 Chris
Van Cleave: a singer, songwriter,
guitarist, actor, writer, director and teacher, performed in his
first musical at age 12 as Louis in the King and I. He
also started writing songs in the same year.
As a songwriter, Chris is one of the most prolific
and eclectic composers within the industry today. His catalog of
over 500 songs (with many hundred more to enter) includes styles
of folk, rock, country, R & B, jazz, reggae, and musical theater.
His strong, expressive voice, ranging from bass into tenor, has
been praised by many as rich, soulful, and melodic throughout his
career. He has performed in venues throughout the United States,
Canada, United Kingdom, and Europe.
As a Singer/Songwriter, Chris
has independently produced seven albums and the score for two
musicals. His initial major label release "The Friend Ship" was on Paramount Records
with Walker Daniels (original lead in Hair) and Laura Branigan in the folk-rock group "Meadow".
In addition to performing his music in concerts throughout his
travels, he has opened for Kansas, Poco, Eric Burdon, Leon Russell,
and Buckwheat Zydeco. As a recording artist and songwriter, he
has collaborated with many, including Suzi Quatro, Jim McCarty
(Yardbirds), and Barry Mason (writer of hits for Tom Jones and
Englebert Humperdink).
Chris has also collaborated with international organizations (such
as Friends of the Earth and The First Earth Run) to write songs
for specific occasions. He enjoys being commissioned to write songs
for other musicals and events -- or for personal occasions such
as weddings, births, etc -- and has been blessed with the ability
to draw on his 'muse' whenever the need has arisen.
With his unique ability of capturing in song the
various joys, trials and challenges of the human experience, his
catalog contains an endless supply of material suitable for
feature films, documentaries, seminars, places of worship, and personal
gifts.
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 As
an Actor/Singer, Chris starred in national
tours of Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar, performing
to thousands in major theaters, coliseums and concert venues throughout
the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
While residing in the United Kingdom for
seven years, Chris also performed lead roles in the London West
End theatre productions of Les Miserables, Chess, and
Bernadette. At the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in
New York City, he sang and performed the role of Jesus in (Italian
and Latin) in Stabat Mater.
Other roles he has enjoyed include Don Quixote
in Man of La Mancha, Hajj in Kismet, the Pirate
King in Pirates of Penzance, Prospero in Return to
Forbidden Planet, Lord Summerhays in Misalliance,
and Stonewall Jackson in Stonewall Country. A more detailed
list can be found on his resume.
Chris has an Master of Fine Arts degree
in acting from the University of Virgina and is a member of both
British and American Actors Equity Associations.
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In
film, Chris has worked with New Dominion Pictures in Norfolk,
VA, and appeared in The Untold Stores of the Navy Seals,
The FBI Files, The New Detective, Daring Capers, and Ghost
Stories. In 1982 he composed
and produced 17 songs for a rock gospel musical called The
Davidson Affair which was performed at the Wells Theatre
in Norfolk, VA. The readers theatre version of the show has
been performed in the United Kingdon and Holland.
For his most recent project, Troubadour
Knight, he wrote the script, composed and recorded seven
songs, filmed and edited, and performed in this multi-media
musical. This one-man show was created in the last six months
while completing his MFA degree at UVA in 2002.
A chapter in Chris' thesis for this degree
is "Synaesthesia in the Performing Arts". He is
continuing this study, which is based on the crossing of two
or more sensory modalities. His focus is on the relationship
of colors of light combined with corresponding sound frequencies
and the resulting effects on people individually and within
an audience. Troubadour
Knight was his first project to explore this principle.
The summer of 2004 he was contracted for
three months at the magical outdoor Theater at Lime Kiln in
Lexington, VA for three productions. In one of these, he performed
the role of Stonewall Jackson in Stonewall Country.
This was its final season after a twenty year run which ended
with a farewell Gala Performance with Robin & Linda Williams,
the composers of the show. In March, 2005 Chris performed
the role of Father (God) in the Steven Schwartz musical Children
of Eden.
During the last three years, Chris has performed in several shows at the Flat Rock Playhouse (North Carolina State Theater) and Mountain Playhouse in Pennsylvania. Along with running a theater program, he is currently writing the script and music for a new Christmas musical Presence.
For
Reviews & Validations
For bookings or correspondence::
contact@vancleavemusic.com
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| Above
photo by Robert Llewellyn
www.robertllewellyn.com
"You may be a son who
might be a father;
A sister or brother, a mother,
or somebody's daughter;
But we're all a child
of the same Source of Being;
So interrelated, it's easily missed
by not seeing.
Whoever you think that you
might be;
Whatever you dream that life could be;
Just make up your mind
What it is that you're wanting to find.
For nobody else can play your part,
As deep down you know yourself by heart,
But it's up to you
To believe in this life that you claim;
And know who you are in this play
At this stage of the game!"
Copyright 2000 Chris Van Cleave
from At This Stage of the Game
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