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Photo Coverage: 'SPRING AWAKENING LOVES the 90's' Benefit at Upright Cabaret

The touring cast of the 8 Tony Award winning Broadway smash Spring Awakening (currently performing at the Ahmanson Theater in Los Angeles) dropped into the Upright Cabaret at Mark's Restaurant on Sunday, November 23rd for a special night of music, nostalgia, and charity to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

The beyond capacity crowd were treated to a song sampling of Broadway, Pop and Rap songs from the Nineties in this special show entitled Spring Awakening Loves the 90's. Expertly music directed by Spring Awakening Music Director Jared Stein and hosted by Spring Awakening leading man Kyle Riabko, this performance was a unique and rare evening with some of the finest young talent performing in Los Angeles.

Highlights from the performance include Christy Altomare's cover of the Jewel classic "I Was Meant For You", Gabby Garza's "I'll Stand By You", Kyle Riabko and Steffi D's "90's Medley" which included the audience favorite Sir Mix Alot's "Baby Got Back", Julie Danielson with her Upright Bass and the encore performance of "The Bitch of Living" lead by the very engaging Blake Bashoff.

Spring Awakening, based on the 1891 play by Frank Wedekind, won eight 2007 Tony Awards including Best Musical. Now, the First National Touring Company delivers "a roundhouse emotional punch" (Bob Verini, Variety) nightly at the Ahmanson Theater, their Los Angeles stop on its cross country tour. A fusion of 19th century morality and 21st century rock firepower, Spring Awakening takes a story of pre-World War I German teenagers finding their way through adolescence and thrusts it into the here and now with a contemporary rock score by Grammy winners Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater. Directed by Michael Mayer with choreography by Bill T. Jones, Spring Awakening is also poised to play internationally in London, Toronto, Vienna, Helinski, and Seoul.

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS provides support to six programs at The Actors' Fund - including The AIDS initiative, The Phyllis Newman Women's Health Initiative, The Hirschfeld Free Health Clinic and more, all of which provide essential social services to everyone in the entertainment industry.

Broadway Cares also makes grants to over 400 AIDS and family service organizations across the country, supporting hundreds of food banks, health clinics and housing programs nationwide. Locally, BCEFA supports the Bickerstaff Pediatric and Family HIV Center, AIDS Project Los Angeles, Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team, BIENSTAR Human Services, HIV & AIDS Legal Services Alliance Inc., Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Services Center, PATH (People Assisting the Homeless), Project Angel Food, AIDS/HIV Health Alternatives, Friends Research/Safe House, Valley Community Clinic, Aid for AIDS, Being Alive: People with AIDS Action Coalition, Center for Health Justice, and Pets are Wonderful Support (PAWS/LA).

Created by producing partners Chris Isaacson and Shane Scheel, UPRIGHT CABARET, L.A.'s famed "new generation cabaret" has quickly become the place for cabaret and live performance in Los Angeles. After only three years, the Upright stages in West Hollywood, Palm Springs, Catalina Island and Santa Barbara have been home to performers from over 75 Broadway shows as well as stars from Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, Cold Case, How I Met Your Mother, Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, House, Nip/Tuck and countless other film and television productions. At Mark's Restaurant in West Hollywood, Upright is more than an inventive cabaret, Proprietors Chris Diamond and Chef Wayne Elias along with a welcoming staff dish out charm, class and California cuisine at its finest.

Upright Cabaret at Mark's Restaurant - 861 N. La Cienega Blvd. - West Hollywood, CA 90069 - (310) 652-5252

For more information about Upright Cabaret, please visit: www.uprightcabaret.com, and to see some of the performances from this night visit: www.youtube.com/uprightcabaret

Spring Awakening is currently performing at the Ahmanson Theater in Los Angeles until Dec 7th, 2008. For tickets, please visit: www.ahmanson-theater.com

Photos by Tony DiMaio at www.ipartypix.com

Kyle Riabko