Hear songs of Clayton Briggs before he heads to New York

Musical-theater fans, take note: Here’s a chance to hear “The Songs of Clayton Briggs: A Cabaret of New Musical Theater and Art Songs.” The concert is 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 3, at the 2nd Space Theatre.

Briggs is a graduate of Clovis East High School, where during his graduation ceremony he premiered a new composition, “Our New Start,” conducting the choral piece in front of several thousand attendees.

He recently received his Bachelor of Arts in Music Composition at Pepperdine University in Malibu and will be attending NYU Tisch in the Graduate Musical Theater Writing Program starting this fall to receive his MFA.

Here’s how he describes the concert:

“The Songs of Clayton Briggs: A Cabaret of New Musical Theater and Art Songs” is a celebration of his graduation from Pepperdine University and acceptance into NYU Tisch in the fall to receive his MFA in Musical Theater Writing. Featuring singers from the Fresno Area and the Pepperdine University Chamber Choir, The program will feature songs from his earliest musical theater songs in high school to pieces written at the Academy of New Musical Theater in Los Angeles and art songs composed during his time at Pepperdine University.

This concert is open to the public, as he invites his home town of Fresno to come hear some new music and help give him a creative send-off. There is a suggested donation of $5 for entry.

Sounds like a great event. And you never know: You could be boasting someday, “I remember when I was at Clayton’s Fresno concert long before he became the toast of Broadway.”

This story was originally published May 3, 2016 at 10:49 AM with the headline "Hear songs of Clayton Briggs before he heads to New York."