Wilbury Group to Continue 2015-16 Season with PASSING STRANGE

The Wilbury Theatre Group continues its 2015/16 season with the Rhode Island premiere of the acclaimed rock musical, Passing Strange, November 19-December 5, 2015. With book and lyrics by Stew, music by Stew and Heidi Rodewald, and directed by Brien Lang with musical direction by Tom Grace and Matt Requintina, Passing Strange is the daring musical that takes audiences on a journey across boundaries of place, identity and theatrical convention. Loaded with soulful lyrics and overflowing with passion, the show goes from black, middle-class America to Amsterdam, Berlin and beyond on a journey towards personal and artistic authenticity. Today hailed as a "punk-rock musical milestone", Passing Strange electrified Broadway in 2008 winning a Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical and numerous other awards.

Passing Strange runs November 19-December 5 at The Wilbury Theatre Group, 393 Broad Street, Providence RI. Tickets are $15-$25. Call 401-400-7100 or order online at thewilburygroup.org.

About Passing Strange
Passing Strange tells the story of a young black man from Los Angeles, rebelling against a loving, church-going family and breaking out on his own to follow the call of art and search for "the real". It's a universal coming-of-age tale about the explosive intersections and epic synergies of race, class, individuality, sex, drugs, rock... and the place we can't help but call home. The New York Times said: "[Passing Strange] is far richer in wit, feeling and sheer personality than most of what is classified as musical theater these days...Call it a rock concert with a story to tell, trimmed with a lot of great jokes...I'll just call it wonderful."

"Passing Strange came to my attention while we were working on Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson four seasons ago," says Wilbury Group Artistic Director Josh Short. "It's considered one of the real trailblazers in the modern rock musical, and shows like Andrew Jackson, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and so many others owe it a debt for popularizing the form for them. Since I first heard the story and the incredible music to it I've been hoping to produce it, and it works so well with the rest of the shows this season exploring themes of identity and desperation. After seeing Brien's work directing A Public Reading... for us last season and his own rock musical Roadhouse, I'm eager to share with audiences the blend of the personal, the profound, and the rock 'n roll he brings to it."

Learn more at thewilburygroup.org/passing-strange.

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