GYPSY, SINGIN' IN THE RAIN and More Set for The Production Company's 2013 Season

Today Jeanne Pratt AC, Chairman of The Production Company, announces her company's new season.

"For our fifteenth birthday, we're celebrating with three of the brightest shows ever written. These productions will feature a line up of this country's leading musical theatre stars and our expert creative teams will ensure audiences will see these artists at their very best.

Our first show is GYPSY, a musical theatre classic. Caroline O'Connor, who helped launch the company in 1999, returns to Australia to play Rose. The romantic comedy, Singin' In The Rain follows, and our third show is Broadway's version of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance. Subscriptions for the season are now on sale."

GYPSY opens in Arts Centre Melbourne's State Theatre on July 10. The award winning Gale Edwards directs this jewel of American musical theatre, Andrew Hallsworth choreographs and Guy Simpson is musical director. Caroline O'Connor star of CHICAGO (Broadway and Australia) returns to Australia to star in the role of Rose.

Inspired by the memoirs of the famous burlesque dancer Gypsy Rose Lee, GYPSY charts the story of her outrageous mother, Rose, who is determined to live out her own dreams of stardom through her two daughters.

GYPSY features all time favourites from the legendary Jule Styne, Arthur Laurents and Stephen Sondheim; Everything's Coming up Roses, You Gotta Have a Gimmick, Let Me Entertain You, Some People and Rose's Turn.

Singin' In The Rain will open on August 21 in the State Theatre. Currently enjoying a sell out season in London, the Australian production will be directed by Gary Young, choreographed by Kelley Abbey and feature John Foreman as musical director.

The Australian cast stars Rohan Browne as the matinee idol Don Lockwood, Matt Lee is his sidekick CosMo Brown, Alinta Chidzey is aspiring actress Kathy Selden, and Christie Whelan-Browne is Lockwood's leading lady, Lina Lamont.

With all the charm, romance, comedy and glamour of a bygone Hollywood era, Singin' In The Rain features a glorious score with the classics Good Morning, Make 'em Laugh, All I Do Is Dream Of You and the legendary Singin' in the Rain.

Written by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, with songs by nacio Herb and Arthur Freed, Singin' In The Rain showers you with everything you could ever want in a musical!

The Broadway version of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance is the company's third show for the year. Thirty years ago The Production Company's Artistic Director, Ken Mackenzie-Forbes produced this swashbuckling Broadway version of The Pirates of Penzance in the then new Hamer Hall. Now Gilbert and Sullivan's most popular musical comedy, with all the laughs, songs and romance that made it a long running Broadway smash, is heading back to the magnificent new Hamer Hall.

This new staging will feature a dashing young cast with Gareth Keegan as Frederic, Virginia Gay as Ruth and Brent Hill as the Sergeant of Police. Wayne Scott Kermond is Major General Stanley and Adam Murphy is the outrageous Pirate King.

Brilliant creative team, Dean Bryant and Andrew Hallsworth stage this colorful extravaganza and Mathew Frank conducts the score that includes many of Gilbert and Sullivan's most popular numbers; Poor Wandering One!, When the Foreman Bares his Steel, With Cat-Like Tread and Away, Away! My Heart's On Fire.

Launching the new season at her home, Raheen, Jeanne Pratt said: "It is hard to believe that it's fifteen years since I started this company. My dream in 1999 was twofold: to provide professional opportunities for local artists and to entertain Melbourne audiences with the best shows from Broadway and beyond. Our success has been beyond my wildest dreams. Thank you, Melbourne!'

"Our mantra has always been 'quality entertainment at the best prices", so our gift to you in 2013 is a 50 percent discount on full price individual tickets for anyone under the age of eighteen. No ifs, no buts, no catches! We simply want everyone to have the opportunity to enjoy our musicals. This means that anyone under 18 pay as little as $23 a ticket."

For full details of the shows go online to www.theproductioncompany.com.au.