Mayes & Wintersteller Ends CLOSER THAN EVER At Queens Theater In The Park, 4/25

by BWW News Desk Apr. 25, 2010

Queens Theatre in the Park (QTP) and Bristol Riverside Theatre, in association with Neil Berg and Adam Friedson, will end its new production of the award-winning musical revue Closer Than Ever directed by Richard Malty. Jr. and starring original cast members Sally Mayes and Lynne Wintersteller on April 25th.
Tickets are $32-38 and are available at www.queenstheatre.org or by phone at 718-760-0064.

In this 20th Anniversary production cast members Mayes and Wintersteller along with original musical director Patrick Brady are reunited under the direction of Tony award winning director, Richard Maltby Jr. The production is also part of celebration of a month long celebration and series of events including honoring them at CAP 21's annual gala on March 11th ,the opening night gala of Closer Than Ever on April 16th , and the opening April 30th at the McCarter Center of their new musical Take Flight.

With music by David Shire and lyrics by Richard Maltby, Jr., Closer Than Ever is a theatrical revue filled with wise and witty "songs of experience," that reflect on marriage, parents, children, and lasting friendships. As part of their ongoing efforts to update and keep the work relevant to a new generation of theatergoers Maltby and Shire are adding new material which includes a new song called "Dating Again" about the pitfalls and pleasures of being single again, as well as updating outdated lyrics and additional material.

In addition to the early casting including Ms. Mayes and Ms. Wintersteller, the production will also feature co-directoin and choreography by J. Kurt Stamm, musical direction by Patrick Brady, scenery designed by Roman Tatarowicz, costumes designed by Thome Heyer and lighting designed by Ryan O'Gara.

Closer Than Ever won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway Musical, and Maltby, Shire, and Wintersteller garnered Drama Desk Awards. Howard Kissel of The NY Daily News noted, "Probably the best musical we'll see this season...There is more genuine drama in each Maltby and Shire song than in the entirety of most of the bloated spectacles that now pass for Broadway musicals. The cast overflows with talent!Michael Kuchwara of AP wrote ‘One of the finest scores of the year. Closer Than Ever is an exhilarating musical review that reaffirm's one's belief that the American musical theater isn't dead yet." And Stephen Holden wrote in the New York Times, "The songs of Maltby and Shire communicate something rarely found in theatre music nowadays: a rich sweeping sense of lives being lived and people changing over time."

After the Queens performance dates, Closer Than Ever will also play May 4-23 dates at the Riverside Bristol Theatre in Bristol, PA.

David Shire Broadway: Baby (Tony nomination), Big (Tony nomination). Off-Broadway: Starting Here, Starting Now (Grammy nomination), Closer Than Ever (Outer Critics Circle Award), Urban Blight (Manhattan Theatre Club), The Loman Family Picnic, Shmulnik's Waltz, As You Like It (New York Shakespeare Festival), Peter Ustinov's The Unknown Soldier and His Wife. Film: Norma Rae (Academy Award), Francis Coppola's The Conversation, The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3, All the President's Men, Saturday Night Fever (two Grammy Awards), Short Circuit, Return to Oz, The World According to Garp, Paris Trout, ‘Night Mother, Straight Time, Farewell, My Lovely, The Hindenberg, 2010, numerous others. Television: "Raid on Entebbe" (Emmy nomination), "Sarah Plain and Tall," "Serving in Silence," "The Kennedys of Massachusetts" (Emmy nomination), "Last Stand at Saber River," "The Heidi Chronicles," "Broadway Bound," "Alice," numerous others. Recorded songs: "With You I'm Born Again" (Billy Preston and Syreeta, gold record), "What About Today?" (Barbra Streisand), "Starting Here, Starting Now" (Barbra Streisand), "I'll Never Say Goodbye" (Melissa Manchester), "It Goes Like It Goes" (Jennifer Warrens), numerous others. Member of Dramatists Guild Council. Married to Didi Conn and father of Matthew, 22, Daniel, five, and Romeo (West Highland Terrier).

Richard Maltby, Jr. Broadway: conceived and directed two Tony Award-winning musicals: Ain't Misbehavin' (1978; Tony, NY Drama Critics, Outer Critics, Drama Desk Awards, also Tony Award for Best Director), Fosse (1999; Tony, Outer Critics, Drama Desk Awards) and Ring of Fire, the Johnny Cash musical show (2006). With composer David Shire: director/lyricist: Baby (1983; book by Sybille Pearson; seven Tony Award nominations); lyricist: Big (1996; book by John Weidman; Tony nomination, Best Score); lyricist/conceiver: Take Flight (book by John Weidman), world premiere 2007 at the Menier Chocolate Factory in London, also produced in Japan the same year. Co-lyricist: Miss Saigon (1990, London Evening Standard Award, Best Musical; 1991, Tony nomination, Best Score). Co-bookwriter/lyricist: The Pirate Queen (2007). Director/co-lyricist: American version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Song & Dance (1986 Tony Award for star, Bernadette Peters). Off-Broadway: director/lyricist: Starting Here, Starting Now (1977 Grammy nomination); Closer Than Ever (1989, two Outer Critics Circle Awards: Best Musical, Best Score), both written with composer David Shire. Regional: director, Mask (2008, Pasadena Playhouse); director, The 60's Project (2006, Goodspeed Opera House). Film: screenplay, Miss Potter (2007) about Beatrix Potter, starring Renee Zellweger and Ewan McGregor (Christopher Award, Best Screenplay). 30-year association with Manhattan Theatre Club. Contributes devilish crossword puzzles to Harper's Magazine. Son of well-known orchestra leader; five children: Nicholas, David, Jordan, Emily and Charlotte.

Sally Mayes Broadway: Welcome to the Club (Theatre World Award, Outer Critics Circle nomination), She Loves Me (Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations). Off-Broadway: Closer Than Ever (Outer Critics nomination), Das Barbecü, Pete ‘n' Keely (Drama Desk nomination), Dirty Blonde (first national tour). Film: City Hall. TV: "Bye Bye Birdie," "Law & Order," "Sex and the City." Cast recordings: Closer Than Ever, She Loves Me, Das Barbecü, Bye Bye Birdie, Pete ‘n' Keely, Unsung Sondheim, Night of the Hunter. Solo albums: The Dorothy Fields Songbook, Our Private World: The Comden and Green Songbook, The Story Hour, Boys and Girls Like You and Me. Twelve Manhattan Associations of Cabaret Award nominations. Two Bistro Awards for excellence in cabaret and recording.

Lynne Wintersteller Broadway: A Grand Night For Singing and garnered "Best Actress" Drama Desk nomination for Maltby/Shire's Off-Broadway hit Closer Than Ever. Her Grace in Annie, includes Broadway, First & Fourth National Tours. Off-Broadway: I Sent A Letter To My Love; Nunsense; Gifts of the Magi; Levinsky; Grass Harp; Richard Cory (NYMF Best Actress Award); The Mistress Cycle. Lynne received an LA Ovation "Best Actress" Nomination for her performance in The Ghost & Mrs. Muir and had the honor of playing Margaret Johnson (twice regionally) in The Light In The Piazza. Television: Law & Order CI; Total Security; Big Brother Jake; Chappelle's Show plus numerous Commercials. Recordings: A Grand Night For Singing; Closer Than Ever - featured solo artist (Varese Sarabande label) Broadway Sings Christmas, Lost in Boston III and Unsung Musicals II. Academy Award-winning composer David Shire & Lynne keep busy with their own symphony pops concerts. Recently, Cleveland Pops maestro Carl Topilow and Guest Vocalist Lynne shared an exciting evening with the Firelands Symphony in Lynne's hometown of Sandusky, Ohio.

Tickets are available:
* Online at www.queenstheatre.org.
* By phone at 718-760-0064, Tue-Sat, 12-6pm.
* In person at Queens Theatre in the Park, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Flushing, NY.
Queens Theatre in the Park is located in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Flushing, NY.
By Subway: Take the 7 train to Mets-Willets Point stop. Exit and turn left after passing through turnstile, walk downstairs on the parking lot side and follow the theatre shuttle signs. Take free trolley to the Theatre. Trolley runs for one hour before and after all performances.
By Car: Take the Grand Central Parkway to exit 9E (from Manhattan) or 9P (from Long Island) and follow the signs for the Theatre. Free parking in adjacent lot.

Queens Theatre in the Park is committed to presenting performing arts that provide audiences with the highest quality work. QTP also produces new plays, with a concentration on up-and-coming directors and playwrights. QTP has broadened the experience of its core audience to include works by under-recognized artists from around the world and works that tap into the diverse communities of Queens.

Queens Theatre in the Park is located in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in the New York State Pavilion designed for the 1964 World's Fair by Philip Johnson. The Pavilion was converted to a theatre in 1972 and was operated by various organizations until 1985. QTP was officially established in 1989 with the full support of the community and the Queens Borough President. After a $4 million renovation that brought full ADA compliance, the Theatre Officially opened to the public in 1993 in a facility that allows it to stage productions equal to those of any Off-Broadway house in Manhattan in its 464-seat main stage theatre and its 99-seat Studio Theatre. What was then a small cabaret-style theater with an operating budget of under $500,000 has transformed itself into a major performing arts center with exhibition galleries with a projected operating budget of $3.5 million for FY10.

QTP became an independent nonprofit in 1997. It is a member of the Cultural Institutions Group receiving support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. The Theatre presents and produces 300 performances annually. QTP serves 100,000 people annually who reflect the rich demographics of its community population. Currently 75% of the Theatre's constituency is from Queens. In addition to its own season, QTP frequently provides its space for use by community arts organizations and local promoters.

QTP has recently completed a $ 23 million physical transformation of the Theatre. This major capital investment has added a 75-seat cabaret performance space with a full service cafe and kitchen facility; created a dramatic new 3,000 square foot lobby/reception area; provided new visitor amenities and improved the facility's accessibility. These improvements have transformed Queens Theatre in the Park into a destination for the residents of the borough and beyond.

Queens Theatre in the Park events are made possible with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.