Pride Source, Michigan
Oct 26 2006
The wait is over: Naz Edwards to celebrate new CD at Kerrytown
Concert House
By Donald V. Calamia
Magical evening of cabaret theater planned for Oct. 27
ANN ARBOR – The long wait will finally be over for Ann Arbor resident
Naz Edwards when she takes the stage at the Kerrytown Concert House
Oct. 27 to celebrate the release of her first CD, "…..If The
Waiting Takes Years."
"All my life I’ve wanted to be a singer," the critically acclaimed
veteran of Broadway and regional musical theater recently told
Between The Lines. "But I was very intimidated by it. And then
musical theater came into my life. I was very shy; it was easier to
be an actor and be someone else than to be me. I’ve waited years to
do this, so if the waiting’s taken years, it’s worth it. Everything
I’ve done in my life has brought me to this place. I’m ready to do
this, because I’m fulfilling something that has been in my heart for
ever."
Edwards’ dream began as a seven-year-old Armenian girl singing opera
in Philadelphia. "The language would just pour out of me," Edwards
recalled. "But one day my teacher stood a full-length mirror in front
of me and said, ‘I want you to entertain yourself. This is called
musical theater.’ And I never went back to opera after that."
Instead, Edwards boarded an Amtrak train not long after high school
and headed for New York. "I went to college in New York – the
‘College of New York City.’ Back then you just kept auditioning and
auditioning. It was very different than it is now. The odds of
getting a job in an open call today is very slim, but back then, in
the 70s, you’d get lead parts. It was great."
Her first major role was at the famed Cincinnati Playhouse in the
Park where she appeared in "The Baker’s Wife" with Scott Bakula.
"From then on, I did a lot of regional theater and off-Broadway. I
also toured a lot, and then I got my first Broadway show."
Edwards’ debut on the Great White Way found her starring opposite
Anthony Quinn in "Zorba," a show that eventually toured the country
for a year. She later originated roles in Ken Hall’s "Phantom of the
Opera," Broadway’s "Anna Karenina" and the first full production of
Dennis DeYoung’s "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" in Nashville.
TV and movie roles followed, and fans of the English language version
of the Japanese Anime series "Sailor Moon" might recognize her as the
voice of Wicked Queen Beryl.
Edwards’ life journey took an unexpected turn, however, while on a
job in New York with a young actress who studied theater at the
University of Michigan. "You have to meet my best friend," the
actress told Edwards. "Her father would be really great for you."
"Yeah, yeah, right, right," Edwards thought. But he was, so eight
years ago Edwards married attorney Jim Adams. At first she stayed in
New York and he returned to Michigan, but eventually Edwards tired of
the Big Apple. "I needed to move on."
Which meant joining her husband in Ann Arbor – and receiving critical
praise for roles in Performance Network’s "Man of La Mancha" and "She
Loves Me." With the Jewish Ensemble Theatre Company she earned
accolades for "Side by Side by Sondheim" and "Coming of Age" – for
which she recently won a 2006 Wilde Award.
With little work lined up for the current season, Edwards decided it
was finally time to pursue her lifelong dream. "So I finished my CD,
and it’s time to do my concert."
Both her CD and her cabaret-style concert feature songs that have
touched the artist deeply at various times throughout her life
journey. "Some of the songs – ‘I’m the Girl,’ especially – have been
with me since the 70s when I met Roberta Flack. After performances we
used to go to this piano bar and sing our hearts out. Her musical
director was there and I asked him if I could get a copy of ‘I’m the
Girl,’ and two weeks later I had it in the mail. I’ve never sung it –
ever. Most of these songs I’ve never sung in front of an audience, so
it’s going to be fun to do it for the first time."
The CD Release Concert will feature Edwards and pianist/arranger
Jerry Depuit performing a variety of tunes, from Broadway favorites
to contemporary songs. "It’s very magical. The music will take
everyone on a wonderful journey," she said.
It will also provide the audience an opportunity to get to know the
popular actress. "I’ve got some great theater stories, and what’s
great is whatever happens, happens. [In a cabaret show], you can stop
and talk to an audience member, or go kiss somebody in the audience
you haven’t seen in a while. That’s what I love about it – you break
that fourth wall. It’ll be so much fun!"
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
