Judy Garland WORLD'S GREATEST ENTERTAINER Gets World Premiere In March
The NEW book musical, Judy Garland "World's Greatest Entertainer" premieres at the baby grand in Wilmington on March 22 - March 30 for six performances.
Written by Delaware native playwright Greer Firestone, the show takes place in 1961, two weeks after Judy's legendary concert at Carnegie Hall which critics termed "the greatest night in show business history." This original musical has aspirations past the baby grand. National producers will be invited.
Guests will enter and be met by a 1961 TV studio by set designer Jeff Reim. The plot is based on the popular TV show of the '60s and '70s, This Is Your Life, wherein Hollywood stars were surprised by the host. Their childhood preachers, teachers and next-door neighbors were paraded in. This fictional show is entitled "Celebrity Story" with Judy as the surprise honoree. The program's guests who come to honor the entertainer are none other than Liza, Frank and Dean-no last names required. The four icons sing 23 legendary American songbook tunes, including "Get Happy," "The Man That Got Away," "Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime," "My Way," among others.
Jenny Lee Stern portrays Judy. Stern has appeared on Broadway in Rocky, The Musical; toured nationally in Jersey Boys; Off-Broadway in Spamilton and Forbidden Broadway; appeared in HBO's The Sopranos; and has played numerous other leading roles in regional theatre.
Regional leading lady Kaylan Wetzel sings and dances Liza Minnelli. Wetzel has appeared at Candlelight Dinner Theatre, The Ritz Theatre, and The Media Theatre, among others.
Los Angeles native Luca Ellis plays Frank Sinatra. Ellis sang Frank in Sandy Hackett's (Buddy's son) Rat Pack show at the Sahara Las Vegas and did the same in the hit musical Louis and Keeley at The Sahara. He went on to conceive and co-write Hoboken to Hollywood. The show was sold out for seven months in Santa Monica, sweeping the LA Weekly annual awards. Ellis has had a weekly gig as Frank for seven years at The Beverly Hills Hotel.
Award winning tribute artist Eric Richardson has portrayed Dean Martin on a national basis for 10 years.
Director S. Lee Lewis has a long line of musical directorial credits, including Chess, Follies, Oliver!, Man of La Mancha, The Wizard of Oz, and most recently Guys & Dolls at Candlelight.
Renown choreographer Dann Dunn is charged with training his six dancers in Mein Herr, All That Jazz, and Get Happy, among other production numbers.
Music Director David Zipse -arranger for all the tunes-will both play the baby grand and conduct the five on-stage musicians.
The production is sponsored by Heart In The Game Foundation, a non-profit that Firestone created after his then-18-year-old daughter Grace suffered Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA). For the past five years, Heart In The Game has offered free EKG screening and training in CPR/AED to Delaware students.
For more info on the show visit www.JudyGarlandTheMusical.com
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