Katrina Rose Dideriksen Leads HAIRSPRAY At TUTS 10/5-17

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) is delighted to announce the cast selected to lead the award-winning production and TUTS debut of the Broadway smash hit, Hairspray, scheduled to play October 5 - 17 at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.

Director Roy Hamlin comments on this talented cast "I'm thrilled to be working with this group of people. The vocal talent is unbelievable and we're incredibly fortunate to have this caliber talent to work with. This is a TUTS debut and I know it will be a show audiences remember for a long time. This is the perfect cast to open our season."

North Carolina native, Katrina Rose Dideriksen, takes the lead in the big hair & bigger-hearted role of lovable heroine Tracy Turnblad. Dideriksen originated the role of Tracy for The Luxor production of Hairspray in Las Vegas opposite Harvey Fierstein after playing the same role on the national tour.

Humble-housewife Edna Turnbald is played in classic drag-diva style by Paul Vogt, formerly of MADtv. Vogt also played the role on Broadway following Harvey Fierstein. An actor and comedian, Vogt's credits also include appearances in popular movies The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement and recent release, Valentine's Day. Vogt's 2010 TV appearances include Grey's Anatomy and Glee.

Opposite Dideriksen in the role of high school hunk Link Larkin (played by Zac Efron on the big screen), is none other than TUTS' own Austin Miller, whom audiences will remember as a finalist on the televised competition Grease: You're The One That I Want!. A graduate of the Humphreys School of Musical Theatre (HSMT), Miller went on to national tours of Grease, Smokey Joe's Café and Victor/Victoria. Miller was last on the TUTS stage with the 2009 summer production of 42nd Street at Miller Outdoor Theatre.

Tracy's adoring father, Wilber Turnblad, (wonderfully played by Christopher Walken in the acclaimed film) is Bob Walton whose credits include the Broadway revivals of 42nd Street, Once Upon a Mattress, and Show Boat. Walton was also in the original Broadway production of City Of Angels. Gaelen Gilliland fills the role of the ever-glamorous Velma von Tussle, and has appeared on Broadway in Wicked, Legally Blonde, and 9 to 5, the new musical coming to the TUTS stage this November.

Returning to the TUTS stage in the role of dashing TV dance show host Corny Collins, is Michael Gruber, last seen here in Irving Berlin's White Christmas. Gruber's recent Broadway credits include the 2007 production of A Chorus Line. The Queen of Baltimore Soul, radio DJ Motormouth Maybelle, is played by Houston native and talented vocalist Shaunyce Omar. Seen just last year in the Ensemble Theatre presentation of Tazewell Thompson's play Constant Star, the Houston Chronicle's Everett Evans commented on Omar's "mighty voice in song and potent brass in her scenes."

The role of Penny Pingleton, Tracy's best friend, is played by Carly Vernon, a Houston native returning for the role, and local HSMT student Gerra Gistand plays the sassy and street-wise character of Little Inez. Amber von Tussle is played by Gretchen Bieber of the original Broadway cast. Also of the original Broadway cast of Hairspray is Arbender Robinson in the role of Seaweed. Robinson's other Broadway credits include The Little Mermaid in addition to the revivals of Hair and Ragtime.

Rounding out the ensemble are Houston native and Tommy Tune Awards nominee Barry Busby, Brooke L. Engen, Tiffany L. Engen, Nathaniel Flatt, Jordan Hall, Carla J. Hargrove, Mike Kelton, Houstonian Susan O. Koozin, Keith McCann, Destinee McGinnis of Huntsville, Timothy McNeil, and Kelly Peters of The Woodlands. Also in the ensemble are Houstonian Jimmy F. Phillips, Gabrielle Porter, returning Houstonian Sarah Roussos, TUTS Interns Cole Ryden and Justin Finch, Candice Marie Woods and Kristopher Stanley Ward of Crowley, Tx.

From the Humphreys School of Musical Theatre are ensemble members Austin Arizpe, Meredith Bechtel, Rebecca Eckert, Ronson Hawkins, Brooke Humphrey, Matthew Smith, Michelle Smith, Christian Warner, RyAnn Williams, and Charity VanTassel.

Made all the more popular by the recent film starring John Travolta and Michelle Pfeiffer, ten time Tony Award-winner Hairspray will have your family singing and dancing to hits like "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now," "You Can't Stop the Beat" and "Good Morning, Baltimore." Trendsetting teenager Tracy Turnblad has a dream - to dance on "The Corny Collins Show." This loveable tiny-bopper is on a quest for teen celebrity and a mission to integrate the show's dance floor while winning the love of dream-boat Link Larkin. The 50s are out, and Baltimore is ready for change!

Hairspray is based on the original New Line Cinema film written and directed by John Waters, who served as a creative consultant in the development of the Broadway show. It features a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, an original score by 5-time Academy Award-nominated and Tony Award winner, Marc Shaiman (who also won a Grammy for his work on Hairspray), and lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman.

The Theatre Under The Stars production of Hairspray features the work of choreographer Rusty Mowery, Dance Captain on the Broadway productions of both Hairspray and Legally Blonde. Joining Mowery on the creative team are Music Director and Conductor Jeremy Randall, Sound Designer Kit Bond, and Tony Award winning Lighting Designer Richard Winkler.

Tickets (starting at $24) are available on-line at TUTS.com, by phone at (713) 558-TUTS (8887) outside the Houston area at (888) 558-3882, or in person at the Theatre Under The Stars Box Office, (800 Bagby at Walker, Mon-Fri 10a.m.- 6p.m., Sat-Sun 11a.m.- 4p.m.) An audio described performance is available Sunday, October 17, 2010 at 2 p.m.; open captioning Sunday, October 17, 2010 at 7:30p.m. The Hobby Center is wheelchair accessible. Discounts are available for groups of 15 or more and may be purchased by calling (713) 558-8888 or via email at groupsales@tuts.com.

TUTS' presentation of Hairspray is made possible by the generosity of Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell and Sterling Bank.

Theatre Under The Stars 2010-11 Sensational Season is generously sponsored by St. Luke's Episcopal Health System. For all of Theatre Under The Stars' 2010-2011 shows, air transportation is provided by Continental Airlines, the official airline of Theatre Under The Stars. Media sponsors include ABC-13 and Houston Chronicle. Season support is funded in part by grants from the City of Houston through the Theater District Association and the Texas Commission on the Arts.

Founded in 1968, Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) is Houston's acclaimed non-profit musical theatre company under the direction of President and CEO John C. Breckenridge. TUTS was the first theatrical organization in Houston to perform free to the public in 1968 at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park, and is the only Houston arts organization that has performed there free to the public every year since the building opened. Since its founding by Frank M. Young, TUTS has produced more than 300 musicals including many local, national and world premieres such as Kopit and Yeston's Phantom, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Jekyll & Hyde, and Irving Berlin's White Christmas as well as critically acclaimed re-inventions of classics Cabaret and Les Miserables. Through its membership in the Independent Presenters Network, TUTS has helped bring Bombay Dreams, 9 to 5, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Spamalot, Legally Blonde, Ragtime, Curtains and The Color Purple to Broadway.

As a way to continue the tradition of musical theatre, TUTS' Education provides instruction and stage experience for more than 1,700 students annually, allowing students to flourish in a year-round schedule of classes. With a common goal - to expand arts access to children of all abilities - The River Performing and Visual Arts Center (The River) merged with Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) in 2010, creating a unique, barrier free, arts education model for non-profit musical theatre performing arts organizations. With the merger, TUTS Education now provides extended on-site programming as well as off-site programming for children in schools, hospitals and other community-based sites. Housed in the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, TUTS also annually presents the Tommy Tune Awards, honoring the best and brightest in Houston's high school musical theatre programs.