New Musical ATOMIC to Open Off-Broadway this Summer at Acorn Theatre

By: Apr. 16, 2014
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This summer, after a wildly successful engagement in Sydney, Australia, Atomic, the exhilarating and provocative new musical based on the creation of the atomic bomb, will make its highly anticipated U.S. premiere with a strictly limited 8-week Off-Broadway engagement from June 26 - August 16 at The Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row (410 West 42nd Street, between 9th and 10th Avenues). The official opening is set for Sunday, July 13. With book & lyrics by Danny Ginges and Gregory Bonsignore, and music & lyrics by Philip Foxman, Atomic is choreographed by Dean Walsh and directed by Damien Gray. Tickets are $69.25 and can be arranged online at www.telecharge.com or by calling 212.239.6200 or by visiting the Theatre Row Box Office located at 410 West 42nd Street.

Atomic is the thrilling new Off-Broadway musical that blasts open the doors of The Manhattan Project, a Government funded program of top scientists with the task of creating the world's first Atomic Bomb. Leo Szilard is the mastermind behind atomic power, but his heart has reservations. Ethics, scientific progress, and true love are tested as Leo discovers exactly what he's capable of when someone believes in him. The award-winning cast is led by Sara Gettelfinger (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), Jeremy Kushnier (Jersey Boys) and Euan Morton (Taboo) with David Abeles, Alexis Fishman, Jonathan Hammond, James David Larson, Preston Sadlier and Grace Stockdale.

Scenic design for Atomic is by Neil Patel; costume design is by Emma Kingsbury; lighting design is by David Finn; and sound design is by Jon Weston. Christopher Jahnke is music producer and Andrew Peterson is music director. Atomic is produced by Dreamingful Productions and Graymatter Entertainment.

DANNY GINGES (Book & Lyrics). For most of his life, Danny has been a copywriter, creative group head and creative consultant to the advertising industry. He has worked for agencies including Saatchi & Saatchi, The Ball Partnership, EURORSCG, JWT and BWM, and has won a list of Australian and international awards for his efforts. Danny would still be working in advertising today, but the story of the forgotten man behind the atomic bomb has rewritten him.

GREGORY BONSIGNORE (Book & Lyrics) trained in writing at the BBC, London before graduating with honors from NYU. His theatrical writing credits include A Matter of Fact (as Playwright in Residence at the Library of Alexandria, Egypt), 3 (Off-Broadway & City Theatre, Miami, Sam French Festival Finalist), Us & Them (Mildred's Umbrella, Houston) and The Kevin Meaney Show (NY Musical Workshop). He also developed new work with Disney on Broadway. In television, his credits include: "Homeland," "Transformers Rescue Bots," "Lie to Me" (Ep."Who's Afraid of Virginia Tech"), "Bunheads," "Anatomy of Violence (Pilot)," "Three Rivers," ABC's "Logic Quiz Show - Million Dollar Mind Game" and "In Plain Sight." Gregory created the pilots "Squad 85" (Executive Producer: Justin Lin), "Yearbook for Fox," and "Rare" (developed by Philip Seymour Hoffman and Emily Ziff's Cooperstown Prod. for HBO); Film credits include: Or Die (Writer/Co-Director, Winner of HBO Film Fest in NYC), BrosB4Hos (Jeff Marx & Jeff Witzke), and a new film for Hurwitz/Schlossberg. He has also written speeches for the Anti Prop 8 campaign and is a member of the Writer's and Dramatist's Guild.

PHILIP FOXMAN (Music & Lyrics) started his music career composing the score for The ABC TV documentary "Stirring," as well as playing bass and songwriting for local Sydney bands. He joined the band Supernaut who appeared regularly on high-profile TV show Countdown, had several hit singles, three albums and toured the country extensively. He moved to London to form Illustrated Man, featuring members from the bands Japan, Gary Numan, Gang of Four and The Models. The band released an album on Capitol/EMI records, opened for artists Cindy Lauper, Nick Kershaw, had a top 20 USA dance-rock hit, high-rotation video on MTV followed by a national USA tour. Philip moved to New York where he composed and music supervised independent films, TV commercials and co-wrote and produced bands and artists. He wrote and composed his first musical Killing Time, which appeared in various stage-readings in NYC. His band Philip Foxman and Prime 8 released West 4th and Charles, followed by his solo CD Up Antenna. Philip's songs featured in MTV shows, "The Real World," "The Hills," "Behind the Music" and "Neighbors." Recently signing as a songwriter/producer to USA based company Peer Music Publishing Group, his extensive catalogue of songs continues to be placed in various national and international TV shows.

DEAN WALSH (Choreographer) is a highly respected Australian choreographer and dancer. He has worked with many of Australia's leading companies including Australian Dance Theatre, Opera Australia, Sydney Dance Company and Sydney Theatre Company (with London's Frantic Assembly). He has worked with international companies including DV8 Physical Theatre in London and choreographed more than thirty of his own works, many touring nationally and internationally. He has been awarded two prestigious awards: the Robert Helpmann Scholarship and the two-year Australia Council Dance Fellowship.

DAMIEN GRAY (Director) works worldwide as both a director and creative consultant for entertainment companies such as The Walt Disney Company, Universal Studios and Broadway Across America. Most recently he created BIOHAZARD, a live immersive spectacular for Universal Studios Japan, based on the video game series Resident Evil. He created and directed ANIMAGIQUE at Disney Studios Paris; Steps in Time for Disney's California Adventure; the world premiere of Sladky Theresienstadt (Archa Theater Prague and Bonner Bienniale Germany); A Century of Lust based on the music of Nick Cave; and Tennessee Williams' rarely performed play, Clothes for a Summer Hotel (Walt Disney Modular Theater at The California Institute for the Arts). For Sundance Theatre Institute he has directed Cinderella, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Oliver, and the acclaimed Sundance revival of Gypsy starring Karan Mason. He also created The Sundance Radio Theater Project, which performed live at famed Abravenel Hall with Sally Field, John Dye and Christopher Lloyd. Other highlights include an adaptation of Barbarella with Dave Stewart (Eurythmics) for Live Nation and Planet Hollywood Hotel in Las Vegas. Damien was the co-founder and artistic director of NYC's cutting-edge, award-winning Workhouse Theater Company. He wrote the major motion picture, (based on his play) The Florentine, which was produced by Francis Ford Coppola (American Zoetrope Studios). Currently he is developing RIPPER, an immersive rock musical experience in NYC which will feature new music by a major American rock star premiering in 2015.

The U.S. premiere of the new musical Atomic will begin performances Off-Broadway at The Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row (410 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues) on Thursday, June 26 at 8pm. The limited 8-week engagement will have its official opening on July 13 and run through August 16. The schedule will be as follows: Tuesday - Thursday at 7pm; Friday at 8pm; Saturday at 2pm & 8pm; Sunday at 3pm & 7pm. Please note: The performance on Sunday, July 13 (the show's official opening night) will be at 5pm. Tickets are $69.25 with premium seats at $89.25 (all incl. $1.25 facility fee) and can be arranged online at www.telecharge.com or by calling 212.239.6200 or at the Theatre Row Box Office located at 410 West 42nd Street. For more information, please visit www.AtomicTheMusical.com.



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