TUTS Announces All Teen Cast Of 13, Runs 9/10 Thru 9/12

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS), Houston's largest non-profit musical theatre company, announces the all teen cast of 13, a new musical comedy about coming of age, teen traumas and high school survival. This presentation by The Academy at Theatre Under The Stars' Humphreys School of Musical Theatre (HSMT) hits the Zilkha Hall stage at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts downtown, September 10 - 12, 2009. There will be student matinee performances September 10 and 11 at 10:00 a.m. There will be 7:30 p.m. evening performances on September 11 and 12, 2009. There will be a 1:30 p.m. matinee performance on the afternoon of September 12, 2009.

Evan Goldman is living the dream - he's popular, has the 'perfect' family and lives in the greatest city in the world - New York. That is until his parents get divorced and he's forced to move to a small town in Indiana. Uprooted from his old life, he has to make new friends and somehow navigate the social minefield of high school to become part of the 'in-crowd'. With wit and searing honesty, 13 is a hilarious, high-energy musical for all ages.

Featuring an explosive rock score by celebrated composer Jason Robert Brown and performed by an astonishing cast of young actors, 13 is a grown-up story about growing up. Music and lyrics for 13 are written by Jason Robert Brown who won the Tony Award for Best Original Score for Parade, composed the Tony Award-nominated Urban Cowboy, and wrote the off-Broadway hit The Last Five Years. The book is provided by Dan Elish and Robert Horn.

The role of Evan Goldman will be played by Aaron Boudreaux, a student at College Park High School, and resident of The Woodlands. 16 year-old Boudreaux's regional credits include Joseph in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Rolf in The Sound Of Music, both produced in the Woodlands. Archie will be played by Sean Hardin, a 13 year-old, student at Logos Preparatory Academy. Hardin has worked with the Houston Grand Opera in A Midsummer Night's Dream, as Sam in Green Eggs And Ham at the Houston Symphony, and played teen Scrooge and Peter Cratchet in A Christmas Carol at the Alley Theatre. He's a current student of The Academy at Theatre Under The Stars' Humphreys School of Musical Theatre. The role of Patrice will be played by HMST Academy student, Sydney Roberts, who made her main-stage debut in Les Miserables at Theatre Under The Stars. Roberts' other TUTS credits include The Stephen Schwartz Project, Geppetto & Son, School House Rock Live Jr., The Shoemaker and The Christmas Elves and The Phantom Tollbooth. HSMT Academy student, Chris Canal, will play Brett. Canal is a senior at Houston's HSPVA and has been seen in Kiss Me, Kate, Little Women and Footloose. Canal's TUTS credits include Disney's When You Wish, Cabaret and Geppetto & Son. Lucy will be played by Betty Marie Muessig, a HSPVA sophomore, musical theatre major and HSMT Academy student. Muessig's TUTS credits include Les Miserables, Geppetto & Son, The Stephen Schwartz Project, Aladdin and Cabaret. The role of Kendra will be played by Stephanie Styles, a student at the Humphreys School of Musical Theatre and a senior at Episcopal High School most recently seen as the leading player in Pippin. Nationally, Styles has toured with The Sound of Music and played the Rose in the New York City Opera production of The Little Prince. Styles was also seen as princess Jasmine in the ACT@TUTS production of Aladdin Junior.

13 will feature an all-teen band and will be cast exclusively from local Houstonians. Theatre Under The Stars will hold auditions on July 18, 2009 for a keyboardist, guitarist, percussionist and bassist.

Roy Hamlin, the Associate Artistic Director of Theatre Under The Stars, will serve as Director of the TUTS production of 13. Hamlin's artistic direction credits at TUTS include Disney's When You Wish, A Wonderful Life, 110 In The Shade, Anything Goes, The Wizard of Oz, Brigadoon, and for ACT @ TUTS, The Stephen Schwartz Project, Aladdin Jr., The World Goes 'Round and Pippin. Choreography is designed by Shay Rodgers, a native Houstonian who is currently in her 22nd year with Theatre Under The Stars in various roles: student, performer, teacher, production assistant, choreographer, stage manager and now Manager of Education. Shay has choreographed ACT@TUTS productions of The Stephen Schwartz Project, Aladdin Jr. and The World Goes 'Round. Her production credits at The Academy include Schoolhouse Rock Live and Disney's When You Wish. John Cornelius serves as Music Director and has been the music director/arranger/composer for a number of theaters including The Great Caruso, The Ensemble Theatre, Main Street Theatre and Theater Under the Stars' Humphreys School.

Beginning Wednesday, July 1, 2009 single tickets for 13 (starting at $22) will available by phone at (713) 558-8887, outside the Houston area at (888) 558-3882, in person at the Theatre Under The Stars Box Office, (800 Bagby at Walker, Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat-Sun 11am-4pm); or on-line at www.tuts.com. Discounts are available to groups of 15 or more. Tickets are available for September 10 and 11 at 10:00 a.m. and September 11 and 12 at 7:30 p.m.

Theatre Under The Stars' sponsors of 13 are the Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts, and the Immanuel & Helen B. Olshan Foundation, who graciously provided scholarships for HSMT Students throughout the year.

Founded in 1968, Theatre Under The Stars is Houston's acclaimed non-profit musical theatre company, currently under the direction of President and CEO John C. Breckenridge. TUTS was the first theatrical organization in Houston to perform free to the public in 1968 at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park, and is the only Houston arts organization that has performed there free to the public every year since the building opened. Since its founding by Frank M. Young, TUTS has produced more than 300 musicals including many local, national and world premieres such as Disney's When You Wish, Kopit and Yeston's Phantom, Jekyll & Hyde, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Funny Girl, and Irving Berlin's White Christmas. TUTS has also produced international tours including Debbie Reynolds in The Unsinkable Molly Brown, Juliet Prowse in Mame, Robert Goulet in Man of La Mancha, as well as critically acclaimed local re-inventions of classics such as Cabaret and Les Miserables. As a way to continue the tradition of musical theatre, TUTS' Humphreys School of Musical Theatre provides instruction and stage experience for more than 1,700 students annually through both The Academy and The Studio, which allow students to flourish in a year-round schedule of classes. Housed in the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, TUTS also annually presents the Tommy Tune Awards, honoring the best and brightest in Houston's high school musical theatre programs.

"13" was Commissioned by Center Theater Group, Los Angeles, CA and subsequently Produced for The Goodspeed Opera House by Michael P. Price, Executive Producer. Original Broadway Production Produced by Bob Boyett, Roger Berlind, Tim Levy, Ken Davenport, Ted Hartley, Stacey Mindich, Jan Bergàre, Broadway Across America, Sharon Karmazin, Carl Moellenberg, Tom Miller, True Love Productions/Olympus Theatricals and Center Theatre Group