Love Out Loud for Pearce Wegener

Pearce Wegener is making his Broadway debut as Yonkers in Gypsy starring Patti LuPone. This young man, a graduate of the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, already had Pippin, Bye Bye Birdie, Show Boat and Wonderful Town under his belt. He will bring all his youthful energy to the stage for Bacharach to the Future. His reponse was immediate and unequivocal: “I am overwhelmed by all the good Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS does. I am honored to be able to help POZ support such a wonderful cause.”

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Love Out Loud for Natalie Hiatt

Kansas City born Natalie Hiatt is a singer, writer living in New York City. She is currently involved in a Children’s musical Theatre program Star Kidz that teaching the fundamentals of singing, acting and dance. She was a recipient of the Kathleen Turner scholarship while attending Missouri State University. She has been part of Ken Ludwig’s premiere of Leading Ladies at the New Theatre in Kansas City, and various other productions including Swing!, Funny Girl, Grease, Anything Goes, and Eating Raoul.
“Hiatt is extraordinary. She's so talented and charismatic that you understand what the producers of Best Musical Tony winner Thoroughly Modern Millie felt upon discovering chorus girl Sutton Foster... Hiatt has the appeal and formidable lung power of some blessed mutant who is equal parts Bernadette Peters and Jennifer Tilly but entirely her own creation.” [source: Steve Walker, The Pitch Kansas City]It's unanimous among those who know her: Classic beauty with a classic voice.
This year it is one more opportunity to know this young woman. She will be joining Bacharach to the Future.

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Love Out Loud for Tony Roberts

Tony Roberts received Tony Award nominations for his performances in Play It Again Sam and How Now, Dow Jones. His other theatrical credits include Victor/Victoria, Barefoot in the Park, Don't Drink the Water, Sugar, Absurd Person Singular, Arsenic and Old Lace, They're Playing Our Song, Jerome Robbins' Broadway and The Sisters Rosensweig. He won the London's Critics Poll Award for his performance in the West End mounting of Promises, Promises, and his many screen credits include Annie Hall, Play It Again, Sam and Serpico. Mr. Roberts is currently having a great time in Xanadu. It is an honour to have him with us for Bacharach to the Future, the very same man who introduced the musical Promises, Promises to London audiences. The man is the quintessence of acting with innumerable credits. He is a New York City legend.

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Love Out Loud for Linda Purl

Born in Connecticut and raised in Japan, Linda became the only foreigner to train at the Toho Geino Academy. Linda returned to the States to study at the Neighborhood Playhouse, Lee Strasberg Institute and later with Robert Lewis, an original member of The Group Theatre and co-founder of The Actor's Studio. Her stage credits include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer; Hallelujah, Hallelujah! the original production of the Pulitzer Prize winning play Dinner With Friends, The Road To Mecca (with Miss Julie Harris), Nora (with Michael York), The Three Penny Opera (with Betty Buckley), Grease, On a Clear Day, ; Oliver, The King and I, Love Letters with both Stacey Keach and Desi Arnaz, Jr.; Tusitala (with Miss Julie Harris), Hippolytos as Phaedra in the inaugural production Getty Classical Theatre. Linda is recipient of six Dramalogue Best Actress Awards and two Dramalogue Awards as Best Producer. She has received two Robby Awards for Best Actress and is a three time nominee of the Los Angeles Drama Critic's Award for Best Actress and is the recipient of the Connecticut Critics' Award for Outstanding Performance in a Play for her work in The Baby Dance.

Linda has performed her cabaret act at The Rose Tattoo, The Cinegrill, The Gardenia, The Jazz Bakery as well as performed in concert at the Luchman Hall, Los Angeles; White Barn Theatre, Westport, Ct; Toho Imperial Theatre, Tokyo; Pike's Peak Center, Colorado Springs; Town Hall, NYC. She is an Associate Artist of the American National Theatre, co-founder and served as Founding Executive Director of the Colorado Festival for World Theatre and is Festival Director of the Rubicon International Theatre Festival. If all that isn't enough to insure a memorable performance for World AIDs Day from this very generous woman all one need do is listen to her moving performance of "A House Is Not A Home" on the recording produced by director, Bruce Kimmel, The Burt Bacharach Album.

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Love Out Loud for Julie Reiber

The wicked talent of Julie Reiber comes forth from Bellingham, Washington and it has blessed both coasts of the United States. From the original Los Angeles company of Wicked to that of Broadway. she has been part of many a production, All Shook Up, Rent, Brooklyn, Jekyll & Hyde. Her official website resides here. This is one busy woman! Since arriving in the Big Appple, Julie has already offered her time and talent to BC/EFA for Friends with Benefits last May, not to mention Tales From the Bad Years, Monday Nights, New Voices, Broadway Sings for Africa Concert, Reach the Sky, and Broadway for Obama in addition to being on hand for Wicked. This is the kind of person to write home about and we're glad she's on our side.

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Love Out Loud for Liz Callaway

Tony nominee and Emmy Award winner Liz Callaway is one of the top singer-actresses appearing on Broadway today. Audiences have seen her on Broadway in Merrily We Roll Along, Baby, Miss Saigon, The Three Musketeers, The Look of Love, and Cats, where she played the role of Grizabella for five years. She has also starred in numerous off-Broadway shows,as well as the internationally acclaimed Sibling Revelry with her sister, Ann Hampton Callaway. Her numerous film and television credits include the singing voice of Anastasia in the award-winning animated film, Princess Jasmine, Aladdin and the King of Thieves. Liz is also an accomplished studio singer, and can be heard on more than 35 recordings, including her three solo albums. Her extensive concert career includes appearances at New York ’s Carnegie Hall, in London, China, France, Iceland, Estonia, and just about every major city in the United States. Visit the Liz Callaway Website. Bacharach to the Future enjoys the extremely good fortune of having her with us on World AIDS Day.

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Love Out Loud for Franc D'Ambrosio

Franc D'Ambrosio is best known for his role in the stage version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera. For this role he earned the title, "The World's Longest Running Phantom", having completed over 3000 performances, including the national tour and the San Francisco run of over 5 years. Attending the Hartt School of Music in Hartford, CT, He had the opportunity to study at the famed Vocal Academy of Lucca in Italy. While there, he was personally invited to study with legendary tenor Luciano Pavarotti at his home in Pesaro. Franc made his Broadway debut in the first revival of Sweeney Todd. It was while he was in this production that Francis Ford Coppola discovered D'Ambrosio. Paramount Pictures had been conducting an international talent search (for well over a year) to fill the part of Anthony Corleone - the opera-singing son of Al Pacino & Diane Keaton in The Godfather III. Their search was finally over. It was immediately following that Franc was cast in the title role of The Phantom Of The Opera. He had actually been auditioning for Miss Saigon but the producers were so impressed with his performance that they immediately offered him the role in Phantom. Bacharach to the Future is now blessed with Franc's talent. Visit his official site.

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Love Out Loud for Billy Porter

Before embarking on a career as a mainstream pop vocalist, Billy Porter built a substantial reputation as a theatrical singer in Broadway productions such as Grease and Smokey Joe's Cafe. He made his initial impact by placing "Love Is On The Way" on the soundtrack to the film First Wives' Club, in 1996. His debut album, Untitled, was firmly anchored in traditional R&B territory, with several key ballads. According to L. Michael Gipson: "His voice is one for the ages and it soon found a home back on Broadway starring in everything from a
revival of Grease to a landmark recording of Dreamgirls: In Concert. No less than Rosie O’Donnell fell in love with Billy’s talent and had him appear on her show innumerable times." This multi-faceted performer, well known to New York City audiences, has now brought his shining talents to the World AIDS Day event to help POZ benefit Broadway Cares/Equity fights AIDS.

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Love Out Loud for Billy Miller

Billy Miller is no Richie Novak, his manipulative alter ego on All My Children the show he left last summer. It is our good fortune that he is very different and taking the time once again to join us for a fund-raiser. This time in West Hollywood. Vist here. He was quite popular among his cast mates and quickly built a following among the show’s fans. Billy now gets to repeat that success on The Young & The Restless. He holds a degree from the University of Texas in Austin as one of only twenty students in the film department's Intensive Production Sequence. Intensive is the operative word here. For example, like many an actor before him, Mr. Miller is no stranger to bartending, and his approach to that experience is to have his own company building and operating bars in Austin, TX and South Bay, CA. As a true denizen of the Southwest, this young man doesn’t let any grass grow under his feet and now after taking New York by storm, he is taking the Left Coast much the same way.



Billy Miller is the real thing. He defines intensity, intelligence and generosity. He is genuinely one of the good guys.

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