Alliance Theatre Presents SAMMY & ME, 10/6

Atlanta's Tony® Award-winning ALLIANCE THEATRE opens its 2010/11 Hertz Stage season with Sammy & Me, the one-man musical about the consummate, unforgettable showman, Sammy Davis Jr., featuring 15 timeless songs, thirty characters and amazing dance performances. Virtuosic Broadway performer Eric Jordan Young joins forces with director Wendy Dann to recount the story of one man's life-long fascination with one of the most famous and talented performers of our time.  Opening Night is Wednesday, October 6, at 8 p.m. on the ALLIANCE THEATRE's Hertz Stage.  Tickets are available at the Woodruff Arts Center Box Office by calling 404.733.5000 or online at www.alliancetheatre.org

Following Sammy from the tap dance beginnings of his youth on the "Chitlin' Circuit" to a major headliner on the Las Vegas strip and a fixture of the infamous Rat Pack, Eric Jordan Young's performance channels the life of Sammy Davis Jr, and uncovers the intricacies of being an entertainer caught between his own racial identity and his drive to transcend race as a performer. Sammy & Me takes the audience on a fascinating journey of discovery through Sammy's life and his music, featuring virtuosic renditions of fifteen songs that he made famous, including "Where or When," "Smile," "Mr. Bojangles," and "Candy Man" to name a few.

"This season the Alliance has gathered a collection of exceptional productions that center around American ideas and people," said Susan V. Booth, ALLIANCE THEATRE Artistic Director. "We're excited to present this magnificent one-man performance about one of the most memorable American Icons of our time."

Sammy & Me began as a co-production between MusicalFare Theatre Company in Buffalo, NY and the Hangar Theatre in Ithaca, NY. The musical enjoyed a sold-out run in Buffalo in January, 2006 and moved to the Hangar Theatre in June of the same year for a critically-acclaimed run. The musical was presented at the Alvin Ailey Studios in New York, NY on October 23, 2006 and was invited to perform as part of the National Black Theatre Festival in August, 2007.  The ALLIANCE THEATRE's production of Sammy & Me is presented in partnership with New Vintage Theatricals, producers whose work is currently represented on Broadway in productions of Legally Blonde, The Color Purple, All My Sons, A View From The Bridge, The Addams Family, and the upcoming James Earl Jones-Vanessa Redgrave revival of Driving Miss Daisy.

Performances are Tuesday through Friday at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 2:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2:30 p.m., Oct.1 - Oct. 24, 2010 on the ALLIANCE THEATRE's Hertz Stage.  Tickets are $25 - $35 and are available at the Woodruff Arts Center Box Office by calling 404.733.5000 or online at www.alliancetheatre.org. Discounted rates for groups of 10 or more are available by calling 404.733.4690. Discounted rates are also available for members of the military, seniors and students. The ALLIANCE THEATRE is located at the Woodruff Arts Center, at the corner of Peachtree and 15th Street, in Midtown Atlanta.

Now in its 42nd season, Atlanta's nationally acclaimed ALLIANCE THEATRE, recipient of the 2007 Regional Theatre Tony Award® and a leading National Theatre, creates the powerful experience of shared theatre for diverse people on two stages for youth and adult audiences.  Under the leadership of the Jennings Hertz, Jr. Artistic Director Susan V. Booth, the ALLIANCE THEATRE is a National Theatre with a local address, reaching out annually to almost 200,000 patrons and members of the community.  Known for its high artistic standards and national role in creating significant theatrical works, the Alliance launched three Tony Award-winning hits to Broadway:  Alice Walker's The Color Purple, Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida and Alfred Uhry's The Last Night of Ballyhoo.  And, in a rare event for a regional theatre, it originated the national tour of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.  Most recently, the Alliance transferred Twyla Tharp's Come Fly Away to Broadway for a critically acclaimed Tony Award-nominated run. The theatre has premiered 60 works including adaptations of Carson McCullers' The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and Pearl Cleage's Blues for an Alabama Sky.  Further evidence of the Alliance's commitment to new work is founding its nationally recognized Kendeda Graduate Playwriting Competition, a cutting-edge program introducing student playwrights to professional networks while producing the world premiere of the winning student's work.  The ALLIANCE THEATRE also offers extensive education and outreach programs such as the Institute for Educators and the Collision Project for high school students.  The Alliance continuously brings Atlanta the finest talent and finest art-proving once again that the Alliance is where great theatre lives.  404.733.4650 or www.alliancetheatre.org
 
The ALLIANCE THEATRE is a division of the Woodruff Arts Center in Atlanta, Georgia, which also includes the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, High Museum of Art and Young Audiences.
 

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