"Snapshots," A New Musical By Creator of "Wicked," Opens at Temple of Music and Art

 

From: scarr51@gmail.com [mailto:scarr51@gmail.com] On Behalf Of Steve Carr
Sent: Monday, November 23, 2015 7:54 AM
Subject: "Snapshots," A New Musical By Creator of "Wicked," Opens at Temple of Music and Art

 

 

NEW MUSICAL BY THE CREATOR OF "WICKED" COMES TO ARIZONA 

STEPHEN SCHWARTZ' BEST-LOVED SONGS REIMAGINED FOR GLORIOUS MUSICAL COMEDY, "SNAPSHOTS"

 

           TUCSON, Ariz. (Nov. 23, 2015):  Arizona Theatre Company brings the witty and romantic Snapshots, a new musical comedy by Stephen Schwartz, composer of such smash Broadway hits as Wicked and Godspell, to the Temple of Music and Art from Nov. 28 through Dec. 19.  I. Michael and Beth Kasser are Arizona Theatre Company's 2015-16 Season Sponsors. Shirley Estes is the Production Sponsor.

Snapshots is a delightful new musical with a book by David Stern, conceived by Stern and Michael Scheman. A romantic comedy that tells the story of one couple's changing relationship through the years, from their childhood friendship to their waning marriage decades later, Snapshots is appropriate for all audiences.

In an innovative new musical format, the show features a score comprised of the work of Schwartz, with 25 songs from 12 beloved shows throughout his career. When Schwartz heard about the concept from Stern, he fell in love with the idea, getting personally involved by retuning and adjusting his own songs to better fit the story, bringing new life to the familiar melodies. Songs featured in Snapshots include "Popular" (Wicked), "All Good Gifts" (Godspell), "Meadowlark" (The Baker's Wife), and "That's How You Know" (Disney's Enchanted), among others.

After 20 years of marriage, the show's central couple has reached a point where they simply have nothing left to say to each other.  But, when they uncover a box of photos in the attic, their memories come blossoming back to life, helping them take a look back at the moments that built their relationship and the opportunities that got lost along the way.  Six actors play the couple in various stages of their lives, along with a few other characters. Susie and Danny, the couple in their youth, are played by Mallory King and Ben Wynant.  Susan and Daniel, the couple in their young adulthood, are played by Terry McDowell and Jim DeSelm.  Sue and Dan, the empty nesters in the story's present, are played by Beth DeVries and Hugh Hastings.

Snapshots is a co-production with Village Theatre in Issaquah and Everett, Wash., which also collaborated with ATC two years ago for Xanadu.  Snapshots is directed by Daniel Goldstein, who directed the 2011 Broadway revival of Schwartz's Godspell.  Goldstein is joined by Village Theatre Artistic Director Steve Tomkins on musical staging and R.J. Tancioco as Music Director.  Orchestrations and musical arrangements are by Steve Orich, a Tony Award nominee for his work on Jersey Boys.  Scenic design is by David Farley with costume design by Farley and Tracy Christensen.  David Cuthbert is lighting and projection designer and Abe Jacob, who did the original sound design for Schwartz's Pippin in 1972, is the sound designer.  Brenda K. Walker is the stage manager.

            Tickets for Snapshots are $23-$63 and can be purchased at www.arizonatheatre.org, by calling (520) 622-2823 or at the Temple of Music and Art Box Office at 333 S. Scott Ave.

Snapshots  will be followed by two great American classics follow with August Wilson's masterpiece Fences (Jan. 16, 2016-Feb. 2) featuring favorite ATC artists, and John Steinbeck's classic tale of friendship in hard circumstances, Of Mice and Men (March 5-26). In between, is a special presentation of the recent off-Broadway hit Sex With Strangers (Feb. 11-21) in a unique collaboration with ATC and popular Phoenix-based theatre company Stray Cat Theatre.

ATC's 2015-16 season comes to a sparkling close with the witty Arizona premiere of Scott Carter's new play, The Gospel According to Thomas Jefferson, Charles Dickens and Count Leo Tolstoy: Discord (April 9-30).

For more information call (520) 622-2823 or visit www.arizonatheatre.org.

 

BIOGRAPHIES

Stephen Schwartz, Music and Lyrics

Stephen Schwartz has contributed music and/or lyrics to Godspell, Pippin, The Magic Show, The Baker's Wife, Working, Children of Eden, and the current Broadway hit Wicked, among others. He collaborated with composer Alan Menken on the songs for the Disney features Enchanted, Pocahontas, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and wrote the songs for DreamWorks' The Prince of Egypt. He has written two musicals for children – Captain Louis and My Son Pinocchio – and recently composed a new opera, Séance on a Wet Afternoon. Schwartz has released two CDs of original songs, Reluctant Pilgrim and Uncharted Territory, and his career is the subject of the book Defying Gravity. He has been inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Other awards include three Academy Awards, four Grammy Awards, the Isobel Stevenson Tony Award, and a tiny handful of tennis trophies.

 

David Stern, Book and Co-Conceiver

David Stern began his career working on the Broadway productions of Miss Saigon, Nick & Nora, and Big. He wrote the plays Dreams & Stuff and Finders of Lost Luggage. Mr. Stern then migrated west to write numerous movies, including Geppetto (nominated for four Emmy Awards), Open Season 2 (nominated for an Annie Award), Open Season 3 (which he also executive produced), Free Birds (which he also executive produced), Henry & Me (nominated for an Annie Award), as well as the upcoming animated feature, Punk Farm For the stage, Mr. Stern wrote Snapshots and My Son Pinocchio with longtime collaborator Stephen Schwartz. In addition, he has helped finance several Broadway shows, including Wicked, Next to Normal, The Pee Wee Herman Show, and If/Then. For television, Mr. Stern served as a writer and producer on the series Mozart in the Jungle.

 

Daniel Goldstein, Director

Daniel Goldstein directed Stephen Schwartz's Godspell on Broadway. Recent projects include Damn Yankees, Hello, Dolly!, Samantha Brown (Goodspeed Musicals); Venus in Fur (IRNE and Norton Awards), God of Carnage, Falsettos (IRNE Awards), The Cry of the Reed, Les Liaisons Dangerouses (Huntington Theater Company); Gekido (New National Theater, Tokyo); Tamar of the River (Prospect Theater, NYC); Anna Christie (Old Globe); Golden Boy (Julliard); Annie (MUNY); Artificial Fellow Traveler by Ethan Sandler (Public Theater, Williamstown Theater Festival, Black Dahlia Theater, Open Door Theater); True West (Williamstown Theater Festival); Miss Margarida's Way with Julie Halston (Bay Street Theater); A New Brain (Toho Theater, Tokyo); Lower Ninth by Beau Willimon (The Flea). As a writer, his new musical Unknown Soldier, written with Michael Friedman, had its world premiere this summer at The Williamstown Theater Festival.

 

CREATIVE TEAM

Music Director: R.J. Tancioco

Musical Staging: Steve Tomkins

Scenic Design: David Farley

Costume Design: David Farley, Tracy Christensen

Lighting and Projection Design: David Lee Cuthbert

Sound Design: Abe Jacob

Orchestrations and Arrangements: Steve Orich

Production Stage Manager: Brenda K. Walker

 

Tickets for Snapshots start at $23 and are subject to change depending on time, date and section, and are available at www.arizonatheatre.org or by calling the box office at (520) 622-2823.  Discounts are available for seniors and active military.  A $10 student ticket pricing is now available for all performances.  Half-price rush tickets are available for balcony seating for all performances one hour prior to curtain at the ATC box office (subject to availability).  Pay What You Can performance is Tuesday, Dec. 1 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available for a suggested $10 donation. (Tickets must be purchased at the Temple of Music and Art starting one hour prior to curtain. Tickets are first-come, first served.  Cash only. Two tickets maximum per person.) For discounts for groups of 10 or more, call (520) 622-2823.

 

Arizona Theatre Company offers accessibility services for patrons with disabilities for select performances.  Audio Description provides patrons with vision loss a running audio description of the movement and activities onstage through an infrared broadcast system.  An Audio-Described performance is offered on Thursday, Dec. 17 at 2 p.m.  Interested patrons with vision loss may request a tactile tour one hour prior to curtain. American Sign Language Interpretation is presented by professional, theatrically-trained ASL-interpreters for people who have deafness or hearing impairment.  An ASL-interpreted performance is offered on Thursday, Dec. 17 at 7:30 p.m. Open captioning allows patrons to read the play's dialogue on an LED screen as the play progresses.  An open captioned performance is offered on Thursday, Dec. 17 at 2 p.m.  For open-captioned or ASL-interpreted performances, patrons should request seats best suited to ASL interpretation or captioning when purchasing tickets.  Large print and Braille playbills and infrared listening amplification devices are also available at every ATC performance with reservation. TTY access for the box office is available in Tucson at (520) 884-9723 or via Arizona Relay at (800) 367-8939 (TTY/ASCII).

 

Fact Sheet:
Snapshots: A Musical Scrapbook

Lyrics & Music by Stephen Schwartz

Book by David Stern

Directed by Daniel Goldstein

Venue:
The Temple of Music and Art

330 S. Scott Avenue

Tucson, AZ 85701

 

Previews Begin: Saturday, Nov. 28 at 8 p.m.
Opening Night: Friday, Dec. 4 at 7:30 p.m.
Closing Performance: Saturday, Dec. 19 at 8 p.m.

 

Ticket Info:

Ticket prices currently start at $23 and are available in-person at the Temple of Music and Art box office, via phone at (520) 622-2823 or online at www.arizonatheatre.org.
 
About Arizona Theatre Company:

Arizona Theatre Company (ATC) is the preeminent fully professional theatre in the state of Arizona committed to inspiring, engaging, and entertaining - one moment, one production, and one audience at a time. Boasting the largest seasonal subscriber base in the performing arts in Arizona, ATC is the only resident company in the U.S. that is fully based in two cities providing its wide array of programming and community outreach across the region. Now in its 49th season, more than 130,000 people a year attend our performances at the historic Temple of Music and Art in Tucson, and the elegant Herberger Theater Center in downtown Phoenix. Each season of home-grown productions reflects the rich variety of world drama—from classics to contemporary plays, from musicals to new works—along with a wide array of community outreach programs, educational opportunities, access initiatives and new play programs. Designated The State Theatre of Arizona, ATC is led by Artistic Director David Ira Goldstein, and a dedicated Board of Trustees.  

Production Photos:

Images can be found at this link: http://www.arizonatheatre.org/press-imagery/snapshots/

Photos are by Tracy Martin

 

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