Cast Announced for Pittsburgh CLO’s A MUSICAL CHRISTMAS CAROL 12/10-23

Pittsburgh CLO's production of A Musical Christmas Carol will bring audiences of all ages together at the Byham Theater December 10-23. The talented cast features several new faces and a host of returning favorites, led by Pittsburgh's own Tom Atkins as Ebenzer Scrooge. Experience the magic of this affordable holiday classic that is a perfect gift for the entire family. A Musical Christmas Carol - celebrating 18 years as a true Pittsburgh holiday tradition.

About the Cast

Tom Atkins (Ebenezer Scrooge) returns for a second consecutive appearance in A Musical Christmas Carol. Mr. Atkins is perhaps best known for his numerous film and television credits, including "Escape from New York," "The Fog," "Creepshow," "Lethal Weapon," "Bob Roberts," "Striking Distance" and "My Bloody Valentine 3D," as well as "M*A*S*H," "The Rockford Files," "Homicide" and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent." A Pittsburgh native, he has performed in numerous Pittsburgh Public Theater Productions, most notably starring as Art Rooney Sr. in The Chief. On Broadway, he appeared in The Changing Room and The Front Page.

Michael Campayno (Peter Cratchit) is making his Pittsburgh CLO debut. He is a sophomore musical theatre major at Point Park University who recently performed in The Playhouse production of Carousel. Mr. Campayno grew up in Pittsburgh and studied at the Pittsburgh CLO Academy. He also won a 2008 Gene Kelly Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Gaston in Pittsburgh Central Catholic's Beauty and the Beast.

Paul Domencic (Young Scrooge/Ghost of Christmas Future) returns to A Musical Christmas Carol. A native Pittsburgher, he is a former CLO Mini Star and a graduate of the Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama. He has performed with Steel City Theater, Pittsburgh's City Theater, St. Michael's Playhouse, Colonial Theater and The Depot Theatre.

Carl Draper (Topper) - is making his Pittsburgh CLO debut. He is a senior fine arts major at Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music. His regional credits include My Fair Lady, The Wedding Singer, High School Musical and Fiddler on the Roof for West Virginia Public Theatre. He also has performed twice with the Cincinnati Pops.

Wesley Edwards (Wilkins/Watkins) is making his Pittsburgh CLO debut. Originally from Louisville, Kentucky, Mr. Edwards is a graduate of Point Park University, where he earned his bachelor's degree in musical theater. He has performed at The Mountain Playhouse and the Pittsburgh Opera.

Daina Michelle Griffith (Bess/Belle) returns to A Musical Christmas Carol for the fourth time. She has appeared in numerous productions for the Pittsburgh Public Theatre, including Metamorphoses, Amadeus and Cabaret, as well as Off-Broadway in Jane Ho and The Information She Carried and Jesus Christ Superstar for Kansas City Starlight.

Jeff Howell (Bob Cratchit) is a veteran of numerous productions of A Musical Christmas Carol. He was most recently seen in Candide for Quantum Theatre and performed last spring with Marvin Hamlisch and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in a concert version of Show Boat. His other Pittsburgh CLO credits include Beauty and the Beast, Bells Are Ringing, Chess, Singing In the Rain and The Most Happy Fella.

Daniel Krell (Marley) returns to A Musical Christmas Carol for the eighth time. He is a veteran of 20 Pittsburgh CLO productions, including Les Misérables, The Fully Monty, 1776, Jekyll & Hyde, Guys and Dolls, South Pacific and Anything Goes. Mr. Krell recently performed in Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde for Pittsburgh City Theatre and also has appeared in productions for Pittsburgh Public Theater and Quantum Theatre, among others.

Joe Pedulla (Fred) is appearing in his third production of A Musical Christmas Carol. His other professional credits include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, A Chorus Line, 42nd Street, West Side Story, The Sound of Music, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, A Chorus Line, Godspell, Fiddler on the Roof, and Peter Pan.

Caitlin Elizabeth Reilly (Fan/Alice) recently was the understudy for the Pittsburgh CLO Cabaret's productions of I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change and My Way. She has appeared 5 times in A Musical Christmas Carol. Her previous regional credits include Oklahoma!, Picnic, Grease!, The House of Yes, High School Musical and Annie Get Your Gun.

Amanda Serra (Ghost of Christmas Past) returns to the cast of A Musical Christmas Carol for a 10th time. Her other Pittsburgh CLO credits include The Music Man, Hello, Dolly!, Me and My Girl and The Sound of Music. In New York, she has appeared in Disembodied Heads, Dialing For Donna, Amahl and the Night Visitors and Ripper - the Musical.

Amanda Slaughter (Mrs. Cratchit) also returns to A Musical Christmas Carol. She is a graduate of Point Park University with a degree in musical theater. Ms. Slaughter has performed in CLO's Gallery of Heroes productions of First Lady and Pioneers of Flight. Her other credits include the National Tour of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Brigadoon, Into the Woods, Quilters and Oklahoma!

Coty Warn (Missy Watkins/Martha) is making her Pittsburgh CLO debut. She previously appeared regionally in The Sound of Music, Picnic, Peter Pan, The Violet Hour and in Sylvia. Most recently, she performed in the Young Playwrights Festival with City Theatre, and played Misty in the TV pilot "Munhall" with Frog Prince Theatricals.

Ted Watts (Fezziwig/Ghost of Christmas Present) is making his first appearance in A Musical Christmas Carol. Pittsburgh CLO audiences might remember him from the CLO Cabaret production of I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change. Mr. Watts spent three years touring with the CLO's Gallery of Heroes program and has taught at the Pittsburgh CLO Academy. His other credits include The Theatre Factory's The All Night Strut, Pittsburgh Musical Theatre's productions of West Side Story and Fiddler on the Roof.

Terry Wickline (Mrs. Dilber/Mrs. Fezziwig) returns to A Musical Christmas Carol for the 10th year. Her Pittsburgh CLO credits include The Music Man, Hello, Dolly!, Me and My Girl, My Fair Lady, Funny Girl, Crazy For You and Bye Bye Birdie, as well as Always...Patsy Cline at Pittsburgh CLO Cabaret. She has also appeared in Pittsburgh Public Theatre's The Importance of Being Earnest, Man of La Mancha and Much Ado About Nothing.

The cast is rounded out by a host of carolers and party guests.

Greggory Brandt is a veteran of several productions of A Musical Christmas Carol. He most recently performed in the 2009 Pittsburgh CLO productions of Les Misérables and Into the Woods. Prior to that, Mr. Brandt appeared on Broadway in A Tale of Two Cities and in both the Broadway and National Tours of Les Misérables.

Brittany Graham returns to A Musical Christmas Carol after performing off-Broadway in Sessions: A New Musical. Her previous regional credits include A New Operetta: Mary Shelley and Her Frankenstein, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Ragtime.

Christina McCann returns to A Musical Christmas Carol for a fourth time. Previously, she toured for Pittsburgh CLO in numerous productions of its Gallery of Heroes program. She has also performed in the Pittsburgh Opera productions of Eugene Onegin and La Boheme.

Scott P. Sambuco is a Pittsburgh CLO veteran making his 10th appearance in A Musical Christmas Carol. He has appeared in Pittsburgh CLO productions of The Pirates of Penzance, Annie, My Fair Lady, Funny Girl, She Loves Me, Guys and Dolls, Crazy For You, Grand Hotel and Bye, Bye, Birdie.

Several Pittsburgh CLO Academy students will also take part in the holiday production.

Alyssa Gephart (Belinda) is making her sixth appearance in A Musical Christmas Carol. She is an 8th grader in the West Jefferson Hills school district. She can also be seen on the local CW channel interviewing Pittsburgh Steelers as a host of the "Kidzone" television show.

Benjamin Pimental (Cratchit Child) is a sixth grader at Ramsey Elementary School in Mt. Pleasant. He has appeared in the Pittsburgh CLO Academy Summer Camp production of High School Musical 2 as well as in numerous productions for Westmoreland Academy of Performing Arts.

Rhiannon Passmore (Cratchit Child) is a third grader at Kentucky Avenue School in Shadyside. She has appeared in Pittsburgh CLO Summer Camp productions of The Jungle Book in 2009 and Peter Pan in 2008.

Joseph Serafini (Turkey Boy) is a sixth grader at Neil Armstrong Middle School in Bethel Park. This is his fifth production of A Musical Christmas Carol. Joseph recently performed in the National Symphony's The Music Man conducted by Marvin Hamlisch and has also appeared in Pittsburgh CLO's Les Misérables and Peter Pan, Pittsburgh Opera's The Grapes of Wrath and Pittsburgh Symphony's The Music Man.

Eli Tokash (Tiny Tim) is a first-grader at St. Joseph the Worker School in Weirton, West Virginia, who is making his theatrical debut. Along with theater, Eli enjoys playing ice hockey, basketball and piano.

About the Creative Team

Tim Gregory (Director) is back for a second year directing A Musical Christmas Carol. He is the Founding Artistic Director of Provision Theater Company, where his directing credits include Jefferson Award-Nominated A Christmas Carol and CS Lewis On Stage, The Spitfire Grill, Beast On The Moon and Smoke On The Mountain. His other directing credits include The Comedy Of Errors at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Welcome Yule at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and A Christmas Carol at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. Mr. Gregory's acting credits include numerous roles at Provision Theater, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Steppenwolf Theatre and Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. His television credits include "Cupid" on ABC, "DeClassified" on WGN and "Family Practice" on Lifetime. He currently is the host of HGTV's "New Spaces."

Bruce Barnes (Musical Director) returns for a third season as musical director for A Musical Christmas Carol. He spent the majority of 2009 touring as musical director of Happy Days. His other National Tour credits include Kiss Me, Kate, Cats, Jesus Christ Superstar, Cabaret, Camelot and Peter Pan. He made his Broadway debut conducting Peter Pan, starring Cathy Rigby, and regularly substituted as associate conductor of the Sam Mendes production of Cabaret at Studio 54. As a pianist, Mr. Barnes has accompanied a range of artists, including Patti LuPone, Penny Fuller, Ruthie Henshall, Beverly Sills, Billy Porter and Eartha Kitt.

Stage manager for this production will be Fredric H. Orner. This production features original scenery and lighting by D Martyn Bookwalter. This production features lighting by Andrew David Ostrowski.

More Merry Musical Information

In what has become A Musical Christmas Carol tradition, local choirs will perform prior to each performance. Musical groups from all over the Tri-state area have the opportunity to perform on the Byham Theater stage and take part in this special holiday celebration. The list to date includes:
The Choraleers of Tri County Choir Thursday, December 10, 7:00 pm
Howe and Hoover Elementary Choir Friday, December 11, 7:00 pm
Salem City Junior High Ensemble Saturday, December 12, 3:30 pm
Albert Gallatin High School Saturday, December 12, 7:30 pm
CLO Mini Stars and CLO Academy Sunday, December 13, 1:30 pm
Laurel Highlands Choir Friday, December 18, 7:00 pm
Harrison Middle School Choir Saturday, December 19, 11:30 am
West Allegheny Show Choir Saturday, December 19, 7:30 pm
Greater Harmony Chorus Sunday, December 20, 1:30 pm
The Harmonics Sunday, December 20, 5:30 pm
Karns City High School Choir Wednesday, December 23, 7:00 pm

A Musical Christmas Carol will be presented at the Byham Theater (6th & Fort Duquesne Boulevard) December 10-23. Tickets range from $26.50 - $44.50. Half-prIce Tickets are available for children 3-14, sponsored by Macy's. Tickets are now available by calling 412-456-6666, online at pittsburghCLO.org or at the Theater Square Box Office.

Special events available for groups include School Matinees Dec. 8-11, 17-18 and 21-22, Girls' Night Out on Dec. 17 with Palomino restaurant and a Senior Matinee on Dec. 19. You can also pair a meal at your favorite restaurant with a performance of A Musical Christmas Carol. Let our holiday party planners do the work for you.
For more information on these and other group events and discounts, please call Group Sales at 412- 325-1582. Pittsburgh CLO is sponsored throughout the year by American Airlines, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and WTAE-TV.

A Musical Christmas Carol Performance Schedule

Public Performances

Day Date Time
Thursday December 10 7:30pm
Friday December 11 7:30pm
Saturday December 12 4:00pm & 8:00pm
Sunday December 13 2:00pm
Thursday December 17 7:30pm
Friday December 18 7:30pm
Saturday December 19 Noon, 4:00pm & 8:00pm
Sunday December 20 2:00pm & 6pm
Monday December 21 7:30pm
Tuesday December 22 7:30pm
Wednesday December 23 2:00pm & 7:30pm

A Musical Christmas Carol Holiday Coloring Contest
Pittsburgh CLO is holding a coloring contest for area children. Download the coloring sheet here. Completed sheets must be submitted to the Pittsburgh CLO by Tuesday, December 1, 2009. Five winners will be chosen to receive a family 4-pack of tickets to this Charles Dickens classic. The winning pictures will be featured on the Pittsburgh CLO website during December. Mail or email completed sheets along with the contestant's name, address, phone number & age to:

Pittsburgh CLO
Coloring Contest
719 Liberty Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
mail@pittsburghCLO.org

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