59E59 Theaters transforms Theater C into the Zam Zam Room, hosting His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley for the Holidays

Jake Broder (Broadway’s Amadeus, When Harry Met Sally in the West End) reignites the amazing routines of cult comic and faux aristocrat Lord Buckley. His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley in The Zam Zam Room is a fizzy cocktail of style and substance, featuring “the hippest stories in storydom” backed by a live jazz band. The tale of Scrooge becomes a breezy be-bop fable and a jive talking Jesus epitomizes cannabis cool with “The Nazz.” Along with “The Gettysburg Address” and Joah and the Wale and nightly doses of The Hip News and many others, His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley in The Zam Zam Room will “blow your wig away.”

Lord Buckley single-handedly brought “Hip Semantic” into the mainstream in the 1950s. One of the most influential figures of American counter-culture, Lord Buckley inspired a host of visionary performers, including Lenny Bruce, Robin Williams, Richard Prior, as well as Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Thelonious Monk and Frank Sinatra.

“Buckley was the hipster bebop preacher who defied all labels,” wrote Bob Dylan in his memoir Chronicles. “...(He) was a raging storyteller who did riffs on all kinds of things from supermarkets to bombs and the crucifixion. He did raps on characters like Gandhi and Julius Caesar... Buckley had a magical way of speaking. Everybody, including me, was influenced by him in one way or another.” Jake Broder (performer & writer) was recently seen in Kevin Spacey’s feature film about Bobby Darin Beyond the Sea. He also appears in forthcoming film The Shadow Dance with Harvey Keitel. Jake’s theatre credits include When Harry Met Sally in the West End, alongside Alyson Hannigan and Luke Perry; the title role in Amadeus for Peter Hall at the Old Vic; and The Reduced Shakespeare Company at the Criterion Theatre.

Phillip Breen’s (Director) credits include The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui (Glasgow Citizens), The Promise (Union Theatre, London) The Zam Zam Room: an Evening with His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley (Ronnie Scott’s and Pizza Express, Soho), Far Too Happy (National Tour, 2001 Perrier Award Nomination). Phillip is artistic director of Edge 04 the Chichester Festival Theatre Fringe Festival where he will direct his adaptation of Bulgakov’s Black Snow. He trained at Theatr Clwyd under Terry Hands after winning a 2002 Channel 4 Young director bursary, supported by the Mackintosh Foundation.

59E59 Theaters (Elysabeth Kleinhans, Artistic Director; Peter Tear, Executive Producer) transforms Theater C into the coolest, grooviest, swinginest venue in NYC, when they play host to the show that stormed London, His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley in The Zam Zam Room, created and performed by Jake Broder, based on the original works by Lord Buckley. Directed by Phillip Breen, His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley in The Zam Zam Room begins previews on Friday, November 25 for a limited engagement through Saturday, December 31. Opening Night is Wednesday, November 30 at 8:30 PM. The performance schedule is Tuesday - Friday at 8:30 PM, Saturday at 7:00 PM and 9:30 PM and Sunday at 4:30 PM and 7:30 PM. Single tickets are $30 ($21 for 59E59 members) and are available by calling Ticket Central at 212-279-4200 or online at www.ticketcentral.com. For more information visit www.59E59.org.