AMATEUR NIGHT - SHOWOFF
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
This week's SHOW OFF was loaded with hungry talent who had their eyes set on winning one of the biggest competitions of the year - the October 27th finale Super Top Dog. 2010 has brought out some of the most captivating artists the Apollo has seen in years. Who will ultimately win the big $10,000 prize?
Show-Off winner Nathan Foley, 16 year-old guitar instrumentalist from Maryland, blew away the audience with his electric performance of "Maggot Brain."
Jersey native Suyat's own rendition of "Just My Imagination" composed of reggae, R&B, soul and his ukulele, earned him 2nd place.
Darryl Jordan, had the audience singing along with him as he came in 3rd place with "Ordinary People."
As Amateur Night at the Apollo gets closer to the big finale on October 27th, the contestants get better and the audiences get louder. At this week’s SHOW OFF quarter-final we had to add a 4th place category because the audience cheered the last contestant so loudly, it was impossible to leave them empty handed.
Show-Off winner Lynn Loosier brought the audience to its feet with “I Am Changing.” Loosier is back in the running after making it to last year’s Super Top Dog competition.
Suyat and his ukulele came in 2nd place with “Just My Imagination.”
Harlem native Kyle Rifkin grabbed 3rd place with “A Change Gonna Come.”
The audience couldn’t stand to let David Tauler and his “Mr. Magic” saxophone go. They kept cheering and clapping until he was awarded 4th place.
Once again, Jazmine Dantzker won 1st place for the “Stars of Tomorrow” title.
Amateur Night at the Apollo sells out week after week so get your tickets in advance by clicking here. Anything can happen at the Apollo! The “Super Top Dog” Finale is just around the corner.
This week’s line-up of entertainment was packed with a few hits and misses. The audience was all fired up and chose the following contestants as the winners:
Teresa Hui and her tiny ukulele came in third place. She sang the pop song “Dream A Little Dream of Me”.
The trio known as Main Girls took second place with their original song, “Us Against the World”.
The first place winner in the adult division was Morgan Karr who did a rousing rendition of Stevie Wonder’s classic hit “Signed, Sealed, Delivered”.
In the children’s segment, D’Andre Lee won first place by singing and dancing to a Michael Jackson medley.
AMATEUR NIGHT - HARLEM WEEK
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
This Apollo Theater dedicated this special night to the 36th Anniversary of Harlem Week. The contestants for the evening battled it out for the top spot at Amateur Night. Here’s a quick recap:
The third place winner was Lakeya who sang Roberta Flack’s classic smash hit “Killing Me Softly”.
Raleigh Barner won second place by belting out the tune “Dance With My Father” a song made famous by Apollo legend, Luther Vandross.
The first place winner of Amateur Night was J. Rowe who dazzled the audience with Bobby Womack’s soulful hit “A Woman’s Gotta Have It”.
In the children’s segment of Amateur Night, Michael Woodward came in first place by singing Fantasia’s inspirational hit “I Believe”.
Amateur Night is filled with cheers, jeers, boos and hisses --- and not necessarily in that order. Last night, we had a really unique act on the stage. To see if the audiences' reaction was justifiable, watch below.
Here’s how the rest of the evening went down: The third place winner was Clevetta Anthony who sang “I Love You, I Do” from the musical DREAMGIRLS.
Hawaiian native Suyat came in second place with an original song that he played on his ukulele.
Kyle Rifkin brought the house down with his soulful rendition of Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come.” To see Kyle’s take home first place, watch below.
The first place winner of the children’s segment “Stars of Tomorrow” was the group Tanima Dancers.
At last night’s SOLD OUT show, R&B recording artist Lenny Williams turned it out! Women were swooning in their seats as he sang the classic love ballad “Cause I Love You”. He also sang a new tune called “Sorry, I Didn’t Know It Was Yo’ Mama!"
It was a SHOW OFF night where the best contestants of the past few months battle it out for first place and the chance to win $10,000 in cash. When the dust settled, only five people were left standing. They are as follows: Unknown DayNasty and Darryl Jordan both tied for third place. Dyshon Warren came in second place with Donny Hathaway’s “A Song for You.”
The first place winner in the adult division of AMATEUR NIGHT AT THE APOLLO was guitarist Nathan Foley.
The winner of the children’s segment, “Stars of Tomorrow” was 14 year old Tamara Gordon who dazzled the audience with “I’m Changing” from the musical DREAMGIRLS.
Each of these contestants will now advance to the TOP DOG show on September 1.
At this week’s AMATEUR NIGHT AT THE APOLLO contestants from all over the world appeared on stage to compete for the winning title. Here’s a quick recap:
Third place went to Cat Stratakis who sang “At Last”, the signature song by Apollo legend Etta James.
Jocelyn Jenkins came in second place with Whitney Houston’s debut smash hit “Saving All My Love.”
Dance Dimensions whipped up a fusion of hip-hop and ballet that landed them in the first place spot at Amateur Night.
In the children’s segment, “Stars of Tomorrow”, singer Veronica Oreliana won first place with the modern-day classic “No One” by Alicia Keys.
Yesterday evening, AMATEUR NIGHT AT THE APOLLO was red, hot and smoking with talent. Joe Gray, the "Set It Off Man" randomly picked members of the audience to participate in the "Soul Train Dance Line!" The first place winner of the dance competition received two tickets to the live Broadway show MEMPHIS -- this year's Tony Award-winner for Best Musical.
Last night's contestants brought a bit of razzle-dazzle to the Apollo stage. Here's a quick recap of how it all went down: For the first time this year, we had a tie in the adult division of AMATEUR NIGHT. Cavelle Nell Romeo and Lauren Khoury both shared third place. Vo Cal came in second place with a song entitled "Heaven".
The first place winner of the evening was saxophonist David Tauler who mesmerized the audience with a tune called "Mr. Magic". To see David speak about his Apollo experience, watch below.
In the "Stars of Tomorrow" segment, Jasmine Dantzler came in first place at Amateur Night.
AMATEUR NIGHT AUDITIONS Sponsored by Coca-Cola
Sunday, October 3, 2010 – 10AM
The world famous Apollo Theater will hold open auditions on Sunday, October 3 at 10AM. The audition is open to singers, dancers, comedians, spoken word artists and musicians of all ages, styles and professional levels.
At the end of the season, the first place winner in the adult division gets $10,000 in cash. In the “Child Star of Tomorrow” segment, the season’s first place winner will receive a cash prize of $2,000.
Please Note:
Only the first 300 acts will be seen.
Each contestant will have up to 90 seconds to audition.
Singers may bring a track or sing a cappella.
There will NOT be a band in house.
Musicians should bring their own instruments.
Dancers should bring a cassette or CD for their performance.
All auditions should be in good taste and with no profanity (including the “N” word).
Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Only children ages 5 to 15 will be considered for the “Child Star of Tomorrow” segment.
AMATEUR NIGHT, the world’s most original and enduring amateur talent
competition, continues in its 75th year every Wednesday night at 7:30 PM. Apollo Wednesday night alumni are an impressive, ever-expanding
roster of world class talent including such legends as such as Ella Fitzgerald, James Brown, the Isley Brothers, Michael Jackson, Fat Joe, Lauryn Hill, and many others discovered on our stage! As always, AMATEUR NIGHT spurs performers to please the audiences that
can make them an Apollo legend. Now for 2010, audiences can also enjoy
a pre-show jam fest by New York’s hottest DJ’s, hear a new AMATEUR
NIGHT theme song and even join the competition!
Tickets: $17, $22, $27
In person at the Apollo Theater Box Office
By phone call Ticketmaster 1-800-745-3000
Online Ticketmaster.com click here:
Student/Senior discount with ID: $10
Available day-of-performance from 10AM at the Box Office
Groups of 10 or more: $17, $19, $22
Call (212) 531-5355
The story begins in 1914 when a theater was constructed on 125th Street in the heart of Harlem. Originally named Hurtig and
Seamon’s New Burlesque Theatre, the venue did not allow
African-Americans audiences. When the Theater was sold to new
owners Leo Brecher and Frank Schiffman in 1934, the format of
shows changed from burlesque to variety reviews and the Theater
was renamed the 125th Street Apollo Theater. On January 26, 1934
the Apollo welcomed African-American patrons for the first time
with the opening of Jazz à la Carte featuring Ralph Cooper Sr.,
Benny Carter and his orchestra, and “16 Gorgeous Hot Steppers.”
That same year, Ralph Cooper introduced his popular Amateur Hour
radio program live on the Apollo stage. Amateur Night at the
Apollo showcased many young, talented new performers such as a
15-year-old Ella Fitzgerald, who went on to become one of the
first Amateur Night winners.
Soon thereafter, the Apollo Theater quickly became known the
place “Where Stars are Born and Legends are Made™” and “home” to
thousands of major performance artists, fans, and patrons of the
arts from around the world. The legendary venue has launched the
careers of icons such as Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Stevie
Wonder, James Brown and Lauryn Hill and continues to maintain
its position as the nation's most popular arena for emerging and
established African-American and Latino performers.
The ultimate goal is to create a
cadre of talented, well-trained and well-groomed performance
professionals with an effective understanding of the
entertainment industry. The showcase works to nurture aspiring
performers in their artistic evolution as entertainers while
creating access to professional performance and recording
opportunities. Many Amateur Night performers have gone on to
perform live opening acts at music concerts for professional
artists like Nancy Wilson, George Clinton, Cameo.
Others have performed on the Rosie O'Donnell Show, Good Day
New York and other local and network television shows.
Click here to see a list of past Apollo performers and Amateur Night winners.
The legend
and tradition of The Tree of Hope began outside
the famous Harlem Lafayette Theatre once located between 131st
and 132nd Streets on Seventh Avenue, known as the Boulevard
of Dreams.
The
Lafayette was then Harlem's top show biz venue featuring
African-American talent. The Lafayette soon became the scene for
aspiring actors, dancers and performers to mix, gather and
exchange information and gossip. The Tree of Hope stood between the Lafayette Theatre and Connie's Inn and black
performers believed the tree to be the purveyor of good luck to
those who stood beneath its branches. The tree came to symbolize
the promise that Harlem held for millions of aspiring
African-Americans.
Around the time that the Apollo Theater first
opened in 1934, the City of New York widened Seventh Avenue and
the trees that had once lined the Boulevard of Dreams had to be removed. One of the trees doomed to this fate was the
famous Harlem landmark, The Tree of Hope. To
this day, a large section of the trunk of this very tree stands
on the Apollo stage and every Wednesday night, hopeful
performers touch the tree in the hope they can share in the good
fortune of so many performers in the past.
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