GREASE™ Coming to Academy of Music, July 7-19
MAY 12, 2009
Tickets Go On Sale May 15!
The new Broadway production of the Tony Award nominated musical GREASE™, makes its Philadelphia premiere for a two-week engagement at the Academy of Music on July 7 – 19, 2009.
The first Broadway Series production of the new 2009-2010 season, tickets will go on sale on Friday, May 15 at 10am, and range in price from $25 to $75 with a limited number of VIP premium seats available for $100. Tickets can be purchased by calling 215-731-3333, online at www.kimmelcenter.org/broadway, at the Kimmel Center box office, Broad and Spruce Sts. (open daily 10am to 6pm) or at the Academy of Music box office, Broad and Locust Sts. (open during performances only). Groups of 15 or more will receive discounts for select performances by calling 215-790-5883 or 866-276-2947.
Performances include: Tuesday – Thursday evenings at 7:30pm; Friday & Saturday evenings at 8pm; Sunday evenings at 6:30pm; matinees Saturdays at 2pm and Sundays at 1pm.
After spending a hopelessly devoted summer with Sandy Dumbrowski, the new girl in town, Danny Zuko's world is thrown upside down when Sandy appears at Rydell High on the first day of school. What follows is a rock n' roll celebration of growin' up, cruisin' with friends and goin' steady. The new production of GREASE™ features songs from the smash hit 1978 motion picture for the first time ever in a Broadway production including "Sandy," the Academy Award nominated song "Hopelessly Devoted to You," "Grease" and "You’re the One That I Want" - both of which were #1 hits on the Billboard Top 100 list. These songs will be heard in addition to the Jacobs/Casey songs made famous by the original stage production including "Summer Nights," "Greased Lightnin’" and "We Go Together."
Platinum-selling recording artist and "American Idol" winner, Taylor Hicks, stars in the production as "Teen Angel." Hicks made his Broadway debut in the role of "Teen Angel" and has been on the road with GREASE™ since the tour began on December 2, 2008.
"I had such a great experience performing on Broadway," says Hicks. "This is a great opportunity to visit old fans and new fans across the country while bringing them a great Broadway show!"
Taylor Hicks achieved widespread fame in 2006 as a contestant on the hugely successful FOX singing competition "American Idol." On May 24, 2006, Hicks was named the winner of the fifth season of "Idol" with over 63.4 million votes in total, during the live finale which aired to a worldwide audience of over 200 million viewers. On March 10, 2009, Taylor Hicks released his much anticipated new studio album The Distance, featuring the single "What’s Right is Right."
GREASE™ originated in Chicago and made its premiere at The Kingston Mines Theater in 1971 before making its New York premiere off-Broadway at the Eden Theatre on February 14, 1972. After 128 sold-out performances, the show made the transition to Broadway taking up residence at the Broadhurst Theatre on June 7, 1972. GREASE™ was nominated for seven Tony Awards in its spectacular initial run. On November 21, 1972, the show moved to the Royale Theatre before making its final transfer on January 20, 1980 to the Majestic Theatre. It closed as the longest running show in Broadway history after playing 3,388 performances. In 1978, GREASE™ became a hugely popular feature film starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in the lead roles.
GREASE™, which opened on Broadway on Sunday, August 19, 2007, was born out of NBC’s landmark talent competition TV series, "Grease: You’re The One That I Want." The weekly talent competition drew 90 million viewers, and allowed America to vote for its favorite contestants to play the lead roles of "Sandy" and "Danny" on Broadway. Directed and choreographed by two-time Tony Award-winner Kathleen Marshall (The Pajama Game, Wonderful Town), GREASE™ features book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. Additional songs from the film are by Barry Gibb, John Farrar, Louis St. Louis and Scott Simon.
GREASE™ features scenic design by Tony Award nominee Derek McLane (The Pajama Game), costume design by two-time Tony Award winner Martin Pakledinaz (Thoroughly Modern Millie, Kiss Me Kate), lighting design by Tony Award winner Kenneth Posner (The Coast of Utopia, Wicked) and sound design by Brian Ronan (Spring Awakening, Curtains).
GREASE™ is produced on tour by Paul Nicholas and David Ian, Nederlander Presentations, Inc. and Terry Allen Kramer by arrangement with Robert Stigwood.
GREASE launches the new Broadway Series at the Academy of Music and the Forrest Theatre. Productions for the 2009-2010 season will include: Mamma Mia! (Nov. 3 – 8, 2009); White Christmas (Nov. 24 – Dec. 6, 2009); Wicked (Jan. 6 – 24, 2010), Disney’s The Lion King (March 30 - April 4, 2010); August: Osage County (April 27 – May 2, 2010) at the Forrest Theatre; Avenue Q (June 18 – 20, 2010); and Dreamgirls (June 21 – 27).
All performances of the 2009-2010 Broadway Series are supported by CITI. American Airlines is the Official Airline of the Broadway Series.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT: www.greaseonbroadway.com.
> index of news releases
> For more information, and to request high resolution images for press use, send us a message online.