Wednesday, March 20, 2019
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
Monday, March 18, 2019
Five Spectacular Shows - Much Anticipation!
September 26–October 27
Book by Marc Acito
Music Adapted & Additional Music by David Libby
Conceived & Created by Tina Marie Casamento
Directed & Choreographed by Denis Jones
This highly anticipated new musical about one of the world’s most beloved entertainment icons, Chasing Rainbows: The Road to Oz is the story of how five-year-old Frances Gumm became Judy Garland, chronicling her early career from vaudeville to her rise at MGM, where she wins the role of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Chasing Rainbows features legendary songs, including “Over the Rainbow,” “You Made Me Love You,” and “Everybody Sing.” The show has already earned praise from Liza Minnelli, who said, “My mother said that her biography is in her music, and now a talented creative team is using that music to tell the story of her early years and her extraordinary rise to fame.”
Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA
November 20–December 29
Music by Richard Rodgers
Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
New Book by Douglas Carter Beane
Original Book by Oscar Hammerstein II
Directed by Mark S. Hoebee
This enchanting, Tony-nominated Broadway adaptation of the beloved musical will put a spell on audiences of all ages. Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella showcases some of the songwriting duo’s loveliest tunes, including “In My Own Little Corner,” “Impossible/It’s Possible,” and “Ten Minutes Ago,” as well as some new characters and surprising twists. Add a dash of fairytale romance, magical onstage transformations, and the iconic pumpkin and glass slippers—and you’re guaranteed to have a ball!
UNMASKED: The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber
January 30–March 1
Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber
Written with Richard Curtis
Directed by Laurence Connor
One of the most successful musical theater composers of all time takes audiences on a behind-the-scenes journey inUnmasked: The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber. Written with Richard Curtis and directed by Laurence Connor, Unmasked is a not-always-reverential look at Andrew’s life and musical career. You’ll hear his best-loved work, including classics from Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita, Cats, Phantom of the Opera, and Sunset Boulevard, in sometimes new and unexpected ways.This new production will also feature new material and rediscovered gems, along with the history of their creation intertwined with Andrew’s extraordinary personal story.
SISTER ACT
April 1–April 26
Music by Alan Menken
Lyrics by Glenn Slater
Book by Cheri Steinkellner & Bill Steinkellner
Additional Book Material by Douglas Carter Beane
Based on the Touchstone Pictures Motion Picture Sister Act Written by Joseph Howard
Based on the 1992 hit film, this feel-good musical comedy smash sizzles with powerful music, spectacular dancing, and a story brimming with heart. The madcap plot is set in motion when disco diva Deloris Van Cartier witnesses a murder and must go into hiding in a convent—where she clashes, hilariously, with cloistered life. Deloris inspires the sisters with her soulful style, but the church choir’s newfound fame attracts the attention of the bad guys. Featuring original music by Tony and eight-time Oscar winner Alan Menken (Newsies, Beauty and the Beast, Little Shop of Horrors), the musical was nominated for five Tony Awards, including Best Musical.
THE WANDERER
May 28–June 28
Book by Charles Messina
Directed by Kenneth Ferrone
Dion. One name set the standard of cool for a generation. But how does a kid from the Bronx make it to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? In The Wanderer, the incredible musical journey of a troubled young man turned teenage heartthrob (and, ultimately, rock and roll icon) is told in intimate and no-holds-barred detail. Dion’s music helped define a generation of rock and rollers. His lifelong battle with addiction shed a stark light on the darker side of fame and success. This musical takes both subjects head on, set to the iconic sound of an incomparable era in American music, and celebrates the triumph of the human spirit against all odds. The Wanderer is the riveting true story of Dion, New York’s rebel king, the man Bruce Springsteen calls “the link between Frank Sinatra and rock and roll.”
PAPER MILL PLAYHOUSE, a not-for-profit arts organization under the direction of Mark S. Hoebee (Producing Artistic Director) and Michael Stotts (Managing Director) and recipient of the 2016 Regional Theatre Tony Award, is one of the country's leading regional theaters. Paper Mill Playhouse programs are made possible, in part, by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. Paper Mill Playhouse is a member of the National Alliance for Musical Theatre, the Council of Stock Theatres, and the New Jersey Theatre Alliance.
This Is Gonna Be Big -- REALLY Big!
Producer Scott Rudin has announced that the two-time Tony Award, Grammy Award, and Emmy Award-winning star Hugh Jackman will make his highly anticipated return to Broadway in what is widely agreed is the greatest role ever created for an actor in the history of the musical theater: Professor Harold Hill, in Meredith Willson’s beloved classic, The Music Man. The production, directed by four-time Tony Award winner Jerry Zaks, with choreography by Tony Award winner Warren Carlyle, will begin performances on Wednesday, September 9, 2020, and officially open on Thursday, October 22, 2020, at a Shubert theatre to be announced.
One of the most universally cherished treasures of the American musical theater, The Music Man was an instant smash hit when it premiered on Broadway on December 19, 1957. It went on to win five Tony Awards, including the prize for Best Musical, and ran for 1,375 performances. The original cast album held the number one position on the Billboard charts and stayed on the album charts for 245 weeks. The recording won the first ever Grammy Award for Best Original Cast Album. In 1962, the show was adapted into a hugely successful movie, which has remained a classic for over 60 years. The Smithsonian Institution ranks The Music Man as one of the “great glories” of American popular culture.
In a statement, Hugh Jackman said, “The first musical I was ever a part of was the phenomenal The Music Man. The year was 1983, and I was at Knox Grammar School in Sydney, Australia. I was one of the traveling salesmen, and I think I can actually (almost) remember that unforgettable opening number! That was probably the moment when the magic of theater was born in me.” He added, “The idea of bringing The Music Man back to Broadway has been lurking in the back of my brain for a long time, maybe even for 35 years, and when Scott Rudin called me with that very idea, I was floored. To finally be doing this is a huge thrill.”
Scott Rudin stated, "There is just no way to accurately describe the level of excitement I feel about the opportunity to present Hugh in what I think is the best role ever written for an actor in all of Broadway musical theater. Although I have spent a lot of time and energy wishing there was a way to stop the passage of time, this is the one moment when I wish it would just move faster. I can't wait for us to begin working on this together in earnest."
From the first time Hugh Jackman set foot on stage in the highly acclaimed National Theatre production of Oklahoma! in 1998, to his Tony-winning, sensation-causing turn as Peter Allen in the 2003 musical The Boy From Oz, his reputation as the world’s greatest living stage star was secured. Though he has returned to Broadway three times since – in two plays and in a solo concert event – this will be Mr. Jackman’s first role in a Broadway musical since his debut more than 16 years ago. He went on to become one of the biggest stars of our time through starring roles in numerous and varied blockbusters, including eight movies in the fantastically successful X-Men series, Les Misérables (for which he received an Academy Award® nomination for Best Actor), and The Greatest Showman, one of the top-grossing movie musicals of all time.
As if taking on the creation of the book, music, and lyrics of a new musical wasn’t a daunting (and rare) enough feat for one man, Meredith Willson had never so much as attempted to write for the stage before The Music Man. That he managed to conjure such a timeless masterpiece — over the course of a painstaking six-year process immortalized in his memoir, But He Doesn’t Know the Territory — remains one of the greatest and most surprising accomplishments ever achieved in the realm of dramatic literature.
As chief theater critic for the Wall Street Journal Terry Teachout wrote, “Willson produced, on his first try, a musical comedy that is impeccable to the point of virtuosity.” After receiving encouragement from his friend and mentor Frank Loesser, and guidance from the legendary producing team of Cy Feuer and Ernest Martin, Willson crafted a story inspired by his own childhood in the small Iowa town of Mason City. He said, "I didn't have to make up anything. I simply remembered Mason City as closely as I could." He modeled the character of young Winthrop Paroo on himself, the librarian Marian Paroo after his own mother – a music teacher -- and the charismatic con man Harold Hill after “so many people that I remember different ones every time I see the show.” After a half-decade of writing and rewriting, the self-described “Iowa-stubborn” Willson finally teamed up with his friend Franklin Lacey to fine-tune the script, and The Music Man was on its way.
With the uniquely rhythmic, non-rhyming, never-heard-before style of its musical numbers, and an abundance of American charm, The Music Man garnered an enthusiastic champion in the person of legendary producer Kermit Bloomgarden, who took the reins and shepherded it to its place in Broadway history. Of the 40 songs Willson wrote over those six years, 18 made it into the show’s dazzling score, including such beloved classics as “Seventy-Six Trombones;” “(Ya Got) Trouble;” “Marian The Librarian;” “My White Knight;” “Goodnight My Someone;” “Gary, Indiana;” and “Till There Was You.”
The Music Man reunites the creative team of the Tony Award-winning and record-breaking revival of Hello, Dolly! starring Bette Midler, including (in addition to Rudin, Zaks, and Carlyle), four-time Tony Award winner Santo Loquasto (Scenic & Costume Design), six-time Tony Award winner Natasha Katz (Lighting Design), Tony Award winner Scott Lehrer (Sound Design), and David Chase (Dance Arrangements). Patrick Vaccariello and Tony Award winner Jonathan Tunick join the team as The Music Man’s Musical Director and Orchestrator, respectively.
More details, including the casting of ‘Marian,’ will be announced shortly.
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