"54 Below is grateful to have an outlet where we can participate in celebrating the life of Kyle Jean-Baptiste," Jennifer Ashley Tepper, director of 54 Below, told Playbill.com.
The concert will feature numerous former Baldwin University students and cast members from Les Miz. The line-up includes Steel Burkhardt (Aladdin), Phil Carroll, Mach (Hands on a Hardbody), Chris McCarrell (Les Miserables), Timothy Mussard, Shannon O’Boyle (Once), Jillian Kates (Wicked), Andrew Kober (Les Miserables), Rod Lawrence (The Lion King), Libby Servais (Lysistrata Jones) and Wallace Smith (Godspell).
Performers will sing songs from Jean-Baptiste's audition book from college as well as songs he loved to sing.
Tickets to the concert start at $50 and premium seats are $80. There is a 2 drink or $20 food and beverage minimum. To purchase tickets and for more information, click here.
"Corey Mach, a Broadway actor and frequent producer at the venue, will be putting together a concert in Kyle's honor to help raise money for funeral costs and for his family. Both the Baldwin Wallace community and Les Miserables family will be coming together, along with others, to sing and celebrate and grieve, this October. Kyle not only performed at 54 Below, he was also a passionate audience member, cheering on his friends' performances while enjoying the bacon mac & cheese."
"We feel deeply sad about the major loss of this very special young man and member of our community," Tepper continued. "We look forward to having an evening here at 54 Below in honor of him."
The news of the concert was first announced by Hamilton's Lin-Manuel Miranda via Twitter Sept. 2, with Tepper confirming details Sept. 3.
This is coming soon. We will be celebrating the life of Kyle Jean-Baptiste at 54 and raising $ for funeral costs ❤️
https://t.co/kM2HcCVlhO
— Jennifer Tepper (@jenashtep)
September 3, 2015
Jean-Baptiste, the young actor who made history July 23 when he went on as Jean Valjean in the Broadway revival of Les Misérables at just 21 years old, died Aug. 29 when he fell from a fire escape following the evening performance of the show. The production marked his Broadway debut.
In the days since his death, members of the community have shown their support by dimming lights in various theatres and with an outpouring of love via social media. Read more here.
