Aspire Performing Arts Company to Offer CHILDREN OF EDEN Encore, 1/28

On Thursday, January 28, 2016, Aspire Performing Arts Company will present an encore performance of its production of Children of Eden, by musical theater legend Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Pippin, Godspell).

The production received rave reviews from theatregoers its opening weekend. This is the last opportunity to see this amazing cast of children, teens, and adults from Wayne and surrounding areas perform in this incredible production.

The encore performance will take place on Thursday, January 28 at 7:00pm at Wayne Hills High School, located at 272 Berdan Avenue in Wayne, NJ. Children of Eden is directed by Lisa Beth Vettoso. Randi Seffinger serves as Associate Director and Rich Lovallo is Music Director.

Tickets are available via Brown Paper Tickets by visiting aspirecoe.brownpapertickets.com. For more information, visit www.aspirepac.com or contact Aspire PAC at 201-220-4933 or aspirepac@gmail.com.

Children of Eden is a joyous and inspirational musical about parents, children, and faith, not to mention centuries of unresolved family business. The show ultimately delivers a bittersweet but inspiring message: that "the hardest part of love... is letting go." The original production was produced here in New Jersey in 1997 at the Paper Mill Playhouse, starring Stephanie Mills and Adrian Zmed.

Stephen Schwartz is quoted as saying, "I think the work of which I am most proud is Children of Eden, for several reasons. To begin with, I think it's my best score musically. It also contains the song that is maybe my personal favorite of my songs from a purely visceral point of view, 'Stranger to the Rain'; a song that embodies how I feel about parenting (which is very important to me), 'The Hardest Part of Love'; and above all, the song that most espouses my philosophy of life and which, if I had one song to be remembered by, is the one I would choose: 'In the Beginning.'"

Lisa Beth Vettoso, Aspire PAC's Artistic Director, says "It has been a personal dream of mine to direct Children of Eden, and it has been on my 'short list' for about 10 years. What I love more than anything else about Children of Eden is how it speaks to the heart of what makes each of us human. And how, ultimately, we have free will, and with that comes the responsibility that we control our own actions and our own destiny - and what power and beauty lies in that. I am thrilled to give my actors the opportunity to share in a show that means so much to me, and provide them with a memorable experience to last a lifetime."