Karen Ziemba in July Reading of New Let Me Sing Musical at MTC
By Julia Furay
July 10, 2001
NEW YORK -- Karen Ziemba, who won a Tony for her role as a lonely housewife in the dance play Contact, will leave the Broadway production Sept. 2.
Before then, however, Ziemba will be doing double-duty when she performs in a reading of the new musical Let Me Sing the third week in July, in addition to her role in Contact. The mid-July reading, presented by the Manhattan Theatre Club, will also feature Gretha Boston, Marc Kudisch, Andre De Shields, Beth Leavel and Randy Skinner. Skinner, who earned a 2001 Tony nomination for his choreography on Broadway's 42nd Street, is also choreographing this new backstage musical, which traces on the development of the musical theatre through the first half of the 20th century, and how it reflected changes in the nation.
Ziemba will be the first principal to leave the Broadway production of Contact: fellow Tony winner Boyd Gaines remains with the show, as does the showstopping "Girl in the Yellow Dress," Deborah Yates.
From Karen Ziemba's press release: "Meanwhile, in mid-July, Ms. Ziemba is participating in a reading of a new musical called "Let Me Sing" presented by The Manhattan Theatre Club. Directed by Michael Bush and choreographed by TONY nominee Randy Skinner, the reading also features Gretha Boston, Marc Kudish, Andre De Shields, Beth Leavel and Mr. Skinner who is creating a special song and dance duet for himself and Ms. Ziemba. "Let Me Sing" tracks the development of the American people in the 20th Century by exploring the evolution of the American Musical theatre from 1900 to 1945 and how its songs defined us to ourselves and the rest of the world."