2023
ELF
the musical
December 9-11, 2023 with Studio 691
James appeared as BUDDY THE ELF in Studio 691's production of ELF the Musical directed by Tim Santos.
2023
WORKING
the musical
September 16, 2023 at the Oakside Bloomfield Cultural Center
James appeared as Man 3 in Skyline Theatre Company's presentation of Working the musical as part of their Broadway in Concert Series directed by Sam Scalamoni.
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder
July 15-23, 2023 at SOPAC
The Light Opera of New Jersey presented Steven Lutvak’s and Robert Freedman’s Tony Award-winning operetta A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder. James played the role of The D'Ysquith Family: one actor plays the eight heirs to the D'Ysquith fortune, each murdered so that Monty Navarro can become Earl of Highhurst. LONJ presented GGLAM at South Orange Performing Arts Center in South Orange, NJ.
Review by Jacqueline Parker
"In the charming hamlet of South Orange, NJ, which in addition to some charming shopping and notable architecture, boasts the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC), where yesterday we enjoyed A Gentleman‘s Guide to Love & Murder, the award-winning musical from several years ago by Steve Lutvak and Robert L. Freedman. With fond memories of the original still vivid in my mind, I was delighted to see a cast of lively professionals deliver performances worthy of Broadway. The cast of ten nimbly scampered through this hilarious piece with dexterity and aplomb, skillfully directed by Joseph Hayward. Keep your eyes open for James C. Smith and Joey Nasta, the two male leads, whose talent we’re sure to see here before long."
2023
Highlights Reel: James Conrad Smith as The D'Ysquith Family. Recorded July 23, 2023 at South Orange PAC. Light Opera of New Jersey presents A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER; directed by Joseph Hayward; musical direction by Griffin Strout; choreography by Matthew Lynady; executive produced by Jason Tramm. Featuring Joey Nasta (Monty Navarro), Gabriella Giangreco (Evangeline Barley "Poison in my Pocket"), and Lauren Rathburn (Lady D'Ysquith).
MUSIC MATTERS with Jason Tramm, executive producer of Light Opera of New Jersey, EP:308. Jason interviews James Conrad Smith (The D'Ysquith Family) and Joey Nasta (Monty Navarro) from LONJ's production of A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder on Wednesday, July 19 at 6 PM.
All photos (except bottom center) were published on New Jersey Stage by John Posada - click here for the original posting
VIRTUALLY YOURS
The Princeton Festival
2020
Signature Artist Showcase: "Anthem" from Chess
Signature Artist Showcase: "A Little Bit of Good" from Chicago
Live Musical Theater Revue: My time stamp is @ 55:09
"If I Can't Love Her" from Beauty and the Beast
"When Beauty and the Beast (1994) became Disney’s first stage musical, additional songs were needed to augment the animated film’s score. Lyricist Tim Rice studiously imitated the style of Howard Ashman, the movie’s late wordsmith. An exception was an anguished ballad for the Beast, “If I Can’t Love Her,” which was more characteristic of the ambivalent, weary mood that pervades many of Rice’s songs from other shows. James Conrad Smith — who, like Rakow and Weintraub, was a veteran of last year’s Princeton Festival production of She Loves Me — lent his ringing baritone to Alan Menken’s melody."
-Donald H. Sanborn III, Town Topics
Into the Woods (postponed due to pandemic shut down)
my arrangement of "No One Is Alone" for five voices
An arrangement I created for myself and four friends who were in The Princeton Festival's 2019 production of She Loves Me - all of whom would have been in Into the Woods this coming summer. Top (L-R): Tommy MacDonald, Amy Weintraub, (me) James Conrad Smith; Bottom (L-R) Shannon Rakow, Aaron Gooden
Sweeney Todd
2019
Oregon Cabaret Theatre
"James Smith is a delightful Adolfo Pirelli, exaggerated and inflated with Italian bombast, clothed and mustachioed to the tips of his two-toned, pointy footwear. Pirelli is the first to go (need I explain how?), and I was sorry that this character was so short-lived, but Smith continues as effectively though very differently in the ensemble."
-Maureen Flannagan Battistella, The Mail Tribune
"The ensemble, who all have significant roles as well, are impressive... ...Standouts include Kristen Calvin as the Beggar Woman and James Smith as Adolfo Pirelli. Smith's portrayal as Pirelli, a rival barber, is a riot. His hilarious quirks as he flounces about the stage are contrasted with a vocal range that could best be described as serious."
-Ella Nelson-Mahon, Theatre in Oregon
She Loves Me
2019
"James Conrad Smith, a baritone who brings considerable vocal power to 'Grand Knowing You,' is suitably cast as the oily Kodaly"
-Donald H. Sanborn, Town Topics
"James Conrad Smith has a magnificent voice and smooth dance moves."
-Neal Zoren, U.S.1