Harry Connick, Jr.- A Celebration of Cole Porter

Harry Connick, Jr. and orchestra

Harry Connick, Jr.

Harry Connick, Jr.

Harry Connick, Jr.

Harry Connick, Jr. and orchestra

Harry Connick, Jr. and orchestra

Harry Connick, Jr. and orchestra

“Connick then sits at a desk and describes how Porter might orchestrate the song, with the notes he “writes” for the different instruments appearing on the expansive screen above the stage. This serves as a fine explanation of how Connick builds his arrangements, and the visuals are so nifty that one only wonders what Leonard Bernstein might have accomplished with this technology. After which Connick hauls a massive wing-to-wing piano onstage—704 keys, by my count—for “Begin the Beguine,” hopping and sometimes dashing from one part of the keyboard to another. Meanwhile, an on-screen tap-dancing Cole Porter jumps down to the stage and engages in a wild challenge tap with Connick atop the stage-wide piano cabinet. The entire number is fantastical—did Fred Astaire once do something of the sort?—and rather phenomenal. That piano, along with the altogether effective scenery, is designed by Beowulf Boritt and Alexis Distler; the excellent multimedia comes from Boritt and Caite Hevner.” ~Steven Suskin, NY Stage Review

“On a gorgeously designed (by Beowulf Boritt and Alexis Distler) and lit (Ken Billington) nightclub-style stage, with jazz moderne jigsaw puzzle panels as backdrop to catch any number of images and videos (projection design by Boritt and Caite Hevner).” ~ Greg Evans, Deadline

“Beowulf Boritt and Alexis Distler designed the sets that go from a bar in New Orleans, to a Manhattan hotel room from which Connick sings “In the Still of the Night,” gazing at the moonlight provided by the lighting designer Ken Billington.” ~Jose Solis, New York Times