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Cast

Creative Team

Meet the Company

Kaylee MacKnight

Veronica

Kaylee MacKnight (she/her) is a NYC based performer and producer. Obtaining a BA in Musical Theatre at The University of Alabama (roll tide), she has worked professionally in the city for over 7 years. When not producing or performing, she works in Real Estate at City Wide Apartments where she enjoys finding people their next dream apartment. Some of her favorite credits include: Next to Normal, Merrily We Roll Along, Ex-Gay: The Musical, and Elphaba in the Drunk Musical’s production of Wasted: The Story of Some Drunk Bitches from Oz. You can usually find her either running around the city with her two pups, Nessa and Bruiser or having brunch with her friends.

Dean Cestari

J.D.

DEAN CESTARI is ~exploding~ with joy to be back with the Drunk Musicals fam Off-Broadway! A special drunk shoutout to Kaylee, Kyra & Michael for bringing him along for the ride, and to Brian Herrick for putting up with all of his bullish*t :-) @deancestari DRUNK CREDITS: Bitches (JD). SOBER CREDITS: Sound of Music (Paper Mill Playhouse), Kinky Boots (u/s Charlie, North Shore Music Theatre), Stranger Sings! (Mike Wheeler, Original Cast Recording), Fiddler on the Roof (National Tour), Newsies (Davey, WPPAC/TBTS). He can also be seen on FX’s American Horror Story S11E8. xox

Emma Degerstedt

Heather Chandler

EMMA DEGERSTEDT is so excited to be doing Drunk Musicals for the second time as Heather Chandler! SOBER CREDITS: the shimmy girl in the Smokey Joes Cafe Revival (chita Rivera nominee), original Susanna in Desperate Measures, OCR on apple music/spotify. Ariel in the Little Mermaid at the Muny! Elle Woods in Legally Blonde (Los Angeles Ovation nominee)

Darius- Anthony Robinson

Heather Duke

Darius-Anthony Robinson 1:43 PM (59 minutes ago) to me From a dive bar to Off-Broadway, Darius-Anthony is very happy to be returning Off-Broadway in such a ridiculously special show as a Resident Company Member of Drunk Musicals! Robinson has been featured as a vocalist as well as dancer at Feinstein's 54 Below, Highline Ballroom, Radio City Music Hall, Rockwood (NYC/LA) and was last seen in the Broadway-bound musical, The Preacher's Wife (with music and lyrics by Titus Burgess). National Tours: Hairsray; In The Heights Off-Broadway: RENT (25th Anniversary); Re-Designing Women. Theatrical Credits (selected): NYMF; Dallas Theatre Center; Uptown Players; Casa Mañana Theatre; Lees-McRae Summer Theatre; American Repratory Theater; WaterTower Theater; Garland Summer Musicals; Theatre Three, Divisionary Theatre; LaJolla Playhouse; Midtowne Arts Center; TUTS; Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Kyra Lynn Burke

Heather McNamara

Kyra is elated to be making her Off-Broadway debut with the Drunk Musicals family! She is the proud social media director, shot lady, and stage manager for Drunk Musicals, as well as playing Belle in "Beauty & the Bourbon" and Heather McNamara in "Bitches: A Drunk Heathers Parody Musical". Her past drunken credits include Rosemary (How to Succeed in Drinking Without Really Trying), Janet (Rocky Horror Shit show), and Marcy Park (Schwasty Bee). SOBER CREDITS: Anita (GIRLS NIGHT National Tour), Marta (Sondheim's COMPANY), Pippi (The Great American Trailer Park Musical), and stage manager for TableTop Broadway NYC.

Liz Pryce-Davies

Martha/Host

Liz Pryce Davies is thrilled to be back in a theater again collaborating with these fabulous Drunk + Musical folks! She was last seen onstage playing a slew of eccentric lunatics as part of the New Wave Theater Collective’s short play series. Favorite original roles include playing 7 characters in the US Off-Broadway Premiere of the folk-rock musical Towards the Moon at 59E59 Theaters and The Lady of the Night in the World Premiere of Charles L. Mee’s The Four Seasons at the Angel Orensanz Foundation. Other favorite credits: Mol in Tiny Disasters (World Premiere) and Marigold Fezziwig in A Christmas Carol, both at The Guthrie Theater; The Gypsy in The Who's Tommy and Eddie in The Rocky Horror Show, both at WPPAC; Dunyasha in The Cherry Orchard at the Al Schapiro Theater; and Oberon in queer musical adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream at The Payomet Performing Arts Center. She is a YoungArts winner in Popular Voice and a graduate of the Improv and Sketch programs at Upright Citizens Brigade Theater (RIP) and the University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater BFA Actor Training Program.

Peter Romberg

Ram Sweeney Todd

Peter Romberg is beyond excited to be back with Drunk Musicals. He likes talking about himself in the third person, he always second guesses himself when he spells necessarily, and loves short and slightly off topic bios in playbills. Drunk Credits: Wasted (Boq) and How to Succeed in Drinking Without Really Trying (J. Pierrepont Finch) Sober Credits: An American in Paris (Henri Baurel, Natl. tour) and South Pacific (Buzz Adams Ensemble, Natl. tour)

Zach Snyder

Kurt Schmurt

Zach Allen Snyder is thrilled to be re-joining Drunk Musicals for the Off-Broadway run. When not drinking onstage, he is singing at Ellen's Stardust Diner. Drunken Credits: Beauty and the Bourbon (Cogsworth), Cocktail Waitress (Ensemble), High School Musical (Ensemble), Rocky Horror Shit Show (Riff Raff), Liquor Shop of Horrors (Mushnik), Schwastey Bee (Chip Tolentino) Sober Credits: Nickelodeon's PAW Patrol Live! The Great Pirate Adventure (Swing), Beauty and the Beast (LeFou U/S); The Rocky Horror Show (Frank N. Furter); Grease (Roger); Footloose (Willard Hewitt); Titanic (Harold Bride). BFA Musical Theatre, SUNY at Buffalo. zachallensnyder.com

Julie James

Ms. Fleming

Julie has made appearances on Broadway in "Kristin Chenoweth's 'For the Girls'" and Disney's "Aladdin", and is perhaps best known as the host of "Broadway Names with Julie James" on SiriusXM, where she is the Music Curator of the On Broadway & Met Opera Radio channels. Pinging between classical, musical theatre, cabaret & session singing, some favorite credits include Sweeney Todd at Goodspeed Opera House, headlining concerts at Central Park Summerstage and Darren Criss' "Elsiefest", singing the National Anthem at Fenway Park and jingling for Howard Stern and Conan O'Brien. As a host, Julie has welcomed both legends & stars on the rise to her show: Julie Andrews, Hugh Jackman, Audra McDonald, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Idina Menzel, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ariana DeBose, Sara Bareilles, Daniel Radcliffe & Billy Porter to name a few from over a decade of broadcasts, and is often called upon as a theatre expert for TV shows such as NBC's NY Live, Fox's Good Day NY, Spectrum's NY1 & more. Julie remembers most of her past Drunk Musicals appearances & is rejoicifying to be included in this new round of adventures in residency!

Dante Hill

Ensemble

Dante is so excited to be joining the off Broadway cast of Drunk Musicals! You may have seen him recently in Drunk Musicals: Elf and How to Succeed! He’s excited to be making his off Broadway debut and can’t wait to have a boozy blast on stage! Follow him on insta @_danterayvonne_

Michael A. Ferrara

Music Director/Keys

Originally from Palm City, Florida, Michael A. Ferrara is a versatile and eclectic musician, equally at home in such diverse roles as conducting symphonic repertoire and performing in musical theater and opera pit orchestras. Originally a trumpet player (at Interlochen Arts Academy), Ferrara went on to study piano and orchestral conducting, receiving his Master’s in Music from Bard College-Conservatory. Ferrara has had the pleasure of working with and alongside artists such as Andrea Burns, Philip Glass, and James Lupine to name a few. Hailed as “impressive”, his recent credits include: Wicked, The Music Man, Flying Over Sunset, and Philip Glass’ Mud/Drowning. He is so proud of this show that he and Kaylee Macknight created 7 years ago in a basement. CHEERS!!

Charles Kiger

Drums/Percussion

Charles Kiger has performed in numerous Broadway productions as a drummer/ percussionist, including A Chorus Line, West Side Story, Billy Elliot, Silence! the Musical, and extensively at The Radio City Christmas Spectacular. He also performs regularly as a classical timpanist in most concert halls and churches in NYC. Charles has been with Drunk Musicals since 2017.

Sean Murphy

Bass

Sean Murphy is a freelance bassist living in NYC who has performed with artists such as Ana Gasteyer, Christina Bianco, Natalie Joy Johnson, and Julian Fleisher. Recent sub credits: A Beautiful Noise, 1776, Radio City Christmas Spectacular. National Tours: Finding Neverland, Beauty and the Beast. Off-Broadway: ¡Americano!, Felix Starro. Regional: Evita and Camelot at Bay Street Theatre, La Cage aux Folles at Riverside Theater, Holiday Inn at Paper Mill Playhouse. Sean is also a huge tech geek and loves photography.

Benjamin Samuelson

Guitar

Benjamin Samuelson is a multi-instrumentalist performer, composer, and sound designer. He has played guitar on Broadway productions of WICKED and The Book of Mormon as well as at Sony Hall, The Capitol Theater, ACT, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and many more.

Jeremy Clayton

Reeds

Jeremy is a freelance multi-woodwind player, performer, director and designer based in NYC. Most recently, he was featured as flutist for the 2022 revival of Into the Woods on Broadway and its Grammy Award-winning album for Best Musical Theatre Album of the Year. Other Broadway credits include Sunday in the Park with George with Jake Gyllenhaal and Annaleigh Ashford and the 2015 Revival of Fiddler on the Roof for which he served as substitute Klezmer clarinet soloist. Jeremy has proudly been a member of the New York City Center Encores! Orchestra for multiple productions including Into the Woods, Grand Hotel, Sunday in the Park with George, The New Yorkers, Paint Your Wagon, 1776, The Cradle Will Rock and A New Brain. Other New York credits include John Doyle's production of Sondheim and Lapine's Passion (2013 NY Revival, Classic Stage Company) starring Judy Kuhn, Ryan Silverman and Melissa Errico as well as LaChiusa's First Daughter Suite at The Public Theatre. Jeremy has been a featured musician in multiple productions and concerts at The Irish Repertory Theatre, one of NYC's greatest theatrical companies. Tours: Miss Saigon (solo saxophone feature), Oklahoma!, Happy Days: The Musical (solo saxophone feature), The Drowsy Chaperone, Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Recordings: Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George, Judy Kuhn's Rodgers, Rodgers & Guettel, Passion, Paint Your Wagon, A New Brain, First Daughter Suite.

Kaylee MacKnight

Executive Producer/Director

Kaylee MacKnight (she/her) is a NYC based performer and producer. Obtaining a BA in Musical Theatre at The University of Alabama (roll tide), she has worked professionally in the city for over 7 years. When not producing or performing, she works in Real Estate at City Wide Apartments where she enjoys finding people their next dream apartment. Some of her favorite credits include: Next to Normal, Merrily We Roll Along, Ex-Gay: The Musical, and Elphaba in the Drunk Musical’s production of Wasted: The Story of Some Drunk Bitches from Oz. You can usually find her either running around the city with her two pups, Nessa and Bruiser or having brunch with her friends.

Michael Ferrara

Music Director

Originally from Palm City, Florida, Michael A. Ferrara is a versatile and eclectic musician, equally at home in such diverse roles as conducting symphonic repertoire and performing in musical theater and opera pit orchestras. Originally a trumpet player (at Interlochen Arts Academy), Ferrara went on to study piano and orchestral conducting, receiving his Master’s in Music from Bard College-Conservatory. Ferrara has had the pleasure of working with and alongside artists such as Andrea Burns, Philip Glass, and James Lupine to name a few. Hailed as “impressive”, his recent credits include: Wicked, The Music Man, Flying Over Sunset, and Philip Glass’ Mud/Drowning. He is so proud of this show that he and Kaylee Macknight created 7 years ago in a basement. CHEERS!!

Kyra Lynn Burke

Stage Manager & Production Team Member

Kyra is elated to be making her Off-Broadway debut with the Drunk Musicals family! She is the proud social media director, shot lady, and stage manager for Drunk Musicals, as well as playing Belle in "Beauty & the Bourbon" and Heather McNamara in "Bitches: A Drunk Heathers Parody Musical". Her past drunken credits include Rosemary (How to Succeed in Drinking Without Really Trying), Janet (Rocky Horror Shit show), and Marcy Park (Schwasty Bee). SOBER CREDITS: Anita (GIRLS NIGHT National Tour), Marta (Sondheim's COMPANY), Pippi (The Great American Trailer Park Musical), and stage manager for TableTop Broadway NYC.

Brian Herrick

General Manager

Brian is thrilled to be joining the Drunk Musicals team on another endeavor! Drunk Credits: The Pourducers and How To Succeed In Drinking Without Really Trying (Director), Brad in Rocky Horror Shit Show, Seymour in Liquor Shop Of Horrors, Charlie Brown in You’re A Drunk Man Charlie Brown, and Ryan in High School Musical (the drunk musical). Proud owner and talent agent with The Hell’s Kitchen Agency. Much love and thanks to Kaylee, Michael, Kyra, and the whole DM team. @briankherrick

Ian Connor

Lighting Designer & Operator

Ian B. Connor is a bicoastal multi-hyphenate of stage & screen. Casting Department: American Idol (ABC), Becoming A Pop Star (MTV), Don’t Forget The lyrics (Fox), The Circle (Netflix), Squid Game: The Challenge (Netflix), Love Island USA (CBS / Peacock), Too Hot To Handle (Netflix), and several unscripted series for HULU, A&E, NBC, and TLC. Stage Management: Pre-Broadway Broadway In Chicago staged concert performances of CHILDREN OF EDEN at the Cadillac Palace Theater (PSM), Contact High Off Broadway at Ars Nova (PSM), Not Fade Away at Interlakes Summer Theater (SM). Ian is the creator and producer of staple NYC concerts, cabarets, and comedy shows including NOW That's What I Call Cabaret, Songs From The Shows I Should Have #Booked, Bread, Butter, & Broadway, Sloshed: Stand Up If You Can, Dancer First, Proud, Love Wins, New Year, New Voices. During the height of the covid-19 entertainment industry shutdown, Ian put together a virtual variety show titled Live From Quarantine that featured unemployed talent from around the world, raising hundreds of thousands in survival funds for not only the cast, but also important organizations like the ACLU. As a playwright, songwriter, and lyricist, Ian's writing credits include The Naked Truth (Semi Finalist for the National Music Theater Conference at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center), The McDonologues, Felicia Feels A Lot, and This Christmas. Ian is working on a debut pop album of songwriting collaborations featuring some of the music scene's hottest new voices. IG: @iancasting

Ben Hostetler

Sound Engineer

Ben Hostetler (Big Hoss) is a Pop/Kpop producer with a passion for creating larger than life than music and working with creative artist who think outside the box. Before Big Hoss began his producing career, he worked as an audio engineer and mastering assistant at NYC based studio Engine Room Audio. Wanting to branch out from “studio life” he started to DJ. He was later picked up by a national dance competition and traveled to 36 states during their summer tour. Shortly after the tour, he began working on a project with a conceptual artist that turned into the highly controversial Non-Korean K-Pop idol group EXP EDITION. Hoss relocated to Seoul, South Korea for two years where he was responsible for writing/producing their debut album (EXP Edition: 1st Edition). After completing the album, Hoss went on tour with the group and was in charge of mixing and sound related needs. Upon his return to NYC, Hoss teamed up with a production house in midtown Manhattan where he produced music for film and TV. During this time he began building a studio of his own where he works producing, engineering, and mixing songs for various projects. Most recently, Hoss entered back into the world of live sound and has been enjoying FOH mixing for the award winning band 45 Riots in New York City and surrounding areas.

Photos

Roe Hartrampf, Julie James, Nick Cearley & More to Star in DRUNK MUSICALS at Green Fig Piano Bar

ZABAR ENTERTAINMENT has announced the opening night cast of Drunk Musicals, which opens on April 10 and will be presented every Monday at 8:30 PM and Saturday at 9:30 PM at Green Fig Piano Bar (570 Tenth Avenue at 42nd Street, on the 4th Floor of Yotel). The first show will include Roe Hartrampf (Broadway's Diana: The Musical, Netflix's "Emily in Paris"), Kaylee MacKnight (the show's co-creator/producer), Julie James (Sirius XM Radio's "On Broadway"), Nick Cearley (The Skivvies, "Out 100"), Emma Degerstedt (Nickelodeon's "Unfabulous"), and Dean Cestari (Off-Broadway's' "Stranger Sings!"). Starting April 15, Billie Aken-Tyers (Titanique) will join the cast.

This fun, 90-minute interactive evening, for audiences 21 and over, takes musical highlights from your favorite musicals and sets them to a parody script, telling the story of each show (while poking fun at it) so even your favorite non-Broadway lover will understand the premise. The actors are challenged to perform while the audience has the ability to send them shots. The sobriety of these actors is completely in the audience's hands. Drunk Musicals features parodies of Wicked, Beauty and the Beast, Chicago, Rocky Horror Picture Show, Little Shop of Horrors, and many more. Half scripted, half improv, you will never see the same show twice. Drunk Musicals was created by producer Kaylee MacKnight and music director Michael Ferrara.

The resident cast includes: Kaylee MacKnight, Dean Cestari, Emma Degerstedt, Darius Anthony-Robinson, Julie James, Nick Cearley, Billie Aken-Tyers, Rob Maitner, Peter Romberg, Zach Snyder, Danny Marin, Kyle Huey, Paul Trenier, Jordan Diggory, Tony Patryn,Dante Hill, Nyseli Vega, Kyra Lynn Burke, and Arielle Faye-Beane.

Drunk Musicals started at New York's West End Lounge over six years ago when Kaylee was working the Monday night open mics. At the time, she was binging "Drunk History" and one night she thought: "Why not combine the two? Why not sing musicals while the audience sends shots to challenge the actors? Most of these people who attended the open mic were doing it anyways!" She came up with the concept of it being like a "cast party" to parody musicals, get drunk, but also tell the story of it so that people who haven't seen the show would understand the concept and eventually want to go see the actual production. After a lot of asking around, Kaylee was introduced to Michael, who was immediately on board. Michael put together the music and handled all of the orchestrations. The first show was Thoroughly Modern Millie and it played to a sold-out house. Drunk Musicals was born.

Kaylee MacKnight

(co-creator/producer) is a New York City-based performer and producer. After obtaining a BA in Musical Theatre at The University of Alabama, she has worked professionally in the city for over seven years. When not producing or performing, she works in real estate at City Wide Apartments where she enjoys finding people their next dream apartment. Some of her favorite credits include Next to Normal, Merrily We Roll Along, Ex-Gay: The Musical, and Elphaba in the Drunk Musicals production of Wasted: The Story of Some Drunk Bitches from Oz.

Michael A. Ferrara

(co-creator/music director) is a versatile and eclectic musician, equally at home in such diverse roles as conducting symphonic repertoire and performing in musical theater and opera pit orchestras. Having studied trumpet performance at Interlochen Arts Academy, he went on to Otterbein University, where he served as the founder of the school's new music ensemble, Red Noise. He went on to complete a M.M. in Orchestral Conducting at Bard College-Conservatory of Music, where he studied with faculty such as Harold Farberman, Joan Tower, and Dawn Upshaw to name a few. Ferrara currently resides in New York City. His recent credits include: The Music Man (Broadway), Flying Over Sunset (Broadway), Wicked(Broadway), Rock of Ages (New World Stages), Music Director and Conductor: Bernstein's Peter Pan at Bard's Summerscape Festival, and Associate Music Director (Jersey Boys, Ogunquit Playhouse). Ferrara has been working with Philip Glass to present a new theatrical work internationally.

Drunk Musicals will be performed Monday at 8:30 PM and Saturday at 9:30 PM starting April 10 at Green Fig Piano Bar (570 Tenth Avenue at 42nd Street, on the 4th Floor of Yotel). Tickets are $60 for premium seating, $55 for regular seating, and $19-35 for bar seating. For tickets, please visit www.TheGreenRoom42.com.