Blake Allen (born 1988) is an American
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
and
viola
The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...
player who is most known for writing
the shards of an honor code junkie,
music directing the 2019 revival of
Over Here!
''Over Here!'' is a musical with a score by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman and book by Will Holt. The original Broadway production was directed by Tom Moore and choreographed by Patricia Birch, with scenic design by Douglas W. Schmidt a ...
, a frequent collaborator with
Tina Burner
Kristian Seeber (born November 10, 1980), known professionally as Tina Burner, is an American drag performer most known for appearing in '' Shade: Queens of NYC'' and on the thirteenth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race''. She was a part of a boy ba ...
, Insomnia at
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...
, writing the theme song for the talk show
Doris Dear
Doris Dear is a fictional female actor, cabaret singer and comedian created and played by Ray DeForest.
Overview
Doris Dear, also known as “Perfect American Housewife”, is based on DeForest's mother, Taffy. The stories are based on the li ...
's ''Gurl Talk'', and appearing on ''
Shade: Queens of NYC''.
Early life and education
Allen was born Blake Liahona Allen in
Tucson, Arizona
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
on July 21, 1988, the fourth of the four children of Marsha Allen (née Wilcox), a piano pedagogue, and San Allen, an engineer and
Chief operating officer
A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the "C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...
for Winchester Electronics. Shortly after Allen's birth, his family moved to
St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...
. Allen was born with
spherocytosis
Spherocytosis is the presence of spherocytes in the blood, i.e. erythrocytes (red blood cells) that are sphere-shaped rather than bi-concave disk shaped as normal. Spherocytes are found in all hemolytic anemias to some degree. Hereditary spherocy ...
and had his spleen removed when he was four at St. Petersburg General Hospital. Allen's family then moved to
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gaine ...
and ultimately
El Paso, Texas
El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...
, where Allen spent most of his formative years. Allen grew up a member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
and was in the viola sections of both the
El Paso
El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...
Symphony Orchestra and
Las Cruces Symphony while attending
Franklin High School.
Allen attended
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...
where his friend Alan Taylor committed suicide, which led to the creation of his musical
the shards of an honor code junkie, starring
Tony Awards
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...
nominated actress
Alison Fraser
Alison Fraser (born in Natick, Massachusetts) is an American actress, voice actress and singer who has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in television and film. In concert, she has performed at such venues as Carnegie Hall, The White Hou ...
,
Teal Wicks
Teal Wicks (born September 8, 1982 in Sacramento, California) is an American singer and stage actress, who is best known for her performances as Elphaba in the Broadway, San Francisco, and Los Angeles productions of the musical ''Wicked'' and as M ...
,
Kristy Cates
Kristen "Kristy" Cates (born March 14, 1977 in California) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Elphaba in the Chicago production of ''Wicked'' and as the original understudy in the 2003 Broadway production. She ...
, Hannah Cruz, and Michael Lowney.
BYU is where Allen also met lifelong friend, and frequent collaborator, Christopher Koelzer (pianist), who has premiered several of Allen's works as well as being featured on ''Sonatas'' and ''the shards of an honor code junkie'', of which Koelzer is also a character.
Allen also attended
CCM in 2010–2011 and graduated with his Masters in Music from
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
where he studied viola with Stephanie Baer, composition with Joseph Church, and songwriting with Billy Seidman and Alex Forbes. Allen is currently a PhD Candidate researching
fractal geometry
In mathematics, a fractal is a geometric shape containing detailed structure at arbitrarily small scales, usually having a fractal dimension strictly exceeding the topological dimension. Many fractals appear similar at various scales, as illus ...
in the music of
Ligeti. Allen has been Adjunct Faculty of Violin & Viola at
NYU Steinhardt
The New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development (commonly referred to as Steinhardt) is the secondary liberal arts and education school of New York University. It is one of the only schools in the world of i ...
since 2012.
Career
As a performer, Allen has performed with the
New York Pops
The New York Pops is the largest independent pops orchestra in the United States, and the only professional symphonic orchestra in New York City specializing in popular music. Led by Music Director Steven Reineke, the orchestra performs an annual ...
,
Little Orchestra
:''Not to be confused by The Little Orchestra of London''
The Little Orchestra Society is an American orchestra based at 630 9th Avenue, Suite 807 in New York City. It was founded in 1947 by Thomas Scherman, who served as its conductor until his ...
, on Broadway in
Tootsie (musical)
''Tootsie'' is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by David Yazbek and a book by Robert Horn. The musical is based on the 1982 American comedy film of the same name written by Larry Gelbart, Barry Levinson (uncredited), Elaine May (uncredited ...
and
Misery (play)
''Misery'' is an American psychological horror thriller novel written by Stephen King and first published by Viking Press on June 8, 1987. The novel's narrative is based on the relationship of its two main characters – the romance novelist Pau ...
, recordings for
Philip Glass
Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...
, and many Off-Broadway productions including several shows and scores by
Michael Friedman,
Dave Malloy's Drama Desk
The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...
nominated ''Beardo'', and Marisa Michelson's ''Tamar of the River''. Allen has also been Tony Winner, Grammy and Emmy Nominee
Rob Fisher's music assistant since 2012.
Allen was one of nine composers and lyricists involved with the Off-Broadway musical ''
Folk Wandering'', which premiered in March 2018.
In 2019, Allen won the 2019
BroadwayWorld
BroadwayWorld is a theatre news website based in New York City covering Broadway, Off-Broadway
An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres ...
Cabaret Award for Best Recurring Series for his "An Evening With... Series" as well as the award for Best Special Event (Solo) for
Marti Gould Cummings
''Shade: Queens of NYC'' is a television series on the network Fusion TV. It premiered in October 2017.
Cast
* Jesse Havea a.k.a. Brita Filter
* Marti Gould Cummings
* Justin Nako a.k.a. Chelsea Piers
* Nathan McManus a.k.a. Holly Box-Springs
* W ...
's ''Marti & The Cummers'' while also being nominated for Best Musical Director and Best Independent Album, for his ''An Evening With..., Vol. 1'' That same year, Allen also won the 2019 GLAM Award for Best Cabaret for
Tina Burner
Kristian Seeber (born November 10, 1980), known professionally as Tina Burner, is an American drag performer most known for appearing in '' Shade: Queens of NYC'' and on the thirteenth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race''. She was a part of a boy ba ...
's ''Witch Perfect'' at
Alan Cumming
Alan Cumming (born 27 January 1965) is a British actor. His London stage appearances include ''Hamlet'', the Maniac in ''Accidental Death of an Anarchist'' (for which he received an Olivier Award), the lead in '' Bent'', The National Theatre o ...
's
Club Cumming
Club Cumming is a gay bar and nightclub in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It frequently hosts cabaret events, Broadway-style shows, dance parties and drag performances. Celebrities, especially Broadway actors, of ...
along with fellow performers Bootsie Lefaris and Tammy Spenks. In 2020, Allen won Best New Arrangement for
Mack the Knife
"Mack the Knife" or "The Ballad of Mack the Knife" (german: "Die Moritat von Mackie Messer", italic=no, link=no) is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their 1928 music drama ''The Threepenny Opera'' (german: Die Dreig ...
and was nominated for
My Funny Valentine
"My Funny Valentine" is a show tune from the 1937 Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart coming of age musical ''Babes in Arms'' in which it was introduced by teenaged star Mitzi Green. The song became a popular jazz standard, appearing on over 130 ...
, Best Musical Director, and Best Recurring Series for An Evening With... Series. Allen also performed, to rave reviews, at
Birdland with
Lortel and
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...
winner Kuhoo Verma in early 2020.
Allen produced, music directed, and orchestrated the 2019 Off-Broadway, and first ever, revival of
Over Here!
''Over Here!'' is a musical with a score by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman and book by Will Holt. The original Broadway production was directed by Tom Moore and choreographed by Patricia Birch, with scenic design by Douglas W. Schmidt a ...
at the
Triad Theatre
The Triad Theater, formerly known as Palsson's Supper Club, Steve McGraw's, and Stage 72, is a cabaret-style performing arts venue located on West 72nd Street on New York's Upper West Side. The theatre has been the original home to some of the lon ...
with Will Nunziata directing. Smashing box office records at the Triad Theatre, the show starred
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...
Winner
Debbie Gravitte
Debbie Shapiro Gravitte is an American actress and singer. She was born in Los Angeles, California.
Career
Gravitte made her Broadway debut in the chorus of '' They're Playing Our Song'' in 1979. She performed on Broadway in '' Blues in the Nig ...
, Jessica Hendy,
Haley Swindal, and
Nikka Graff Lanzarone
Nikka Graff Lanzarone (born November 20, 1983) is an actress and dancer.
Early life
On November 20, 1983, Lanzarone was born in Los Angeles, California. Lanzarone's mother is Ilene Graff, an actress. Lanzarone's father is Ben Lanzarone, a com ...
. The revival was nominated for four
BroadwayWorld
BroadwayWorld is a theatre news website based in New York City covering Broadway, Off-Broadway
An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres ...
Awards including Best Special Event and Best Musical Director, for Allen.
Allen also wrote a one-act play, ''Kelly
955
Year 955 (Roman numerals, CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld (955), Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I, H ...
' based upon the
Kelly-Hopkinsville Encounter, which premiered at the Hudson Guild Theatre in March 2019 and also starred Jessica Hendy.
The score was featured on Allen's ''Sonatas''.
In 2020, Allen released his album ''Sonatas'' featuring music which premiered at
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 F ...
. The album debuted at #1 on the
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
Classical Chart, where it stayed for two weeks, and debuted at #4 on the
Billboard charts
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ...
Classical, where it stayed in the top 10 for two weeks.
The album was recorded in one, 12-hour session, along with Allen's other album, "An Evening With...vol. 1", at Moon Recording, in Brooklyn, NYC.
At the height of the 2020 Pandemic, Allen wrote ''Livin' the Dreamboat'' with lyricist Claire Tran for the Astoria Performing Arts Center in
Astoria, Queens
Astoria is a neighborhood in the western portion of the New York City borough of Queens. Astoria is bounded by the East River and is adjacent to three other Queens neighborhoods: Long Island City to the southwest, Sunnyside to the southeast ...
. The show premiered on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
and was one of the very first theatrical shows to be written and presented virtually, in its entirety, as a result of the pandemic. Also in 2020, Allen wrote the theme song and incidental music to
Doris Dear's ''Gurl Talk'', a weekly lifestyle show on Broadway on Demand. Allen was also the music director for the Doris Dear Christmas Special, which featured Tony Nominee
Karen Mason
Karen Mason is an American musical theatre actress and singer. She has appeared on stage in Broadway theatre, notably as Norma Desmond in ''Sunset Boulevard,'' and is a multiple award-winning cabaret performer.
Career
Mason was born in New Orle ...
,
Amra-Faye Wright
Amra-Faye Wright (born 22 August 1960) is a South African stage actress best known for portraying Velma Kelly in the musical ''Chicago'', both on Broadway and in international tours. In 2010, she became the first actress to have performed the rol ...
, and more. For the special, Allen wrote "At Least It's Winter", a postcard song about NYC at Christmastime during the pandemic. The song was performed by Allen and Kristina Nicole Miller.
Allen is currently developing his next opera, ''Obsession'', about the
Parker-Hulme Murder, as well as a new theatrical piece, ''At KC's'', with singer Kristina Nicole Miller and bassist Peter L. Powers. ''At KC's'', along with ''Boston, Nebraska'', was partially developed at the
Kimmel Nelson Harding Center for the Arts in
Nebraska City, Nebraska
Nebraska City is a city in Nebraska, and the county seat of, Otoe County, Nebraska, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,289.
The Nebraska State Legislature has credited Nebraska City as being the oldest incorporated ...
, as part of an artist residency.
''the shards of an honor code junkie''
After the sold-out world premiere of ''shards'' in 2017 as a benefit concert for
The Trevor Project
The Trevor Project is an American nonprofit organization founded in 1998. Focused on suicide prevention efforts among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth, they offer a toll-free telephone number wher ...
, Allen's classical-crossover score was picked up by
No Reverse Records to be released in July 2021 as a storybook album. The record is being produced by Ashley Kate Adams of
AKA Studio Productions and Mitchell Walker, with mixing by Grammy-nomninated sound engineer
Daniel Alba, mixing by Grammy-winner Alex Venguer, and mastering by Grammy-winner Oscar Zambrano. Conducted by Allen, with Zi Alikhan as the script consultant, the album is slated to feature, in returns to their roles, Alison Fraser, Teal Wicks, Kristy Cates,
Brita Filter
Brita Filter, the stage name of Jesse Carl Havea, is an American drag queen who has appeared on '' Shade: Queens of NYC'' and the twelfth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', ultimately placing 8th.
Early life and career
Havea is originally from A ...
, Hannah Cruz, Cree Carrico, Tori Scott, and Michael Lowney with Kuhoo Verma, J. Harrison Ghee, Josh Daniel, Ron Tal, and Isaac Phaman Reynolds rounding out the cast. The album was recorded in December 2020 and January 2021 at Atomic Studios in Brooklyn as well as Second Story Sound in Manhattan.
''shards'' was also performed at
54 Below
54 Below is a cabaret and restaurant in the basement of Studio 54 in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Owned by Broadway producers Steve Baruch, Richard Frankel, Marc Routh and Tom Viertel, 54 Below has hosted shows by such performers as Patt ...
in 2016, along with Allen's other pieces ''Boston, Nebraska'' (based on
Willa Cather
Willa Sibert Cather (; born Wilella Sibert Cather; December 7, 1873 – April 24, 1947) was an American writer known for her novels of life on the Great Plains, including ''O Pioneers!'', '' The Song of the Lark'', and ''My Ántonia''. In 1923, ...
's "A Wagner Matinee") and HOCKET, a gay-fantasia on hard drugs. ''shards'' had its
Actors' Equity Association
The Actors' Equity Association (AEA), commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing those who work in live theatrical performance. Performers appearing in live stage productions without a boo ...
, 29-hour reading in 2015 featuring Cates, Josh Tolle, and Ephie Aardema in the lead roles. Both versions were produced by Isaac Dayley. ''shards'' was developed in part at the
Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity
Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, formerly known as The Banff Centre (and previously The Banff Centre for Continuing Education), located in Banff, Alberta, was established in 1933 as the Banff School of Drama. It was granted full autonomy as ...
as part of a 2014 residency.
Characters and Cast Lists
''Shade: Queens of NYC''
Allen joined the cast of ''
Shade: Queens of NYC'' at its inception in October 2017, as Blake Allen, the then-spouse to Marti Gould Cummings. The series documents the daily reality of lives as
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
drag queens. In the series, Allen also music directed, arranged, and performed in several episodes culminating in the album
A Very Marti Holiday, an album of
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject ma ...
featuring
Daphne Rubin-Vega
Daphne Rubin-Vega ( Vega; born November 18, 1969) is a Panamanian-American actress, dancer, and singer-songwriter. She is best known for originating the roles of Mimi Marquez in the Broadway musical ''Rent'' and Lucy in the Off-Broadway play ''J ...
,
Cady Huffman
Cady Huffman is an American actress.
Early life
Huffman was born in Santa Barbara, California, to Lorayne, a pre-school assistant director turned realtor, and Clifford Huffman, an attorney. She is the younger sister of actor Linus Huffman and a ...
, and
Lesli Margherita
Lesli Margherita is an American stage and screen actress. She is best known for originating the roles of Inez in the musical ''Zorro,'' for which she won a Laurence Olivier Award, and Mrs. Wormwood in the Broadway cast of ''Matilda the Musical''. ...
to raise money for The
Ali Forney Center
The Ali Forney Center (AFC), based in New York City, is the largest LGBT community center helping LGBTQ homeless youth in the United States. The AFC both manages and develops transitional housing for its clients. AFC helps approximately 2,000 y ...
.
Personal life
Allen moved to New York City in 2011 and married
New York City Council
The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs.
The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...
candidate, and drag artist, Marti Gould Cummings in 2016. Together, they were politically active in their community of
Hamilton Heights, Manhattan
Hamilton Heights is a neighborhood in the northern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is the northernmost part of the West Harlem area, along with Manhattanville and Morningside Heights to its south, and it contains the sub-neighborhood a ...
until their divorce in 2022.
Television
Theatre
Discography
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Blake
1988 births
Living people
American composers
American violists
Musicians from Tucson, Arizona