ZOMBIE!: A New Musical Opens 8/27 At Stagewerx SF

Zombie!: A New Musical is a Rock / Horror / Tragicomedy that will eat your face off!

Zombie!, the brain child of daring playwright and director Anthony R. Miller, is going to consume you. This is a fact. It is a work of love, tragedy and epic zombie mayhem that refuses to take no for an answer.

Mr. Miller, is a performance artist at heart, and over his ten years in the independent arts, he has earned several titles and a reputation as an audacious performance poet. He has a lifelong passion for both the living impaired and theatre, and he has had his teeth sunk squarely into this piece since his studies in Dramaturgy at San Francisco State University.

Zombie! would not have come so ferociously to life, though, if it were not for the uncompromising talents of composer Brendan West, a veteran of the Shotgun Players and various Berkeley theatre companies. His score is solidly rooted in Hard Rock and Metal, standing on the shoulders of giants such as Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Slayer, and Guns ‘n Roses. Most recently Mr. West was noted for sound design work on Beowulf, though he returns home now to create the Signature Sound of Zombie!.

Zombie! has torn through numerous workshops, fueled by a passion for the plight of the living, non-alive, and living dead, and Zombie! is now ready for its first staged viewing. Thanks to the backing of Beards Beards Beards, Staggering Creative, and Used Conceits Productions, Zombie! will be throwing a living-impaired benefit party in association with People for the Ethical Treatment of Zombies (PETZ) on August 22nd to kick off Zombie!'s showing at Stagewerx August 27-29 and September 3-5. The show is slated to rise again at the Exit Theater October 15-17, 22-24, 29-31, closing Halloween night!

More about the show:

Several things make Zombie! what it is today:

First, Mr. West and Mr. Miller's goal to create music that has the clean sound of Broadway with the power of Metal tells a clear story and that develops the characters while driving the show.

Second, the book is keenly aware of modern and classic Horror films, most specifically The Return of the Living Dead and its many sequels. Zombie!'s creators have captured that the traditional horror aesthetic while staying away from the unnecessary camp. There is just the right mix of blood gushing from the victims, flesh being torn off, and a dash of onstage violence.

In tone, Zombie cannot be defined as simply a comedy; the brand of camp in this piece comes from a naturalistic, organic place. The book's humor and tragedy hinge upon social commentary-an integral but often overlooked subplot in most zombie storytelling.

Zombie will be holding a preview run in late August at StageWerx SF followed by a second run in October at the Exit Theater. 

Stagewerx SF
533 Sutter at Powell
San Francisco, CA

Times and Dates:

Thursday, August 27, 2009 - 8 PM
Friday, August 28, 2009 - 8 PM
Saturday, August 29, 2009 - 8 PM
Thursday, September 3, 2009 - 8 PM
Friday, September 4, 2009 - 8 PM
Saturday, September 5, 2009 - 8 PM
You can use the links about to purchase tickets online or call the box office at (415) 433-1235.