New Amsterdam Box Office Opens for Mary Poppins, 6/12

The New Amsterdam Theatre box office (214 West 42nd Street) opens today for the eagerly anticipated Broadway production of Mary Poppins.

The musical, a co-production by Disney and Cameron Mackintosh, begins performances on Saturday, October 14, 2006 at the New Amsterdam Theatre (Broadway at West 42nd Street) in preparation for a Thursday, November 16 opening night. Mary Poppins continues in the second year of its record-breaking run at the Prince Edward Theatre in London's West End.

The show features such beloved songs as "Chim Chim Cher-ee," "Step In Time," "Spoonful of Sugar," "Feed The Birds," "Let's Go Fly A Kite," and "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" along with new songs such as "Practically Perfect" and "Anything Can Happen."

Ashley Brown (Beauty and the Beast) will play the role of Mary Poppins, and direct from the West End production of Mary Poppins, Oliver Award nominee Gavin Lee will play Bert on Broadway.

Joining Brown and Lee will be Tony-nominee Daniel Jenkins (Mr. Banks), Tony-nominee Rebecca Luker (Mrs. Banks), Jane Carr (Mrs. Brill), Mark Price (Robertson Ay), Cass Morgan (Bird Woman), Ruth Gottschall (Miss Andrew), and Michael McCarty (Admiral Boom). Katherine Doherty and Delaney Moro will alternate in the role of Jane Banks. Henry Hodges and Alexander Scheitinger will alternate in the role of Michael Banks.

The ensemble will include: Eric B. Anthony, Ann Arvia, Pam Bradley, Kristin Carbone, Brian Collier, Nick Corley, Case Dillard, Nicolas Dromard, James Hindman, Suzanne Hylenski, Stephanie Kurtzuba, Brian Letendre, Matt Loehr, Michelle Lookadoo, Tony Mansker, Tyler Maynard, Sean McCourt, Vasthy E. Mompoint, Jesse Nager, Kathleen Nanni, Megan Osterhaus, Janelle Anne Robinson, Rommy Sandhu, Phillip Spaeth, Shekitra Starke, Catherine Walker, and Kevin Yee.

Based on P.L. Travers's cherished stories and the classic 1964 Walt Disney film, Mary Poppins features the Academy Award-winning music and lyrics of Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman. The stage production has been created, in collaboration with Cameron Mackintosh, by Academy Award-winning screenwriter Julian Fellowes, who has written the book, and the Olivier Award-winning team of George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, who have composed new songs and additional music and lyrics.

Three-time Olivier Award-winning director Richard Eyre leads the award-winning creative team assembled for the musical, with co-direction and choreography by Olivier Award-winner Matthew Bourne. Mary Poppins features set and costume design by Tony Award-winner Bob Crowley, co-choreography by Olivier Award-winner Stephen Mear, lighting design by Howard Harrison, sound design by Andrew Bruce, orchestrations by William David Brohn, and musical supervision by David Caddick.

"It took Walt Disney twenty years to make the film of Mary Poppins, from the time he first tried to secure the film rights to its triumphant premiere in 1964. The film was an immediate and phenomenal success, earning universal acclaim. The film played to an estimated 200 million people when it was released, engendering extraordinary affection in its audiences, and has remained one of Disney's most enduring and best-loved films," state press notes.

Tickets for Mary Poppins are available at the New Amsterdam Theatre Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets or by calling Ticketmaster at (212) 307-4747. Prices range from $20 - $110. For group sales and information please call (800) 439-9000.