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Home , Ally McBeal, Ally McBeal (season 1), Ally McBeal (season 2), Barbara Mandrell, Ben Vereen, Get to the Heart

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, September 15, 2006

JANE KRAKOWSKI and TO CO-HOST

Tony Award® and Olivier Award Winner Shares the Stage in Nashville with CMA Entertainer of The Year and Legend BARBARA MANDRELL to Co-Host Gala Benefit Concert “BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY”

TRISHA YEARWOOD Joins the Ensemble of All-Star Performers ♦ Monday, October 30, 2006 ♦

NASHVILLE – Country Music Association (CMA) today announced that Tony Award, Olivier Award Winner and Golden Globe Nominee JANE KRAKOWSKI (“Nine,” “Guys and Dolls,” “Ally McBeal”) will join two-time CMA Entertainer of The Year and Country Music superstar, BARBARA MANDRELL to co-host the second annual “BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” gala concert on Monday, October 30, part of “Nashville Celebrates Country,” a week of activities leading up to “The 40th Annual CMA Awards.”

Krakowski and Mandrell along with , who joins the all-star ensemble of scheduled performers, will share the stage at the James K. Polk Theater at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC) in Nashville. Broadway performers will sing their favorite Country songs and Country artists will sing their favorite Broadway show tunes. This special charity concert is a celebration of the universality and crossover appeal of these two popular musical genres and some of their best performers. “BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” will raise funds for both TPAC Education and The Actors’ Fund of America.

“It is an honor to share the stage with Barbara, and to join my and peers in an evening filled with surprises,” said Krakowski. “Nothing is more thrilling than performing live – to do so in Nashville where music is part of the city’s lifeblood, is every singer’s dream.” More…

Broadway Meets Country (9-15-06 Co-Host Announcement)

“When CMA asked me to host, I was honored to be a small part of CMA’s kick-off festivities celebrating their 40th anniversary. I adore the CMA and all of the good that they do for Country Music and in our Nashville community,” said Mandrell. “I look forward to being a part of this exciting show and to help raise money for TPAC Education and The Actors’ Fund of America. What a fabulous way to celebrate the arts… by sharing our Nashville stage with the extraordinary greats of Broadway.”

Krakowski will be starring in the highly-anticipated primetime series “” (debuting October 11 on NBC), playing the star of "The Girlie Show," a network that serves as the backdrop for the workplace comedy. A collection of Mandrell’s songs recorded by top country artists entitled, She Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool: A Tribute To Barbara Mandrell will be released October 17 on BNA Records Nashville. Performing the ’s title track (a Mandrell signature hit) are Country superstars and Reba McEntire.

The line-up of top artists scheduled to perform at “BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” includes Country Music’s Josh Gracin, Raul Malo, , Jamie O’Neal, SHeDAISY, and Trisha Yearwood along with Broadway’s Laura Bell Bundy (“Dreamgirls” the movie, “Hairspray”), (“Sweeney Todd,” “Assassins”), Renée Elise Goldsberry (“One Life to Live,” “The Color Purple”), Brian d’Arcy James (“Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,” “Sweet Smell of Success”) and Julia Murney (national tour, “,” “The Wild Party”). [Note: more talent to be announced soon; artist line-up subject to change.]

Those attending the “BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” concert will have the opportunity to hear classic Broadway songs reinterpreted by Country Music artists and classic Country songs performed by Broadway talent. Stephen Oremus, music supervisor for Wicked and Avenue Q both on Broadway and ’s West End, returns as the evening’s musical director and arranger. The event is co-executive produced by Jed Bernstein/Above the Title Entertainment in conjunction with CMA. Bernstein executive produced the 2005 “Broadway Meets Country” event while serving as President of the League of American Theatres and Producers.

“BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” will take place on Monday, October 30th (7:30pm/CST) at the James K. Polk Theater at TPAC (505 Deaderick Street) in Nashville, and kicks-off “Nashville Celebrates Country,” a week of activities leading up to “The 40th Annual CMA Awards.” The 2006 CMA Awards will be broadcast live Monday, November 6 (8:00pm-11:00pm/EST) on the ABC Television Network from the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville.

Ticket prices for “BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” are $500, $150, $75 and $35 and are available online through www.tpac.org; in-person at the TPAC Box Office (Downtown or at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in the Mall at Green Hills); at all Ticketmaster outlets; or by calling Ticketmaster at (615) 255-ARTS (x2787). For additional concert information, please call (615) 244-2840 or visit www.CMAawards.com.

More…

2 Broadway Meets Country (9-15-06 Co-Host Announcement)

ABOUT THE CO-HOSTS

JANE KRAKOWSKI is an accomplished actress, dancer and singer, and veteran of the Broadway stage. For her sultry portrayal of ‘Carla’ in Broadway's Nine opposite , she won the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics’ Circle awards. Last year, she won an Olivier Award while starring in the London West End revival of Guys and Dolls (opposite Ewan McGregor). She is a Tony Award nominee for Grand Hotel and has appeared in other acclaimed roles in Broadway productions of Company, Once Upon a Mattress, Tartuffe and Starlight Express. She made her feature film debut as ‘Cousin Vickie’ in National Lampoon's Vacation with Chevy Chase and has also starred alongside Jude Law in Alfie, the remake of the 1966 film. During her five-year stint on the award-winning series “Ally McBeal,” she received a Golden Globe nomination for her portrayal of ‘Elaine Vassal.’

BARBARA MANDRELL was one of the most significant performers of the , ‘80s and ‘90s. Among her many accolades, she was the first artist ever to win CMA “Entertainer of The Year” for two consecutive years. She has earned over 75 major music awards during her legendary career including CMA “Female Vocalist of The Year,” multiple awards from the , the Grammys, nine People’s Choice Awards and a Dove Award. Barbara’s 1990 autobiography : My Story debuted on The New York Times Best Sellers list after four short days, and then remained there for six months. Her NBC variety show, “Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters” (1980-81, 1981-82) was a critical success, drawing nearly 40 million viewers weekly. She has also starred in numerous television shows including her farewell performance at Nashville’s Opry House, a sell-out concert titled “Barbara Mandrell and The Do-Rites: The Last Dance” (October 1997). Currently, Reba McEntire, Kenny Chesney, Sara Evans, , LeAnn Rimes, among others have come together for a tribute album in her honor. The result is She Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool: A Tribute To Barbara Mandrell, to be released October 17 on BNA Records Nashville.

ABOUT “BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” The first annual “Broadway Meets Country” benefit concert (November 12, 2005), presented by CMA and The League of American Theatres and Producers (under Jed Bernstein’s direction) was co-hosted by CMA Award winner Lee Ann Womack and Tony® Award winner . The concert was held at the Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center in . The unforgettable evening featured performances by Country Music’s , , Billy Currington, Raul Malo, Neal McCoy, Richie McDonald, Jamie O’Neal, , and Trisha Yearwood, along with Broadway’s Jason Danieley, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Adriane Lenox, Marin Mazzie, Andrea McArdle, , Marian Seldes, Saycon Sengbloh, and Patrick Wilson. Among the evening’s musical highlights: Glen Campbell’s rendition of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Carousel; Billy Currington singing “On the Street Where You Live” from My Fair Lady; Marin Mazzie performing the single “9 to 5;” Andrea McArdle’s rendition of “Fancy” first made popular by Bobbie Gentry and later, by Reba McEntire; James Naughton performing ’s single “I’ve Been Everywhere;” Raul Malo and Renée Elise Goldsberry performing the & Sheena Easton remake of “We’ve Got Tonight;” Carrie Underwood and Patrick Wilson’s duet of “Suddenly Seymour” from Little Shop of Horrors; and Ben Vereen performing Roger Miller’s classic “King of the Road.”

# # # 3 Broadway Meets Country (9-15-06 Co-Host Announcement)

“BROADWAY MEETS COUNTRY” Press Contacts Adriana Douzos/ Jeremy Shaffer Shaffer-Coyle Public Relations, New York (646) 733-5300 (office), [email protected] [For all New York media queries and Broadway talent requests]

Wendy Pearl/ Scott Stem Country Music Association, Nashville (615) 244-2840 (office) For CMA Awards and “Broadway Meets Country” photos, press releases and logos, please visit CMA’s media site, www.CMApress.com [This is a protected site for media use only.]

For Barbara Mandrell: Kaleidoscope Media, Nashville Angie Gore, (615) 321-3211, [email protected]

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