| OTHER WORLD, A New Musical by Hunter Bell, Jeff Bowen & Ann McNamee to Have Industry Lab Presentations Feb 15 & 16 | |
| Posted by: Official_Press_Release 05:48 pm EST 02/08/18 | |
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| OTHER WORLD A New Musical BOOK BY TONY AWARD NOMINEE and OBIE AWARD WINNER HUNTER BELL MUSIC AND LYRICS BY OBIE AWARD WINNER JEFF BOWEN and ANN McNAMEE DIRECTION BY TONY, DRAMA DESK, and OUTER CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD NOMINEE GABRIEL BARRE CHOREOGRAPHY BY TĀNEMAHUTA GRAY TO HAVE INDUSTRY-ONLY DEVELOPMENTAL LAB PRESENTATION AT BARYSHNIKOV ARTS CENTER THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15 and FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16 OTHER WORLD, a new musical with an original score and story by Tony Award Nominee Hunter Bell (book), Obie Award winner Jeff Bowen (music and lyrics), and singer-songwriter and author Ann McNamee (music and lyrics) will have an invitation-only developmental lab presentation on Thursday, February 15 and Friday, February 16 at Jerome Robbins Theatre at Baryshnikov Arts Center, 450 W. 37th Street. With direction by Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Award nominee Gabriel Barre (Amazing Grace; Almost, Maine), the musical features choreography by Tānemahuta Gray, musical supervision by Drama Desk Award winner Mary-Mitchell Campbell (Company, Next to Normal), and orchestrations by Tony Award nominee Christopher Jahnke (Porgy and Bess, Legally Blonde) and Scott Wasserman (Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen). OTHER WORLD is being developed in creative consultation with the five-time Academy Award winning WETA Workshop (The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies). When an avid online gamer, Sri, and a confirmed non-gamer, Lorraine, are magically and unexpectedly transported into Sri’s favorite video game, Other World, they must find a way to work together and, with the aid of fellow gamers and their avatars, survive the game to discover a way home. The cast features Rin Allen (As You Like It, The Tempest – New York Classical Theatre), Ryan Andes (Big Fish, “Madam Secretary,” The Wild Party), Jordan Barrow (Sousatzka, The Tempest – Shakespeare in the Park), Charnette Batey (The Book of Mormon Nat’l Tour, Seussical Nat’l Tour), Sommer Carbuccia (The Men – The Public, Conquest of the Universe – La MaMa), Sofiya Cheyenne (Girl #2 – A.R.T./New York Theatres, An Intimate Evening with Typhoid Mary – New Ohio), Jess Fry (M. Butterfly, The Wild Party), Carlos E. Gonzalez (On Your Feet!), Ryan J. Haddad (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”; Hi, Are You Single?), Benjamin Howes (Scandalous, [title of show], Mary Poppins), Jo Lampert (Hundred Days, Joan of Arc: Into the Fire), Miriam A. Laube (Bombay Dreams, Pericles – The Public), Justin Gregory Lopez (bare), Michael Maliakel (Monsoon Wedding), Bonnie Jean Milligan (Head Over Heels, Gigantic, Kinky Boots Nat’l Tour), Evy Ortiz (The Fantasticks, West Side Story Nat’l Tour), Seth Rettberg (Avenue Q), Sherisse Springer (Cirque du Soleil, Hairspray), Blake Stadnik (42nd Street Nat’l Tour), Carla Stickler (Wicked), Jena VanElslander (Escape to Margaritaville, Rock of Ages – Las Vegas), Melanie Vaughan (Ring of Fire, Imaginary Friends, Parade), and Jason Williams (Madagascar Live!). The creative team for the developmental presentation also features music direction by Michael Gacetta (Groundhog Day, Matilda), fight direction by Danielle O’Dea (Grace, Bethany), casting by Paul Hardt of Stewart/Whitley (August: Osage County, Chicago), and general management by Alchemy Production Group (Come From Away, Memphis). # # # # BIOGRAPHIES HUNTER BELL (Book) earned an OBIE Award, a Drama League nomination, a GLAAD Media nomination, and a Tony nomination for Best Book of a Musical, all for the original Broadway musical [title of show]. Other credits include the books for Silence! The Musical, Now. Here. This. (Vineyard Theatre), Bellobration! (Ringling Bros. Circus), Villains Tonight! (Disney Cruise Lines), Found (Atlantic Theater, Drama Desk Nomination), and Julie Andrews’ The Great American Mousical (Goodspeed). He is a co-creator of the web series “the [title of show] show” and has developed television with ABC Studios/ABC Television. Hunter is a proud graduate and distinguished alumnus of Webster University’s Conservatory of Theatre Arts, a member of the Dramatists Guild, Writers Guild, a MacDowell Fellow, and currently serves on the boards of the Educational Theatre Association, a national arts advocacy organization representing theatre teachers and students, and the Educational Theatre Foundation. JEFF BOWEN (Music and Lyrics) wrote the music and lyrics for and starred in the Broadway musical [title of show] (OBIE Award) and Now. Here. This. Additionally, he has written music and lyrics for Now. Here. This. (Vineyard Theatre), Villains Tonight! (Walt Disney Company), and the theme songs for the web series “the [title of show] show” and “Squad '85.” His songs can be heard on the original cast albums of [title of show], Now. Here. This., as well as Broadway Bares Openings and Over the Moon: The Broadway Lullaby Project. He's developed TV sitcoms, designed Broadway show websites, and worked as a florist. He is a proud member of ASCAP, AEA, Writers Guild, Dramatists Guild, and the National Audubon Society. He serves as a faculty member of the National Theatre Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center. He also serves on the advisory board of Unsung Musicals and Stetson University's School of Music. ANN McNAMEE (Music and Lyrics) received a B.A. from Wellesley College and a Ph.D. in Music Theory from Yale University, leading to a twenty-year career in teaching, choral conducting, and music research at Swarthmore College. After retiring as Professor Emerita, Ann composed for, sang, played keys, and toured with the Flying Other Brothers and Moonalice, both bands led by her husband Roger McNamee. For the Lilith Fair tour in 2010, she fronted the band Ann Atomic. She retired from touring in 2012 in order to collaborate on musical theater projects full-time. Ann's outside interests include co-founding the Haight Street Art Center, a community center/poster museum/print shop to celebrate rock poster art in the Bay Area. GABRIEL BARRE (Director) is the internationally-acclaimed director of Amazing Grace on Broadway. His off-Broadway credits include the original productions of Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party (nominated for 13 Drama Desk Awards including Best Director); Summer of ’42; Son of a Gun; Stars in Your Eyes; Honky-Tonk Highway; john & jen; and Almost, Maine. He also directed the national tours of Pippin and Cinderella and his regional credits include the world premiere production of Memphis at the North Shore Music Theatre as well as Sweeney Todd, Finian’s Rainbow, and many new musicals at Goodspeed Musicals. His international credits include the world premiere of the Frank Wildhorn musical Carmen, as well as Jesus Christ Superstar and Aida in Prague, Czech Republic, and the new musical Tears of Heaven in Seoul, Korea. TĀNEMAHUTA GRAY (Choreographer) is the Kahukura / CEO of Taki Rua Productions, a Māori production company in New Zealand, and a graduate of the New Zealand School of Dance. Tānemahuta has 24 years professional experience as a choreographer, event producer, and artistic director of 25 events, festivals, and productions including the Oceania work at the China World Expo Opening Ceremony in Shanghai in 2010. He is the South Pacific / Aotearoa Section Guest Choreographer for WOW – World of WearableArt Awards for the past 8 years, as well as conceiving and choreographing his own New Zealand nationwide touring productions; Māui – One Man Against the Gods and Tiki Taane Mahuta and building Te Ao Hurihuri – The Changing World and three Kōwhiti Festivals of Māori and Indigenous Contemporary Dance in Wellington, New Zealand. Tānemahuta has choreographed Arohanui – The Greatest Love, Hinepau (national tour), The Ragged and Dog & Bone (Te Rākau Theatre) and Taniwha Loong (Chinese New Year). Tānemahuta spent five years performing for and cast captaining Argentinean aerial theatre company De La Guarda’s production Villa Villa in London, Las Vegas, Buenos Aires, Amsterdam, Berlin, Seoul, and Sydney. MARY-MITCHELL CAMPBELL (Music Supervisor) is a well-known music director, conductor, orchestrator, and arranger in the Broadway community. In 2016, she completed a two-week run on Broadway with Kristin Chenoweth in My Love Letter to Broadway. Her New York credits include: Sweet Charity (with Sutton Foster), Tuck Everlasting, Finding Neverland, Big Fish, Company, Sweeney Todd, Next to Normal, and The Addams Family. She won a Drama Desk for Best Orchestrations for Company, and was nominated for Best Orchestrations for her work on Allegro and Hello Again. She has a very active concert career and performs frequently with Kristin Chenoweth, Jonathan Groff, Laura Benanti, and Raúl Esparza. She has also worked with Carole King, John Legend, Katy Perry, Kelly Clarkson, Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, Elvis Costello, Josh Groban, Amy Grant, and Renee Fleming. She is passionate about arts education and poverty reduction, and started the nonprofit ASTEP - Artists Striving To End Poverty as a way to bring artists into the solutions. She is from North Carolina and has taught on the faculties of Juilliard, NYU, and Boston College. WETA WORKSHOP (Creative Development) For over 20 years, five-time Academy Award®-winning Weta Workshop has applied creativity and craftsmanship to blockbuster films and hit television series including The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, King Kong, Avatar, District 9, Thunderbirds Are Go, and Ghost in the Shell. This diverse, innovative company is also a tourist destination, producer of consumer products, interactive studio in collaboration with Magic Leap, behind-the-scenes facility, and creator of public sculptures and exhibitions, like the Te Papa’s record-breaking Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War. CEO Richard Taylor is involved in all projects, from concept to completion. SCOTT WASSERMAN (Orchestrations) is a composer, orchestrator, electronic music programmer, and music director. Broadway Ableton Programming credits include Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, and The Great Comet. Other Broadway: Escape to Margaritaville, Annie, and Leap of Faith. Other New York: The Bad Years (Director of Musical Programming), Invisible Thread (Ableton Programmer), 21 Chump Street with This American Life (Ableton Programmer). As an orchestrator, Scott’s work can be heard on “The 71st Tony Awards,” “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” The Radio City Summer Spectacular, Standardized Testing - The Musical!!!!, and Joel B. New’s album Cabot Cove (Broadway Records). Scott co-hosts the podcast “Song Salad” with writing partner Shannon Deep. BFA in Music Composition, Carnegie Mellon University. CHRISTOPHER JAHNKE (Orchestrations) Based in New York City, Christopher Jahnke is a Tony nominated Orchestrator, Music Producer, Music Supervisor, Arranger, and Conductor. Mr. Jahnke is the orchestrator for the Broadway and/or London/West End productions of Porgy and Bess (2012 Tony Nomination for Best Orchestrations), New orchestrations for Les Misérables (being performed worldwide since 2006), Legally Blonde, Cry Baby, Grease (2007 Broadway Revival), Flaherty and Ahrens’ Dessa Rose and A Man of No Importance (Lincoln Center Theater), Wind In The Willows (George Stiles and Anthony Drewe). Other orchestrations include: Do You Hear the People Sing? (Symphonic arena tour of Alain Boublil/Claude-Michel Schonberg), Tom Jones (George Stiles & Paul Leigh), Not Wanted On The Voyage (Neil Bartram & Brian Hill), Just So (George Stiles & Anthony Drewe), and additional orchestrations and dance arrangements for The Witches of Eastwick. As a Music Supervisor, his credits include Memphis and the upcoming Escape to Margaritaville which Chris is arranging/supervising for Jimmy Buffett. Mr. Jahnke has also collaborated with/contributed orchestrations and arrangements for Lady Gaga (2015 Oscars), Darlene Love, Steven Van Zandt, Rufus Wainwright, Adam Schlesinger, the Radio City Rockettes, and is also a frequent collaborator with 15-year-old child prodigy pianist and composer, Emily Bear. In October 2009, Mr. Jahnke conducted "From Broadway to West End - By Special Arrangement," a tribute concert to his mentor, legendary orchestrator William David Brohn, at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. As a longtime student and apprentice to Mr. Brohn, Chris worked with him on the Broadway and/or the London West End productions of Sweet Smell of Success, Ragtime, The Three Musketeers (Stiles/Leigh), The Witches of Eastwick, Mary Poppins, and Wicked. MICHAEL GACETTA (Music Director) is a NYC based music director, conductor, and pianist. Broadway credits include Matilda, Groundhog Day: The Musical, A Christmas Story: The Musical, and Book of Mormon. Other credits include Rent (Off Broadway), Chasing the Song (La Jolla Playhouse), and Hair (National Tour), among others. TV experience includes Fox’s A Christmas Story: LIVE. A classically-trained pianist, Michael received a BFA in Jazz Studies from the University of Michigan. DANIELLE O’DEA (Fight Director) is a SF/LA/NYC based fight director and motion capture performer. Her Broadway credits include assistant fight direction on Grace and An Enemy of The People. Her Off-Broadway credits include work on Gabriel, That Face, Bethany, and Medieval Play. Some of her Bay Area credits include the world premieres of Orphan Of Zhao, Dead Metaphor, and Mr Burns: A Post-Electric Play at American Conservatory Theatre, and It Can't Happen Here at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Dani was also the violence consultant for the world premiere of Latin History For Morons (BRT), now extended on Broadway. In addition Dani has choreographed for TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, San Francisco Opera, New Conservatory Theatre Company, and more. Her motion capture work can be seen in the video games XCOM 2 & MAFIA 3 from 2K GAMES. Dani is a BFA graduate from New York University, the Experimental Theatre Wing, and has been with the Society of American Fight Directors for 10 years. She was recently nominated for a Theatre Bay Area Award for her fight choreography on the West Coast Premiere of HAND TO GOD at BRT. She is the first woman and youngest person to be nominated for this award. STEWART/WHITLEY (Casting Director). The Casting Society of America Artios Award Winning Stewart/Whitley is headed by Duncan Stewart, CSA and Benton Whitley, CSA, with Paul Hardt, Christine McKenna, Danny Dunitz, and Allie Carieri. Selected credits include: Broadway/NY: The Great Comet, Chicago, A Clockwork Orange, Fiasco’s Twelfth Night, On the Town, Pippin, La Cage Aux Follies. International/National Tours: West Side Story, The Bodyguard, Sound of Music, Finding Neverland, Dirty Dancing, Chicago, Elf, Bullets over Broadway. Regional: Asolo Rep, Goodspeed Opera House, TUTS, Alley Theatre, Bay Street Theatre, RCCL, Hollywood Bowl, Theatreworks. Upcoming: Hadestown, Other World, August Rush, Hard Times. ALCHEMY PRODUCTION GROUP (General Manager). APG is a leading General Management firm for theatrical and other live stage productions on Broadway and across America. APG is headed by Carl Pasbjerg along with senior General Managers, Marshall B. Purdy and Abbie M. Strassler, and Associate General Manager, Lauren Tucker, who have overseen scores of live stage attractions around North America throughout their multi-decade careers. Current and recent productions include: Come From Away, In Transit, The Illusionists (2014 – 2016), Alton Brown Live: Eat Your Science, Doctor Zhivago, First Date, and Memphis (Broadway, West End, and National Tour). |
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