Darren Criss to Join APOCALYPTOUR's 5/23 Show in LA

Team StarKid will be joined by company co-founder Darren Criss for THREE total performances of the APOCALYPTOUR: two at the House of Blues in Los Angeles on Wednesday, May 23 (acoustic set only) and Thursday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. as well as the final show at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City, Sunday, June 10 at 7:30 p.m.  

Rapper/poet George Watsky will appear as a special guest at Nob Hill Masonic Center in San Francisco on Friday, May 25 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for these performances, priced $30 - $35, may be purchased via Ticketmaster.com or LiveNation.com (additional outlets for other cities noted below).  

In APOCALYPTOUR the StarKids face-off against the “Mayan God of the Apocalypse” in an epic battle to save the planet.  This brand-new concert experience includes songs from the hit comedy musicals A Very Potter Musical and Sequel, Starship, Holy Musical B@man, and more.  The set-list features songs not included on the company’s first national tour – The SPACE Tour – as well as fresh arrangements and “mash-ups” of fan favorites.  APOCALYPTOUR launched at the House of Blues in Chicago on Wednesday, May 9, and will culminate at the Roseland Ballroom in New York on Sunday, June 10. 

Darren Criss, star of the FOX hit series “Glee,” will join his fellow StarKids for two shows at the House of Blues in Los Angeles on Wednesday, May 23 and Thursday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. as well as the final performance of the tour at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City, Sunday, June 10 at 7:30 p.m.  Please note that for the May 23 show Criss will be playing an acoustic set only, while on the following dates he will join StarKid for the entire performance.  Prior to his role as “Blaine Anderson” on “Glee,” Criss was best-known to StarKid fans as “Harry Potter” in both A Very Potter Musical and A Very Potter Sequel, for which he contributed to the musical scores.  He also conceptualized the story and provided the music and lyrics for the company’s hit musical Starship.  Criss made his Broadway debut earlier this year as “J. Pierrepont Finch” in How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, when he replaced Daniel Radcliffe for a limited three week engagement in January 2012. 

Team StarKid will be joined by acclaimed rapper and poet George Watsky for one night only at San Francisco’s Nob Hill Masonic Center on Friday, May 25 at 7:30 p.m.  A San Francisco native, Watsky is a Brave New Voices National Poetry Slam champion whose quirky, funny, and honest lyrics have netted him over 44 million online views and counting. He has appeared on “Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry” and “Funny as Hell” on HBO, “Last Call with Carson Daly,” and the “Ellen Degeneres Show,” twice. George’s debut album “Watsky,” cracked the iTunes hip hop chart Top 10, and he was recently confirmed for the Rock the Bells Festival Series in Los Angeles (August 18 & 19), San Francisco (August 25 & 26), and New York (September 1 & 2). His latest EP, “Watsky & Mody,” featured a collaboration with StarKid ensemble member and fellow San Francisco native, Dylan Saunders. This summer, Watsky will embark on his debut concert tour, “Nothing Like the First Time,” covering 23 stops throughout the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information please visit www.georgewatsky.com/tour. 

Music and lyrics for featured songs on the APOCALYTOUR were composed by StarKid co-founder Darren Criss (A Very Potter Musical and Sequel, Me and My Dick, Starship), A.J. Holmes (A Very Potter Musical, Me and My Dick) and Nick Gage andScott Lamps (Holy Musical B@man!).  The tour is directed by Julia Albain (The SPACE Tour), with music direction by ClarkBaxtresser (The SPACE Tour), production design by Corey Lubowich (Me and My Dick, A Very Potter Sequel, Starship, The SPACE Tour, Holy Musical B@man!), lighting design by Sarah Petty (A Very Potter Sequel, Starship, The SPACE Tour, Holy Musical B@man!), costumes by June Saito (Starship, Holy Musical B@man!), and choreography by Katie Spelman (Holy Musical B@man!, Goodman and Paramount Theatres).

Returning for APOCALYPTOUR is the original cast of The SPACE Tour including Jaime Lyn Beatty (“Ginny Weasley” – A Very Potter Musical, “Rita Skeeter” – A Very Potter Sequel, “Sally” – Me and My Dick, “Neato Mosquito” – Starship); Brian Holden(“Remus Lupin” – A Very Potter Sequel, “Flopsy” – Me and My Dick, “Junior” – Starship); Lauren Lopez (“Draco Malfoy” – A Very Potter Musical and Sequel, ”Bugette/Taz” – Starship); Joey Richter (“Ron Weasley” – A Very Potter Musical and Sequel, “Joey” – Me and My Dick, “Bug” – Starship); Dylan Saunders (“Dumbledore” – A Very Potter Musical and Sequel, “Tootsie Noodles/Pincer” – Starship); Meredith Stepien (“Mega-Girl” – Starship); and Joseph Walker (“Lord Voldemort” – A Very Potter Musical, “Dolores Umbridge” – A Very Potter Sequel, “Dick” – Me and My Dick, “Up” – Starship).  They will be joined by two new cast members - Jim Povolo (“Goyle” and Various Characters – A Very Potter Musical, Sequel, and Starship) and BrIan Rosenthal (“Professor Quirrell” – A Very Potter Musical and Various Characters – A Very Potter Sequel). The cast will be accompanied by a live band of Charlene Kaye (guitar), Clark Baxtresser (keyboard), Megan Cox (keyboard), Dave Scalia(drums), and Tomek Miernowski (bass).

Returning to open for Team StarKid on tour will be Charlene Kaye and the Brilliant Eyes.  Equally inspired by classic pop greats such as ABBA and Blondie as well as current luminaries such as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Rufus Wainwright, Charlene Kaye’s music is a mishmash of generations and genres, and retro with a contemporary edge. Since her move to New York, she has toured relentlessly, played CMJ and SXSW festivals, opened for acts such as Minus the Bear, Holly Miranda, Big Boi and Darren Criss, and had her music featured on MTVU, The Huffington Post and NBC’s “Chuck.” Her new album “Animal Love,” for which her fans raised upwards of $33,000 to fund on Kickstarter, was released on May 1 and hit #15 on the iTunes pop charts. The LP was recorded with the Brilliant Eyes – Megan Cox (keyboard), Dave Scalia (drums), and Tomek Miernowski (bass). For more information visit www.charlenekaye.com. 

APOCALYPTOUR is produced by StarKid Productions and presented in part by Live Nation.