Odds & Ends: Adam Kantor to Direct Actors Fund Tribute to Title Songs & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you might have missed today and this weekend.

Adam Kantor to Direct Actors Fund Tribute to Title Songs
The Actors Fund has announced an upcoming concert presentation featuring unheralded title songs from iconic musicals. The one-night-only benefit, called Show of Titles: An Evening of Title Songs From Musicals Remembered and Forgotten, will be held at Feinstein's/54 Below on February 25 at 7:00pm. The evening will feature a talent-packed slate of guest artists singing title numbers from the musicals of Richard Rodgers, Alan Jay Lerner, Burton Lane, Stephen Sondheim, Kurt Weill, Harold Rome, John Kander, Fred Ebb and Charles Strouse. Broadway veteran Adam Kantor (The Band's Visit) will direct the evening, with musical direction by Rodney Bush. Performers will be announced soon.

Date Set for 2019 Drama Desk Awards
Awards season is nearing, so mark your calendar! The 64th annual Drama Desk Awards, honoring the best in Broadway, off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway, will be held at NYC's Town Hall on April 24. Top winners of the 2018 Drama Desks included SpongeBob SquarePants, Admissions, Angels in America and My Fair Lady.

Eva Noblezada & More to Perform at Theatre Communications Group Gala
A talented slate of performers have been announced to take part in the 2019 gala of Theatre Communications Group. Tony winner Michael Mayer will direct the previously announced event will set for February 4 at the Edison Ballroom. Stars set to take the stage include Tony nominees Eva Noblezada (Hadestown) and Beth Malone (Angels in America), with Patrick Page (Hadestown) and Ali Stroker (Oklahoma!). The evening will pay tribute to Tony- and Pulitzer-winning playwright Tony Kushner, veteran Broadway publicist Rick Miramontez and arts philanthropist Martha R. Ingram.

Amour Composer Michel Legrand Dies at 86
Michel Legrand, a celebrated composer and pianist who earned acclaim for his scores on and off-Broadway, died on January 26, according to The New York Times. He was 86. In addition to iconic stage and screen collaborations with artists including Liza Minnelli, Miles Davis and Perry Como, Legrand crafted music for the Broadway productions Zizi (1964) and Of Love Remembered (1967), appearing onstage as a performer in Andy Williams with Michel Legrand (1974). Legrand earned a Tony nomination for his music to the Broadway musical Amour (2002), which boasted a cast including Melissa Errico, Malcolm Gets, Norm Lewis and Christopher Fitzgerald in his Broadway debut. Off-Broadway, Legrand wrote the music and orchestrations for The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1979).

Oklahoma! Revival Joins Gun Neutral Initiative
The upcoming Broadway revival of Oklahoma! is joining the entertainment industry's Gun Neutral initiative, producers announced today. Gun Neutral is a new, collaborative effort to explore ways entertainment companies, individual productions and storytellers can help solve the gun violence. For every visible gun that is seen on stage in Oklahoma!, the production will make a donation to the nonprofit Gun Neutral 501c3, which works to destroy illegal firearms that should be out of circulation. Oklahoma! will begin performances at the Circle in the Square Theatre on March 19.