STAGED! Presents Jason Robert Brown In Concert 6/27

After a brief hiatus from any major productions, STAGED! Portland's Musical Theatre Series is back with an ambitious summer line-up. STAGED! is presenting an in-depth look at one of the most dynamic musical theatre composers working today, Tony Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown.

This unique summer-long celebration will highlight each of his produced works in turn starting with the first show he ever wrote, SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD. In the midst of it all, the composer himself will make an appearance, performing a solo concert and participating in a talkback with the audience. This will be Jason Robert Brown's first trip to the Pacific Northwest.

"He really has a distinct style, and we're thrilled to showcase his work," says Chanda Hall, artistic director of Staged! "We've always been focused on telling compelling stories through song, and Jason Robert Brown is a master at that."

In fact, the first production of the summer is just that: a collection of sung stories. SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD, co-produced with Miracle Theatre Group, is a pop/rock song cycle. Without a traditional, linear plot, the two men and two women in the cast play a startling array of characters. Staged! is presenting this musical acoustically, with only a baby grand piano as accompaniment. Sherman Clay/Moe's Pianos is providing the piano for SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD.

The most anticipated event of the summer is Jason Robert Brown in CONCERT. The composer-lyricist will be in town on June 27 to see SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD and to perform his own works later that evening. For those lucky enough to get seats, it will be a rare opportunity to see the talented pianist up close, hear some of the stories behind the songs, and ask him a question.

On July 2, STAGED! presents a late-night benefit performance of the Off-Broadway hit THE LAST FIVE YEARS. Starring Isaac Lamb and Courtney Freed, this one night only event will benefit the company's Education & Outreach programs. A contemporary song-cycle musical that ingeniously chronicles the five year life of a marriage, from meeting to break-up... or from break-up to meeting, depending on how you look at it. Hugely popular within musical theater circles, THE LAST FIVE YEARS is an intensely personal look at the relationship between a writer and an actress told from both points of view.

In July and August STAGED! offers a twist on their popular summer camp for youth; two separate workshops will use Jason Robert Brown musicals as a jumping off point for in-depth study. Youth ages 10-14 years old will study Jason Robert Brown's latest Broadway production "13." Older students (15-19 years old) will focus on "Parade," which has hard-hitting themes of racism and corruption. "I think studying his musicals will really stretch our students as actors. We want these kids to grow in their skills and this will challenge them in all areas," says Paul Angelo, workshop director.

The summer culminates in a SONGBOOK CABARET on August 19 at Lents Commons. Featuring many of Portland's favorite singers and actors with live accompaniment, the cabaret will feature lesser-known gems alongside many popular Jason Robert Brown compositions. Several other young composers will be featured as well, making it a true celebration of the future of musical theatre.

"I'm thrilled to bring tons of Jason Robert Brown to Portland audiences this summer," Hall said. "We like to do things that no one else is doing."

ABOUT THE ARTIST
Jason Robert Brown has been hailed as "one of Broadway's smartest and most sophisticated songwriters since Stephen Sondheim" (Philadelphia Inquirer), and his "extraordinary, jubilant theater music" (Chicago Tribune) has been heard all over the world, whether in one of the hundreds of productions of his musicals every year or in his own incendiary live performances. The New York Times refers to Jason as "a leading member of a new generation of composers who embody high hopes for the American musical." His four major musicals as composer and lyricist include: "13", a musical written with Robert Horn and Dan Elish, which began its life at the Mark Taper Forum in 2007 and opened on Broadway in 2008; "The Last Five Years", which was cited as one of Time Magazine's 10 Best of 2001 and won Drama Desk Awards for Best Music and Best Lyrics; "Parade", a musical written with Alfred Uhry and directed by Harold Prince, which premiered at Lincoln Center Theatre in 1998, and subsequently won both the Drama Desk and New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards for Best New Musical, as well as garnering Jason the Tony Award for Original Score; and "Songs for a New World", a theatrical song cycle directed by Daisy Prince, which played Off-Broadway in 1995, and has since been seen in hundreds of productions around the world. His next project is "Honeymoon In Vegas", a musical adaptation of the 1992 film, written with Andrew Bergman. An orchestral adaptation of E.B. White's novel "The Trumpet of the Swan", written with Marsha Norman, premiered at the Kennedy Center. Jason is the winner of the 2002 Kleban Award for Outstanding Lyrics and the 1996 Gilman & Gonzalez-Falla Foundation Award for Musical Theatre. Jason's songs, including the cabaret standard "Stars and the Moon," have been performed and recorded by Audra McDonald, Betty Buckley, Karen Akers, Renée Fleming, Philip Quast, Jon Hendricks and many others.

Jason's first solo album, "Wearing Someone Else's Clothes", featuring his band The Caucasian Rhythm Kings, was named one of Amazon.com's best of 2005, and is available from Sh-K-Boom Records. His collaboration with singer Lauren Kennedy, "Songs of Jason Robert Brown", is available on PS Classics. Jason's piano sonata, "Mr. Broadway" was commissioned and premiered by Anthony De Mare at Carnegie Hall. Jason is also the composer of the incidental music for David Lindsay-Abaire's "Kimberly Akimbo" and "Fuddy Meers," Marsha Norman's "Last Dance," David Marshall Grant's "Current Events," Kenneth Lonergan's "The Waverly Gallery," and the Irish Repertory Theater's production of "Long Day's Journey Into Night," and he was a Tony Award nominee for his contributions to the score of "Urban Cowboy the Musical." He has also contributed music to the hit Nickelodeon television series, "The Wonder Pets." His scores are published by Hal Leonard. Jason currently teaches musical theater performance and composition at the University of Southern California.

As a conductor and arranger, Jason's recent New York credits include "Urban Cowboy the Musical" on Broadway; Oliver Goldstick's play, "Dinah Was," directed by David Petrarca, at the Gramercy Theatre and on national tour; and William Finn's "A New Brain," directed by Graciela Daniele, at Lincoln Center Theater. Jason was the musical director of the pop vocal group, The Tonics, with whom he performed at the 1992 tribute to Stephen Sondheim at Carnegie Hall (recorded by RCA Victor); he was the conductor and orchestrator of Yoko Ono's musical, "New York Rock," at the WPA Theatre (on Capitol Records); and he orchestrated Andrew Lippa's "john and jen," Off-Broadway at Lamb's Theatre (Varese Sarabande). In 1994, Jason was the conductor and arranger of Michael John LaChiusa's "The Petrified Prince," directed by Harold Prince, at The Public Theatre. Additionally, Jason served as the orchestrator and arranger of Charles Strouse and Lee Adams's score for a proposed musical of "Star Wars." Jason also took over as musical director for the Off-Broadway hit "When Pigs Fly." Jason has conducted and created arrangements and orchestrations for Liza Minnelli, John Pizzarelli, Tovah Feldshuh, and Laurie Beechman, among many others.

Jason studied composition at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., with Samuel Adler, Christopher Rouse, and Joseph Schwantner. He lives with his wife and daughters in Los Angeles, California. Jason is a proud member of the Dramatist's Guild and the American Federation of Musicians Local 802 & 47. Visit him on the web at www.jasonrobertbrown.com.

The full schedule of STAGED!'s Jason Robert Brown Fest:

SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD, a co-production with Miracle Theatre Group, plays June 18-July 3, 2010 at the Milagro Theatre (525 SE Stark St., Portland). Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm. Tickets are $17-$22 ($13 for students/seniors) when purchased in advance; $24-$29 ($19 for students/seniors) at the door. Tickets may be purchased by calling 503-236-7253, online from www.milagro.org or in person from the PDX Ticket Network community box office at the Hollywood Theatre daily 1-9 p.m. For more information about the production, visit www.milagro.org or www.stagedpdx.org.

Jason Robert Brown IN CONCERT begins at 7 p.m., Sunday June 27 at the Milagro Theatre (525 SE Stark St., Portland). All tickets are $35. Tickets may be purchased by calling 503-236-7253, online from www.milagro.org or in person from the PDX Ticket Network community box office at the Hollywood Theatre daily 1-9 p.m. For more information about the production, visit www.milagro.org or www.stagedpdx.org.

THE LAST FIVE YEARS-a late-night benefit performance starring Isaac Lamb and Courtney Freed, directed by Paul Angelo with musical direction by Matt Insley-begins at 10:30 p.m., Friday, July 2 at the Milagro Theatre (525 SE Stark St., Portland). All tickets are $25. Tickets may be purchased by calling 503-236-7253, online from www.milagro.org or in person from the PDX Ticket Network community box office at the Hollywood Theatre daily 1-9 p.m. For more information about the production, visit www.milagro.org or www.stagedpdx.org.

JULY 19-30: THEATRE CAMP for ages 10-14, focusing on JRB's latest Broadway show "13." Directed by Paul Angelo and Andrew Bray, held at Action Adventure Theatre. For more information, visit www.stagedpdx.org.

AUGUST 2-13: THEATRE CAMP for ages 15-19, focusing on JRB's Tony Award-winning musical "PARADE." Directed by Paul Angelo and Andrew Bray, held at Action Adventure Theatre. For more information, visit www.stagedpdx.org.

AUGUST 19: JRB SONGBOOK-a cabaret event at Lents Commons, featuring Portland's favorite actor-singers and live musicians. For more information, visit www.stagedpdx.org.

ABOUT STAGED! PORTLAND'S MUSICAL THEATRE SERIES
Staged! is dedicated to the art of the musical - the marriage of story, song and movement. Staged! productions celebrate the creators of this art form: the lyricists, composers and book writers who craft the stories that make us burst out in song. Since bounding onto Portland's art scene in 2005, Staged! continues to delight audiences with stripped-down productions of complex musical theatre, focusing on musicians and actors telling stories together through song. Staged! is proud to be a Portland-based theatre company, producing stellar musical theatre, providing pre-professional training to young people, and nurturing talent. For more information about Staged!, visit www.stagedpdx.org or call 971-322-5723.

ABOUT MIRACLE THEATRE GROUPMiracle Theatre Group, the Northwest's premier Latino arts and culture organization for over 25 years, provides high-quality Latino theatre, arts and cultural experiences for urban and rural communities. Miracle merges the highest aesthetic ideals with social responsibility, illustrated by a long tradition of innovative programs serving diverse artists and audiences at El Centro Milagro, its home in Portland, Oregon, and through national tours. The Miracle Theatre Group is dedicated to the growth of a vital, diverse, exciting regional and national arts community and is proud to nurture emerging arts organizations such as Staged!. For more information about Miracle Theatre Group, visit www.milagro.org or call 503-236-7253.