| Get Happy, starring Corbin Bleu and Stephanie Styles, will have an industry reading on January 17 in New York City | |
| Last Edit: Official_Press_Release 01:13 pm EST 12/02/24 | |
| Posted by: Official_Press_Release 01:12 pm EST 12/02/24 | |
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| "NY TIMES CRITIC'S PICK! THE SHOW'S CRAFTSMANSHIP, ZEST AND GOOD HUMOR IS PERFECTLY DOSED AND ON TARGET, AND THIS CAST IS HAVING A BLAST, CHEWING UP THE BARN WITH GREAT GUSTO. WHO COULD ASK FOR ANYTHING MORE?" – THE NEW YORK TIMES "A BIG, HOT DANCE EXTRAVAGANZA!" – HARTFORD COURANT "IT CAN'T GET TO BROADWAY FAST ENOUGH!" – BROADWAYWORLD CORBIN BLEU AND STEPHANIE STYLES WILL HEADLINE A JANUARY 17 INDUSTRY READING OF THE BROADWAY-BOUND MUSICAL COMEDY GET HAPPY CAST WILL ALSO FEATURE STEPHEN LEE ANDERSON, GILBERT L. BAILEY II, VEANNE COX, ZOE JENSEN, WILL ROLAND, AND DOUGLAS SILLS BOOK & ADDITIONAL LYRICS BY FOUR-TIME EMMY AWARD WINNER CHERI STEINKELLNER MUSIC SUPERVISION, ARRANGEMENTS & ORCHESTRATIONS BY THREE-TIME TONY AWARD WINNER DOUG BESTERMAN DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY DONNA FEORE (Monday, December 2, 2024 – New York, NY) – Shout hallelujah! Corbin Bleu (Broadway: Kiss Me, Kate, In the Heights; Television: "High School Musical") and Stephanie Styles (Broadway: Kiss Me, Kate; NY City Center: Ragtime; Television: "Loot," "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist," "Curb Your Enthusiasm") will headline a private industry reading of the Broadway-bound musical comedy, Get Happy. The invitation-only reading will be held on January 17 in New York City, it was announced today by producers Steve Peters and Michael Londra of VenuWorks Theatricals, Greg & Marissa Frankenfield of Excelsior Entertainment, and executive producers Carolyn Rossi Copeland and Nancy Nagel Gibbs. Get Happy is produced by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures. Get Happy, which premiered under the title Summer Stock to rave reviews and a sold-out run in 2023 at Connecticut's esteemed Goodspeed Musicals, features book and additional lyrics by four-time Emmy Award winner Cheri Steinkellner (TV: "Cheers"; Broadway: Sister Act the Musical), musical supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by three-time Tony Award winner Doug Besterman (Broadway: Fosse, The Producers, Thoroughly Modern Millie), and will be directed and choreographed by Donna Feore, making her long-awaited New York City debut after years of acclaimed work at Canada's Stratford Festival. Bleu and Styles, reuniting after starring opposite each other in the 2019 Broadway revival of Kiss Me, Kate, will play the roles of Joe Ross and Jane Falbury, originally played onscreen by Gene Kelly and Judy Garland. The reading will also feature Stephen Lee Anderson (Broadway: Bright Star, Fiddler on the Roof, Wicked) as Lt. Henry ‘Pop' Falbury, Gilbert L. Bailey II (Broadway: The Book of Mormon, Beetlejuice) as Phil Filmore, Tony Award nominee Veanne Cox (Broadway: Company; Caroline, or Change; La Cage aux Folles) as Margaret Wingate, Zoe Jensen (Broadway: Six; The Heart of Rock and Roll) as Gloria Falbury, Will Roland (Broadway: Dear Evan Hansen; Be More Chill) as Orville Wingate, and Tony Award nominee Douglas Sills (Broadway: The Scarlet Pimpernel; Little Shop of Horrors; War Paint) as Montgomery Leach, with Nicholas Cunha, Francesca Mancuso, Corinne Munsch, Kaylee Olson , Aaron Patterson, Jack Sippel, and Cayel Tregeagle. When the company of a new Broadway show loses their rehearsal space, the gang hoofs it to a family farm in Connecticut where, in the best musical tradition, the show must go on. Along the way, there are unlikely romances, some of the greatest songs of the American songbook, show-stopping choreography, and a farm – and a musical – to save. Get Happy had critics and audiences cheering alike. The New York Times, in their Critic's Pick review, wrote, "the show's craftsmanship, zest, and good humor is perfectly dosed and on target, and this cast is having a blast, chewing up the barn with great gusto. Who could ask for anything more?" The Hartford Courant called it "A big hot dance extravaganza," and Broadway World raved, "It can't get to Broadway fast enough." Bleu created his role in the Goodspeed world premiere, with The New York Times praising him as "a terrific interpreter of golden-age fare. His athleticism and deceptively casual nonchalance allow him to effortlessly lead energetic dance numbers, and his voice has matured into a warm baritone that works wonders!" Earlier this year, he won the 2024 Connecticut Critics Circle Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his performance. His Broadway credits include In the Heights, Godspell, and Holiday Inn: The Irving Berlin Musical. He is best known for his role as Chad Danforth in the "High School Musical" franchise. Styles won a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in Kiss Me, Kate. She recently played Evelyn Nesbit in the critically acclaimed production of Ragtime at NY City Center and will next star in the Encores! production of Urinetown . Her television credits include her role as a series regular on "Loot," and recurring roles in "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist," and "Curb Your Enthusiasm," among others. General management is by Bespoke Theatricals. Casting is by Tara Rubin Casting/Peter Van Dam, CSA. Additional cast and Broadway production timeline will be announced in the coming weeks. BIOGRAPHIES CORBIN BLEU (Joe Ross) is a versatile actor, singer/songwriter, dancer, voiceover artist and host. Bleu is best known as Chad Danforth in the Emmy-winning "High School Musical" franchise. Recently, Bleu starred in the TV movies "Love, For Real" and "A Christmas Dance Reunion" and special guest-starred in seasons three and four of "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series" on Disney+. On Broadway, Bleu starred in the Tony-nominated 2019 revival of Kiss Me, Kate at Studio 54, earning a Drama Desk nomination for Outstanding Featured Actor. He headlined as Ted Hanover in Holiday Inn, winning the Chita Rivera Award for Outstanding Male Dancer, and also appeared in Godspell (Jesus) and In the Heights (Usnavi). Additional stage highlights include Hairspray (Seaweed) and Mamma Mia! (Sky) at the Hollywood Bowl. In 2018, he played Don Lockwood in Singin' in the Rain at The Muny and Billy Crocker in Anything Goes at Arena Stage, earning a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actor. That same year, he was named Entertainer of the Year at the Tremaine National Gala for his contributions to dance. Most recently, Corbin starred as Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors at the Westside Theatre in New York, completing a three-month run with Constance Wu followed by a three-month run with Jinkx Monsoon. STEPHANIE STYLES (Jane Falbury) currently appears as Ainsley in "Loot" on Apple TV+. She can be seen as Autumn in "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist" and in the final season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" as Jenna. Styles made her Broadway debut opposite Corbin Bleu in Roundabout Theatre Company's revival of Kiss Me, Kate, earning Outstanding Debut Performance from the Theatre World Awards. Other New York Theatre credits include Suz in the World Premiere of the play Kingdom Come (Roundabout), Evelyn Nesbit in Ragtime (New York City Center), and The Rose in Rachel Portman's opera The Little Prince (New York City Opera). She toured the country as Katherine Plumber in Disney's Newsies, played Dusty in the West Coast premiere of POTUS (Berkley Rep), and starred as The Princess in Roman Holiday at the Golden Gate Theatre in San Francisco. Upcoming projects include Hope in Urinetown at New York City Center Encores! and the third season of "Loot" starring Maya Rudolph. Stephanie has a BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of Michigan. STEPHEN LEE ANDERSON (Lt. Henry ‘Pop' Falbury) has appeared in numerous Broadway productions including (most recently) Bright Star, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Wicked, Fiddler on the Roof, Julius Caesar, The Crucible, Footloose, The Capeman, and The Kentucky Cycle. Off-Broadway: The Iceman Cometh (BAM), Violet, Floyd Collins (Playwrights Horizons). He was a member of The Bridge Project, performing in Richard III at The Old Vic in London and BAM (director Sam Mendes). Regional: The Kennedy Center, The Old Globe, La Jolla Playhouse, Huntington Theatre (IRNE Award Best Supporting Actor, Bus Stop). Film/TV: The Last Thing Mary Saw, "Intrusion," "Law and Order," "Daredevil," "Public Morals," "Orange is the New Black," "Elementary," "Madam Secretary." GILBERT L. BAILEY (Phil Filmore) is a proud native of San Diego, California, and a proud graduate of the Musical Theatre program at Penn State University. WE ARE! Broadway: Original Broadway company of Beetlejuice the Musical; Original Broadway company of A Bronx Tale the Musical, where he played Jesse; The Book of Mormon. Gilbert has been featured regionally in The Scottsboro Boys (Center Theatre Group, Philadelphia Theatre Company), The Book of Mormon (Jumamosi Tour), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Madison Square Garden), and The Color Purple (Milwaukee Rep). Gilbert is happily married to Jessie Hooker-Bailey, and when he's not onstage, he can generally be found cuddled up at home with her and their dog Jade or writing music for his original musical, ‘Bout To Blow: An Album. Follow him on Instagram! @GLBaileyii VEANNE COX (Margaret Wingate). Broadway: An American in Paris, A Free Man of Color, La Cage aux Folles, Caroline, or Change, The Dinner Party, Company, Smile. Off-Broadway shows at Vineyard, TFANA, Signature, NYTW, The Public, MTC, MCC, Playwrights Horizons, Women's Project, Rattlestick. Shakespeare Theatre Company: Twelfth Night, Comedy of Errors, Merry Wives of Windsor, Way of the World, The Beaux Stratagem. TV/Film includes "Summoning Sylvia," "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," "The Mandalorian," "New Amsterdam," "NCIS New Orleans," "Seinfeld," "Cinderella," Erin Brockovich, You've Got Mail. Web Series: "Indoor Boys" and "Cady Did." She has been nominated for Tony, Emmy, Outer Critics, and Helen Hayes Awards and has received special Drama Desk and Obie Awards for Excellence in the Theatre. ZOE JENSEN (Gloria Falbury) most recently originated the role of Amanda Newhouse in the world premiere of My Best Friend's Wedding, directed by Kathleen Marshall. Broadway: The Heart of Rock and Roll (Paige, OBC), Six (Katherine Howard, 1st Broadway Replacement), Dear Evan Hansen (u/s Zoe/Alana). National Tour: Hamilton (Eliza). Off-Broadway: We Are the Tigers (Farrah). TV: "Law & Order SVU." Zoe is from Rockford, IL, and received her BFA from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Big thanks to WAM and Paradigm. Endless love to my qwitches, always for Mom and Dad. @Lanazoejensen. WILL ROLAND (Orville Wingate) is a Brooklyn-based actor. Broadway: original casts of Be More Chill (Jeremy Heere), and Dear Evan Hansen (Jared Kleinman). Other stages: Summer Stock at Goodspeed, Little Shop of Horrors at Guthrie Theater, The Black Suits at Center Theatre Group and Barrington Stage; LoserSongs; The Panic of '29 and The Bus at 59E59. TV/Web: "Billions" (Seasons 3-7), "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," "Foul Play," "Broadway Jackbox." Proud longtime member of Joe Iconis & Family. Passionate about new work: new plays & musicals developed with Ars Nova, Second Stage, Hartford Stage, La Jolla, Arena, NYMF, NAMT, & more. DOUGLAS SILLS (Montgomery Leach) can currently be seen in the HBO original series "The Gilded Age." He received Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations for his performance in The Scarlet Pimpernel on Broadway. Other Broadway/New York: War Paint; Living on Love; Little Shop of Horrors (Drama League Award); Nantucket Sleighride; Mack & Mabel, Hey Look Me Over, Lady, Be Good, Music in the Air, Carnival (Encores). National Tour: The Addams Family; The Secret Garden; Into the Woods. Regional: starring roles at La Jolla, Long Wharf, Westport, Kennedy Center, South Coast Rep, Reprise, California Shakespeare Festival. Other TV/Film: "Law & Order," "Ghosts," "Christmas on the Square" for Netflix, "Katy Keene," "Chicago Justice," "CSI," "The Closer," "Numb3rs," "Will & Grace," "Erotic Fire of the Unattainable," "Deuce Bigelow: European Gigolo." CHERI STEINKELLNER (Book & Additional Lyrics) has earned four Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes, a Writers Guild, a People's Choice, a Parents' Choice, a World Animation Award, and the BAFTA for writing and producing television's "Cheers" and Disney's "Teacher's Pet" with her husband, Bill. Cheri received her first Tony Award nomination for Sister Act: The Musical and is an Ovation nominee and Indy Award winner for book and lyrics for Hello! My Baby (with Irving Berlin, the Gershwins, Eubie Blake, and many more). Other TV: "The Jeffersons," "Who's The Boss?," "Family Ties," "The Facts of Life," "The Bob Newhart Show," and "Hope and Gloria." Cheri teaches writing at Stanford University and UCSB, studies Engaged Humanities and the Creative Life at Pacifica Graduate Institute, and directs award-winning youth theatre across the US. DONNA FEORE (Direction & Choreography) is one of Canada's most versatile creative talents, highly praised for her work as a director and choreographer at the Stratford Festival. At this year's festival, she directed a production of Something Rotten! that Jesse Green of The New York Times called "breathlessly funny – it delivered guffaws in gale force." Other directing credits include Billy Elliot and Little Shop of Horrors (both recently extended) and The Music Man, The Rocky Horror Show, Cyrano de Bergerac, The Madwoman of Chaillot, Guys and Dolls, A Chorus Line, The Sound of Music, Crazy for You, Fiddler on the Roof, and Oklahoma! (Stratford Festival); Tom Stoppard's Rock 'n' Roll and It's a Wonderful Life (Canadian Stage). Selected opera credits include Tosca, Red Emma, Oedipus Rex, and Siegfried (Canadian Opera Company). Selected film and television credits include Mean Girls, Martin and Lewis, and "Eloise." DOUG BESTERMAN (Music Supervision, Arrangements & Orchestrations) is a three-time Tony Award-winning musician with a career spanning theatre, film, television, and recording. He has worked with some of the most recognizable names in the industry, including composers Mel Brooks, Alan Menken, and Marc Shaiman; recording artists Barbra Streisand and Barry Manilow; and directors Rob Marshall and Susan Stroman. A veteran of 25+ Broadway shows, Besterman won the Best Orchestrations Tony Award for Fosse, The Producers, and Thoroughly Modern Millie, and was nominated for The Music Man (2000), How to Succeed in Business..., and Bullets Over Broadway. He was also awarded the Drama Desk Award for The Producers and Thoroughly Modern Millie. Besterman has contributed orchestrations to many award-winning films and TV shows, including Mulan, Frozen, and Schmigadoon! As a composer, he penned the scores for the podcast musical Little Did I Know (with lyricist Marcy Heisler), a vignette in the anthology musical Breathe (with Sharon Vaughn), and the musical The Big One-Oh (with Dean Pitchford). Current projects include stage musicals Death Becomes Her, BOOP! The Betty Boop Musical, Smash, and Schmigadoon! (Kennedy Center); and the films Kiss Of the Spider Woman and Spellbound. NANCY NAGEL GIBBS (Executive Producer) has been a Producer, General Manager, and Company Manager for Broadway and Off-Broadway since 1981. Producing credits include Peter and the Starcatcher (9 Tony nominations/5 wins, 2012); Water for Elephants (7 Tony nominations), Come From Away (Olivier Award, New York, National Tour, and International); Fun Home (Tony Award), A Christmas Carol on Broadway; Bat Boy: The Musical (2001 Lortel Award); Striking 12; All Shook Up; The Big Bang; The Last Session; Fully Committed; and Smoke on the Mountain. Nancy's general management credits, as a principal of 321 Theatrical Management with partners Nina Essman and Marcia Goldberg, include Wicked (Broadway, Chicago, California, two National Tours); Sister Act; Bring It On; Next to Normal (Broadway and National Tour); The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Broadway, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, National Tour); Man of La Mancha (2002 revival); The Graduate (Broadway and National Tour); The Search for Signs… (2000 revival); The Vagina Monologues; Fully Committed; Street of Dreams; and Lifegame. 321 also advises the many international companies of Wicked (Australia, London, UK, and International Tours). Nancy's general management credits include two seasons at Ford's Theatre in Washington D.C. and in New York City; I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change; De La Guarda; Over the River and Through the Woods; Visiting Mr. Green; Full Gallop; The Santaland Diaries; Hank Williams: Lost Highway ; john & jen; Smoke on the Mountain; and The Prince and the Pauper. She has been the Executive Producer of Chasing Rainbows, about the early life of Judy Garland. Nancy is a Board Emeritus Member of the National Alliance of Musical Theatre (NAMT). She is an Advisory Board Member of the Roger Rees Awards (NYC). She was also the recipient of the Edith Oliver Service to Off-Broadway Award at the 2015 Lucille Lortel Awards. Nancy received an honorary doctor of letters from Colorado College in 2018 and also gave the commencement address. CAROLYN ROSSI COPELAND (Executive Producer) worked as a Congressional Assistant to the Honorable Peter W Rodin, Jr., Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, but left Capitol Hill after two years to pursue a different kind of drama on the stage. After touring the country as a performer, she founded the award-winning Lamb's Theatre Company in the historic Lamb's Club, an all-male thespian club in the heart of Times Square. The Lamb's was home to two theatres, where she presented and produced over 50 musicals and award-winning plays from 1979–1996. Andrew Lippa, Mark St. Germain, Tina Howe, Horton Foote, and many others made their Off-Broadway debuts at The Lamb's Theatre. www.crcproductions.org. Carolyn was then tapped to become the Vice President of Creative Affairs for Radio City Entertainment/Madison Square Garden, where she oversaw all theatrical productions and rocketed development and expansion, theatrical touring, and development of new shows and content. She worked with Mickey Rooney and Eartha Kitt on The Wizard of Oz Tour, Roger Daltrey on A Christmas Carol, and the recreation of The Scarlet Pimpernel on Broadway and National Tour. She traveled internationally to identify talent and opportunities for Radio City Entertainment and MSG Entertainment. Carolyn left RCE/MSG to open her production company, CRC Productions. CRC has served as a consultant to Gaylord Entertainment in Nashville and Radio City Entertainment, and New York State Inauguration Committee. She has produced the award-winning Freud's Last Session in NYC, Chicago, and LA. Freud's Last Session was filmed by SONY Classic Pictures, starring Sir Anthony Hopkins and Matthew Goode. She produced Amazing Grace, which opened in Chicago and on Broadway and has completed a National Tour. CRC also serves as the Executive Producer of Strouse IP, the company that controls and manages the works of Tony and Grammy Award-winning composer Charles Strouse. She has been instrumental in the Broadway and touring companies of Annie and the release of the latest Annie film and "Annie Live" for NBC TV. She is currently co-producing Annie for MSG Theatre for Christmas 2024. She is one of the founders of The NewHarmonyProject — a two-week writers retreat in New Harmony, Indiana — and serves on the Board of the Goodspeed Opera House and Many Hopes. She was a publicly elected Board Member of the Garrison Union Free School District and a former board member of the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. She and her husband were awarded the West Point Military Academy Service Medal for their volunteer work with the Cadets and the West Point community. STEVE PETERS (Producer) is the Founder/CEO of VenuWorks which manages over 50 theatres, arenas, and convention centers across the US presenting international stars like Elton John, Cher, George Strait, Bob Dylan, Reba McEntire, and Harry Connick Jr. Producer credits include Broadway: You Can't Take It With You (Tony nomination); Once Upon a Mattress; London's West End: Your Lie in April; Blippi Live. National Opera House of Ireland: Noël. He is a managing partner of the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre (Minneapolis) and recipient of the International Association of Venue Managers McElravy Award and Legacy Award. MICHAEL LONDRA (Producer) is an Emmy-nominated singer and producer. He is the producer and host of "Ireland with Michael," the travel and music show currently shooting season 5 for PBS. He was the lead voice of Riverdance on Broadway and tours worldwide as a concert artist. He recorded several tracks for the Universal Records Arias Ancora project with Andrea Bocelli & Luciano Pavarotti. He toured globally with Celtic Legends as Artistic Director. He produced the world premiere and US national tour of Noël the Musical and is a founding partner of VenuWorks Theatricals. GREG & MARISSA FRANKENFIELD, EXCELSIOR ENTERTAINMENT (Producer) are Tony Award-nominated Broadway producers, co-producers, and investors whose credits include Lend Me a Tenor: The Musical (London's West End), Peter and the Starcatcher (five Tony Awards), Come From Away (Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical), Jagged Little Pill (two Tony Awards), Hangmen (five Tony nominations), Grey House (two Tony nominations), and Suffs (two Tony Awards). Outside Broadway, Greg & Marissa have produced over 40 Equity musicals and plays at the Old Log Theatre in Excelsior, Minnesota, as well as numerous children's shows and concerts. # # # PRODUCTION INFORMATION Get Happy Book and Additional Lyrics by Cheri Steinkellner Based on the MGM classic film Summer Stock Music Supervision and Orchestrations by Doug Besterman Directed and Choreographed by Donna Feore Produced by Steve Peters and Michael Londra of VenuWorks Theatricals, Greg & Marissa Frankenfield of Excelsior Entertainment, and executive producers Carolyn Rossi Copeland and Nancy Nagel Gibbs. Produced by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures. WEBSITE www.GetHappyTheMusical.com |
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