A CHORUS LINE is showing from
January 5 - 17, 2010 at the
Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (800 Bagby). Tickets are available at the Hobby Center Box Office, all Ticketmaster
outlets by calling 800-982-ARTS or online at
www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.
Photo by Paul Kolnik.
The New Production of the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award - Winning Musical at the Hobby Center In Houston
Tickets On Sale Now!
HOUSTON, TX …The new production of the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning musical A CHORUS LINE comes to the Hobby Center in Houston for a limited two-week engagement January 5-17. Presented by Gexa Energy Broadway Across America-Houston, tickets are on sale now at the Hobby Center box office, (800 Bagby), all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 800-982-ARTS 800-982-ARTS (2787) or online at www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com. Groups of 20 or more may be placed by calling (888) 451-5986 (888) 451-5986 or e-mail Houston.groups@broadwayacrossamerica.com.
A CHORUS LINE is showing from
January 5 - 17, 2010 at the
Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (800 Bagby). Tickets are available at the Hobby Center Box Office, all Ticketmaster
outlets by calling 800-982-ARTS or online at
www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.
Photo by Paul Kolnik.
The National tour cast currently features Alissa Alter (Lois), Kevin Curtis (Butch), Jonathan Day (Tom), Heather Duckworth (Judy), Paige Faure (Vicki), Derek Hanson (Zach), Tim Hausmann (Frank), Andrew Hodge (Greg), Bryan Langlitz (Don), Nathan Lucrezio (Al), Stephanie Martignetti (Maggie), Kristen Martin (Val), Andy Mills (Mike), Kristen Paulicelli (Tricia), Catherine Ricafort (Connie), Rebecca Riker (Cassie), Andrew Roubal (Mark), Michael Scirrotto (Larry), Donald C. Shorter, Jr. (Richie), Hilary Thompson (Kristine), Kit Treece (Bobby), Kirstin Tucker (Bebe), Aaron Umsted (Frank), Nicky Venditti (Paul), Selina Verastigui (Diana), Ashley Yeater (Sheila) and swing performers Venny Carranza, Lauryn Ciardullo, Emilee Dupré, and Shane Rhoades.
A CHORUS LINE. The Company in "ONE". Broadway Across America presents A CHORUS
LINE from January 5 - 17, 2010 at the Hobby Center, Sarofim Hall. Photo by Paul
Kolnik.
A CHORUS LINE reclaimed its place in the heart of Broadway at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre ( 236 W 45th St ) where it opened to rave reviews on October 5, 2006. Elysa Gardner of USA Today calls it “Exhilarating and endearing, it still has a freshness and fervency too seldom seen in contemporary musicals,” while The New York Daily News exclaims “There’s nothing better! The show thrills from the opening number to the glittering finale,” and Jeffrey Lyons of WNBC TV hails it “An American Masterpiece. A show for the ages.” A CHORUS LINE is directed by its original Tony Award winning co-choreographer Bob Avian and is produced by John F. Breglio for Vienna Waits Productions.
A CHORUS LINE recouped its entire $8 million investment after only 157 performances (19 weeks) on Broadway. It broke the theatre’s box office record 7 times in its first 5 months. A CHORUS LINE ended its Broadway run on August 17, 2008 after 18 preview and 759 regular performances.
A CHORUS LINE, conceived and originally choreographed and directed by Michael Bennett, features a book by James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante, music by Marvin Hamlisch and lyrics by Edward Kleban. For this new production, Baayork Lee re-stages the original choreography.
A CHORUS LINE. The Company in "ONE". Broadway Across America presents A CHORUS
LINE from January 5 - 17, 2010 at the Hobby Center, Sarofim Hall. Photo by Paul
Kolnik.
The new production features scenery by Robin Wagner, costumes by Theoni V. Aldredge, lighting by Tharon Musser adapted by Natasha Katz and sound by Acme Sound Partners. Musical supervision is by Patrick Vaccariello with musical direction by John C. O'Neill, orchestrations are by Jonathan Tunick, Billy Byers and Hershy Kay and vocal arrangements are by Don Pippin. The new 2006 Broadway cast recording of A CHORUS LINE was released by Masterworks Broadway and is available in stores nationwide.
The original production of A CHORUS LINE opened at the Public Theater’s Newman Theatre on May 21, 1975 and transferred to Broadway’s Shubert Theatre on July 25th, opening there on October 19th of that year. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Score and Book, and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. It ran for nearly 15 years, closing on April 28, 1990 after 6,137 performances. A CHORUS LINE remains the longest-running American musical in Broadway history.
Tickets for A CHORUS LINE range in price from $26 to $75 and can be purchased online at www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com, through Ticketmaster by calling at 800-982-ARTS 800-982-ARTS (2787), and at the Hobby Center Box Office (800 Bagby). Groups of 20 or more may order now by calling Group Sales at calling (888) 451-5986 (888) 451-5986 or e-mail Houston.groups@broadwayacrossamerica.com. To learn more about A CHORUS LINE and other shows coming to Houston , please visit www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com or visit the official A CHORUS LINE website at www.AChorusLine.com.
A CHORUS LINE will play January 5 through 17, 2010. Performances are Tuesday- Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 2 p.m. & 8 p.m.; and Sunday at 2 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.
A CHORUS LINE is showing from
January 5 - 17, 2010 at the
Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (800 Bagby). Tickets are available at the Hobby Center Box Office, all Ticketmaster
outlets by calling 800-982-ARTS or online at
www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.
Photo by Paul Kolnik.
The Houston engagement of A CHORUS LINE is presented by arrangement with Broadway Across America and is a subscription offering of the Houston Series.
Visit the official A CHORUS LINE website at www.AChorusLine.com.
Join our social community! For up-to-the-minute news including videos, news articles, photos, and more visit, Gexa Energy Broadway Across America-Houston on Facebook and Twitter.com/baahouston.
Broadway Across America is owned and operated by British theatre producer John Gore (CEO) and entertainment industry veteran Thomas B. McGrath (Chairman). Broadway Across America presents first-class touring Broadway musicals and plays, family productions and other live events throughout a network of 43 North American cities. Broadway Across America is also dedicated to the development and production of new and diverse live theatre for productions on Broadway, across America and throughout the world. Broadway Across America most recently produced the Broadway productions of HAIR, WEST SIDE STORY and Irving Berlin's WHITE CHRISTMAS. Upcoming productions include MINSKY'S, PROMISES, PROMISES, MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET and the West End production of BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S. Touring productions include Nickelodeon's STORYTIME ADVENTURES featuring Dora the Explorer and DREAMGIRLS. For more information or to purchase tickets through an authorized agent go to BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.
About the Hobby Center : The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts operates as the Houston Music Hall Foundation, a non-profit organized as a 501-c-3 corporation. It’s mission is to serve the community as a privately operated and maintained institution that will provide premier venues for resident companies and other professional and community attractions; to broaden the range, quality and accessibility of cultural fare available to the public; to encourage distinctive arts education and outreach programs; and to contribute to the cultural quality of life in Houston and the region. The complex houses two performance chambers, a five star restaurant, and an 800 car capacity on-premise parking garage. Built entirely with private money and then gifted to the City of Houston , the Foundation operates the Hobby Center without municipal or taxpayer support.
Anthony Wayne (Richie) and the Company in A CHORUS LINE, showing from
January 5 - 17, 2010 at the
Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (800 Bagby). Tickets are available at the Hobby Center Box Office, all Ticketmaster
outlets by calling 800-982-ARTS or online at
www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.
Photo by Paul Kolnik.
# # # #
A BRUSH WITH GREATNESS 2010 A.D.
An Experience and Observation of the Cultural Arts
Broadway Theatre Musical A CHORUS LINE
By Theresa Pisula
Theresa@HoustonTheatre.com
January 6th, 2010 Houston, Texas
The evening of A CHORUS LINE began at 6:00pm with reservations at the expensive and most fashionable five-star Artista restaurant located within the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts at 800 Bagby in Houston, Texas. As my good friend Kelly Emanuel and I were seated, she ordered her favorite cocktail. And I being the designated driver, to warm myself up in the cold, hard winter chill, settled for hot tea. We had a scrumptious dinner of gulf crab meat salad with baby spinach dressed with hazelnut-dill vinaigrette garnished with tiny goat cheese balls. For the entrée, it was pan-seared chicken with mascarpone mashed potatoes and delicious “melt-in-your-mouth” mushrooms.
Kelly and I treaded on deep thoughtful dinner conversation interspersed with sarcastic laughter and eccentric humor of outrageous predicaments we constantly find ourselves in. As I sipped my comforting Earl Grey, I hardly noticed the restaurant becoming a bit more crowded. In fact, after a few minutes of being seated, it was fully packed without an empty table in sight. It was quite a party atmosphere with everyone dressed in formal and semi-formal attire, drinking their celebratory cocktails and beverages, eating the most delicious and elegantly prepared food this side of the Texas border.
A delicate, young girl in a formal white dress with pink ribbons and flower appliqués wearing ballet slippers was leaning against the piano as the music man plays Broadway musical tunes on the baby grand. All this amidst the magnificent backdrop of the Houston evening skyline. I intermittently checked the time of the evening’s performance at the City Hall building wall clock proudly displayed outside amongst the numerous impressive and commanding twenty-first century structures.
Oblivious to Kelly and I is the presence of one of the most powerful men in the world. Sitting two tables away from us is 85-year old George Herbert Walker Bush and his wife Barbara Pierce Bush. Now many of you may consider George and Barbara Bush as old, and quite honestly, this evening President Bush is walking with a cane. But to tell you the truth, I hesitate to describe such a great man as old as the description hardly gives him justice. As a matter of fact, I would likely consider him as justice personified. Of course, this statement would remain bipartisan as many of you may or may not disagree. However, I can still say that because technically, as of today January 2010 AD the First Amendment still stands. We are still considered a free country, after all. Some of you may even argue, considering all the recent terrorist attacks and Americans living in all this crime, fear and violence, that we, as a people are not free. To reiterate, even though we as Americans live in a free country we may not necessarily be free.
Terrorism has imprisoned us within our own freedom. What? How is that even possible? Guess what? You better believe it, baby because today anything is possible. In the year 2010 AD, with our City of Houston openly gay-lesbian mayor and an African-American President from Kenya, it is very possible. I can’t believe I actually said that in the same sentence. Did I actually survive all this? I am hardly even aware I’m writing this as I speak. How have I come so far in time? How have we? Shouldn’t I be dead by now? It is the year 2010 AD. And guess what? I am very much alive and I am proud to say that I live to tell about it. Do you think the founding forefathers of our very foundation foresaw all this? Maybe, in the very back of their minds, they did. Heck, they practically engineered it. How the hell do you think we’re in this mess that we’re in?
As we finished our dinner, Kelly excused herself to leave the room and walked right past the President and First Lady’s dinner table. And then I saw them… as they slowly get up to leave. I sat there, completely frozen in my chair, unable to breathe, consumed with utter shock and disbelief at the mere presence of such an exceptionally dignified and generous pair of individuals. And when I mean generous, I mean in the sense of sheer power and implicit strength of will, immense courage, bountiful experience and keen wisdom. Carefully and painstakingly slow so as not to arouse suspicion and just as quickly so as not to let go of this unbelievable moment in time, I reach for my cell phone. I dialed my husband at home who is watching his favorite TV show (either Forensic Files or Family Guy):
Theresa: I am staring at the face of the president of the United States.
Pawel: What are you talking about? Obama is the president.
Theresa: I’m looking at George Bush and he’s staring right back at me.
Pawel: Young Bush or Old Bush?
Theresa: The old Bush with his wife Barbara. Oh my gosh, I can’t hardly believe it.
Pawel: Go up to him and say Hi!
Theresa: I can’t. I am frozen in my chair. I can’t move.
Pawel: Just get up and get his autograph.
Theresa: I can’t. I have to watch Kelly’s coat. She left it in her chair.
Pawel: Kelly’s not there? Where’s Kelly?
Theresa: She went to the ladies room.
Pawel: You’re in the same room as the president of the United States and Kelly’s not there? You should go get her.
Theresa: I told you I cannot move.
Pawel: Just get up there and get his autograph.
Theresa: I told you, I am frozen in time. I am stuck rigid to this chair and I simply can’t move.
Pawel: Just like the time we were with the President of Poland Lech Walesa. He invited you to take a picture with him and you just stood there, staring at him. He and the old Bush are good friends, you know.
Theresa: I’m looking around and I don’t see any secret service men.
Pawel: You’re not going to see them. They’re invisible. The key word is “secret”, get it?
Theresa: I can’t believe they even let me in here. They didn’t even frisk me.
Pawel: They can hear every word you’re saying. It’s not a big deal. Just go up there and ask for his autograph.
Theresa: He’s walking away now. All the waiters are saying Hi.
Pawel: Don’t you blow this opportunity. Just get up and get his autograph.
Theresa: I don’t have to get his autograph. I can just blog about it.
The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: The Right to Keep and Bear Arms. So I’m looking around trying to spot check the invisible secret service men. To my 2 o’clock shadow are two very big gentlemen dressed in distinguished business suits but with bright, colorful scarves. The bald, taller man with the moustache wore a bright pink and red scarf loosely hanging over his big body-builder neck. The other more heavy-set gentleman’s scarf was a bright (and I mean blinding bright) yellow and baby blue tied tightly above his massive shoulders. Hmmm….could it be that that these two guys are disguised as gay homosexual partners? Or maybe they’re just body-building secret service men who just happen to be gay. I mean, A CHORUS LINE is practically the most creative drama in theatrical heaven. Well, of course they are, it’s just too obvious.
Not far from them, to my 4 o’clock shadow is another gentleman in an argyle sweater having dinner with his female companion. He was staring right at me as I was talking on the phone. You’re not so secret, mister service man. Just because I had my husband on speaker phone doesn’t mean you cared enough to be listening to our private conversation. And just because my husband Pawel was born and raised in Communist Poland means you have any reason to suspect us. Oh dear, I’m in big trouble now.
Kelly Emanuel walks back in the room. She is oblivious to all the excitement. I said to her, “You just missed President George H. W. Bush and his wife the First Lady Barbara Bush sitting at that table right there.” “What?” she exclaims. “All I saw was an old man with a cane,” Kelly confessed. I said, “Kelly, you brushed past an old man with a cane and you didn’t know that he was the 41st President of the United States?” We proceeded to walk toward our theater seats straining our necks out, asking around and looking for another mere sighting of them. Gee, I wonder what they had for dinner. All I can remember now is that I had some chicken and some type of a salad. Even if all I had was KFC, I would still be thinking and stuttering like I am right now.
My husband is right (although I hate to admit it, he’s always right). I should have just gotten up off my seat and try to get the president's rare and precious autograph. Being in the same restaurant, two tables away as the 41st President of the United States is having dinner, is really quite an amazing opportunity. Although I would more than likely compare Bush’s stamina to Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy Magazine. That would make the First Lady Barbara Bush a Playgirl Bunny “Girl Next Door”, to which a lot of Houstonians would consider her as. My friend Des says they both shop at the Rice Epicurean down the street. “The president does his own grocery shopping?” I asked her. “Oh yeah, people say he’s very friendly and approachable. Although, the First Lady Barbara, not so much. They live in the Tangle Wilde gated subdivision down San Felipe.” I wondered as much. Kelly and I both knew they live in Houston. But we were both asking each other where exactly in Houston the President and the First Lady lives. Funny, how Heads of State make curious stalkers out of all of us.
Well, we didn’t have to be stalkers for long. I was quite perturbed when they seated me again in the balcony section as I, of course, always prefer the orchestra level. The ticket lady assured me, “That’s actually the best seat in the house. Don’t sweat it.” As we sat down on our designated seats, I saw the dude with the argyle sweater and his female companion seated inconspicuously a few rows behind us. And a few minutes before the show starts, the President and First Lady walk in, followed with a round of long and thunderous applause. Camera cell phones started flashing everywhere as they both smiled and waved to the cheering crowd. Even Kelly got a picture of the back of their heads. Although, she did say she sees them at the Astros games all the time. The young lady sitting beside me kept saying, “Wow. Cool. That’s really cool.” I am so sure everyone in the house was in total agreement with her. We, as a people were all unified in thinking the same exact “cool” thing. And then everyone settled down to begin to watch the show.
Needless to say, A CHORUS LINE is artistically, culturally and quite simply albeit universally fabulous. It is the timeless classic of any and all generations and it is no wonder why this very musical was chosen to win the literary 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the internationally-renowned Tony Award nine times. It is also not a mystery as to why the entire audience this very evening is privileged with such great and distinguished company.
Although sitting with such a glorious and captivating audience, enjoying this fantastically endearing show, I was quite embarrassed by the show’s raw and shocking depiction of a lone artist’s life as they audition for a Broadway musical. The stage performers’ intermittent dropping of curse words such as fuck, shit, bitch and such politically incorrect words such as black, gay, homo and boobs and tits and ass thoroughly put me in an uncomfortable and self-consciously distressful situation. Don’t they know that the 41st President of the United States is in the house, listening to all this vulgarity? Although, I must admit, because of the very situation I am sharing with everyone in this theater this very moment, A CHORUS LINE has never seemed so much more magical than ever before.
I was watching the President and his First Lady from my balcony seat as Barbara points to one of the performers onstage and she whispers something to George. He intently leans over to listen and nods his head in agreement. Look, see, they’re not uncomfortable with all the vulgarity at all! I felt such enormous relief. The ticket lady was right. I did have the best seats in the house. Although, I’m still sweating, I mean perspiring, just a little bit. Possibly due to the secret service man sitting a few rows behind me.
Oh, but the music was simply spell-binding. I truly believe that this is one of the musicals that recognized MARVIN HAMLISCH as the true creative genius of his time. And the dance, all the back flips, the hand stands, and the chorus line kicks all choreographed to perfection. From the haunting melody of “I HOPE I GET IT,” to the inspiringly angelic “AT THE BALLET” every song got a rousing ovation. I pretended not to notice that my friend Kelly, sitting right next to me was sniffling during the emotionally charged musical number “WHAT I DID FOR LOVE”. I must admit even I was getting a little teary-eyed.
WHAT I DID FOR LOVE
By Roger Whittaker
Kiss today goodbye,
The sweetness and the sorrow.
Wish me luck, the same to you.
But I can't regret
What I did for love, what I did for love.
Look my eyes are dry.
The gift was ours to borrow.
It's as if we always knew,
And I won't forget what I did for love,
What I did for love.
Gone,
Love is never gone.
As we travel on,
Love's what we'll remember.
Kiss today goodbye,
And point me toward tomorrow.
We did what we had to do.
Won't forget, can't regret
What I did for
Love
What I did for
Love
What I did for...
Love
Love is never gone
As we travel one
Love's what we'll remember
Kiss today goodbye.
And point me toward
tomorrow.
Point me toward tomorrow
We did what we had to do.
Won't forget, can't regret
What I did for love.
What I did for love.
What I did for love
Love
So I encourage you all as an individual living or dying in this planet to keep supporting the cultural arts by attending Houston Theatre. You know what they say, “You are the company you keep”. Even though you may be black, gay, lesbian, homosexual, or the President of the United States or all of the above. We all become united as ONE in the way a person’s experience and observation of Musical Theatre Art regardless of one’s race, creed or classification. And we need the cultural arts in our lives. The Lord God only knows that as a people of this generation 2010 AD, we need the beauty of art on our side.
Despite all the terrorist attacks such as the ones in the Middle East, Fort Hood or at the airplane flight in mid-air (whew, I’m so glad 2009 is finally over!) not to mention the Tiger Woods Thanksgiving and the Charlie Sheen Christmas Eve, I for one am looking forward to a joyous and happy 2010 Anno Domini Nostri Iesu (Jesu) Christi ("In the Year of Our Lord Jesus Christ") however it may happen to be. And I hope that my good ol’ pal George H. W. and his lovely wife the First Lady Barbara Bush will enjoy the same and many, many more New Years to come. Lord knows, we as the city of Houston, as the state of Texas, as the United States of America and the entire World Wide Web of cultures, languages, nationalities and principalities bonded through the electronic network of interconnection, we all desperately need it as well.
A CHORUS LINE
Book Authored by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante
Lyrics Written by Edward Kleban
Music Composed by Marvin Hamlisch
ONE
One singular sensation,
every little step she takes
One thrilling combination, every move that she makes
One smile and suddenly nobody else will do
You know you'll never be lonely with you-know-who
One moment in her presence and you can forget the rest
For the girl is second best to none, son
Oooh! Sigh! Give her your attention
Do I really have to mention she's the one
She walks into a room and you know she's
uncommonly rare, very unique
peripatetic, poetic and chic
She walks into a room and you know from her
maddening poise, effortless whirl
(One thrilling combination, every move that she makes
She's a special girl)
strolling
Can't help all of her qualities extolling
Loaded with charisma is ma
jauntily, sauntering, ambling, shambler
One, and you know you must
Shuffle along, join the parade
She's the quintessence of making the grade
This is whatcha call trav'ling!
Oh strut your stuff!
Can't get enough!
Ooh! Sigh! Give her your attention
Do I really have to mention
She's the one!