On Saturday, August 16 at 9:30pm New York Theatre Barn will be hosting a concert at the Laurie Beechman Theater to benefit the 2008 New York Musical Theatre Festival production of the new musical Wood, music by Julianne Wick Davis and book and lyrics by Dan Collins.
Wood is a modern-day re-imagining of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" about a young man who encounters a trio of Fairies, who sing and dance from the stalls of a public men's rest-room, on his adventure through the seedy wood on the outskirts of his hometown (Normal, Anywhere), while his "normal" community is forced to face the secrets, desires and dreams long relegated to the shadowy confines at the fringe of their society.
New York Theatre Barn presents this benefit concert as a tribute to other musicals, both old and new, that have been inspired by the works of William Shakespeare, such as West Side Story, Kiss Me Kate, Hair, The Frogs, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Like You Like It, Honor, Wood, and Danny Larsen and Michelle Elliot's (NYMF 2007 The Yellow Wood) treatment for the musical version of Shakespeare in Love.
The cast for this benefit will feature Brandon Cutrell (MAC award winner), Ashley Avis, Ashley McHugh, Joe Cassidy (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Wood), Kate Wetherhead (Legally Blonde, Wood), and a special guest performance by guyTunes featuring Jason Michael Snow (Saved!, Pirates of Penzance, Wood), Nick Blaemire (Altar Boyz) and Justin Keyes (The Apple Tree). The evening will be directed by New York Theatre Barn's Producing Artistic Director Joe Barros, with music direction by Julianne Wick Davis.
The New York Musical Theatre Festival production of Wood, also produced by New York Theatre Barn and Emily Miller, will open at the TBG Theatre (312 West 36 Street) on September 15 and will be directed by Thomas Caruso (Mimi LeDuck), with music direction by Linda Dowdell, and choreography by Andrew Parkhurst (Mama Mia!). Casting will be announced soon. For more information please visit www.NYMF.org.
The Laurie Beechman Theater is located at 407 West 42nd Street (between 9th and 10th Avenues) below the West Bank Cafe. Tickets are $11 with a $15 food/drink minimum. The show begins at 9:30pm. Reservations are necessary. For reservations please call 212-695-6909.
Please visit www.NYTheatreBarn.org for further information about this event.
