FEBRUARY 10, 2016
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Philadelphia’s #AcademyofMusic will be alive with @TheSoundOfMusic March 15-20. Get tickets now at kimmelcenter.org #BWYPHL
Press Contact:
Amanda Conte
(215) 790-5847
aconte@kimmelcenter.org
BROADWAY PHILADELPHIA PRESENTS "THE SOUND OF MUSIC"
NEW NATIONAL TOURING PRODUCTION MAKES PHILADELPHIA PREMIERE AT THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC
MARCH 15-20, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Philadelphia, February 10, 2016) –– Broadway Philadelphia presents the Philadelphia Premiere of the new touring production of The Sound of Music,directed by three-time Tony Award® winner Jack O’Brien, at the Academy of Music March 15-20, 2016. This lavish new production celebrates the 50th anniversary of the acclaimed film.
“The Sound of Music is one of the most successful and celebrated movie musicals of all time, and we can’t wait to bring this beautiful new production to Philadelphia,” said Anne Ewers, President & CEO of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. ”It’s the perfect way to pay tribute to the beloved songs and story that we all remember from our growing up years.”
The production features music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Linsay and Russel Crouse. The national tour stars Ben Davis as Captain Georg von Trapp (Broadway’s Violet, A Little Night Music, La Bohème), Ashley Brown as The Mother Abbess (Broadway’s original Mary Poppins, NBC’s The Sound of Music), and Jack O’Brien’s brand new discovery, Kerstin Anderson as Maria Rainer. A current student at Pace University, Ms. Anderson won the coveted role from hundreds who auditioned. This is her first national tour.
Of his leading lady, Director O’Brien said, “I’ve always believed Maria was a ‘star-making’ part, rather than the leading role we remember from the movies and our experience; so I went looking for someone with star-making magic. And in through the audition door one day walked Kerstin Anderson, still studying at Pace University in New York. She opened her mouth, she sang, and the tears welled up in my eyes.”
The Sound of Music features music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, suggested by The Trapp Family Singers by Maria Augusta Trapp. This new production is directed by Jack O’Brien (credits include: Hairspray, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Coast of Utopia), choreographed by Danny Mefford (Fun Home, The Bridges of Madison County and Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson) and music supervision by Andy Einhorn (Bullets Over Broadway, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Brief Encounter, The Light in the Piazza). The design and production team is comprised of Douglas W. Schmidt, set design (Tony Award® nominee: 42nd Street, Into the Woods); Jane Greenwood, costume design (2014 recipient of the Special Tony Award® for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre), Natasha Katz, lighting design (Five-time Tony Award® winner: An American in Paris, Once, Aida, The Coast of Utopia, The Glass Menagerie) and Ken Travis, sound design (Aladdin, Newsies, Memphis). Casting by Telsey + Company/Rachel Hoffman, CSA.
The Sound of Music enjoyed extraordinary success as the first live television production of a musical in over 50 years when “The Sound of Music Live!” aired on NBC in December, 2013; 2015 marks the 50th anniversary of the film version, which continues to be the most successful movie musical in history.
For more information, please visit www.TheSoundOfMusicOnTour.com.
THE SOUND OF MUSIC
Academy of Music
Dates and times:
March 15, 2016, 7:30 p.m.
March 16, 2016, 7:30 p.m.
March 17, 2016, 7:30 p.m.
March 18, 2016, 8:00 p.m.
March 19, 2016, 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.
March 20, 2016, 1:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.
TICKETS
Tickets are on sale to the public now and start at $20. Tickets can be purchased by calling (215) 893-1999, visiting www.kimmelculturalcampus.org, at the Kimmel Center Box Office. Group sales are available for groups of 10 or more and can be purchased by calling (215) 790-5883.
Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Located in the heart of Center City, Philadelphia, The Kimmel Center’s mission is to operate a world-class performing arts center that engages and serves a broad audience through diverse programming, arts education, and community outreach. The Kimmel Center campus is comprised of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts (Verizon Hall, Perelman Theater, SEI Innovation Studio, and the Merck Arts Education Center), the Academy of Music (owned by the Philadelphia Orchestra Association), and the University of the Arts’ Merriam Theater. TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank, is the season sponsor of The Kimmel Center’s 2015-2016 Season. American Airlines is the official airline of Broadway Philadelphia. For additional information, visit kimmelcenter.org.
THE SHUBERT ORGANIZATION has been in the forefront of the American theatre since the start of the 20th century. The company has produced and co-produced hundreds of Broadway plays and musicals. Under the leadership of Philip J. Smith, Chairman, and Robert E. Wankel, President, the Shubert Organization owns and operates 17 historic Broadway theatres, six off-Broadway venues, and the Forrest Theatre in Philadelphia. Notable Shubert productions and co-productions include Cats, Sunday in the Park with George, The Heidi Chronicles, Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, Amadeus, Children of a Lesser God, The Grapes of Wrath, Ain’t Misbehavin’, and Spamalot. In recent seasons, Shubert co-producing credits have included God of Carnage, Lucky Guy, Once, Hugh Jackman Back on Broadway, The Cripple of Inishmaan, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, This Is Our Youth, A Delicate Balance, The Elephant Man, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The Audience, Skylight and Wolf Hall. Since 1983, Shubert Ticketing and Telecharge have provided superior ticketing and marketing services to the entertainment industry.
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