HAIR

THEATRE UNDER THE STARS
www.tuts.com

Presents

H A I R
September 9 - 26, 2004
Hobby Center for the Performing Arts
800 Bagby at Walker
Houston, Texas, USA

HAIR is Showing at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts Houston, Texas from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo courtesy of Theatre Under The Stars.

TUTS ANNOUNCES CAST FOR PREMIERE PRODUCTION OF "HAIR"
HOUSTON, TEXAS… Before there was Rent, there was Hair! Kicking off its 2004-2005 "Six-Star Rated" Season, Theatre Under The Stars' premiere production of Hair will play from September 9-26,2004 at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (800 Bagby at Walker). This Sixties rock musical set the stage for a new musical genre and produced such popular hits as "(The Age of) Aquarius," "Good Morning Starshine," "Let the Sun Shine In" and the title song, "Hair." Featuring book and lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado and music by Tony Award-winner Galt MacDermot, the ground-breaking Hair electrified Broadway with its vibrant and memorable score, as well as its frank examination of war, peace and sexuality.

Sara Schmidt, Tom Stuart, and Asa Somers star in Theatre Under The Stars' production of HAIR playing the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo by Bruce Bennett. Single tickets may be purchased by calling 713-558-TUTS or online at www.tuts.com.

The cast of Hair includes Asa Somers (Berger), whose recent Broadway credits include Taboo and The Rocky Horror Show; Sarah Stiles (Chrissy), who was recently seen in the National Tour of Titanic; Tom Stuart (Claude), who appeared in the Off-Broadway production of The Fantasticks; Andrew Wright (Hud), whose Broadway credits include Jesus Christ Superstar and Footloose; Sara Schmidt (Sheila); who appeared on Broadway in Dance of the Vampires; Rachel Stern (Jeanie), whose most recently played Janis Joplin in Beehive at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; Q. Smith (Dionne), who was recently seen Off-Broadway in Fame on 42nd Street; and Erwin G. Irby (Woof), whose National Tour credits include Pacific Overtures and Dreamgirls.

The Tribe will include Barry Brown, Charl Brown, Julie Cardia, Lisa Vidas Consolacion, Hillary Elliott, D.J. Gregory, Marcie Henderson, Stephen Alexander Horst, Trisha Jeffrey, Daniel Frank Kelley, Stuart Landon, Ryan Link, Anthony Manough, Christina Nuki, Jia Taylor, Doug Thompson, and Kirsten Wyatt.

It's the Age of Aquarius for Q. Smith and Anthony Manough in Theatre Under The Stars' production of HAIR playing, the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo by Bruce Bennett. Single tickets may be purchased by calling 713-558-TUTS or online at www.tuts.com.

Philip Wm. McKinley, director of Broadway's current hit musical, The Boy From Oz, will direct this TUTS premiere. Previously for TUTS, McKinley directed the World Premiere production of Sayonara, as well as the 1997 production of Phantom. Off-Broadway, he has directed Thwak (Drama Desk nomination) and Zombie Prom. McKinley's other productions have included Peter Pan starring B.D. Wong and David Ogden Stiers, A Little Night Music starring Betty Buckley, and the World Premiere of Rhythm Ranch featuring choreography by Susan Stroman.

"Although the show that Ragni, MacDermot and Rado wrote had an anti-war theme, it also had a pro theme for a new way of life: it was not just against, it was for something," said McKinley. "It was not pro drugs, sex and rock 'n' roll. It went deeper than that - it was about love, peace and harmony with nature."

Tom Stuart, Asa Somers and Sara Schmidt star in Theatre Under The Stars' production of HAIR, playing the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo by Bruce Bennett. Single tickets may be purchased by calling 713-558-TUTS or online at www.tuts.com.

Film and stage choreographer Tony Stevens will choreograph. Stevens has choreographed such hit films as The Great Gatsby with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas with Bert Reynolds, as well as Broadway productions of Annie Get Your Gun and Wind in the Willows starring Nathan Lane. Hair will feature set design by Randel Wright; lighting design by David Neville; and costume design by Raydelle Robbins. Michael Moricz will conduct.

After opening on Broadway at the Biltmore Theater on April 29, 1968, Hair ran for 1,742 performances before closing on July 1, 1972. This Tony Award-nominated international sensation has been performed in nearly every country of the world and has seen 11 original cast albums recorded in many languages. In 1979, Academy Award-winning director Milos Forman created a film version of Hair starring Treat Williams, Beverly D'Angelo and Nell Carter.

Theatre Under The Stars' production of HAIR plays the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo by Bruce Bennett. Single tickets may be purchased by calling 713-558-TUTS or online at www.tuts.com.

Tom Stuart portrays Claude in Theatre Under the Stars' production of HAIR, playing the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo by Bruce Bennett. Single tickets may be purchased by calling 713-558-TUTS or online at www.tuts.com.

Single tickets for Hair ($27-$72) are available to the public by phone at (713) 558-8887 or outside the Houston area at (888) 558-3882; or in person at the Theatre Under The Stars Box Office, (800 Bagby at Walker, Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat-Sun 11am-4pm); or on-line at www.tuts.com. Audio described performances are available September 19 at 2 p.m.; open captioning September 19 at 7:30 p.m. & September 23 at 8 p.m. Wheelchair accessible. Group discounts are available to groups of 15 or more. Half-price senior (60+) and student tickets are available one hour before performance.

Sponsors of Hair include Continental Airlines, the official airline of Theatre Under The Stars; ABC-13; and the Houston Chronicle.

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS), one of America's largest producers of non-profit musical theatre, was founded in 1968 by Frank M. Young. Theatre Under The Stars was the first theatrical organization in Houston to perform free to the public at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park, and has since performed there each summer, giving Houston 46 lavish musicals such as South Pacific and The Who's Tommy. Since its founding, TUTS has produced more than 275 major musicals including many local, national and world premieres and is currently represented on Broadway with Beauty and the Beast. TUTS is also noted for mounting many International tours, including Debbie Reynolds in The Unsinkable Molly Brown and the Tony Award-winning Carousel. As a way to continue the tradition of musical theatre, TUTS' Humphreys School of Musical Theatre provides instruction and stage experience for more than 1,700 students annually. Now housed in the new Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, TUTS also annually presents the Tommy Tune Awards, honoring the best and brightest in Houston's high school musical theatre programs.

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Erwin Urbi stars as Woof in Theatre Under the Stars' production of HAIR, playing the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo by Bruce Bennett. Single tickets may be purchased by calling 713-558-TUTS or online at www.tuts.com.

TUTS PREMIERE PRODUCTION OF "HAIR" OPENS

2004-2005 SEASON AT HOBBY CENTER

HOUSTON, TEXAS… Before there was Rent, there was Hair! Kicking off its 2004-2005 "Six-Star Rated" Season, Theatre Under The Stars' premiere production of Hair will play from September 9-26 at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (800 Bagby at Walker). This Sixties rock musical set the stage for a new musical genre and produced such popular hits as "(The Age of) Aquarius," "Good Morning Starshine," "Let the Sun Shine In" and the title song, "Hair." Featuring book and lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado and music by Tony Award-winner Galt MacDermot, the ground-breaking Hair electrified Broadway with its vibrant and memorable score, as well as its frank examination of war, peace and sexuality.

Philip Wm. McKinley, director of Broadway's current hit musical, The Boy From Oz, will direct this TUTS premiere. Previously for TUTS, McKinley directed the World Premiere production of Sayonara, as well as the 1997 production of Phantom. Off-Broadway, he has directed Thwak (Drama Desk nomination) and Zombie Prom. McKinley's other productions have included Peter Pan starring B.D. Wong and David Ogden Stiers, A Little Night Music starring Betty Buckley, and the World Premiere of Rhythm Ranch featuring choreography by Susan Stroman.

"Although the show that Ragni, MacDermot and Rado wrote had an anti-war theme, it also had a pro theme for a new way of life: it was not just against, it was for something," said McKinley. "It was not pro drugs, sex and rock 'n' roll. It went deeper than that - it was about love, peace and harmony with nature."

After opening on Broadway at the Biltmore Theater on April 29, 1968, Hair ran for 1,742 performances before closing on July 1, 1972. This Tony Award-nominated international sensation has been performed in nearly every country of the world and has seen 11 original cast albums recorded in many languages. In 1979, Academy Award-winning director Milos Forman created a film version of Hair starring Treat Williams, Beverly D'Angelo and Nell Carter.

Marcie Henderson, Trisha Jeffrey, and Jia Taylor perform "White Boys" in Theatre Under the Stars' production of HAIR, playing the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts from September 9 through the 26th, 2004. Photo by Bruce Bennett. Single tickets may be purchased by calling 713-558-TUTS or online at www.tuts.com.

Set in 1968 in a Greenwich Village park, Hair is a day in the life of a "flower-children" tribe. As societal problems and war loom, the Tribe finds enjoyment through friends, singing and of course - long, beautiful, shiny, gleaming, steaming, flaxen, waxen, down-to-there, shoulder length or longer - hair. This timeless musical looks back at a more innocent time in America's youth and has a vitality and a meaning that outlives the late 1960's and early 1970's in America. Filled with humor and poignancy, Hair is sure to capture a new generation.

In keeping with the concept of the original production, Hair contains brief nudity and other adult material.

Single tickets for Hair ($27-$72) are available to the public by phone at (713) 558-8887 or outside the Houston area at (888) 558-3882; or in person at the Theatre Under The Stars Box Office, (800 Bagby at Walker, Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat-Sun 11am-4pm); or on-line at www.tuts.com. Audio described performances are available September 19 at 2 p.m.; open captioning September 19 at 7:30 p.m. & September 23 at 8 p.m. Wheelchair accessible. Group discounts are available to groups of 15 or more. Half-price senior (60+) and student tickets are available one hour before performance.

Sponsors of Hair include Continental Airlines, the official airline of Theatre Under The Stars; ABC-13; and the Houston Chronicle.

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS), one of America's largest producers of non-profit musical theatre, was founded in 1968 by Frank M. Young. Theatre Under The Stars was the first theatrical organization in Houston to perform free to the public at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park, and has since performed there each summer, giving Houston 43 lavish musicals such as South Pacific and The Who's Tommy. Since its founding, TUTS has produced more than 275 major musicals including many local, national and world premieres and is currently represented on Broadway with Beauty and the Beast. TUTS is also noted for mounting many International tours, including Debbie Reynolds in The Unsinkable Molly Brown and the Tony Award-winning Carousel. As a way to continue the tradition of musical theatre, TUTS' Humphreys School of Musical Theatre provides instruction and stage experience for more than 1,700 students annually. Now housed in the new Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, TUTS also annually presents the Tommy Tune Awards, honoring the best and brightest in Houston's high school musical theatre programs.