A Singing Competition That Aims to Provide a Break For Talented Young Singers

NEW YORK, NEW YORK (September 9, 2011) - Next Broadway Star was held on Monday, August 29, 2011 at the Times Square McDonald’s . Broadway.tv joined forces with McDonald’s 42nd Street store, in hosting the biggest talent competition Broadway has ever seen.

The competition was hosted by Television/Stage star Jonathan D. Lovitz, the popular Host of the hit television series Set up Squad. Judges for the Next Broadway Star included:

• Arne Gundersen, President of Actor’s Equity Foundation;
• Duncan Stewart, top Broadway Casting Director of Chicago The Musical, La Cage Aux Folles, Radio City Christmas Spectacular, and the new musical YANK!;
• Gunnar Larson, President  & CEO of NetworkGlobal Companies.

Highlights of the Next Broadway Star kick-off were stars of four hit Broadway shows Book of Mormon, Hair, Jersey Boys, and La Cage Aux Folles and over a dozen celebrities:

• Russell Fischer, Star of The Broadway Production of Jersey Boys
• Marshal Kennedy Carolan, The Broadway Production of Hair
• Kevin Duda, The Broadway Production of The Book of Mormon and Dangerous Liaisons
• Jason Snow, The Broadway Production of The Book of Mormon
• Matt Anctil, Star of The Broadway Production of La Cage Aux Folles
• Lauren LoGiudice, Star of the film When Harry Tries to Marry
• Aryn Cole, All My Children, Ugly Betty and star of the upcoming film Lorenzo & Monica
• Guto Bittencourt, Stage & Television star of The Love Affair & two international hit series Esmeralda & Malhacao
• Max Rhyser, star of the series In Between Men and the upcoming film The Lair
• Mike Woods, Meteorologist/Reporter, Good Day New York

VIP guests attending the kick-off included: Annmaria Mazzini -Star of The Paul Taylor Dance Company; Brandon Pope - Musician/Composer/Model; Patrick Hazlewood -Supermodel/Entrepreneur; Fiona Kuchina - Supermodel/Actress/Entrepreneur, No Love In The City; Luis Perrusquia-Dos - Supermodel/Actor

The competition will take place once a month over a four month period. The next round will be held on Tuesday, October 4^th, 2011 at the McDonald’s 42nd Street store, where the upper levels of the location will be transformed into a theater.

Ten out of the sixteen Next Broadway Star contestants that performed at the kick-off moved to the quarterfinals. Each of the contestants were handpicked from around the country and carefully screened by the Broadway.tv team from the thousands of talented potential Broadway actors/singers through an auditioning process that took more than five months.

Press Coverage:

Next Broadway Star received huge response from the press including: Broadway.tv, Broadwayworld.com, New York Observer, New York Daily News, NaplesNews.com, Queer New York. The top photo worldwide agencies sent photographers to cover this event including WireImage, Getty Images, and New York Daily News.

About Next Broadway Star:

Next Broadway Star competition aims to provide a break for candidates that aspire to make it big on Broadway but don’t have the means and the exposure do so. Voice alone doesn’t guarantee you a spot in the competition, the candidate needs to have the total package which includes voice, energy and ability to connect to the song and the audience. The ultimate winner will receive a cash prize of $5,000 dollars, and the chance to audition with the most prestigious casting directors and producers on Broadway. The viewers can vote for their favorite contestants online via Facebook and Broadway.tv.

About Broadway.tv:

Broadway.tv (BTV) is the world’s number one video-specific site for Broadway plays and musical theatre. We have recently expanded our coverage to the West End, and our site now contains exclusive features from London. With a million viewers per day, we have secured interviews with the best and brightest on Broadway, including Hugh Jackman, Robin Williams, Sarah Jessica Parker, Brooke Shields, Mark Wahlberg, Ben Stiller, Jerry Seinfeld, Matthew Bourne, Jude Law, Angela Lansbury, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Barbara Walters, Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Rock and many more notable celebrities.

For more press information, contact Matt Flynn or Christopher Vicini at james@jamesgrantPR.com or (917) 626-1300. Visit Broadway.tv for more information about the competition and the contestants.

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Tags: Actor’s Equity Foundation, Ain’t There Anyone Here to Love, All My Children, American Idol, Anumita Mukherjee, Arne Gundersen, Aryn Cole, Bianca Espinal, Book of Mormon, Brandon Pope, Broadway.tv, Chicago The Musical, Clare Solly, Collette McLafferty, Dangerous Liaisons, David Michaels, Don’t Stop Believing by Journey, Duncan Stewart, Favorite Places by Adam Gwon, Fiona Kuchina, Fox 5, Gimme Gimme by Modern Millie, gunnar larson, Guto Bittencourt, Hair, In Between Men, Jason Snow, Jenna Schoen, Jersey Boy, Josephine Bauza, Kevin Duda, La Cage Aux Folles, Lauren LoGiudice, Lost in the Wilderness by Children of Eden, Luis Perrusquia–Dos, Mariana Leon, Mario Bueno, Marshal Kennedy Carolan, Matt Ancil, Max Rhyser, McDonald’s, McDonald’s 42nd street, Melissa Rapelje, Mike Woods, Ned Donovan, NetworkGlobal Companies, Next Broadway Star, Nothing by Whitney Houston, One Song Glory by Rent, Over The Rainbow, Paris Lafaro, Patrick Hazlewood, Radio City Christmas Spectacular, RENT, Roger Gossom, Rolling in the Deep by Adele, Russell Fischer, Sam Brooks, Sherly Saint Cloud, Show Off by Drowsy Chaperone, Take Me or Leave Me, talent completion, The Climb by Miley Cyrus, The Glory of Love, The Greatest Love of All by Whitney Houston, The Lair, Times Square, Ugly Betty, When Harry Tries to Marry, Whitney Winfield, Yank!, You Raise Me Up by Westlife

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