Ron Hawking

The Windy City will be "swinging" all summer long as Chicago’s Entertainer, Ron Hawking, announces plans to extend his new show The Men and Their Music by popular demand at Chicago’s Mercury Theatre (3745 N. Southport).  The show is currently playing a limited four-week engagement June 21 through July 15, 2007.  After a brief two-week hiatus, The Men and Their Music will be back in the swing of things, playing an extended run August 2 through September 9, 2007.  With a live orchestra, vocalists and acclaimed showman Hawking as the headliner, The Men and Their Music is sure to be another long-running hit here in his hometown of Chicago. 

Dubbed Chicago’s Entertainer, Ron Hawking returns to Chicago following the successful and critically acclaimed long-run of His Way – A Tribute to the Man and His Music, an homage to the late and great singer Frank Sinatra.  After running for nearly a year at the Mercury Theatre, Hawking continued to breathe new life into these legendary tunes around Chicago for the following six years.  Expanding on the thriving demand for the musical style of artists like Sinatra, Ron Hawking returns to the Chicago stage with The Men and Their Music – a repertoire of iconic numbers from many great male vocalists of all time including, Bobby Darin, Ray Charles, Billy Joel, and Frankie Valli, to name a few.

Ron Hawking’s success is rooted in his ability to seamlessly step in and out of each personality he portrays on the stage.  Going well beyond simply creating an impersonation, Hawking has an uncanny talent to reinterpret and redeliver each song with the same charm and charisma that made the original artists so beloved.  With classic style and sophistication, Hawking’s new show, The Men and Their Music, is the perfect reflection to the energy and enthusiasm of big band music, Vegas lounge singers, and musical legends.

Ron Hawking is creator, producer and star of His Way – A Tribute to the Man and His Music.  It opened at Chicago’s Mercury Theatre for a 6 week run, which ended up lasting 8 months and turned into the smash hit of the summer, fall, and winter season.  The “His Way” album, which he produced, received distribution and airplay not only in the United States, but on the United Kingdom’s BBC as well.

In September of 1998, Hawking wrote the music and lyrics for “Go Go Sammy Sosa” as a salute to the Chicago Cubs superstar.  In addition to major media coverage and airplay on national radio and TV, the song made its Wrigley Field debut at the final home game of the cubs 1998 season.

Hawking has performed at New York’s Carnegie Hall with the Philly Pops Orchestra and has opened for such notables as Carol Channing, Sheena Easton, Robert Klein, and The Temptations, just to name a few.  In addition to being an accomplished vocalist, he is also one of the country’s leading impressionists.  Hawking created and has been performing his one man “Lively Art of Impressionism” show for corporate events and fund raisers since 1988.

Tickets for The Men and Their Music range in price from $49.50 - $55.50 and are available at the Mercury Theatre Box Office by calling (773) 325-1700 or logging onto ticketmaster.com.  Tickets are currently on sale for performances June 21 through July 15, 2007 and August 2 through September 9, 2007. For more information log onto www.ronhawking.com