Audra McDonald of “Private Practice” & Broadway to Headline Benefit Concert

We know many of you were looking forward to Bernadette Peters’ concert at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts this December, however Ms. Peters had to cancel her performance due to the extended run of her Broadway show “A Little Night Music.” Enter Audra McDonald, a Tony and Grammy Award-winning singer and actress to fill the void. McDonald will be giving a special performance at the ARTrageous benefit concert Dec. 4.

Audra McDonald is a classically trained soprano, famous for her theatrical work, concerts and recordings. She has been awarded four Tony Awards (three before the age of 30) for “Carousel,” “Master Class,” “Ragtime” and “A Raisin in the Sun,” and in 2009, she won two Grammys for her recording of Kurt Weill’s opera “The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny.”

But if you don’t recognize her voice, you may recognize her face: She earned an Emmy nomination for her acting in ABC’s TV-movie installment of “A Raisin in the Sun” alongside her record producer/performer co-star from the Broadway version, Sean “Diddy” Combs.

And surely you’ve seen her as Dr. Naomi Bennett in ABC’s fourth season of the hospital drama “Private Practice” alongside such well-knowns as Kate Walsh and Taye Diggs. For her role as Dr. Bennett, McDonald has been nominated three years in a row for a NAACP Image Award for “Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.”

On Dec. 4, at the SCPA, McDonald will perform an evening show of favorite Broadway tunes, Hollywood classics and original songs written exclusively for her to the accompaniment of a live jazz trio.

Tickets to the concert are $95 and available for purchase through SCPA Patron Services Box Office at (480) 994-ARTS (2787), ext. 2. A limited number of premium tickets to the dinner, concert and reception also are available for $325 and $500. For more information, visit the SCPA site online. Proceeds from the ARTrageous event benefit the SCPA and the Scottsdale Museum for Contemporary Art.

SCPA is located at 7380 E. Second Street in Old Town Scottsdale

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