City Theatre Announces Special Event: A Holiday Homecoming

City Theatre is excited to welcome the musical theater writing team of Michael Kooman and Christopher Dimond back to Pittsburgh for A Holiday Homecoming. The pair met while studying at Carnegie Mellon and the cabaret marks their City Theatre debut. Fresh off the success of their work on the Disney Channel's VAMPIRINA, the duo will host a two night only event on the theater's main stage showcasing music from their award winning works including Dani Girl and Romantics Anonymous with a few holiday favorites sprinkled in. Music directed by Nick Stamatakis, A Holiday Homecoming will run on the City Theatre Main Stage, November 30 and December 1. Tickets are on sale now.

"We're thrilled to have the opportunity to share our work with City Theatre and to return to Pittsburgh, the city where our collaboration began and where many of our first works debuted," said Chris Dimond. "We're especially excited for the chance to premiere several brand new songs with the City Theatre audience."

In collaboration with MTAP-Musical Theatre Artists of Pittsburgh, two songs by MTAP members, which were previously showcased during MTAP's Late Night cabaret, will be selected by Michael and Chris and performed as part of each evening.

The cabaret will also feature opening performances by two senior musical theatre students, Caroline Mixon and Sam O'Byrne, from the Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama singing holiday standards.

A Holiday Homecoming is music directed by Nick Stamatakis. The cast includes: Hope Anthony, Julianne Avolio, Maggie Carr, Tim McGeever, Billy Hartung, Natalie Hatcher, Justin Lonesome, Lenora Nemetz, Stephen Santa, Becki Toth, and DREW LEIGH WILLIAMS. Additional performers will be announced. The production team includes: Tony Ferrieri (Scenic Coordinator), Greg Messmer (Lighting Coordinator), Brad Peterson (Sound Coordinator), Kooman & Dimond (Composers), and Kevin McConville (Stage Manager).

About Kooman & Dimond: Michael Kooman (music) and Christopher Dimond (book & lyrics) are a New York City-based writing team for the stage and screen. Their most recent musical, ROMANTICS ANONYMOUS, debuted to rave reviews at Shakespeare's Globe this fall. They also currently serve as songwriters for VAMPIRINA, an animated musical TV series for which they have written more than 100 songs. The show airs on the Disney Channel and Disney Junior, reaching over 49 million viewers in 115 countries.

Their other projects include THE NOTEWORTHY LIFE OF HOWARD BARNES (Village Theater), ORPHIE & THE BOOK OF HEROES (The Kennedy Center), THE ENLIGHTENMENT OF PERCIVAL VON SCHMOOTZ (commissioned by the Canadian Music Theatre Project), JUDGE JACKIE; DISORDER IN THE COURT (Pittsburgh CLO; licensed by Samuel French), DANI GIRL (Exit, Pursued by a Bear), GOLDEN GATE (Williamstown Theatre Festival), HOMEMADE FUSION (London's Ambassadors Theater, Edinburgh Fringe Festival) and JUNIOR CLAUS (Orlando Repertory Theatre).

Awards and honors include the Fred Ebb Award, a Jonathan Larson Grant, the Mary Rodgers/Lorenz Hart Award, the Samuel French Next Step Award, the Burton Lane Award, and the Harold Adamson Award. They are members of the Dramatist Guild and ASCAP, and are proud alumni of Carnegie Mellon University.

A HOLIDAY HOMECOMING

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
November 30 and December 1 - 8:00pm

BOX OFFICE INFORMATION:
412.431.CITY (2489) or CityTheatreCompany.org
Tickets start at $25; VIP tables are available.

WHERE:
1300 Bingham Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15203 (South Side)
Port Authority bus routes: 48, 51, 54, 81, 83

PARKING:
Patron parking is available in the lot across from the City Theatre entrances for $9, subject to availability.

ABOUT CITY THEATRE:

Founded in 1975, City Theatre enters its 44th season as Pittsburgh's home for bold new plays. Located in the historic South Side on its four-building cultural campus, the company produces a season of regional and world premieres, including the upcoming The Burdens by Matt Schatz and We Are Among Us by Stephen Belber; its renowned Young Playwrights Festival; a season-long reading series of new works in progress; and the annual Momentum Festival. City Theatre's mission is to provide an artistic home for the development and production of contemporary plays of substance and ideas that engage and challenge a diverse audience. With an annual average operating budget of $2.75 million, City is the largest performing arts organization not located in Pittsburgh's downtown Cultural District and is a constituent and core member of the League of Resident Theaters (LORT), Theatre Communications Group (TCG), and the National New Play Network (NNPN). Marc Masterson returned as Artistic Director in July, after an 18 year absence, to join Managing Director James McNeel as co-leaders of the organization.

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