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Paul Simon's Songs from the Capeman at the Brooklyn Academy of Music Next Week

09:57 H | Topics: Music - New York City - Theatre

Next week Paul Simon's Broadway musical, The Capeman, will get a chance to win audiences again, something it failed to do during it's first run nearly 10 years ago. Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is proud to produce Songs from The Capeman (April 1 through April 6, 2008), a special concert staging of Paul Simon's 1998 Broadway show, The Capeman. The show's lauded music, in performances at the BAM Harvey Theater (651 Fulton St), will feature Paul Simon, Oscar Hernández and the Spanish Harlem Orchestra, Claudette Sierra, Obie Bermudez, Ray De La Paz, Little Anthony and the Imperials and other guests.

Paul Simon's Capeman songs-featuring music by Paul Simon and lyrics by Paul Simon and Derek Walcott-tell the story of gang member Salvador Agron, convicted of killing two teenagers in the West Side Story-era of the 1950's.

The original show garnered controversy, not just for its production problems, but for its subject matter. Puerto Rican and Latino activists were concerned that the best Broadway representation of Latinos was of a murdering gang member, even if that role was played by then rising star Marc Anthony. Families of Agron's victims protested what they saw as a glorification of Agron's crimes.

The Capeman concerts are the first in the three-part series Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon, a month-long program. Songs from the Capeman will be followed by Under African Skies (April 9-13), which features Simon's South African-inspired music and American Tunes (April 23-27), which will include some of Simon's most beloved songs over the course of his extraordinary career, interpreted by several guest star appearances.
Paul Simon: Songs from The Capeman
Produced by BAM
Producer Chris Wangro
April 1 - 6, 2008 at 8pm
BAM Harvey Theater
651 Fulton St
Brooklyn, NY
Tickets: $30, 50, 65 (call BAM Ticket Services at 718 636 4100 or visit http://www.BAM.org)

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