Stagedoor Manor to Present First Reading of 'THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER'

Stagedoor Manor, the country's premiere summertime training ground for young performers, announced today that it will hold the first ever reading of a newly-licensed musical, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - The Musical, based on the 1971 best-selling book by Barbara Robinson. With book and lyrics by Jahnna Beecham, and music and lyrics by Malcolm Hillgartner, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - The Musical can now be licensed through Playscripts, Inc. to be staged worldwide. Today's reading, directed by John Bronston with musical direction by Liz Toleno, features a complete cast of Stagedoor Manor students.

Though a play adaptation was presented in 1982, this is the first time the material has been turned into a musical. The Children's Theatre of Charlotte commissioned the piece, and workshopped it this past spring. The musical will make its world premiere at CTC in December 2016.

"Jahnna Beecham and Malcolm Hillgartner have done a spectacular job of musicalizing Barbara Robinson's classic book. After we acquired the licensing rights to this title, we called Konnie Kittrell at Stagedoor Manor and suggested doing a reading with their kids during the summer, and she said yes!" said Brad Lohrenz, Vice President of Playscripts. "Playscripts is eager and excited to move forward in this partnership."

"Stagedoor Manor students are always up for a challenge," Kittrell explained, "especially when the opportunity involves premiere material!"

"The Children's Theatre of Charlotte is excited to work with Stagedoor Manor in helping to develop this piece, because the camp's mission and our mission - to educate and cultivate the next generation of actors and theatre lovers - closely mirrors one another," said CTC Artistic Director Adam Burke. "We're also thrilled to help develop new work for children's theatre, which is increasingly becoming one of CTC's key focuses."

Beecham and Hillgartner are represented by Pat McLaughlin at Beacon Artists Agency.