The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents Leonard Bernstein’s NYC Broadway Musicals, a talk by John Kenrick, Entertainment Historian, on Sunday, November 11, 2018, at 2 PM. Admission is $8 members,
$10 non- members.

In recognition of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Leonard Bernstein, Kenrick will offer a multimedia presentation that includes performance videos and delightful behind the scenes stories about this legendary icon.

Leonard Bernstein is a renowned Jewish American conductor, teacher, composer, entertainer, and pianist. Born in Massachusetts on August 25, 1918, to Ukraine-Russian parents, he did odd jobs before he was firmly set in the music world. In 1943 he was named the New York Philharmonic’s permanent conductor, and continued as Conductor and Music Director through 1969. He was subsequently named Laureate Conductor for life. He also conducted orchestras worldwide, including in Europe and Israel. In 1988, the Israel Philharmonic also gave Bernstein the title of Laureate Conductor. Leonard Bernstein was married and had three children and four grandchildren.

Bernstein wrote his first operetta, Candide, in 1956. Also, in 1956, with a book by Arthur Laurents, and with Stephen Sondheim who wrote the lyrics, Bernstein composed the music for their famed musical, West Side Story. In 1963, a few weeks after the death of President John Kennedy, Bernstein wrote his Third Symphony, Kaddish. It was dedicated to the memory of the slain president.

Bernstein’s music is still popular today. The Leonard Bernstein Collection can be viewed at the Library of Congress, in Washington, D.C. Leonard Bernstein died on October 14, 1990, of emphysema.

A native New Yorker, John Kenrick worked for many years in the professional theatre, serving as personal assistant to six Tony Award winning producers. Creator of the popular educational website Musicals101.com, he pulls back the curtain on show business history as only an insider can. Kenrick has discussed theatre on television and radio, including PBS, the BBC, and NPR. His book Musical Theatre: A History has just been released in a revised 10th anniversary edition, and Publishers Weekly calls it “the go-to text on this subject.” Kenrick has taught at The New School University, The Philadelphia University of the Arts, and NYU’s Steinhardt School. He is uniquely qualified to tell us how musicals get to Broadway.

This program is made possible in part by the Monmouth County Historical Commission through funding from the New Jersey Historical Commission of the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

For more information or to make a paid reservation (non-refundable), call the Museum at
732-252-6990, or visit www.jhmomc.org. The Jewish Heritage Museum is located in the Mounts Corner Shopping Center, at 310 Mounts Corner Drive Freehold, NJ, at the corner of Route 537 and Wemrock Road (between the CentraState Medical Center and Freehold Raceway Mall). It is on the second floor of the historic Levi Solomon Barn. The JHMOMC is a tax-exempt organization under Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Museum is
handicapped and assistive listening accessible.