FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
March 6, 2014
PRESS
Lauren Lovell, PR Manager
llovell@zachtheatre.org
ZACH Theatre Announces the 2014-2015 Season
Including a World Premiere, Re-imagined Classics and Dynamic New Works
AUSTIN, TX – ZACH Theatre is pleased to announce the 2014 -2015 season of bold, new
works, unforgettable classics, and inspiring musical masterpieces. Six productions and two
season extras will be featured in the subscription line-up. The season kicks off with a lavish
production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s THE KING AND I, followed by a spectacular new
musical production of A CHRISTMAS CAROL specially created by ZACH. In 2015 the delightful
Tony Award-winning comedy ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS starring Martin Burke, is followed
by ON GRACE, the world-premiere play by the acclaimed film, TV and stage actress and
playwright Anna Deavere Smith; and in the summer of 2015 either Duke Ellington’s
SOPHISTICATED LADIES or UNCHAIN MY HEART: THE RAY CHARLES MUSICAL will be
produced. Season extras include the Tony Award-Winning legend Chita Rivera in CHITA
RIVERA: A LEGENDARY CELEBRATION, and the return of Martin Burke in a tour-de-force
performance of THIS WONDERFUL LIFE.
“Our third season in ZACH’s Topfer Theatre is our most ambitious season to date in terms of
scale and scope of programming. The cast sizes of the shows this coming year mean we will be
employing the largest number of Austin artists, musicians and technicians in our history,” says
Dave Steakley, ZACH’s Producing Artistic Director. “I’m very excited that we will have the
opportunity to hear ZACH’s incredible orchestra bring Rodgers and Hammerstein’s beautiful
The King and I score to glorious life, as it is so rarely produced due to the production demands.
Producing the world premiere of Anna Deavere Smith’s newest play is an extraordinary honor,
and I am so moved by Anna’s latest exploration into what constitutes grace and how we create
a compassionate community. Having Chita Rivera join us to do master classes with our young
pre-professional students from ZACH’s Performing Arts School, in addition to hosting this
Broadway legend in concert on our stage will be absolutely amazing. I also look forward to
creating a new holiday tradition for Austin, with our new musical spin on A Christmas Carol, and
I can’t think of a play more suited for Martin Burke’s substantial comedic gifts than the very
funny One Man, Two Guvnors!”
ZACH’s 2014-15 SEASON:
THE KING AND I
Music by Richard Rodgers • Book and Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Based on “Anna and the King of Siam” by Margaret Landon
Original Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Directed by Abe Reybold • Musical Direction by Allen Robertson • Starring Jill Blackwood as
“Anna”
In its first Austin professional theatre staging in more than 25 years, the story of Anna and the
King of Siam blossoms in a lush, new production created for ZACH, featuring lavish sets and
costumes, Jerome Robbin’s legendary choreography, and an international cast backed by a live
orchestra. This beloved musical is slated for a Broadway revival in 2015, but Austin audiences
will experience it first at ZACH!
A CHRISTMAS CAROL
Written by Charles Dickens • Adapted and Directed by Dave Steakley
Musical Direction by Allen Robertson
Spectacular holiday carols and surprising time-bending classics whisk your family on a
captivating ride with the three soulful, rockin’ ghosts of Scrooge’s transformative dream in an
inspiring, original adaptation of Charles Dickens’ beloved holiday classic. The traditional
Victorian setting and gorgeous period costumes are re-imagined with a musical score that
spans genres and eras, vis-à-vis holiday film hits like Scrooged and The Great Gatsby.
ON GRACE
Written and performed by Anna Deavere Smith in collaboration with cellist Joshua Roman
Directed by Leonard Foglia
Pulitzer Prize-winning actress and playwright Anna Deavere Smith returns to ZACH’s stage in
her all new play exploring the idea of grace, empathy and what it means to walk in another
person’s shoes. Musical compositions from renowned cellist Joshua Roman weave together
with interviews Anna conducted with scholars, theologians and politicians in her singular brand
of theater on the question of “What is grace?”
ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS
Written by Richard Bean • Starring Martin Burke
Hilarious Martin Burke stars as the easily-confused Francis Henshall who attempts to keep his
two employers - local gangster Roscoe Crabbe and upper class criminal Stanley Stubbers from meeting and learning of his dual-employment. This Tony Award-winning comedy is a
modern take on Goldoni’s classic play A Servant of Two Masters in a laugh-out-loud satirical
romp of slapstick and one-liners, with a live Beatles-era Liverpool band!
UNCHAIN MY HEART: THE RAY CHARLES MUSICAL
Book by Suzan-Lori Parks • Music by Ray Charles • Music Arrangements by Rahn Coleman
Orchestrations by Harold Wheeler
The brand-new Ray Charles musical, written by Pulitzer Prize-winner Suzan-Lori Parks,
explores one of the greatest pioneering musical artists of all time. Set in Charles’ last live
recording session, the musical includes such classics as “Georgia on My Mind,” “What’d I Say,”
“Hit the Road Jack,” “I Got a Woman” and many more in an astonishing portrayal of this
musical genius. (*rights pending)
If UNCHAIN MY HEART is unavailable in 2014-15 ZACH will present
Duke Ellington’s SOPHISTICATED LADIES
Concept by Donald McKayle • Based on the Music of Duke Ellington
Music and Dance Arrangements by Lloyd Mayers
Vocal Arrangements by Malcolm Dodds and Lloyd Mayers
Welcome to Harlem’s famed Cotton Club in this stylish, brassy musical celebration of Duke
Ellington’s greatest musical hits. A full on-stage orchestra backs superb jazz vocalists,
extraordinary tap dancers, dazzling deco costumes, and unforgettable torch singers who bring
classics like “Mood Indigo,” “Take the A Train,” “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That
Swing)” to vivid life in this grand Tony Award-winning Broadway musical. Never before
produced in Austin!
TO BE ANNOUNCED
An exciting new regional premiere play, currently running on Broadway, will come to ZACH in
Spring 2015! The title will be announced this summer.
2014-15 ZACH SEASON EXTRAS:
THIS WONDERFUL LIFE
By Steve Murray • Directed by Richard Robichaux • Starring Martin Burke
In a tour-de-force performance, award-winning actor Martin Burke is back by popular demand,
playing all 37 characters from the beloved holiday film It’s a Wonderful Life, including George
Bailey, Mary, Clarence the Angel and Old Man Potter. This comical romp underscored by
tenderness is a joyous gift for ZACH audiences of all ages.
CHITA RIVERA: A LEGENDARY CELEBRATION
Music by John Kander and Fred Ebb, Leonard Bernstein, Charles Strouse, Jerry Herman and
Stephen Sondheim • Book by Terrance McNally • Directed by Graciela Daniele
Broadway legend Chita Rivera is live in an once-in-a-lifetime concert covering her remarkable
career in a sizzling evening of song and dance. Backed by an onstage orchestra, the Tony
Award winner and Kennedy Center Presidential Arts Medal honoree recreates signature
moments from her most loved Broadway musical performances like West Side Story, Bye, Bye
Birdie, Chicago, Sweet Charity and Kiss of the Spider Woman. Intimate and unforgettable!
Season ticket holders get the best seats at the best price all season long. For Season
Subscription information call ZACH’s box office at (512) 476-0541, x1 or go to zachtheatre.org.
ZACH’s box office is located inside The Topfer Theater, 202 S. Lamar Blvd. Free and
convenient parking available at the front entrance.
About ZACH Theatre
ZACH Theatre is Austin’s leading professional producing theatre, employing more than 600
actors, musicians, and designers annually. Founded in 1932, ZACH is the longest running
theatre company in Texas, and serves nearly 115,000 Central Texans – 37,000 of which are
children and youth who participate in our education and outreach programs. ZACH creates its
own nationally recognized plays and musicals that ignite the imagination, lift the spirit, and
engage the community under the leadership of Producing Artistic Director Dave Steakley and
Managing Director Elisbeth Challener. Now in its 82nd year, ZACH continues to expand and
engage with Austin, adding the new 420-seat, 32,000-square-foot Topfer Theatre to its
performing arts campus in 2013, nearly doubling ZACH’s capacity while retaining its hallmark
intimate theatre-going experience. Visit www.zachtheatre.org for more information.
ZACH Theatre is sponsored in part, by Applied Materials, Austin Catering, Four Hands Home,
Holiday Inn-Lady Bird Lake, Kirk Tuck Photography, Marquee Event Group, OnRamp Access,
Schlotzsky’s and KXAN TV 36; and by grants from Junior League of Austin, The Shubert
Foundation, The National Endowment for the Arts, Texas Commission on the Arts, and the
City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division, which believes an investment in the arts is an
investment in Austin’s future. Visit Austin at NowPlayingAustin.com..
For real-time updates on ZACH Theatre news, events and happenings, visit
http://www.zachtheatre.org, be a fan of ZACH Theatre on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/zachtheatre, and follow ZACH on Twitter @zachtheatre
http://www.twitter.com/zachtheatre.
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