BUBBLE BOY Opens 11/6 at Rahway's American Theater Group

Back in The Day, musical theatre producers would hone their Broadway-hopeful plays in "tryout towns" like New Haven, Philadelphia and Baltimore before staging the full production for the scrutiny of New York audiences and critics.

Now they're trying out the tryout in Rahway, New Jersey.

This month, the 199-seat Hamilton Stage for the Performing Arts is the site for Bubble Boy: The Musical, produced by Rahway's American Theater Group.

Opened just a year ago, the $12 million venue is located at 360 Hamilton Street in the heart of the colorful Rahway Arts District, a diverse hub of arts performance/arts education activity a quick 30-minute train ride from midtown Manhattan.

Bubble Boy: The Musical premieres Wednesday, Nov. 6 at 8 p.m. and runs through Nov. 24 at Hamilton Stage. Tickets are on sale now at www.ucpac.org

After the success of last year's world premiere of Himself and Nora starring Matt Bogart (Jersey Boys) and Jessica Burrows (Garbo Talks), American Theater Group landed Bubble Boy: The Musical, a romantic comedy by Hollywood writers Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio (creators of the hit films Despicable Me, Despicable Me II and The Lorax).

Bubble Boy: The Musical follows the improbably heroic odyssey of teenager Jimmy Livingston, born without immunities and forced to live in an antiseptic isolation room. When Jimmy learns the love of his life is getting married, he builds a "bubble suit" and bounces across the U.S. to stop the wedding, encountering a hilarious assortment of characters - cults, bikers, a mystical ice cream truck driver and the greatest obstacle of all - his controlling mother.

Hamilton Stage audiences got a preview of the play last year, when it was presented by American Theater Group as a reading in the prestigious Cy Coleman New American Musical Series sponsored by ASCAP Foundation with famed playwright Stephen Schwartz as artistic advisor.

"The response to our Rahway reading was incredible," said American Theater Group co-producer Joe Mancuso. "We were able to hone in on the details that bring a show to the next level of perfection. Which for the audience, translates as terrific entertainment."

Stephen Schwartz concurred. "The main thing is to have a good show," he said of the Hamilton Stage reading. "We tried to make sure there was a little edge to the story. When you do it right, it's a remarkable thing."

The Bubble Boy cast includes Chris McCarrell and Gerianne Perez as the romantic leads Jimmy and Chloe, supported by Gil Benjamin Howes, Erin Maguire, Gabriel Sloyer, Rachid Sabitri, Marrick Smith, Alex Paul, Anita Welch and Alex Chester.

The production is directed and choreographed by Jen Wineman, whose recent shows include Judgment of Paris, Lessons for an Unaccustomed Bride, Lines in Code and a stage adaptation of Virginia Woolf's Orlando. Music Director Brent Crayon has collaborated with directors such as Stephen Schwartz, Daisy Prince, Richard Maltby, Jr., Scott Schwartz, Chen Shi-Zheng, Jon Rivera, Kay Cole and Ed Harris

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