Constantine Maroulis to Headline Bickford Theatre Benefit, 6/9

American Idol’s Constantine Maroulis (Tony Award-nominee, Rock of Ages) joins nearly a dozen Broadway favorites to salute "Broadway’s most-wonderfully wicked showstoppers" in the gala benefit evening, Life Upon the Wicked Stage: Broadway’s Greatest Villains, Thieves and Ladies of the Evening, on Saturday, June 9, 2012, 8 pm, at the Bickford Theatre at the Morris Museum, 6 Normandy Heights Road, in Morristown, NJ.

This annual Bickford Theatre Guild fundraiser salutes those unforgettable characters you love to loathe from such Broadway classics as Sweeney Todd, The Phantom of the Opera, Oliver!, Jekyll & Hyde, Damn Yankees, Little Shop of Horrors, Beauty and the Beast, The Wild Party, The Little Mermaid, Man of La Mancha, Hairspray and more! Audiences can expect over twenty songs including “Reviewing the Situation,” “The Music of the Night,” “Poor Unfortunate Souls,” “As Long As He Needs Me,” “It’s All the Same,” “Stars,” and Constantine Maroulis’ renditions of the classics “Heaven On Their Minds” and “Pity the Child.”

"American Idol" finalist Maroulis earned a 2009 Best Actor Tony Award nomination for portraying Drew, an aspiring musician with pipes of steel in the Tony-nominated musical Rock of Ages. He originated the role in the Off-Broadway production at New World Stages in 2008. He has also appeared on Broadway in The Wedding Singer, Off-Broadway in Jacques Brel…, and the national tour of Rent. He will be starring in the upcoming Broadway-bound national tour of Frank Wildhorn’s Jekyll & Hyde in the dual title role of Dr. Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde with recording artist Deborah Cox (Broadway’s Aida) as Lucy.

Mr. Maroulis will be joined onstage by Ron Bohmer, whose Broadway credits include Father in the Tony Award-nominated revival of Ragtime, the title role in The Scarlet Pimpernel, Sir Percival Glyde in The Woman in White, Enjolras in Les Miserables, and most recently, Frid in A Little Night Music. National Tours include The Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera, Joe Gillis in Sunset Boulevard, Alex in Aspects of Love, and Coach Bolton in Disney’s High School Musical. Ron has sung at Radio City Music Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and on numerous recordings, including two solo CDs.

Also starring are Courtney Balan (Title of Show), Marc G. Dalio (Beauty and the Beast), Donna English (Drama Desk Award-nominee Ruthless!, Lend Me A Tenor), Amy Griffin (Newsical, Forbidden Broadway), Patricia Phillips (The Phantom of the Opera), Rob Richardson (A Tale of Two Cities), Matthew Shepard (Wonderful Town), and Julie Waldman-Stiel (The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber). Bickford Theatre favorite Rick Delaney (I Hate Hamlet, Veronica’s Room) will make a special guest appearance.

Life Upon the Wicked Stage is written, produced and directed by Stephen Kantrowitz and Jodi Chekofsky, returning to the Bickford for the fourth straight year. Peter Candela (Disney’s The Lion King) returns for his third engagement as Musical Director. Brian Pollack serves as Artistic Associate.

Tickets for Life Upon the Wicked Stage are $125 and include the show and a lavish “Mingle with the Broadway Stars” Cocktail Reception, immediately following the performance. A special VIP Donor Package is also available for $250, which includes the show, reception, Priority Seating, autographed CD, and Program Book listing. Limited Show Only tickets are available for $65.

Tickets may be purchased online 24/7 at www.morrismuseum.org, by phone at (973) 971-3706, or in person at the Bickford Box Office. The Bickford Theatre is conveniently located within the Morris Museum, 6 Normandy Heights Road in Morristown, NJ, and offers free parking and full accessibility. Box Office hours for phone sales are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Walk-up hours are Wednesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.