Special Event With Original Broadway Cast Members
NEW YORK, Oct. 5, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Blue Hill Troupe, Ltd. (http://www.bht.org ), the only musical theater group in New York City to donate its net proceeds to charity, presents "Mame," November 2 through 10, 2007, at Dicapo Opera Theater, 184 East 76th Street. The Blue Hill Troupe, now entering its 84th season, produces a musical every fall and a Gilbert & Sullivan operetta every spring. To date, the group has raised more than $3 million.
The Blue Hill Troupe's 2007-2008 productions will benefit Covenant House New York Infant/Toddler Center (ITC) (http://www.covenanthouseny.org). ITC is designed to assist the mothers in the Rights of Passage Program, a transitional living facility, with the daily responsibilities of raising a child in order for them to obtain employment, further their education, and develop the necessary skills to become self-sufficient and independent.
"Mame" features a book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman, and is based on the novel by Patrick Dennis and the play "Auntie Mame" by Lawrence and Lee. Tony Parise directs the Blue Hill Troupe's production, with musical direction by Eric Peterson.
Evening performances are November 2, 4, 7, 8, 9 and 10, with matinees November 3 and 10. For tickets and showtimes, visit http://www.bht.org or call 212-988-2012 weekdays from 2-5 pm.
On November 7 at 6:30 pm, the Blue Hill Troupe will sponsor a special pre-show event with Amber Edwards, producer/director of "Words and Music by Jerry Herman," a 90-minute documentary airing on PBS in January, 2008. Joining Ms. Edwards will be original Broadway cast members Sheila Smith and Randy Phillips, and original musical director Donald Pippin. Admission is free with the price of a ticket to any performance.
"`Mame' is such a classic Jerry Herman score," said Edwards. "It's exuberant, witty, optimistic, and -- like all of Jerry's work -- the songs feel like they've always been with you from the moment you first hear them. And in this show, he really cemented his reputation for creating unforgettable, larger-than-life leading ladies."
The Blue Hill Troupe has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning and with The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall. For thirteen years, they have presented a G&S concert as part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Concerts and Lectures series, where they will return on February 10, 2008. In 2005, the Blue Hill Troupe was honored with three awards at the 12th Annual International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival in Buxton, U.K., for their innovative production of the G&S rarity, "The Grand Duke."