Baldwin & Lazar-Led THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY to Open at Axelrod PAC Next Month

The Axelrod Performing Arts Center will present The Bridges of Madison County, The Musical, starring Kate Baldwin (Hello, Dolly!, Finian's Rainbow) and Aaron Lazar (A Little Night Music, The Light in the Piazza). The musical, which runs from March 11-27, is being directed by one of its original stars, Hunter Foster (Broadway's Little Shop of Horrors, Million Dollar Quartet, The Producers).

It's been 30 years since the publication of Robert James Waller's best-selling novella The Bridges of Madison County, which sold 60 million copies and became a major Hollywood film, starring Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood. Director Hunter Foster is "thrilled" to be directing this beautiful story of love, fate and the joy of the human spirit.

"It allows us to believe in the idea of true love, and the magic that comes when two souls are meant to be together," Foster suggests. "As Robert James Waller wrote 'This kind of certainty comes but once in a lifetime.'"

The musical, which played on Broadway in 2014, has a score by one of Broadway's most celebrated composers, Jason Robert Brown and a book by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Marsha Norman. It won Tony Awards for best original score and best orchestrations, and contains "some of the most rapturous music you'll ever hear on a stage," says Artistic Director Andrew DePrisco, who is producing the musical at the Axelrod. DePrisco considers "Bridges" to be "one of the most underrated musicals of our time and a musical that absolutely deserves to be seen by a new audience....The Axelrod is delighted to be bringing this musical with this amazing cast and production team."

"The music for The Bridges of Madison County is beloved by all who have heard it," says Kate Baldwin. "It is truly a masterpiece of this century. To have the opportunity to present it alongside my friends Hunter and Aaron, who are working at the top of their game, feels like just the right way to celebrate coming back to the theatre."

In addition to Hunter Foster at the helm, the Axelrod has assembled an all-star production team with Keith Levenson (Broadway's Annie) as music director and conductor, Anna Louizos (Broadway's In the Heights, White Christmas, Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella) as scenic designer, Paul Miller (Broadway's Legally Blonde) as lighting designer, Lauren Roark as costume designer, and Jeff Sherwood as sound designer.

"We are also proud to be presenting a professional cast, mostly from the Garden State," says DePrisco. The cast includes Kate Baldwin as Francesca Johnson, Aaron Lazar as Robert Kincaid, Bart Shatto as Bud Johnson, Thomas Cromer as Michael Johnson and Emily Pellecchia as Carolyn Johnson. The company also includes Giuliana Augello, Sealth Grover, Lara Hayhurst, Mark Megill, Natalie Myrick, Rutledge Varley and Nikki Yarnell.

The Axelrod PAC is located at 100 Grant Ave., Deal Park. Tickets are $32-$65 and can be purchased by visiting www.axelrodartscenter.com or calling 732-531-9106.