For Immediate Release: December 11, 2006
Media Contact: Ellen Gilbert, The Merriam Theater, 215.732.5997

Broadway’s master songman, Mandy Patinkin, accompanied by Paul Ford on piano, will bring his critically acclaimed theatre concert to the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia for two performances only on Friday, January 5 and Saturday, January 6 at 8 p.m. as a season special on the Broadway Across America – Philadelphia 06-07 Season. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased through authorized sellers found only at the Merriam Theater Box Office at 250 S. Broad Street in Philadelphia, all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 215-336-1234 and online at www.ticketmaster.com and www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com/Philadelphia.

Tony and Emmy Award-winner Mandy Patinkin has an extensive list of theatre credits that include Broadway, Off-Broadway and regional theater. He won a Tony Award for his 1980 Broadway debut as Che in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita and was again nominated in 1984 for his starring role in the Pulitzer Prize winning musical Sunday in the Park With George. He returned to Broadway in the Tony Award-winning musical The Secret Garden (1991), and appeared as Marvin in Falsettos (1992). His other stage credits include The Wild Party, The Winter’s Tale, The Knife, Leave it to Beaver is Dead, Rebel Women, Hamlet, Trelawney of the ‘Wells,” The Shadow Box and Henry IV, Part I.

In 1995 Mr. Patinkin won an Emmy Award for his role as Dr. Jeffrey Geiger on the critically acclaimed CBS television series, ‘Chicago Hope’. He starred in the acclaimed Showtime Original Series ‘Dead Like Me’ (2003 – 2004), and stars in the new CBS drama ‘Criminal Minds’, which debuted in the fall of 2005. His other television credits include the starring role of Quasimodo in a live action remake of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” co-starring Richard Harris, a version of Arthur Miller’s “Broken Glass,” Showtime’s “Strange Justice,” and episodes of “Touched By An Angel,” and “Boston Public.” His numerous feature film credits include: Pinero, The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, Men With Guns, The Princess Bride, Yentl, Lulu On The Bridge, The Music of Chance, Daniel, Ragtime, Impromptu, The Doctor, Alien Nation, Dick Tracy, The House of Carroll Street, True Colors, Maxie, and Squanto: Indian Warrior.

Mr. Patinkin’s live performances have received wide critical acclaim. Pamela Sommers of the Washington Post wrote, “The most arresting thing about Patinkin is the conversational, often impassioned quality of his singing…you find yourself listening like you’ve never listened before.” Clive Barnes of the New York Post called Mandy “the greatest entertainer on Broadway today – period.” In the New York Daily News, Howard Kissel called his performance, “the most exciting time I’ve had in the theatre in ages. He could single-handedly revive the American musical theatre.” And the London Evening Standard called him, “a master entertainer of a type once thought to be extinct.”

Mandy Patinkin’s concert career began ten years ago at Joseph Papp’s Public Theater which coincided with the release of his first solo album entitled Mandy Patinkin. Since then he has toured extensively across the United States and Canada as well as appearing in London, performing songs by such masters as Stephen Sondheim, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Irving Berlin, Randy Newman, Adam Guettel and Harry Chapin. In 1998, he debuted his most personal musical project, Mamaloshen, in a sold-out Off-Broadway engagement, which was later recorded and followed by an acclaimed Broadway run. His other albums are Mandy Patinkin in Concert: Dress Casual, on CBS Records, followed by Experiment, Oscar and Steve, Leonard Bernstein’s New York and Mandy Patinkin – Kidults, and his latest release in the fall of 2002, Mandy Patinkin Sings Sondheim, a figurative journey through Sondheim’s music and lyrics, all on Nonesuch.

Paul Ford was the original pianist for the Broadway orchestras of Stephen Sondheim’s Passion, Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George and the Off-Broadway production of Assassins. His other Broadway credits include Tom Sawyer, High Society, Steel Pier, The Rink, Rags, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, The Secret Garden and Falsettos. Mr. Ford was the pianist for the acclaimed Follies concert at Lincoln Center and the Carnegie Hall concert performances of A Sondheim Tribute and Anyone Can Whistle. He accompanied Mr. Patinkin in Mandy Patinkin: Dress Casual at the Public Theater and on Broadway, both the Broadway and Off-Broadway engagements of Mamaloshen, and worked with him on all of his recordings and national tours.

Showtimes for Mandy Patinkin In Concert are Friday, January 5 and Saturday, January 6 at 8 p.m. Tickets are on sale now and range in price from $25-$54.50. Purchase tickets only from an authorized ticket seller at the Merriam Theater Box Office at 250 S. Broad Street in Philadelphia, all Ticketmaster Outlets, by phone at 215-336-1234 in PA, 856-338-9000 in NJ, or 302-984-2000 in DE, or at www.ticketmaster.com or www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com/Philadelphia.

This production is presented as a season special on the Broadway Across America- Philadelphia 06-07 Season at the Merriam Theater. For season ticket information, call 888-451-5761.

About Broadway Across America
Broadway Across America presents first-rate touring Broadway shows, family productions and other live theatrical events throughout a network of 51 North American cities. A leader in subscription series programs and group ticketing, Broadway Across America is dedicated to creating memorable and accessible experiences for all guests, selling over 5 million tickets to over 3,000 performances each year. Broadway Across America is a division of Live Nation (NYSE: LYV), a leading live content and distribution company focused on creating superior experiences for artists, performers, corporations and fans. For more information or to purchase tickets through an authorized agent go to www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.

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