MARVELOUS DREAMS LLC, DAVID ELZER & PETER SCHNEIDER
PRESENT THE MUST-SEE 60’S HOLIDAY MUSICAL CELEBRATION…

The West Coast Premiere of
WINTER WONDERETTES
Written and Directed by Roger Bean

Limited Engagement opens Saturday, November 24
at the El Portal Forum Theatre in North Hollywood!

It’s Hairspray meets White Christmas!

Marvelous Dreams, LLC, David Elzer and Peter Schneider present the sequel to the smash-hit, award-winning musical sensation, THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES, with the West Coast premiere of the 1960’s Holiday musical celebration, WINTER WONDERETTES, written and directed by Roger Bean, with choreography by Janet Miller and musical direction by Brian Baker.

WINTER WONDERETTES will star Misty Cotton (Colony’s Side Show, Little Egypt), Julie Dixon Jackson (The Marvelous Wonderettes, Colony's Side Show), Bets Malone (The Marvelous Wonderettes, Musical Theatre West's Guys and Dolls), and Jill Van Velzer (1776).

The Marvelous Wonderettes create a ‘60s Holiday party as only the Wonderettes can!

This sequel, set six months after the end of The Marvelous Wonderettes, find our girls returning to their hometown for a Holiday celebration with their family and friends, complete with great Wonderette renditions of ‘60s holiday tunes! This lively mix of rockin’ holiday hits and standards will have new fans and old dancing in the aisles with the perfect show to celebrate this most wonderful time of the year!

As a longtime employee of Harper’s Hardware, Betty Jean is in charge of the company Christmas party, and naturally, the Wonderettes are the logical choice for the entertainment. But when Santa turns up missing, the girls must use their talent and creative ingenuity, with the support of some great holiday tunes, to rectify their holiday party without the jolly big guy in red. The result is a MARVELOUS show that will have you dancing in the aisles and celebrating in Winter Wonderettes style

ABOUT THE CAST

MISTY COTTON (Missy) is excited to be performing the role of Missy in the Los Angeles premiere of WINTER WONDERETTES which she originated in the very first production ever produced. She most recently was seen in South Coast Rep’s production of A Little Night Music in the role of Petra. Other credits include: Broadway/National Tours - (Ellen) Miss Saigon, (Eponine) Les Miserables and the Narrator in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat opposite Donny Osmond. She has performed roles at many regional theatres across the country including The Utah Shakespearean Festival, Old Globe Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre and The Kennedy Center. Some favorites roles and shows are- Violet- Side Show (Los Angeles Premiere/Colony Theatre- Ovation, Garland and Robby Awards with Julie Dixon-Jackson ), Percy- The Spitfire Grill (West Coast Premiere) Cathy- The Last Five Years (Pasadena Playhouse), Soubrette - Sophisticated Ladies (Best Actress Ovation Nomination) Annie- Annie Get Your Gun (South Bay CLO), Princess Leonide -Triumph Of Love, Faye - Anyone Can Whistle, Nancy in Oliver, Marta in Company, Nellie Ewell - Summer And Smoke (w/Jo Beth Williams), Macbeth and Johnny Guitar (Utah Shakespearean Festival) Lucille in Parade (West Coast Premiere), Eve/Mama Noah in Children Of Eden (Utah Musical Theatre) Lucy in Jekyll And Hyde and Kate in Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party (Musical Theatre Guild) to name a few. She is also proud to have originated the role of Katy Lane in Honky Tonk Laundry also written by Roger Bean. Misty has performed for two Presidents, done concert work with symphonies as well as worked with such greats as Burt Bachrach. Misty is a graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts a member of the LA based Musical Theatre Guild and a proud member of Actors Equity.

JULIE DIXON JACKSON (Betty Jean) originated the role of Betty Jean in the Los Angeles production of The Marvelous Wonderettes and was co-recipient of the Ovation and Garland Award for her performance as Daisy Hilton in the LA premiere of Side Show. She spent a year on the National Tour of Jesus Christ Superstar and was most recently seen as Agnes in I Do, I Do at the Pasadena Playhouse where she also starred in Side by Side by Sondheim. Within this last year she was seen as Sadie in I Love a Piano (Musical Theatre West) and Mae in LaChiusa's The Wild Party (Blank Theatre). Other favorite roles: Eva in Evita, Sally in Cabaret, Marta in Company, Red Riding Hood in Into the Woods, Lucy in You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown, Lizzie in Baby and Anne in La Cage Aux Folles. Recent TV: “E.R.,” “Everybody Hates Chris” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live”.

BETS MALONE (Suzy) originated the role of Suzy in the Los Angeles production of The Marvelous Wonderettes. She also originated the role of Suzy Simpson in the sequel Winter Wonderettes. Bets was recently seen in On The Town (Hildy), for which she received a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, Guys and Dolls ( Miss Adelaide-Ovation Nomination), the world premiere of Pilgrim (Marta), Grease (Rizzo), Evita (Eva) and most recently Fiddler on the Roof (Hodel) at the Sacramento Music Circus. Some other favorites include Once Upon A Mattress (Princess Winnifred), The Will Rogers Follies (Betty Blake), Ragtime (Mother), Me and My Girl (Sally), Children of Eden (Eve/Mama Noah), Honky Tonk Laundry (Lana Mae), Company (Amy), Triumph of Love (Leonide), Cabaret (Sally), Crazy for You (Polly), Romance/Romance (Josefine/Monica), A Little Night Music (Petra), 1776 (Martha), The Secret Garden (Martha), Little Shop of Horrors (Audrey), Babes In Arms (Susie), and the spectacle musical The Ten Commandments with Val Kilmer. She is a proud member of the Musical Theatre Guild and Actors Equity.

JILL VAN VELZER (Cindy Lou) recently returned to Los Angeles after a season at the Tony-Award winning Utah Shakespearean Festival, originating the role of Diana Bateman in the world premiere of the Broadway-bound musical, Lend Me a Tenor: The Musical, also directed by Roger Bean. While at USF, Jill also won acclaim for her work in The Matchmaker (Irene Molloy) and the premiere workshop production of Early Poe (Fanny Allan). Jill was the recipient of the 2004 Ovation Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for her role as Abigail Adams in 1776 at Performance Riverside. National tours: The King and I (Anna Leonowens). Southern California: Harvey at the Laguna Playhouse, directed by Charles Nelson Reilly (Myrtle Mae), Robby nominated performances in She Loves Me (Amalia), Camelot (Guenevere), and Into the Woods (Witch and Baker’s Wife), The Music Man (Marian), Oklahoma! (Laurey), Hello, Dolly! (Irene Molloy), 1940s Radio Hour (Ann Collier), Macbeth (Lady Macbeth), and Mozart’s The Magic Flute (The Queen of the Night), to name a few.

ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM

ROGER BEAN (Writer/Director) has written ten musicals commissioned and produced by the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. Among his theatrical hits are Route 66, The Marvelous Wonderettes, That’s Amoré, Don’t Touch That Dial!, Honky Tonk Laundry, The Andrews Brothers and Why Do Fools Fall In Love?. Productions of his musicals have subsequently been produced in hundreds of theaters across the country, from the largest of regional theaters to the smallest of community theaters. An accomplished stage director, Mr. Bean has worked with the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Delaware Theatre Company, Utah Musical Theatre, Oregon Cabaret Theatre, Florida Studio Theatre, Madison Repertory Theatre, Skylight Opera Theatre and the Utah Shakespearean Festival, among many others. He is the Executive Director of Steele Spring Productions, a theatrical licensing company, and a member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers and The Dramatists Guild.

JANET MILLER (Choreographer) has been directing, choreographing and teaching theater for twenty eight years. She is currently the Artistic Director for the Torrance Theatre Company where she has directed fifteen productions in her six year tenure. She is also a founding artist for the newly formed Manhattan Beach Players. She has worked on both the East and West coasts on such shows as Side By Side By Sondheim, South Pacific, Kiss Me Kate, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Fantasticks, Annie Get Your Gun, Dames At Sea, The Odd Couple, Taming of the Shrew, Of Mice and Men, The Man Who Came To Dinner and The Crucible to name a few. Her talents have taken her all over the world, working in diverse settings such as Choate Rosemary Hall in CT and grand theme parks in Bangkok, Thailand. She was staff choreographer and director for Golden State Theatre for seventeen years and formerly at the historic Variety Arts Center in Los Angeles for six years. Janet is also resident director/choreographer for Brain Brew Inc., an interactive entertainment company. Ms. Miller is a sought after as a musical theater tap instructor and is known in both LA and New York for her inspired coaching of actors for musical theater.

WINTER WONDERETTES features an award-winning design team. The scenic design is by Victoria Profitt (Trying, Master Harold and the Boys). The lighting design is by Ovation Award-winner Jeremy Pivnick (Much Adoobie Brothers About Nothing, Man of La Mancha). The Costume Design is by Ann Closs Farley (Gorey Stories, 99 Cent Shows). The Sound Design is by Cricket S. Myers (Back of the Throat, Clutter).

Performances for WINTER WONDERETTES are Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays at 8:00pm; Saturdays at 3:00pm and 8:00pm and Sundays at 2:00pm and 7:00pm at the El Portal Forum Theatre, 5269 Lankershim Blvd. in North Hollywood.

www.marvelouswonderettes.com or www.TIX.com.