Jason Graae to Play Frosch in SF Opera's 'Fledermaus'

Broadway and cabaret star Jason Graae will join the San Francisco Opera this fall to play the drunken jailer 'Frosch' in Johann Strauss Jr.s' Die Fledermaus.

Graae recently played  Nathan Detroit in the Cape Playhouse production of Guys and Dolls, as well as the immigrant S.L. Jacobowsky in The Grand Tour in Los Angeles.  He received the 2006 New York Nightlife Award for his popular cabaret act "Coup de Graae" and the 2006 LA Drama Critics Circle Award for Theatrical Community Spirit.  This season he performed in the American Songbook series at Jazz at Lincoln Center; in the Johnny Mercer tribute at NY's 92nd Street Y and played Offenbach in the LA Opera's The Grand Duchess, directed by Gary Marshall.

Best-known to theatre audiences for his Broadway appearances in A Grand Night for Singing, Falsettos, Stardust, Snoopy and Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?, and as one of the original Plaids in Forever Plaid, Graae received a Drama Desk nomination for Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh.  He has been seen on HBO's "Six Feet Under," and Showtime's "Rude Awakening" with Lynn Redgrave, among others. He made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in Everlast and sang with the Washington National Opera, Los Angeles Opera and the Boston Pops; and can be seen in several PBS specials.  In LA, he played Houdini in Ragtime and won the Ovation Award for Forbideen Broadway Y2KLA!.  In addition to being heard on 35 original cast albums and studio CDs, he has recorded two solo CDs: "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile" and "Jason Graae: Live at the Cinegrill."

Other comic actors who have played the role of 'Frosch' include Jack Gilford, Victor Borge, Dom DeLuise and Bill Irwin.

Die Fledermaus will play from September 9th through October 13 at the War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco.  For additional information go to www.sfopera.com.