It’s a showdown! 

I got to attend Pronoun Showdown on April 14th, the show’s one year anniversary! The superstar-filled show had the audience cheering, crying, and laughing the whole night. Performers, such as Katie Rose Clarke, Antonio Cipriano, Dan Deluca, Laura Osnes, and more, stole the show with their fun-filled numbers. Some of my favorite standout performances included 

• Antonio Cipriano singing “Requiem” from Dear Evan Hansen

• Izzy McCalla, Bradley Gibson, and Oyoyo Joi singing “Burn” from Hamilton in a three-part harmony 

• Joey Labrasca, Jeff O’Donnell, and Alex Prakken with a hilarious Taylor Swift medley 

• And a surprise happy birthday performance to an audience member from Michael Ryan! 

Pronoun Showdown, produced by Abby DePhillips and Kimberly Jenna Simon with music direction by Benjamin Rauhala, has become a staple show at 54 Below — never failing to bring in a packed audience! This show is beyond fun and the energy in the room is unmatchable. I’m so glad I finally got to attend my first ever Pronoun Showdown and can’t wait for many more to come!

You can purchase tickets to Pronoun Showdown and look out for upcoming dates on the 54 Below website: 54below.com

Stay up to date with the producers of the show, Abby and Kimberly, by following them on social media! 

Abby’s Instagram: @abbydephilips 

Abby’s Twitter: @abbydephillips

Kimberly’s Instagram: @kimberlyjenna

Kimberly’s Twitter: @kimberlyjenna

Sending light and love,

JuJu 

Whether you’re spending Valentine’s Day alone or with your special someone, music is always a good way to start off your Valentine’s Day! Especially if that music is Broadway showtunes! I made a Broadway Valentine’s Day Playlist for you to sing-a-long to whether you’re in the car, at work, or just jamming by yourself at home — no judgement here. Enjoy the playlist and Happy Valentine’s Day!

Here is the track list! I have attached the link to the Spotify playlist I made below:

Only Us — Dear Evan Hansen

It Only Takes A Taste — Waitress

In a Crowd of Thousands — Anastasia

Stupid With Love — Mean Girls

Come To A Party — Dogfight

Give Way — Dogfight

It Only Takes A Moment — Hello, Dolly!

What Do I Need with Love? — Thoroughly Modern Millie

Vanilla Ice Cream — She Loves Me

She Loves Me — She Loves Me

Till There Was You — The Music Man

Some Girls — Once On This Island

The Human Heart — Once On This Island

What I Did For Love — A Chorus Line

Helpless — Hamilton

You Happened — The Prom

You Shine — Carrie

She’s Too Far Above Me — Half a Sixpence

Something To Believe In — Newsies

Mad About You — Head Over Heels

The Word Of Your Body — Spring Awakening

You Matter To Me — Waitress

Unlikely Lovers — Falsettos

I Believe — Spring Awakening

A Tight-Knit Family / Love Is Blind — Falsettos

Falling Slowly — Once

The Next Ten Minutes — The Last Five Years

So In Love — Kiss Me Kate

“Ten Minutes Ago” — Cinderella

What You Mean To Me — Finding Neverland

It Takes Two — Hairspray

I’ve Never Been in Love Before — Guys and Dolls

Love Song — Pippin

Somewhere — West Side Story

No One Else — Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812

What Would I Do? — Falsettos

Perfect For You — Next To Normal

Seeing You — Groundhog Day

What About Love? — The Color Purple

Love to Me — The Light in the Piazza

Do You Love Me? — Fiddler On The Roof

If I Loved You — Carousel

Johanna — Sweeney Todd

Suddenly Seymour — Little Shop Of Horrors

Sunrise — In The Heights

Ring of Keys — Fun Home

Changing My Major — Fun Home

I Should Tell You — RENT

A Heart Full Of Love — Les Misérables

Easy To Love — Anything Goes

The Origin of Love — Hedwig And The Angry Inch

Gimme Gimme - Thoroughly Modern Millie

https://open.spotify.com/user/juliannajaworski/playlist/1xWe6qQbf4ubI6uJiGiwn8?si=oRwtfmQPRuu_qme9Hw5hog

Sending love and light,

JuJu

One of Broadway’s favorite leading men, Derek Klena, made his solo show debut at the beloved Café Carlyle to a sold-out crowd on January 15th, 2019. I was lucky enough to be able to see his show and can easily say it was one of the most special events I have attended.

Klena took the audience on a journey through his life in the arts and how he got to where he is now. He opened the show with “Some Kinda Time“ from Dogfight, his 2012 off-Broadway show written by Tony-award winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. This opener foreshadowed the time the audience would encounter for the next 75 minutes as Klena sang through his musical career, singing everything from Disney favorites to Broadway showtunes to pop medleys.

Each song represented a milestone in his life. His medley of Disney songs such as “I Can Go The Distance” from Hercules and “Out There” from The Hunchback of Notre Dame represented his early childhood, singing to Disney movies on the television with his siblings. He sang audition songs from his experiences in small scale contests in California to his winning golden ticket song for American Idol. Klena sang his signature audition song and eleven o’clock number: “Goodbye” from Catch Me If You Can. This song not only opened the door for him to Carrie and Dogfight, his off-Broadway debuts, but gave him his first big time New York audition. He went into songs from the shows that have built his resume such as Carrie, Dogfight, Wicked, Bridges of Madison County, Anastasia, and his new upcoming show Jagged Little Pill. He even threw in a Justin Bieber song medley to mark the time he had a haircut similar to the iconic pop star for his role as Fiyero in Wicked. Klena noted his recent wedding to his wife Elycia Klena by singing songs dedicated to her such as “Your Song” by Elton John and “She’s Got A Way” by Billy Joel. Klena did a two song encore, one of which being “You’ll Be Back” from Hamilton, involving the audience in a sing-a-long and showing off his comedic side.

One of the highlights of the night was Klena’s acoustic version of “You Learn” from his upcoming show Jagged Little Pill, where he gave a speech about how you need to stumble in order to grow and how life is a constant learning experience. He shared his love of teaching masterclasses and workshops to aspiring actors and being able to watch them grow and succeed. This show was extremely personal and intimate as Klena gave the audience insight to his life and his career. Derek Klena is a performer for the ages and one of the kindest people I know. I’m so grateful I was able to see his sold out solo show debut and I can’t wait to see where his career and journey takes him next.

If you want to stay up to date with Derek make sure to follow his social media:

Instagram: @Derek_Klena

Twitter: @DerekKlena

Make sure to watch out for his upcoming Broadway show Jagged Little Pill!

Sending love and light,

JuJu

Broadway is known to be an accessible art form for theatre-goers and tourists alike. Although, it can be hard to get to the wonderful New York City when you don’t live right around the corner. Lucky for us, plenty of Broadway shows are touring around the country right now! Here is a list of must-see shows that are touring in cities near you!

• A Bronx Tale

• Aladdin

• Anastasia

• Beautiful: The Carole King Musical

• Cats

• Charlie and The Chocolate Factory

• Chicago

• Come From Away

• Dear Evan Hansen

• Falsettos

• Hamilton

• Hello, Dolly!

• Hamilton

• Jersey Boys

• Les Misérables

• Miss Saigon

• On Your Feet! The Story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan

• School of Rock: The Musical

• The Book of Mormon

• The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical

• The Lion King

• The Phantom of the Opera

• The Play That Goes Wrong

• Waitress

• Wicked

  Sending love and light,

  JuJu

As we ring in 2019 and the new year, I reflect on how grateful I am for the incredible shows I have seen this past year. Whether it was a regional, out-of-town, or Broadway production, I got to see the most amazing shows and I feel so lucky. Here are the shows that filled up my 2018:

Aladdin at the New Amsterdam Theatre 

Anastasia at the Broadhurst Theatre (round 3)

Hello, Dolly! at the Shubert Theatre (round 3)

Mean Girls at the August Wilson Theatre

Jagged Little Pill at the American Repertory Theatre (round 1)

Jagged Little Pill at the American Repertory Theatre (round 2)

Jagged Little Pill at the American Repertory Theatre (round 3)

Jagged Little Pill at the American Repertory Theatre (round 4)

Jersey Boys at New World Stages 

Mamma Mia! at North Shore Music Theatre 

Summer: The Donna Summer Musical at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre 

Jekyll & Hyde at North Shore Music Theatre 

Hairspray at North Shore Music Theatre (round 1)

Hairspray at North Shore Music Theatre (round 2) 

Once On This Island at The Circle In The Square

Sending love and light,

JuJu