BD Wong to Join SDSU Students for Staged Readings of New Musical

Tony Award-winner BD Wong is set to perform alongside San Diego State University students next weekend as his new musical gets staged readings.

As part of his new artist in residency at La Jolla Playhouse, Wong's MR. DOCTOR is co-written by Tony-nominated composer Wayne Barker (PETER AND THE STARCATCHER). The MR. DOCTOR readings is produced in cooperation with SDSU's graduate musical theater program and are free.

"This is that revealing moment in a musical's development," says Wong. "Every show begins as simply an idea that, with a little luck and perseverance, eventually becomes a fully written show.

"But it's the next step, when that idea is presented by real singing actors in front of its first audience, that you get to find out a little bit more of how the world responds to those ideas, and whether they are as meaningful to others as they are to you and your writing collaborator. So taking that step with SDSU is very exciting for Wayne and me."

Besides appearing in the readings, Wong is also at the helm as director. Also in the cat are Broadway veteran Sharon Wheatley and Kikau Alvaro, who is curently in SDSU's WEST SIDE STORY. Robert Meffe, SDSU's MFA program's director of music, is set to music direct the readings.

MR. DOCTOR tells the story of a historical production of THE POST OFFICE, put on by young Jewish children in a poor section of Warsaw shorty before the Nazi "relocations." It was originally made for the young performers at a nonprofit musical training program in NYC for underprivileged children, Rosie's Theatre Kids.

Source: UTSanDiego.com