SAMMY, WHISPER HOUSE Set For Old Globe's 2009-2010 Winter Season

Lou Spisto, Executive Producer of the Tony Award®-winning Old Globe, is pleased to announce the Theatre's 2009/2010 Winter Season.

The schedule of productions in the Old Globe Theatre includes the world premiere musical Sammy (September 17 - November 1, 2009, press opening on September 26), book, music and lyrics by two-time Academy Award and Grammy Award-winner Leslie Bricusse, and directed by Keith Glover. Sammy follows the life of one of the greatest entertainers of all time. Next in the Globe is the world premiere musical Whisper House (January 13 - February 21, 2010, press opening on January 21) with music by 2007 Tony and Grammy Award-winner Duncan Sheik, book and lyrics by Kyle Jarrow and directed by Keith Powell. Whisper House is set in a haunted lighthouse during the height of World War II. Next in the Globe is the West Coast premiere of the Tony Award-winning comedy, Boeing-Boeing (March 13 - April 18, 2010, press opening on March 18), by Marc Camoletti and Beverly Cross, which had its adaptation significantly revised for its recent Broadway incarnation. The final production in the Globe is Olivier and Tony Award-winner Roger Rees' tour-de-force performance about all things Shakespeare, What You Will (May 1 - June 22, 2010, press opening on May 6).

In the Arena Stage, the West Coast premiere of the new comedy, The Savannah Disputation, by Evan Smith and directed by Kim Rubinstein, (September 26 - November 1, 2009, press opening on October 1) will be the final production for the Globe at the James S. Copley Auditorium.

The inaugural production in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre is Neil Simon's Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Lost in Yonkers (January 23 - February 28, 2010, press opening on January 28), directed by Kent Paul. The final two shows in the new White Theatre are the romantic comedy, Alive and Well (March 20 - April 25, 2010, press opening on March 25) by Kenny Finkle, a co-world premiere with Virginia Stage Company and the West Coast premiere of the moving drama The Whipping Man (May 8 - June 13, 2010, press opening on May 13) by Matthew Lopez.

Spisto commented, "This is a particularly exciting season with plays and musicals by both emerging voices and established masters representing the Globe's commitment to the art form and our unique capacity to produce a great range of diverse work. This season we will present playwrights Kenny Finkle, Matthew Lopez and Evan Smith alongside Neil Simon; with musicals that reflect the great variety from Duncan Sheik to Leslie Bricusse and finally a compelling and entertaining tribute to the Bard by one of the great actors of our day. The stories are entertaining and provocative, including three world premieres, which reflects our continued ability to attract some of theatre's top creative talent."

For more information or to subscribe to The Old Globe's 2009/10 Winter Season, please contact Globe Ticket Services at (619) 23-GLOBE or www.TheOldGlobe.org.

Subscriptions are also available for the Globe's 2009 Summer Season, including the renowned Shakespeare Festival, featuring Cyrano de Bergerac, Twelfth Night and Coriolanus, playing in a rotating schedule in the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre June 14 - September 27; The Broadway-bound musical, The First Wives Club playing in the Old Globe Theatre July 15 - August 23; and the classic comedy The Mystery of Irma Vep playing in the Globe's Arena Stage at the San Diego Museum of Art's James S. Copley Auditorium July 31 - September 6.

The Old Globe's 2009/2010 Winter Season

Old Globe Theatre

Sammy

Book, Music and Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse

additional songs by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley

Directed by Keith Glover

September 17 - November 1, 2009; Press Opening: September 26 at 8pm

World Premiere

One of the greatest entertainers of all time, Sammy Davis Jr. defined an era. The ultimate triple-threat - singer, actor and dancer - Sammy could do it all. This world premiere musical, written by two-time Academy Award and Grammy Award-winner Leslie Bricusse, takes us from Sammy's days as a child working in vaudeville through his time with Dean and Frank as a member of the Rat Pack. Featuring the unmistakable classics that helped to make Sammy an American icon. From hits like "The Candy Man," "Mr. Bojangles" and "What Kind of Fool Am I," and more, to new songs written just for this musical, Sammy shows us the struggles and triumphs of the man who was adored by millions. Sammy is the history of American entertainment, as seen through the eyes of the first real American Idol.

Whisper House

Music and Lyrics by Duncan Sheik

Book and Lyrics by Kyle Jarrow

Directed by Keith Powell

January 13 - February 21, 2010; Press Opening: January 21 at 8pm

World Premiere

Tony and Grammy Award-winning songwriter Duncan Sheik follows up his Broadway sensation, Spring Awakening, with this enchanting new musical. Set in 1942 during the height of World War II, Americans are being asked to do their part to help their country win the war, including Lily and her Japanese assistant, the caretakers of a remote lighthouse. When Lily's young nephew Christopher comes to stay with her, he begins to think his new home is haunted. When the spirits reveal themselves to Christopher, he is required to grow up quickly and make decisions that are usually left up to grownups. Should he trust these mischievous spirits whose songs only he can hear or should he trust the grownups around him that still treat him like a kid? The beautiful tale reminds us all that fear and misguided assumptions can lead anyone down a road of no return.

Boeing-Boeing

By Marc Camoletti and Beverly Cross

March 13 - April 18, 2010; Press Opening: March 18 at 8pm

Boeing-Boeing, the hilarious jet propelled comedy that had audiences and critics cheering in London and on Broadway, is coming in for a landing on The Old Globe stage! Bernard, a successful architect living in Paris, thinks he can easily juggle his three flight attendant fiancées. It's all a question of timing and a little help from his trusted housekeeper who reluctantly plays romantic air-traffic controller. When an old friend arrives and his three fiancées each change their flight schedules, his life hits some turbulence! Fasten your seat belts for rollicking first class entertainment.

What You Will

Written and performed by Roger Rees

May 1 - June 6, 2010; Press Opening, May 6 at 8pm

Tony and Olivier Award-winner Roger Rees brings his tour-de-force performance about all things Shakespeare for this limited Old Globe engagement. This historical and sometimes hysterical account of Rees' stage experiences - from the Bard's great soliloquies performed by the man who has played Hamlet more than any other actor in the history of the Royal Shakespeare, to some of the funniest monologues ever seen live on stage - will be the theatrical event all of San Diego will be talking about. Whether you know Roger Rees as television's dashing English tycoon Robin Colcord on Cheers, British Ambassador Lord John Marbury on The West Wing, or Colin Marlow on Grey's Anatomy, or from his stage triumph on Broadway in the acclaimed Nicholas Nickleby, you won't want to miss this once in a lifetime show.

Globe's Arena Stage at SD Museum of Art's James S. Copley Auditorium

The Savannah Disputation

By Evan Smith

Directed by Kim Rubinstein

September 26 - November 1, 2009; Press Opening: October 1 at 8pm

West Coast Premiere

Good-natured and sometimes susceptible Margaret and no-nonsense and sometimes spirited Mary are two Catholic sisters who receive an unexpected visitor that causes Margaret to begin wavering in her beliefs. Mary hatches a plan to bring Margaret back into the fold with the aid of their unsuspecting priest and a truly devilish dinner party. The Savannah Disputation is a comedy you can believe in.

The Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre

Lost in Yonkers

By Neil Simon

Directed by Kent Paul

January 23 - February 28, 2010; Press Opening: January 28 at 8pm

Winner of four Tony Awards, including Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize, Lost in Yonkers is about finding one's way through the tangled web of family relationships without losing the sense of self...or sense of humor. Set in Yonkers in 1942, the play focuses on brothers Arty and Jay, left in the care of their feuding relatives Grandma Kurnitz and Aunt Bella. Lost in Yonkers epitomizes Simon's trademark mix of comedy and drama: the one-liners are hilarious, but the characters' relationships are poignant. The New York Post hailed Lost in Yonkers, "The best play Simon ever wrote."

Alive and Well

By Kenny Finkle

March 20 - April 25, 2010; Press Opening: March 25 at 8pm

A co-world premiere with the Virginia Stage Company

This world premiere romantic comedy, in the spirit of The African Queen and Romancing the Stone, tells the story of a mismatched pair, Carla a big city reporter from the North and Zach a Southern tracker and Civil War re-enactor with whom she reluctantly must work with to research her story. In their quest for the story, they lose patience with each other and find much more than either bargained for. Alive and Well is a hilarious joyride that will make even skeptics believe in true love.

The Whipping Man

By Matthew Lopez

May 8 - June 13, 2010; Press Opening: May 13 at 8pm

West Coast Premiere

The Old Globe is excited to present an emerging young voice, Matthew Lopez, with his acclaimed new play, The Whipping Man, set in the days following The Civil War in Virginia when American slaves were set free throughout the South. A Jewish soldier returns to his childhood home, only to find it in ruins and occupied by his former slaves. Though a new chapter of history is unfolding, dangerous secrets of the past threaten to destroy their family, their history, and their faith. The Whipping Man is a moving and provocative look at a pivotal time in American history.

Holiday Offering

Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

Book and Lyrics by Timothy Mason; Music by Mel Marvin

Original Production Conceived and Directed by Jack O'Brien

Old Globe Theatre

November 21 - December 27, 2009; Press Opening: November 27 at 7:00pm

America's favorite holiday fable, back for its 12th joyous year, is a wonderful, whimsical production that will once again jump right off the pages of the classic Dr. Seuss book and onto The Old Globe stage. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! has been hailed by critics: "This Grinch is a smash," wrote the L.A. Times, while the San Diego Union-Tribune raved, "Jack O'Brien scaled this Globe holiday show to the heartfelt humanity of the season." Come take part in the fun as the Globe is transformed into snow-covered Who-ville right down to the last can of Who-hash!

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