Cast & Creative Team Set for York Theatre Company's THE LIEUTENANT

The York Theatre Company has revealed the cast and creative team for its production of The Lieutenant, with book, music and lyrics by Chuck Strand, Eugene Curty, and Nitra McAuliffe, the second offering of the Fall 2023 “Musicals in Mufti” series. Performances begin Saturday afternoon, September 9, 2023 and continue for 11 performances only through Sunday, September 17, 2023. Opening Night will be Sunday evening, September 10, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. All performances will take place at The Theater at St. Jean’s (entrance on 150 East 76th Street, just east of Lexington Avenue. For elevator, enter on Lexington between 76th and 75th, just south of St. Jean’s.)

The cast features Chris Cardozo (Pretty Woman), Hana Culbreath (Annie),  Dan Domenech (Rock of Ages), William Thomas Evans (Desperate Measures), Anthony Festa (Miss Saigon), Travis Kent (Disaster!), Cal Mitchell, Noah Christopher Ruebeck, Alyssa Marie Watkins, and A.D. Weaver.

The Lieutenant is directed and choreographed by Bill Castellino (York’s Desperate Measures) and Cagney), with music direction by Eric Svjecar (York’s Marry Harry and You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown). The production team includes Associate Director and Choreographer Victoria Casillo (York’s How to Steal an Election), Lighting Designer John Salutz, Projections/Sound Designer Peter Brucker, Projections Co-Designer Matt Gurren, Associate Music Director George Peterson, Production Manager Aaron Simms, Production Coordinator Noah Glaister, Production Stage Manager Shanna Allison, Assistant Stage Manager Jade Doina, and Company Manager Tori Calderon-Caswell. Casting is by Michael Cassara, CSA.

“Hot on the heels of How to Steal an Election, we’re delighted to present yet another historic musical gem,” shares Jim Morgan, Producing Artistic Director. “The Lieutenant is true Broadway history, and where else but The York would you have a chance to revisit it? Under the direction of longtime York favorite Bill Castellino and with music direction by Eric Svejcar, I know it’ll be another unforgettable Mufti. I even have a feeling it’ll run longer than it did on Broadway!”

The Lieutenant is a rock opera which opened at Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre on March 9th, 1975, receiving four Tony nominations and five Drama Desk nominations, including ones for Best Musical and Best Score, despite an abbreviated run of only one week. Clive Barnes of the New York Times said it was a “rare musical with something worth saying,” calling it “unusual entertainment, sharp in its aspiration.” The show follows the passage of Lieutenant William Calley from raw recruit in the US Army through his 1971 court-martial for the infamous My Lai massacre of innocent civilians in 1968. The authors question the guilty verdict of a man who was tried first in the national media and later by a military tribunal, when militarism itself should perhaps shoulder the brunt of the blame. ABC News said, “the rock score is one of the most dynamic and soaring since Jesus Christ Superstar.”

The York Theatre Company’s acclaimed Musicals in Mufti series of musical theatre gems, performed in a simply-staged, book-in-hand concert format, is in its twenty-ninth historic year of presenting shows from the past that deserve a second look. The series was awarded an Obie Grant in 2016. Mufti means “in street clothes, without the trappings of a full production.”

The Lieutenant will play the following 11-performance schedule— First Week: Saturday at 2:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 2:30 & 7:00 p.m. (Opening Night). Second Week: Wednesday at 7:30 p.m., Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Talkbacks follow all matinee performances.

The York Theatre Company’s acclaimed Musicals in Mufti series-- awarded an Obie Grant in 2016-- is performed in a simply-staged, book-in-hand concert format. It is now in its twenty-ninth historic year of presenting shows from the past that deserve a second look. Mufti means “in street clothes, without the trappings of a full production.”

Next in the series is the 1968 Broadway musical Golden Rainbow, with music and lyrics by Walter Marks and a book by Ernest Kinoy, directed by Stuart Ross. Performances are set to begin Saturday afternoon, September 23, 2023, and continue for 11 performances only through October 1, 2023. Opening Night will be Wednesday evening, September 27, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.

Closing the series will be a New2NY presentation of When We Get There, a new musical with book by Robert P. Young III and Richard Lasser and music and lyrics by Charlie Barnett. The director is Janeece Freeman-Clark and the music director is Dionne McClain-Freeney. Performances are set to begin Saturday afternoon, October 2, 2023, and continue for 11 performances only through October 15, 2023. Opening Night will be Sunday evening, October 8, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.

NOW ON SALE: Single tickets for the Fall 2023 Musicals in Mufti series are priced at $59 premium and $49 standard price (for all performances) and can be purchased here

SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE: Subscribe and see all five (5) Muftis for $225 premium and $185 standard OR see three (3) Muftis for $145 premium and $120 standard.

BEST SAVINGS! Become a York Member (details below): Buy all five (5) Muftis starting at $165 - savings of over 30% off our standard ticket price!

The York Theatre Company offers the York! Membership Program, an exclusive membership package for as low as $75.00—with benefits that include up to 35% off tickets to York Theatre Productions, in addition to special Member-only receptions. The York also offers a York Plus! Membership Program with additional perks, including complimentary tickets to Mainstage productions and invitations to several VIP-only presentations throughout the season.

Musicals in Mufti packages and York Memberships can be purchased online here or by calling the Box Office at (212) 935-5820 during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.).

SAVE THE DATE: The York Theatre Company will honor musical theater legend Patti LuPone (Company, Evita, Gypsy, Anything Goes) with the 2023 Oscar Hammerstein Award for Outstanding Achievement in Musical Theater and producer Jamie deRoy with The York Theatre Company Founders’ Award at the 31st Oscar Hammerstein Award Gala on Monday evening, November 13, 2023 at The Edison Rooftop (223 West 46th Street). Scheduled to headline the evening are Charles Busch, Christine Ebersole, Bridget Everett, Norm Lewis, Andrew Rannells, and more. Tickets are now on sale by visiting their website at yorktheatre.org. 

York Theatre Company Gift Cards are available for any production during the 2023-2024 season by visiting the box office or calling (212) 935-5820, or online at www.yorktheatre.org

For additional information, please visit www.yorktheatre.org

The York Theatre Company

The York Theatre Company, “Where Musicals Come to Life,” is the only theatre in New York City—and one of very few in the world—dedicated to developing and fully producing new musicals and preserving notable shows from the past. For over five decades, York’s intimate, imaginative style of producing both original and classic musicals has resulted in critical acclaim and recognition from artists and audiences alike. Under the guidance of Producing Artistic Director James Morgan since 1997, The York has focused on new musicals in its Mainstage Series—most of them world, American, or New York premieres—by some of the field’s most esteemed creators and has also helped launch the careers of many talented new writers. Well over 40 cast recordings from York Theatre Company productions are now available on CD, including its acclaimed revival of Closer Than Ever (2013 Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best Revival); commercial transfers of such York premieres as The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!), Souvenir (Tony Award Nomination for actress Judy Kaye), and Jolson & Company, and revivals of Pacific Overtures and Sweeney Todd (four Tony Nominations including Best Revival) have all showcased the importance of The York and its programs.

Recent York productions have included Hoagy Carmichael’s Stardust Road, Vanities - The Musical, Penelope: or How the Odyssey Was Really Written, Cheek to Cheek: Irving Berlin in Hollywood, A Taste of Things to Come, Marry Harry, and Rothschild & Sons. The critically acclaimed musical Yank! received its Off-Broadway debut at The York, and subsequently to rave reviews in London—as did York’s Rothschild & Sons. The hit musical Cagney received its York premiere in 2015, transferring to The Westside Theatre for over 15 months. In 2017, Desperate Measures received a total of 15 award nominations (and three wins) that included Best Musical from the Lucille Lortel, Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk, and Off-Broadway Alliance and subsequently transferred across town to New World Stages. The York is the recipient of a special Drama Desk Award for “Developing and Producing New Musicals,” a special Outer Critics Circle Award for “50 Years of Producing New and Classic Musicals.” Due to a flood in their home of 30 years at Saint Peter’s Church in January 2021, The York is currently producing at The Theatre at St. Jean’s at 76th Street and Lexington Avenue.