October 5, 2004
Contact: Kara Keene
404-651-2981
musklk@langate.gsu.edu
RIALTO CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS CONTINUES 2004-05 SEASON
WITH CHRISTINE EBERSOLE
TONY AWARD-WINNING VOCALIST BRINGS BROADWAY TO RIALTO STAGE,
ACCOMPANIED BY THE RENOWNED BILLY STRITCH
ATLANTA—Georgia State University’s Rialto Center for the Performing Arts continues its 2004-05
series with Tony Award-winning vocalist Christine Ebersole on October 23 at 8 p.m. Ebersole will be
accompanied during this performance by acclaimed pianist and singer Billy Stritch—with whom she
just collaborated on a new album, In Your Dreams, to be released next month. The multi-talented
Ebersole has enchanted audiences and critics alike throughout a career encompassing everything from
acclaimed Broadway stage productions to numerous films, television appearances, concert performances
and recordings. She got her start in the theater and has in recent years come full circle in a string of
critically acclaimed stage performances. Last year, she received an Obie Award, an Outer Critics Circle
Award, and a Drama Desk nomination for her performances as Irene Rudduck in Alan Bennett’s Talking
Heads at the Minetta Lane Theatre. She also received a Tony Award nomination and an Outer Critics
Circle Award nomination for her portrayal of Millicent Jordan in Dinner at Eight at the Vivian Beaumont
Theater at Lincoln Center.
In 2001, Ebersole earned rave reviews across the board in Broadway’s hottest musical revival in
years, 42nd Street, as legendary diva Dorothy Brock who gives an understudy her big break—even taking
home the coveted Tony Award for “Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical” as well as the
Outer Critics Circle Award for “Best Actress in a Musical.” The critics were unanimous in their praise of
her performance. The New York Times’ Ben Brantley proclaimed that Ebersole possesses “a sophisticated
2004-2005 Rialto Series Cont’d, p. 2
feel for the vocal styles of the period and an enjoyable relish for her character’s nastiness.” Citing the
star’s “torchy virtuosity,” Newsday’s Linda Winer said, “Ebersole is delicious as the diva, a musicalcomedy treasure who can color bitchy tones with melancholy.” The New York Post’s Clive Barnes calls
her Dorothy Brock a “comedy riot act” and New York Daily News’ Howard Kissel said simply, “Ebersole
is smashing…her great voice too long absent from Broadway musicals.”
Star of Stage & Screen
An Illinois native, Ebersole discovered her life’s passion while still in high school and, upon
graduation, moved to New York City to study acting at the famed American Academy of Dramatic Arts.
In 1976, she appeared in her first Broadway play, Angel Street, and went on to star in such hits as I Love
My Wife; Hal Prince’s On the 20th Century (alongside Kevin Kline and the legendary Imogene Coca), and
Agnes de Mille’s revival of Oklahoma!. She has also starred in Camelot (opposite Richard Burton) and in
Stephen Sondheim’s Getting Away With Murder, as well as the acclaimed off-Broadway production of
Chekhov’s Three Sisters (with Dianne Wiest and Sam Waterson).
Ebersole’s feature film credits include the Academy Award-winning “Best Picture” of 1984—
Amadeus—as well as Tootsie, Thief of Hearts, Dead Again (with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson),
Folks!, the romantic comedy ‘Til There Was You, Disney’s My Favorite Martian, and many others.
On the small screen, Ebersole was a cast member of the 1981-82 season of NBC’s Saturday Night
Live and received an Emmy Award nomination during her stint as ‘Maxie McDermott’ on the popular
ABC daytime drama One Life to Live. Her television credits also include starring roles in the CBS series
The Cavanaughs, Rachel Gunn, R.N., and Valerie. She co-starred on the CBS comedy Ink, opposite Ted
Danson and Mary Steenburgen. She has also made numerous guest-starring appearances in such series as
Will and Grace, Madigan Men, and Ally McBeal. Her television movie credits include the CBS remake of
the musical Gypsy (with Bette Midler) and Dying to Love You, also for CBS. She co-starred with Jane
Fonda in the critically acclaimed The Dollmaker, played opposite Stockard Channing in USA Network’s
An Unexpected Family, and worked alongside Diana Ross in Double Platinum. She also appeared on the
PBS Great Performances special, “Ira Gershwin at 100: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall”—a performance
that was praised by USA Today as “show-stopping.” She earned more plaudits for the PBS broadcast of
The Rodgers & Hart Story: Thou Swell, Thou Witty, performing “The Lady is a Tramp” from the 1937
musical Babes in Arms.
In 1997, Ebersole triumphed in her first appearance on the cabaret stage in nearly two decades
during her standing-room-only engagements at the Roosevelt Hotel’s Cinegrill in Hollywood, which led
to her first solo recording, Christine Ebersole: Live at the Cinegrill. The album tells of her personal journey
as a performer, wife, and mother, employing an eclectic array of musical styles—including ballads, jazz,
2004-2005 Rialto Series Cont’d, p. 3
pop, opera, torch song, swing, and even country. Her unique repertoire covers songs originally recorded
by vocalists ranging from Judy Garland to Joni Mitchell and Jeannette MacDonald.
After 14 years in Los Angeles, Ebersole again heeded the siren’s call of the Broadway stage a few
years ago, and she hasn’t stopped working since. While continuing her film and television career, she
was invited to play the title role in The Paper Mill Playhouse’s production of Mame and performed in a
musical tribute to Arthur Schwartz in the “American Songbook Series” at Lincoln Center. She has since
appeared in David Marshall Grant’s Current Events and Gore Vidal’s all-star The Best Man (with Charles
Durning, Chris Noth, Spalding Gray, Michael Learned, and Elizabeth Ashley).
Ebersole & Stritch—Together Again
Pianist and singer Billy Stritch appeared alongside Christine Ebersole in 42nd Street as the skirtchasing Oscar and has performed on stages from London to Tokyo, Paris to Rio de Janiero. Stritch’s solo
recordings include his self-titled debut as well as the acclaimed Waters of March. His television
appearances include the PBS Great Performances presentation of “Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie
Hall,” as well as NBC’s Today and The Oprah Winfrey Show. A longtime collaborator with Liza Minnelli,
Stritch served as musical supervisor and vocal arranger for Liza Minnelli: Live from Radio City Music Hall
and writes arrangements for her worldwide appearances alongside French musical legend Charles
Aznavour. Stritch also acted as associate producer, pianist, and arranger for Minnelli’s album Gently,
which earned two Grammy Award nominations, and performed with her in the duet “That Smile” on
GRATEFUL: The Songs of John Bucchino.
♦♦♦
SUBSCRIPTIONS & SINGLE TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
Subscriptions and single tickets are on sale now through the Rialto Center Box Office by telephone at
404.651.4727; by fax at 404.651.0966; online at www.rialtocenter.org; or by mail at P.O. Box 2627,
Atlanta, GA 30301-2627. Patrons may subscribe in two ways: purchase 5 or more shows and receive a
15% discount or purchase 7 or more shows and receive a 20% discount. Starting at $16, ticket prices vary
by event and seat location. Free parking is provided for all Rialto Series events at the Equitable
Building deck on Fairlie Street. Paid valet parking is also available.
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