Paul Shaffer, Maurice Hines, Justin Vivian Bond and Jim David Set as Presenters at the 32nd Annual Bistro Awards

March 2, 2017

Musician Paul Shaffer,  Performer Maurice Hines, Artist-Activist Justin Vivian Bond and Comic Jim David Set as Presenters at the 32nd Annual Bistro Awards

(New York City, March 2, 2017) — Veteran entertainer Maurice Hines, “trans-genre” artist Justin Vivian Bond, comedian Jim David, and musician Paul Shaffer have been set as presenters at the 32nd annual Bistro Awards on Monday, March 13 at 6:30pm at Gotham Comedy Club. Hines, Bond, and David are, themselves, previous Bistro Award honorees.

Maurice Hines’s career as actor, singer, dancer, and choreographer began at age five. He and his brother Gregory opened for such artists as Lionel Hampton and Gypsy Rose Lee. When their father then joined them, “Hines, Hines, & Dad” became an internationally successful act, Later he would find acclaim on Broadway, in film, and on television. He earned a Tony nomination for Uptown… It’s Hot! Currently he is touring the country with an autobiographical show, Tappin’ Thru Life.

Justin Vivian Bond is a taboo-busting artist and activist and the recipient of numerous accolades during a landmark career, including an Obie Award, a Bessie Award, and a Tony nomination. In addition to stage, film, and recording-studio credits, Mx Bond is the author of the Lambda Literary Award-winning memoir Tango: My Childhood, Backwards and in High Heels.

Montreal’s Le Devoir heralded comic Jim David for hurling words at audiences “with surgical skill and a killer’s power.” The self-described “comedian, actor, writer, DJ, and Professional Smart Ass” has four comedy recordings to his credit. He recently released his debut novel, You’ll Be Swell.

Paul Shaffer received an early-career boost thanks to composer Stephen Schwartz, who, after hearing him play, hired him on the spot as musical director for a Toronto production of Godspell (featuring Eugene Levy, Martin Short, Gilda Radner, Andrea Martin, and Victor Garber). Soon he moved on to Saturday Night Live, followed by thirty years as David Letterman’s music director and sidekick. He has written hit songs, and recorded with countless artists, from Diana Ross to Yoko Ono to Earl Scruggs.

Shaffer will present the Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award to rock & roll singer Darlene Love. The Bistro Awards Committee recently announced that ASCAP, the performing rights association and longtime Title Sponsor of the Bistro Awards, has chosen to lend its name to this special award. The Award will now read “ASCAP presents the Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award”. Harrington created the Bistro Award in 1985. It is the oldest award of its kind in the industry, recognizing outstanding achievement in the cabaret and club community.

The gala event will be held on Monday, March 13 at 6:30 pm at Gotham Comedy Club. 208 W. 23rd Street. Sherry Eaker, the former longtime Editor-in Chief of Back Stage and the producer of the event since its inception, heads up the Awards Committee that includes BistroAwards.com critics Gerry Geddes, Roy Sander, Robert Windeler, and Mark Dundas Wood. Sander is also the award show’s associate producer.

The awards presentation is sponsored, in part, by ASCAP, Tommy and Lisa D’Antonio, and Fr Jeffrey Hamblin. Premium Tickets are $125.00; General Admission tickets are $75.00. Ticket-buyers in both categories are invited to the “After-Bistros” party as guests of the Bistros. For details about the various ticket categories and prices, visit www.BistroAwards.com. For additional information, call 917-239-5467.

Click here for a complete list of the winners being recognized for their outstanding work.

 


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About the Author

Sherry Eaker has been the producer of the annual Bistro Awards since the awards’ inception in 1985. She is the former editor of "Back Stage" and, during her 30-year run, produced panel discussions and workshop events on an ongoing basis, including the programming for Back Stage’s annual Actorfest. She compiled and edited four editions of the "Back Stage Handbook for Performing Artists," and compiled and edited "The Cabaret Artists Handbook." She is a member of the National Theatre Conference and the American Theatre Critics Association (and produced eight of ATCA’s New York weekend conferences). She is an advisor to the boards of both the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition.