Maine State Music Theatre Presents SPRING AWAKENING June 19

Maine State Music Theatre will present a concert version of the Tony Award-winning musical SPRING AWAKENING on Sunday, June 19th at 7:30 p.m. at the Pickard Theater. Based on a play by 19th century German writer, Frank Wedekind, the musical is written by Steven Sater with music by popular singer-songwriter, Duncan Sheik. MSMT's concert version is directed by Chuck Ragsdale with musical direction by Samuel Bagala.

Having received eleven Tony Award Nominations and eight wins, SPRING AWAKENING is a blend of mortality, sexuality, and rock inspired music in what has been called "a must see musical" by the New York Post and "the most explosive new musical since 'Rent'" by the Star Ledger. The show won a Grammy in 2008 for Best Musical Show Album.

Join a group of 19th century German students as they navigate their ways through the waters of adolescence. Each student deals with self-discovery and coming of age anxiety through a riveting rock and roll style score. The concerns that troubled German students of 1891 are just as harsh for the teenagers that have followed, allowing SPRING AWAKENING to speak to generations to come.

Before SPRING AWAKENING, Duncan Sheik was known for being a singer-songwriter in the mid 90s, most notably for his single "Barely Breathing." Sheik still tours today and workshops musicals. With a strong fan base, he has released over ten albums. Sheik received two Tony Awards for his work on SPRING AWAKENING for Best Orchestration and Best Original Score.

Concert versions of popular musicals are not only a good way for MSMT to expose Maine's theatre going audience to some great contemporary Broadway music, but they also serve as a platform for MSMT's Intern Company - the Broadway stars of tomorrow - to share their talents and perform on a professional stage. SPRING AWAKENING features MSMT's performance interns Courtney Arango, Rachel Boone, Schyler Conaway, Jeremiah Haley, and Jake Hitch. Intern Rebekah Church will serve as stage manager, as will apprentice Sebastian Ascanio.
The concert also features several local performers including MSMT veterans Glenn Anderson and Mary Bastoni as well as Maya Tepler. A number of current students and recent graduates from the University of Southern Maine music program are also featured including: Kyle Dennis, Christopher Ellis, Caleb Lacey, Megan Leddy, James McDonald, Margaret Kelly Mosher, Caitlin O'Reilly and Greer Vashon. MSMT performance intern, Jeremiah Haley, is also a student at USM.

Chuck Ragsdale, the show's director, has been involved at MSMT for the past four summers. This summer, on top of directing SPRING AWAKENING, Ragsdale is featured in the theatre's productions of ANNIE and XANADU, as well as serving as the Intern Director for MSMT's summer internship program. Ragsdale also starred in recent MSMT productions of THE PRODUCERS, DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS and SPAMALOT.
"The original bi-line of the play was ‘A Children's Tragedy', but in 2011, I see this piece as an anthem of hope," says Ragsdale of the message he hopes to send with this concert.

Tickets to see SPRING AWAKENING in concert are on sale now. Interested parties can contact the MSMT box office at (207) 725-8769, visit the box office window in person at the Pickard Theatre located at 1 Bath Road in Brunswick on the campus of Bowdoin College, or purchase online at www.msmt.org. Please note that this show contains mature content. The concert will take place on Sunday, June 19th at 7:30 p.m.

MSMT's full 2011 summer season also includes the classic musical ANNIE, a hilarious roller-disco, musical comedy send-up of the 1980 Olivia Newton John film, XANADU, and the rock, soul and gospel journey through the famous Land of OZ, THE WIZ. Special events include children's programming and two additional concert events.

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