MCC Theater Hosts An Intimate Evening With CORALINE Cast & Creative Crew 4/21

MCC THEATER (Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, Artistic Directors; William Cantler, Associate Artistic Director; Blake West, Executive Director) in association with True Love Productions, has announced an exclusive evening with the creative team and cast members of the new musical, Coraline. This event will provide a unique opportunity to go behind the creative curtain and explore the process of bringing Neil Gaiman's wildly popular novel to the stage.

Bill Goldstein, of The New York Times and WNBC's "Saturday Today" in New York, will moderate a discussion with composer Stephin Merritt, book writer and actor David Greenspan, director Leigh Silverman and Jayne Houdyshell, who is playing the title role of Coraline. Audience members will be given the opportunity to ask questions and the evening will conclude with a first-ever public performance of one of Coraline's songs, performed on the ukulele and sung by composer/lyricist Stephin Merritt. This one-time-only event will start at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street, NYC).

$25 General admission and $35 premium reserved tickets are now available by visiting www.mcctheater.org.

A musical like no other, Coraline sprang from the minds of three of the most wildly popular cult figures of our time. Adapted from the terrifying children's book by Neil Gaiman (author of the international sensation Sandman and a 2009 winner of the prestigious Newberry Award, the top award for children's literature), this tale of menace and mayhem is set to music and lyrics by smart-rock iconoclast Stephin Merritt of The Magnetic Fields, and boasts a book by celebrated downtown actor/playwright, David Greenspan, who serves double-duty as the villainous ‘Other Mother.' Bringing it all together is acclaimed director Leigh Silverman (Yellowface, From Up Here, Well). The Focus Features animated film based on the same novel opened in February of this year. The cast for Coraline will feature Julian Fleisher, David Greenspan, Jayne Houdyshell, Francis Jue, January LaVoy, Elliot Villar and William Youmans.

Coraline was commissioned by St. Ann's Warehouse as part of the national series of works from Meet the Composer Commissioning Music/USA, which is made possible by generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts, The Helen F. Whitaker Fund and the Target Foundation.

Musical Direction is by Kimberly Grigsby, Choreography is by Denis Jones, Scenic Design is by Christine Jones, Lighting Design is by Ben Stanton and Costume Design is by Anita Yavich.

This world premiere event marks a first ever musical offering by MCC Theater. Performances will begin at the Lucille Lortel Theatre on May 7 and continue through June 20, 2009. Opening night is set for Monday, June 1 at 7:00 p.m.

Poor bored Coraline. She's left to rattle 'round her perpetually distracted, workaholic parents' house all by her lonesome. But late one night, her dreams of a better reality come true as she opens a big, carved, wooden door at the far end of the drawing room and passes into a perfect replica of her own world. When she's greeted there by a vastly loving Other Mother and a kindly Other Father, she's thrilled! But as the rats start to creep from the floorboards, and the way home becomes increasingly unclear, Coraline begins to suspect that, perhaps, all is not as perfect as it seems...

MCC Theater is one of New York City's leading Off Broadway theater companies, committed to presenting New York and world premieres each season. When MCC Theater was founded in 1986, its mission was simple: to bring new theatrical voices to theater-going audiences. MCC Theater continues to accomplish this yearly through presentation of its mainstage works; its Literary Program, which actively seeks and develops new and emerging writers and its Education & Outreach Program, allowing more than 1,200 students yearly to experience theater, increase literacy and discover their own voices in the arts. Notable MCC Theater highlights include: the 2004 Tony-winning production of Bryony Lavery's Frozen; Neil LaBute's Fat Pig; Rebecca Gilman's The Glory of Living; Marsha Norman's Trudy Blue; Margaret Edson's Pulitzer Prize-winning Wit; Tim Blake Nelson's The Grey Zone and Alan Bowne's Beirut. Over the years, the dedication to the work of new and emerging artists has earned MCC Theater a variety of awards.

MCC Theater's production of Neil LaBute's reasons to be pretty opened last week to rave reviews on Broadway.

For a complete production history and to purchase tickets, visit www.mcctheater.org.