TPAC Presents A CHORUS LINE 5/4-9

The new production of the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning musical A CHORUS LINE comes to the Tennessee Performing Arts Center for eight performances, May 4-9, 2010.

Part of HCA/TriStar Broadway at TPAC, tickets to A CHORUS LINE are on sale now, and range from $25-70, depending upon performance time and seat locations. For tickets, visit www.tpac.org/chorusline, call 615/782-4040, or visit the TPAC Box Office (Downtown or at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in The Mall at Green Hills). For groups of 20 or more, contact TPAC Group Sales at 615/782-4060 or groups@tpac.org.

"The longevity and success of this show speaks for itself," said Kathleen O'Brien, TPAC's president and CEO. "To win one Tony Award is a coup. To win nine Tony Awards - and a Pulitzer - speaks volumes about a show. This is such a unique look into the lives of professional actors and dancers, groundbreaking in 1975 and just as relevant today. The original show-stopping choreography remains in this stunning revival, and the stories told by those in the lineup are still raw and moving. This is an ideal show because it gives audiences the Broadway magic, as well as a glimpse at the real lives of those who create it."

The National tour cast currently features Alissa Alter (Lois), Kevin Curtis (Butch), Jonathan Day (Tom), Heather Duckworth (Judy), Paige Faure (Vicki), Derek Hanson (Zach), Tim Hausmann (Frank), Andrew Hodge (Greg), Bryan Langlitz (Don), Nathan Lucrezio (Al), Stephanie Martignetti (Maggie), Kristen Martin (Val), Andy Mills (Mike), Kristen Paulicelli (Tricia), Catherine Ricafort (Connie), Rebecca Riker (Cassie), Andrew Roubal (Mark), Michael Scirrotto (Larry), Donald C. Shorter, Jr. (Richie), Hilary Thompson (Kristine), Kit Treece (Bobby), Kirstin Tucker (Bebe), Aaron Umsted (Frank), Nicky Venditti (Paul), Selina Verastigui (Diana), Ashley Yeater (Sheila) and swing performers Adam Brown, Venny Carranza, Lauryn Ciardullo and Emilee Dupré.
A CHORUS LINE reclaimed its place in the heart of Broadway at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (236 W 45th St) where it opened to rave reviews on October 5, 2006. Elysa Gardner of USA Today calls it "Exhilarating and endearing, it still has a freshness and fervency too seldom seen in contemporary musicals," while The New York Daily News exclaims "There's nothing better! The show thrills from the opening number to the glittering finale," and Jeffrey Lyons of WNBC TV hails it "An American Masterpiece. A show for the ages." A CHORUS LINE is directed by its original Tony Award-winning co-choreographer Bob Avian and is produced by John F. Breglio for Vienna Waits Productions.

A CHORUS LINE recouped its entire $8 million investment after only 157 performances (19 weeks) on Broadway. It broke the theatre's box office record 7 times in its first 5 months. A CHORUS LINE ended its Broadway run on August 17, 2008 after 18 preview and 759 regular performances.

A CHORUS LINE, conceived and originally choreographed and directed by Michael Bennett, features a book by James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante, music by Marvin Hamlisch and lyrics by Edward Kleban. For this new production, Baayork Lee re-stages the original choreography.
The new production features scenery by Robin Wagner, costumes by Theoni V. Aldredge, lighting by Tharon Musser adapted by Natasha Katz and sound by Acme Sound Partners. Musical supervision is by Patrick Vaccariello with musical direction by John C. O'Neill, orchestrations are by Jonathan Tunick, Billy Byers and Hershy Kay and vocal arrangements are by Don Pippin. The new 2006 Broadway cast recording of A CHORUS LINE was released by Masterworks Broadway and is available in stores nationwide.
The original production of A CHORUS LINE opened at the Public Theater's Newman Theatre on May 21, 1975 and transferred to Broadway's Shubert Theatre on July 25, opening there on October 19 of that year. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Score and Book, and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. It ran for nearly 15 years, closing on April 28, 1990 after 6,137 performances. A CHORUS LINE remains the longest-running American musical in Broadway history.

This performance of A CHORUS LINE is part of the HCA/TriStar Broadway at TPAC series. Institutional sponsors for TPAC include American Airlines and Coca-Cola. Nissan North America, Inc. is a Sustaining Partner for TPAC. American Airlines is the opening night sponsor of A CHORUS LINE. Media sponsors for A CHORUS LINE are the Tennessean, WJXA Mix 92.9, and WSMV Channel 4.

The Tennessee Performing Arts Center is a private, non-profit corporation dedicated to providing and supporting the presentation of the performing arts to the citizens of Tennessee. Its four stages are home to Broadway in Nashville at TPAC, Nashville Ballet, Nashville Opera, Tennessee Repertory Theatre and a variety of special engagements. TPAC administers one of the largest and most comprehensive arts-in-education programs in the United States, offering learning opportunities for children and adults. The organization has served more than 1.5 million students from pre-school to high school over the past two decades. For more information, visit the web site, www.tpac.org.