New Stars Announced for CABARET at Wharton Center

Roundabout Theatre Company announced today casting for the Wharton Center engagement of the national tour of Sam Mendes (Spectre, American Beauty) and Rob Marshall's (Into the Woods and Chicago, the films) Tony Award-winning production of CABARET.

Performances will run Tuesday, February 21 - Sunday, February 26, 2017 at Cobb Great Hall. Tickets are on sale now and available at Wharton Center's official ticketing outlets: online at whartoncenter.com, at the Auto-Owners Insurance Ticket Office at Wharton Center, or by calling 1-800-WHARTON.

Jon Peterson, a veteran of Roundabout's CABARET on Broadway and well known for his various roles on London's West End, including CATS, A Chorus Line and The Sound of Music, will be starring in the role as the Emcee while Leigh Ann Larkin, known on Broadway for her roles in Gypsy (Dainty June) and A Little Night Music, will be making her CABARET debut as Sally Bowles. Joining them are Benjamin Eakeley (Cabaret/Broadway) as Clifford Bradshaw, Alison Ewing (Cabaret/Broadway) as Fräulein Kost, Mary Gordon Murray (Hands on a Hardbody) as Fräulein Schneider, Scott Robertson (Cabaret/Broadway) as Herr Schultz and Patrick Vaill (Macbeth) as Ernst Ludwig.

True quadruple threats, the cast which also doubles as the Kit Kat Band includes Kelsey Beckert (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers), Sarah Bishop (42nd Street), Chelsey Clark, Jenna Zito Clark (Saturday Night Fever), Ryan DeNardo (Grease), Lori Eure (Cabaret/Broadway), Kendal Hartse (Cinderella), Andrew Hubacher (Cabaret/Broadway), Joey Khoury (Altar Boyz), Chris Kotera (Evita), Tommy McDowell (American Idiot), Laura Sheehy (Cabaret/Broadway), Steven Wenslawski (Spamalot), Bob Amaral (A Funny Thing....) and Lucy Sorlucco (The Phantom of the Opera). The Kit Kat Band is under the direction of conductor Robert Cookman and also features Alec Bart (Associate Music Director/keyboard), Bobby Brennen (bass) and Taurus Lovely (drums).

John Kander, Fred Ebb and Joe Masteroff's Tony-winning musical features some of the most memorable songs in theatre history, including "Cabaret," "Willkommen" and "Maybe This Time." CABARET is set in the infamous Kit Kat Klub, where the Emcee, Sally Bowles and a raucous ensemble take the stage nightly to tantalize the crowd - and to leave their troubles outside.

Roundabout Theatre Company's tour of CABARET features original Broadway direction by Sam Mendes and original co-direction & choreography by Rob Marshall. Tour direction is under the helm of BT McNicholl (Spamalot) and choreography is recreated by Cynthia Onrubia (Victor/Victoria). The design team includes set design by Robert Brill (Assassins), costume design by William Ivey Long (Chicago), lighting design by Peggy Eisenhauer (Ragtime) and Mike Baldassari ("Nine"), sound design by Keith Caggiano (The Radio City Christmas Spectacular) based on the original Broadway design by Brian Ronan with hair and wig design by Paul Huntley. CABARET features orchestrations by Michael Gibson (The Boy From Oz), music supervision & vocal arrangements by Patrick Vaccariello (On Your Feet) and music direction by Robert Cookman (Legally Blonde). CABARET is based on the play by John Van Druten and stories by Christopher Isherwood.

Roundabout Theatre Company's acclaimed production of CABARET first opened on Broadway on March 19, 1998 starring Alan Cumming and Natasha Richardson and won four Tony Awards including Best Revival of a Musical. Cabaret went on to play on Broadway for six years and 2,378 performances before finishing its run on January 4, 2004. CABARET returned to Broadway and the infamous Studio 54 with performances beginning March 21, 2014 with Alan Cumming reprising his Tony-winning role as the Emcee. The production featured Michelle Williams, Emma Stone and Sienna Miller in the role of Sally Bowles and played 423 performances through March 29, 2015. The current national tour of CABARET began performances on Jan. 26, 2016 in Providence, RI.

CABARET premiered on Broadway in 1966 and won eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, in addition to the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, the Outer Critics' Circle Award, the Variety Poll of New York Critics, and London's Evening Standard Award. The original Broadway production played 1,166 performances.

For more information, visit www.cabaretmusical.com.