Scottsboro Boys to Play Eight-Week Run at the Guthrie Theater

The Guthrie Theater announced today that it will present a limited eight-week run of The Scottsboro Boys, the stirring new musical by John Kander and Fred Ebb, the Tony Award-winning creators of Cabaret and Chicago. The Scottsboro Boys received its world premiere Off-Broadway at The Vineyard Theatre (Douglas Aibel, Artistic Director; Jennifer Garvey-Blackwell, Executive Director), where it just completed a critically acclaimed sold out run.

The Scottsboro Boys features music and lyrics by Tony Award-winners John Kander and Fred Ebb, book by Tony Award-nominee David Thompson (Steel Pier) and direction and choreography by five-time Tony Award winner Susan Stroman (The Producers, Contact). The musical is presented by special arrangement with Barry and Fran Weissler and Jacki Barlia Florin.

"Seeing The Scottsboro Boys, I was blown away by its power and its invention," said Guthrie director Joe Dowling. "Immediately I knew that we had found a really important new American work, which would add considerably to our repertoire. We are very proud to announce that this wonderful work will play on the McGuire Proscenium Stage."

The last collaboration of the legendary songwriting team of Kander & Ebb explores the infamous "Scottsboro" case of the 1930s, in which a group of African American teenagers was unjustly accused of attacking two white women - and the boys' attempts to prove their innocence. The Scottsboro Boys brings this provocative new work to the stage, depicting one of the most important and notorious chapters in the history of the American Civil Rights movement.

The acclaimed new musical comes to Minneapolis on the heels of the production's world premiere at the Vineyard Theatre in New York where it was heralded by Entertainment Weekly as "a cause for rejoicing," "a masterwork" by the New York Post, "staggeringly inventive" by the Associated Press and "dazzling, riveting and toe-tapping with real teeth" by Variety. NY1 called the production "one of the most satisfyingly original shows to open in a very long time!," while Bloomberg News raved "Susan Stroman is in top form here - the company of actors is extraordinary, with razor sharp dancing, and soaring music, some of Kander and Ebb's best!"

The Scottsboro Boys begins preview performances on July 31, opens August 6 and continues through September 25, 2010. Single tickets start at $29 and are now on sale through the Guthrie Box Office at 612.377.2224, toll-free 877.44.STAGE, 612.225.6244 (Group Sales) and online at www.guthrietheater.org.