Photos: ROAD SHOW In Rehearsal At freeFALL

See photos from inside rehearsal for Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman’s much-traveled musical Road Show, directed by freeFall Artistic Director Eric Davis. The show is the fifth Sondheim musical produced by the company.

The show, set in the early part of 20th-century America, features Robert Teasdale (freeFall’s God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater) and Joey Panek (Award-winning actor and broadcaster) as brothers Addison and Wilson Mizner, respectively, telling the boom-and-bust true story of men and women in late nineteenth century America as they grab their piece of the American Dream.

From panning for gold in Alaska to building the city of Boca Raton in Florida, both were driven by the need to succeed – at whatever cost. Unfortunately, this left them with a trail of debts, disastrous relationships (including their own as brothers) and unfulfilled dreams. The cast also includes Drew H. Wells (freeFall’s OZ: A New Musical) as Hollis Bessemer with Greg Austin, Sara DelBeato, James Putnam and Julia Rifino in the ensemble.

Musical supervision and direction are by Michael Raabe, costume design by Eric Davis, lighting design by Dalton Hamilton and set design by Tom Hansen. The production will feature a 4 piece band with sound engineering by Nathan Doyle. 

Since its founding, freeFall has presented four Sondheim shows including The Frogs, Into the Woods, Sondheim on Sondheim and Assassins. This 5th addition to the roster is reminiscent in style to last year’s smash hit production of Kurt Vonnegut’s God Bless You. Mr. Rosewater (also starring Robert Teasdale). 

Originally written in 1999 when a workshop production was presented of it in New York under the title Wise Guys, starring Nathan Lane and Victor Garber and directed by Sam Mendes, it was subsequently revised as Bounce in 2003, when Hal Prince directed it in Chicago and Washington, DC. It then became Road Show when Doyle directed it at the Public Theater.

Stephen Sondheim (Music & Lyrics) is widely acknowledged as the most innovative, most influential and most important composer and lyricist in modern Broadway history. For more than 50 years, Sondheim set an unsurpassed standard of brilliance and artistic integrity in the musical theatre. His accolades included an Academy Award, eight Tony Awards (more than any other composer) including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, multiple Drama Desk awards and a Pulitzer Prize.

John Weidman (Book) has been writing for the musical theater as a librettist, book writer, and legal advocate for almost thirty years. He is the son of librettist and novelist Jerome Weidman, the co-author (with George Abbott) of the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Fiorello!. John has written three scripts in collaboration with Stephen Sondheim, those for Pacific Overtures (1976), Assassins (1990), and Bounce (2003, variously titled Wise Guys and Road Show 2008). With choreographer/director Susan Stroman he co-created the Tony Award-winning musical Contact in 1999. He has been nominated three times for the Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical, and three of the shows for which he has written the book have won Tonys for either Best Musical or Best Musical Revival. From 1999 to 2009 he was president of the Dramatists Guild of America.

freeFall Theatre brings Sondheim and Weidman’s Road Show to the stage for 5 weeks. Road Show opens February 14 and closes March 16, 2025. The space  is located at 6099 Central Avenue in St. Petersburg. Subscriptions and single tickets are now on sale and can be purchased at freefalltheatre.com or by calling 727-498-5205. All matinees at freeFall are at 2pm and all evening performances are at 7pm. Tickets are $55 ($25 for youth under 18 and for all seats to previews) or included with your $29/month subscription.

Photo Credit: Thee Photo Ninja