In addition to his songwriting and busy performance schedule, Ron made a number of special appearances in 1999. He gave his time and talent to a variety of charities and special events both in New York City and in his home town of Cincinnati. For more information and photos, click on the program for that event. |
* ~ December 1999 ~ *
| Ron and Sandra Joseph had the chance of a lifetime
(or at least the chance of a millennium) when they were chosen to perform as part
New York City's millennium celebration. So if you wondered
how they spent their New Year's Eve, here is the scoop.
Ron and Sandra entertained at the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center. Accompanied by Wendy Bobbit, they sang two sets during the evening's activities. Then, just before midnight, they moved outside to the promenade for the count down to the new millennium and the traditional "Auld Lang Syne".
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 First Night New York City 2000 |
Both Ron and Sandra wowed the audience with solo numbers. Ron pleased the SP fans, who were present, by performing "Into the Fire" and "She Was There" from The Scarlet Pimpernel. Even though "Into the Fire" is an ensemble number in the show, it makes a GREAT solo! Of course one of the favorites of the evening was Ron's rendition of "Music of the Night" from The Phantom of the Opera. You haven't lived until you have heard him do this live. Sandra showed off her magnificent voice with "Think of Me" from The Phantom of the Opera. |
 Ron sings "Music of the Night" |
 Ron and Sandra perform "All I Ask of You" |
Each set contained a variety of music including numbers from The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Phantom of the Opera. It was a beautiful mix of music with both solos and duets. In addition to "Point of No Return", Ron and Sandra took the opportunity to sing "All I Ask of You", one song that they never performed together during the production of The Phantom of the Opera. |
In addition to the musical theatre numbers, Ron also performed "When the Lights Go Out" from his first CD, everyman. He told the crowd that he hoped that it would not be a prediction for Con Ed. A highlight of the evening, for Ron as well as the audience, was the debut performance of "I Was Born to Fly", a song written for his new CD, another life. It was obvious that Ron was thrilled to finally be able to perform his new music. Thanks to Ron and Sandra, the last New Year's Eve of the millennium was a very special one for New Yorkers and out-of-towners alike. What a great way to close 1999! |
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* ~ September 1999 ~ *
Broadway Flea Market and Grand Auction
 BC/EFA 13th Annual Flea Market and Grand Auction |
On September 26, 1999, BC/EFA (Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids) held the 13th Annual Flea Market and Grand Auction in Shubert Alley. This is just one of the events held throughout the year to raise funds for BC/EFA. Many of the shows on Broadway had tables where interested patrons could purchase souvenirs and other items from the shows. The grand auction was held later in the day and numerous big ticket items were auctioned off. This year a number of shows had special packages that included walk on roles during an actual performance. With support from the theatre community and other members of Equity from television and films, this year's event raised over $551,000 for the cause, the largest total ever! |
The Scarlet Pimpernel was represented by Ron, Marc Kudisch, Harvey Evans and Russell Garrett to name a few. Ron spent the time signing autographs and posing for pictures. Others manned the Scarlet Pimpernel table, selling a variety of souvenirs from the show, such as note cubes, buttons, hats and backpacks, along with scrumptious baked goods. At one point Harvey and Russell got a little carried away and offered to sell brownies that were partially eaten by the Pimpernel!!!! Anything for charity. Hey what ever happened to the good old fashioned kissing booth? |
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 Ron autographing BC/EFA Flea Market posters (A special thanks to Catherine for the photos) |
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Broadway on Broadway
| On September 12, 1999,
streets in the Times Square area were blocked for a huge demonstration.
Was it a protest you may be wondering? No, it was a demonstration by the
Broadway theatre community showing the wonderful productions it had to offer.
There was a counter-demonstration by 50,000 to 100,000 theatre lovers showing that
interest in the Great White Way is alive and well! Each came not only to
sample the treats in store on Broadway for the Fall of 1999, but also to show
support for their favorite Broadway show. There was a performance from
each show currently running on Broadway and a few that were due to open in the
Fall. Though the performers were not in costume, most of them had
donned the "official" t-shirt from their shows.
This event is held about the same time every year and the timing of the event couldn't have been better with The Scarlet Pimpernel reopening on September 10th. Broadway on Broadway gave everyone a chance to see that version 3.0 was in VERY capable hands!! The festivities started around noon. Ron, Carolee and Marc did not come on until the last half hour or so, but it was certainly worth the wait. They performed a medley of "Storybook" and "The Riddle". This was a great choice of music! It showcased the powerful voices of the individuals as well as the wonderful harmony of the trio. |
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 Ron and Carolee Carmello |
 Ron and Marc Kudisch
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| Carolee began alone on stage singing
"Storybook". The music switched to
"The Riddle" and Marc suddenly appeared with her. It was quite strange seeing
"Storybook" performed by Carolee without
that great pink wig and Marc certainly looked less ominous in his SP 3.0 cap
(guess he took Ron's suggestion that "he too pick up a new hat").
Then, as is done in the actual staging of "The
Riddle", Ron entered last and strode up between them with the same
magnificent swagger he exhibits each night in the show. The huge crowd
showed their appreciation by waving the promotional bandanas that were handed
out prior to the show.
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* ~ July 1999 ~*
Broadway Barks
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July 24, 1999, the day before they took off for Dallas and The
Scarlet Pimpernel "mini tour", Ron, Sandra, and Griffin
could be found in Shubert Alley along with many other stars from
the Broadway community. The reason you ask? Why Broadway Barks of
course! This
event, sponsored by FIDO/NYC and hosted by
Bernadette Peters, was held "to introduce the public to their
local animal shelters and unite adoptable dogs and cats with
their potential new owners".
All three of them were quite happy to lend his time to this worthy cause. It just so happens that Griffin adopted Ron and Sandra last year when he came to the Center for Animal Care and Control. CACC is a charitable organization that manages the New York City animal shelter system, including the Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten Island shelters. Anyone who has seen Ron and Griffin together at the Neil Simon theatre or on tour can see that it was a perfect match!!! |
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Other organizations participating in Broadway Barks were the ASPCA, Bide-A-Wee, The Humane Society of New York and the North Shore Animal League. And for the first time, BC/EFA, helped provide funding for the event in a show of appreciation to the theatre community.
Event photos courtesy of Shari |
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* ~ June 1999 ~ *
The Angels of Music II
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Fortunately, Ron was able to arrange his Pimpernel rehearsal schedule so that he could return to Cincinnati, his home town, to participate in the Angels of Music II. On June 14, 1999, Ron joined Brad Little (the current Phantom in the 3rd National tour) and his wife, Barbara McCulloh (currently Mrs. Darling in Peter Pan), and host, Eric Kunzel (conductor of the Cincinnati Pops) and special guest, Sandra Joseph (most recently, Christine Daae in the Broadway company of The Phantom of the Opera). The program was to benefit the Angel Fund, established in the memory of Angel, one of the cheetahs at the Cincinnati Zoo and is used to support the zoo's captive breeding program as well as the Cheetah Conservation Fund. The benefit was quite a success, raising $44,000 for the Angel Fund! Brad has been championing this cause since he met Maya at the Cincinnati Zoo while on tour with Phantom of the Opera. You can read more about the Angel Fund and the story of Brad's initial encounter on his website at www.bradlittle.com/charities.htm. This is not the first time that Ron and Brad
have performed together. They were both in Fiddler on the
Roof on Broadway in 1990 and have been friends for a quite a
while. As a matter of fact, Brad suggested to Ron that he
play the Phantom, and the rest is history (thanks Brad :-). |
After a wonderful dinner, these "Angels of Music" presented close to two magical hours of entertainment including a demonstration from Cathryn Hilker and her cat ambassadors! The show opened with Ron, Brad and Barbara performing the "Circle of Life" from The Lion King. This provided a striking image with the "safari theme" and two cheetahs posed regally at the far end of the hall. It was a poignant opening to a spectacular show that proved to be thoroughly entertaining and a masterful blend of solos, duets and trios from a wide variety of Broadway shows. |
 Ron, Barbara McCulloh and Brad Little |
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During the second half of the show, the audience got to see another side of Ron (songwriter) when he performed an up-tempo rendition of "For Every Man", the title track from his everyman CD. It was obvious that Ron really enjoyed performing his music for this hometown crowd! One of the highlights of the evening, was when Ron brought out his love, Sandra Joseph to join him in song. They performed "Point of No Return" from The Phantom of the Opera, recreating the magic of those poignant moments that they had on stage during the POTO national tour. It seems as if the Phantom won Christine's heart after all! Ron remarked that he and Brad did every existing male duet known in the world of musical theatre. Well to the delight of the audience, they conceived one of their own. Those who knew that both Ron and Brad had played the Phantom were wondering which one would get the "honor" of performing "the song". It seemed likely that Brad would be the one since he was the sponsor of the event and was also the current Phantom on tour. However, Brad and Ron played the whole thing for great comedic effect by competing for the solo throughout the evening . After intermission, they "made up" and thrilled the audience with a magnificent duet of "Music of the Night" which proved to be a perfect blend of their unique voices. |
 Brad Little, Barbara McCulloh, Ron Bohmer with the children's choir from Our Lady of Victory |
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Circle of Life (The Lion King) -
Barbara, Brad and Ron |
* ~ January 1999 ~ *
Back to Broadway
| Fresh from his successful run in Bed and
Sofa and in the middle of auditions for The Scarlet Pimpernel, Ron
found the time to thrill audiences at three separate benefit
performances of Back to Broadway. Ron appeared at the
invitation of Mary Jo Katona, the director and co-producer, with Joe
Rigotti, of this year's
show. A former night club singer, she has been active in
Cincinnati theater for many years. She also happens to be Ron's
cousin. So it was a special treat for all concerned. Back to Broadway and it's predecessor, Broadway Bouquets established a 20 year tradition of producing shows for the benefit of charities in the Cincinnati area. Originally created by Mary Jo and Al Katona, the shows make use of amateur performers from all over the Cincinnati area. Yet when you see the production, amateurish is certainly not an adjective that comes to mind. From the sets and costumes to the staging and the performances, Back to Broadway is a well conceived and thoroughly enjoyable revue of the some of best music that Broadway has had to offer over the years. |
 Back to Broadway |
 The Back to Broadway cast performs a song from the Broadway musical, Titanic |
This year's production boasted musical numbers from Mack and
Mabel, Sunset Boulevard, Little Shop of Horrors, Aspects of
Love, Cabaret, Chicago, Man of La Mancha, 42nd
Street, The Life, The Phantom of the Opera, Tommy,
Jekyll and Hyde, Side Show, The Lion King and
Titanic along
with a few numbers highlighting music from the thirties.
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Ron was the featured performer at three of the shows, January 16th, 17th and again on January 30th, 1999. These specific shows were given to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, St. Xavier's High School and finally Caracole, an organization in Cincinnati which provides housing and support for individuals and families living with HIV or AIDS. One unexpected bonus was getting to hear stories about Ron's childhood from Mary Jo and from Ron himself. As part of her introduction, Mary Jo spent a little time telling the audience about Ron, who at the tender age of about 6, proclaimed to her that he was going to be a Broadway star as he took center stage (which happened to be a hearth) to perform for her during a family reunion. She also told of how she had to "direct" an 11 year old Ron, when he was reluctant to wear the required makeup for The Roar of the Grease Paint, The Smell of the Crowd. Then in a touching tribute to his mom, Ron explained how she suggested to him that he might pursue the lead in a production of Rumplestilskin even though he was much more interested in the guy who was selling balloons. Ron performed a varied and well chosen set of music for each of the shows. He lead off with "When the Lights Go Out", from his everyman CD. It was very interesting and very effective to hear this song with just a piano to accompany him. Then he brought out his long time friend, Scott Moening, to perform with him. He and Scott were childhood buddies and also attended the School for Creative and Performing Arts together. After an entertaining bit to set up the song, they performed lively duet of "Sadder But Wiser Girl", from The Music Man. The tempo slowed and Ron followed with three heart-wrenching ballads. First was "How Glory Goes", the incredibly moving final number from Floyd Collins, a performance that caused a number of us to follow Ron's recommendation to see that show! Next was the crowd-pleaser "Music of the Night" from The Phantom of the Opera. Ron finished his performance with the very passionate song, "She Was There", from The Scarlet Pimpernel. The performance of this song was very special for Ron and for the crowd, for it was here that he announced he was auditioning for the part of Sir Percival Blakeney, The Scarlet Pimpernel (and we all know how that turned out!) A number of us felt he was a shoe-in for the part after hearing him perform this song!
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| Ron, Mary Jo Katona, Scott Moening and the rest of the
Back to Broadway cast take a well-deserved bow after presenting an
incredible night full of music and dancing from many Broadway shows.
The people of Cincinnati are very fortunate to have this first rate group available to perform for charitable organizations in their city. |
 Ron with Mary Jo Katona and Scott Moening |
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