s most intimate (and favorite) music, as well as works by Aaron Copland, Noel Coward, Zez Confrey, Schubert, and Grieg, along with personal stories, and even audio and film clips of the Maestro himself.
Press
Quotes About Late Night with Leonard Bernstein
“For lovers of contemporary American music nothing could exceed “Late Night with Leonard Bernstein,” which delighted and, even thrilled, a packed house”
“Here were lots of little surprises … early bits of aborted projects that later surfaced, re-imagined, in famous works like West Side Story and Mass; a tongue-twisting parody [of Tchaikovsky’s 4th Symphony] by Bernstein‘s buddy Adolph Green; and a film clip of Bernstein at the piano, singing a Marc Blitzstein novelty number, with the kind of sporting humor he was said to display at his late-night soirées.”
“Probably the most haimisch two hours (to borrow from the Yiddish for “homey”) anyone will spend in the presence of the composer-conductor-musical explainer this centenary year.”
Of the centenary tributes accorded Leonard Bernstein this year, few could be more personal than the one given by his daughter, Jamie Bernstein, along with soprano Amy Burton and pianists Michael Boriskin and John Musto at the Phillips Collection. Throughout “Late Night with Leonard Bernstein,” Jamie Bernstein’s compelling narration was punctuated by music, photographs, and film clips. For a concept that could easily have devolved into shtick, this struck the right balance between biographical portraiture, charming nostalgia, and loving remembrance. Burton, who could make you weep singing the federal budget, Boriskin and Musto, himself an outstanding pianist-composer and Burton’s husband, each contributed to the engaging, relaxed atmosphere of this moving afternoon. As for Jamie Bernstein, all fathers should have such a daughter to lovingly perpetuate their memory.
“Bernstein weaved narratives about her own memories of the music and of her father, inviting the audience into her heart and past. The music itself was beyond phenomenal … and created a mesmerizing tale following the life and musical career of Leonard Bernstein. As the night came to a close and the pianists’ fingers grazed their final keys, I felt as if I was awakening from a trance – I traveled alongside a composer, an insomniac, a father, as he journeyed through life one note at a time.”
Learning about Bernstein from his daughter and seeing the love and memories on stage humanized the composer in a way not often possible in classical music. Pianists John Musto and Michael Boriskin handled the music masterfully, covering a wide range of styles and moods. Soprano Amy Burton gave the concert a real sense of the time period Bernstein composed in, as well his vocal work, but it was Jamie Bernstein who brought it all together.
“A look at the after-hours maestro [that] revealed his mischievous personality and musical predilections … the audience filled the room with lusty laughs and applause.”
The show brought “crowds, smiles and songs to campus”
Articles About Late Night with Leonard Bernstein
Audiences at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix will be treated to what the San Diego Times said “For lovers of contemporary American music, nothing could exceed Late Night with Leonard Bernstein, which delighted and, even thrilled, a packed house … Those in attendance will not forget this delicious evening.”
“For lovers of contemporary American music nothing could exceed “Late Night with Leonard Bernstein,” according to The Times of San Diego, which saw the show at La Jolla SummerFest and said it “delighted and, even thrilled, a packed house. Those in attendance will not forget this delicious evening, narrated by Nina Bernstein Simmons, daughter of by the late great American composer.”
About Late Night with Leonard Bernstein at the Ravinia Festival, Chicago Tonight said there were “stories of his friends and collaborators (Aaron Copland, Jerome Robbins, and Adolph Green and Betty Comden), were a major part of the mix, along with some rare archival material and the sensational playing of pianists Michael Boriskin and John Musto.”
Late Night with Leonard Bernstein at the Ravinia Festival, July 27
The critically acclaimed Late Night with Leonard Bernstein show hits the road again on June 24th when it’s at the Skirball Center in Los Angeles.
The Washington Post joined the Late Night fun in DC at The Phillips Collection and called the show “the right balance between biographical portraiture, charming nostalgia, and loving remembrance. Burton, who could make you weep singing the federal budget, Boriskin and Musto each contributed to the engaging, relaxed atmosphere of this moving afternoon. As for Jamie Bernstein, all fathers should have such a daughter to lovingly perpetuate their memory.”
Pianist Michael Boriskin sat down with Capitol File Magazine’s Gary Duff in advance of the performance of Late Night with Leonard Bernstein at the Phillips Collection to talk about the show and his collaborators.
Be a part of a DC-citywide centennial celebration of Leonard Bernstein’s 100th birthday and join Lenny in his “living room” at the Phillips Collection on May 20.
Photos
New York, NY: Kaplan Penthouse, Lincoln Center. Photo: Tracy Ketcher
Cleveland, OH: Tri-C Concerts, Cleveland Museum of Art Photo: John Foreman
Media
Late Night with Leonard Bernstein on Chicago Tonight, WTTW PBS TV
https://bit.ly/LateNightPBSWTTW TV previewed Late Night with Leonard Bernstein at the Ravinia Festival with an interview with Jamie Bernstein about the show and her new book, and Amy Burton, Michael Boriskin and John Musto performed.
Late Night with Leonard Bernstein official trailer
A video-trailer about the multi-media cabaret Late Night with Leonard Bernstein. Hosted by his daughter Jamie and featuring soprano Amy Burton and pianists John Musto and Michael Boriskin.
Michael Boriskin & John Musto play Bernstein
Michael Boriskin & John Musto play Bernstein - Late Night with LB
Soprano Amy Burton & pianist John Musto: Bernstein’s “Little Smary”
Jamie Bernstein tells the audience about Bernstein's "Little Smary" in Late Night with Leonard Bernstein, which soprano Amy Burton & pianist John Musto perform