La Bohème

Music by Giacomo Puccini

Libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa

Four performances only – October 24, 28, November 1, 3 2007

Segerstrom Hall, Orange County Performing Artscenter

Opera Pacific, led by Artistic Director John DeMain, presents Puccini’s La Bohème at Segerstrom Hall, Opera Pacific’s opera house, at the Orange County Performing Artscenter. The production, originally conceived and staged by Jim Robinson for the New York City Opera and presented for the first time on the West Coast, will be conducted by Edoardo Müller, and directed by Michael Scarola. The sets are by Allen Moyer and the costumes are by James Schuette. The scenery and costumes belong to New York City Opera.

Framed in Paris at the outbreak of World War I, Robinson’s La Bohème contrasts the elegance of the belle époque with the march of industrialization and war. La Bohème will be sung in Italian with English translation projected above the stage. The arias, some of the best known in all of opera, include “Quando me'n vo',” “Mi chiamano Mimi” and “Che gelida manina.”

With these performances, Opera Pacific begins its 22nd season. Since its inception Opera Pacific has been the resident opera company of the Orange County Performing Artscenter for the entire history of the venue.

The cast of La Bohème includes American soprano Kelly Kaduce as Mimi, Mexican born tenor Arturo Chacón-Cruz as Rodolfo, Canadian baritone James Westman as Marcello, and returning to Opera Pacific, Megan Monaghan as Musetta and Andrew Gangestad as Colline.

First presented in Turin in 1893, La Bohème was conducted by a young Arturo Toscanini, and established Puccini as a new star in Italian opera. According to Opera America, La Bohème is one of the two most performed operas in North America. The adaptations and references to the opera in popular culture are myriad, from a 1926 silent MGM film starring Lillian Gish, to the Tony Award winning Broadway smash musical Rent.

La Bohème is based on Murger's novel Scenes de la Vie de Boheme, although the opera is based more on Murger's adaptation of his novel for the stage (La Vie de Boheme, 1849) than on the novel itself. Puccini's opera draws from a collection of true-life sketches describing life among the original bohemians, the poor artists of Paris's Latin Quarter.

The opera begins on a moonlit Christmas Eve, in the garret of the poet Rodolfo which he shares with the painter Marcello and two others. When the frail seamstress Mimi comes to Rodolfo's door for help, the two fall passionately in love. Mirroring the relationship of Rodolfo and Mimi is that of Marcello, who is carrying on a turbulent affair with flirtatious Musetta. Rodolfo, for his part, is impossibly jealous of Mimi, and the two regretfully part, until Musetta reveals that Mimi is dying of consumption. Rodolfo flies to Mimi's side, and the lovers are united, only to be separated forever by Mimi's death.

Soprano Kelly Kaduce makes her Opera Pacific debut in the signature role of Mimi. Ms. Kaduce has garnered thunderous praise for her stage portrayals, most recently for her star-making turn in David Carlson's Anna Karenina for Florida Grand Opera and Opera Theater of St. Louis. Of her performance in Anna Karenina, The New York Times said, “The soprano Kelly Kaduce was a terrific Anna, conveying the title character’s passion and despair.” Kaduce was mentioned in the August 2007 issue of Opera News as “a radiant new voice in American Opera…She has developed one of the most individual profiles of any young soprano around today.” After her stay in Orange County she returns to Malmö Opera as Marguerite in Faust, to Minnesota Opera in her first assumption of the title role in Rusalka, and to Opera Theatre of St. Louis in the title role of Madama Butterfly. Kelly is married to her La Bohème co-star Lee Gregory, singing the role of Schaunard.

Arturo Chacón-Cruz, who sings the role of Rodolfo, made his Italian debut this season with Teatro Comunale di Bologna singing Rodolfo in La Bohème, his Spanish debut as Christian in Cyrano de Bergerac with Valencia Opera opposite Plácido Domingo, his debut with Teatro di San Carlo in Naples as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, his French debut with Festival de Radio France and Montpellier Opera singing Marcello di Bruges in Il Duca d’Alba, and his debut as Roméo in Roméo et Juliette with Detroit Opera. Chacón- Cruz has also appeared often in concert. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in March 2002 singing Mozart’s Coronation Mass, and he returned in June 2003 to sing Beethoven’s Mass in C and Charpentier’s Te Deum with the New England Symphonic Ensemble, as well a concert with the New York Pops in 2006.

Originally from Stratford, Ontario, baritone James Westman in the role of Marcello, was baritone in residence with the San Francisco Opera Adler's Fellowship program until March 2000. Westman's performances at the San Francisco Opera include: Silvio in Pagliacci, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Marcello in La Bohème, Germont in La Traviata, Renato in Un ballo in maschera and Sid in Albert Herring. Westman also sang the baritone’s signature-role, Germont, with the English National Opera for his London debut. Mr. Westman also recently sang a new role in Dallas, Talbot in Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda, before joining the Opéra de Montréal for another new role, Frédéric in Lakmé. Mr. Westman also returned to London for a commercial recording for Opera Rara and a concert performance of another Donizetti opera, the rare Imelda de’ Lambertazzi.

A native of Philadelphia, Megan Monaghan, singing the role of Musetta, was recently hailed by Opera News as "...A voice of pure silver, easily negotiating coloratura flights of fancy with exquisite musicianship..." for her role of Gilda in Dayton Opera’s production of Rigoletto. Ms. Monaghan’s recent engagements have included Floriana in Zazà at Alice Tully Hall Lincoln Center, Cunegonde in Candide at the Teatro Argentina, Rome, Clomiri in Handel’s Imeneo at Glimmerglass Opera, Barbarina and Susanna (cover) in Le Nozze di Figaro with Opera Pacific, and Gilda in Rigoletto with both Dayton Opera and Eugene Opera. She was also a member of Opera Pacific’s Young Artist program. Ms. Monaghan also recorded Maestro Lorin Maazel’s new opera 1984 with the conductor before its’ premiere at Covent Garden.

Andrew Gangestad returns to Opera Pacific singing the role of Colline, after singing the role of Leporello in last season’s Don Giovanni and singing twice in the 2005-2006 season (Ramfis in Aïda and Angelotti in Tosca). In the 2004-05 season, he sang at the Metropolitan Opera as Colline in La Bohème, Vaudemont in I Vespri Siciliani, and Lignière in the company premiere of Cyrano de Bergérac. He also sang at Sarasota Opera as Leporello in Don Giovanni and Carnegie Hall as Hermit in Der Freischütz with Opera Orchestra of New York. The bass’s recent engagements included returning to the Metropolitan Opera as Truffaldino in Ariadne auf Naxos, Count Ceprano in Rigoletto, and Lignière in Cyrano de Bergerac.

Baritone Lee Gregory sings the role of Schaunard and is a regular performer with American Opera projects collaborating with new playwrights and composers, performing their works in progress. Recent performances include Mercutio in Roméo et Juliette with Toledo Opera and Nashville Opera, Mr. Marshall in Regina at Bard's SummerScape Festival, John Brooke in Little Women with Dayton Opera, and Moralès in Carmen with New York City Opera. Mr. Gregory also sang the title role in Don Giovanni and Melchoir in Amahl and the Night Visitors with the Opera Company of Brooklyn, and the roles of Maximillian in Candide and Ping in Turandot with Des Moines Metro Opera. A winner of the Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation Competition, Mr. Gregory has participated in a number of training programs including San Francisco Opera's Merola Opera Program and the Western Opera Theater Tour, Aspen Music Festival, Cincinnati Opera's Apprentice Artist Program, and the Des Moines Metro Opera Tour. Gregory is married to his La Bohème co-star Kelly Kaduce, singing the role of Mimi.

Singing the dual roles of Benoit and Alcindoro is Michael Gallup, who has been a regular guest of opera companies throughout the United States. He has also performed opera at the Hollywood Bowl under Michael Tilson Thomas, Sir Charles Groves, and Leonard Slatkin. Notable roles at Los Angeles Opera include Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Faninal in Der Rosenkavalier, the Sacristan in Tosca, Trinity Moses in The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, Doctor Bartolo in Le Nozze di Figaro and Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Taddeo in L’Italiana in Algieri, Don Alfonso in Cosí fan tutte, Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore, Zuniga in Carmen, and Alcindoro/Benoit in La Bohéme. Elsewhere he has performed to great acclaim the roles of Leporello for Michigan Opera Theater, Opera Pacific, Dayton Opera and Utah Opera, Dulcamara, Don Magnifico and Doctor Bartolo for Arizona Opera, Mustafà in L’Italiana in Algieri for the Palm Beach Opera, Faninal for Portland Opera, Alcindoro/Benoit for Dallas Opera and Vancouver Opera and Don Alfonso in Cosí fan tutte and Osmin in The Abduction from the Seraglio for the San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival.

Edoardo Müller will lead the orchestra in Puccini’s melodious operatic score, with a libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa . Since his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in 1984 conducting Il barbiere di Siviglia, Edoardo Muller has returned often conducting performances of Lucia di Lammermoor, I puritani, L’elisir d’amore, La fille du regiment, Roméo et Juliette and La Cenerentola. A regular presence throughout the opera houses of the United States, recent seasons have had Edoardo Muller conducting Il barbiere di Siviglia for Michigan Opera Theatre, La cenerentola for Houston Grand Opera and L’italiana in Algeri for Seattle Opera. Muller was for many years the Director of the School for Advanced Studies at the Teatro all Scala in Milan. He has also frequently appeared in recital with artists including Renata Tebaldi, Leyla Gencer, Katia Ricciarelli, Carlo Bergonzi, Jose Carreras and Piero Cappuccilli. His has recorded in collaboration with world-renowned tenor Ramon Vargas, Verdi Arias for BMG classics.

Stage Director Michael Scarola made his professional directing debut with the Sarasota Opera in 1996 with La Forza del Destino. Since then, his work has been seen with major opera companies throughout the United States and abroad. He was on the Metropolitan Opera Directing Staff for five seasons, where he worked on the Met premieres of Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and La Cenerentola, starring Cecilia Bartoli and conducted by James Levine, as well as many other productions. Recent engagements have included a return to the Directing Staff of New York City Opera, as well as directing Bernstein's Mass for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra in commemoration of the 40th Anniversary of the JFK assassination, and directing excerpts from Mass for the re-opening of the opera house at Washington’s Kennedy Center. He also directed Bernstein's Mass for Catholic University, where he has been named Visiting Director of Opera.

Opera Pacific Prologue

An Opera Pacific prologue on La Bohème will be held at Bowers Museum on Sunday, October 7 at 2:00 p.m. Opera Pacific’s Prologues provide an introduction to the opera for all audiences and are designed to provide information for those new to opera, as well as those who have been lifelong fans of the art form. The Prologue speaker will be Ron Shaheen, who lends his insight into the history, music and plot intricacies as intended by the composer. Audience members have the opportunity to ask questions of and engage in discussions with the speaker, and hear excerpts from the upcoming production performed by cast members.

22nd Season of Opera Pacific

Celebrating its 22nd Season, Opera Pacific has established itself as one of the finest professional opera companies in the nation. Opera Pacific's mainstage productions, extensive community outreach programs, and energetic Guild Alliance combine to create a cultural resource for all of Southern California. More than 670,000 people have enjoyed Opera Pacific's productions at the Orange County Performing Arts Center, while over 575,000 young people have discovered the world of opera through the company's in-school presentations, Student Previews, and nationally recognized Opera Camps.

In addition to the "grand opera" repertory, Opera Pacific has responded to the need for strong, professional productions of classic American musical theatre and European operetta. Under the baton and dedication of John DeMain, opera is an event with the honest communication of the stories and musical values of the works, combined with exciting singers, and major opera house scale productions.

Tickets for La Bohème

Tickets for La Bohème are priced from $27 to $191, and are available by calling 1-800-34-OPERA, online at www.operapacific.org, or by visiting the Orange County Performing Artscenter Box Office at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa. For information, go to www.operapacific.org. For groups, call (714) 830-6361.

Photos by Carol Rosegg.

Mark Morris Dance Group
Mozart Dances
Choreography by Mark Morris

With pianists Garrick Ohlsson and Yoko Nozaki Conducted by Jane Glover

Three performances only! October 20 and 21, 2007 Dorothy Chandler Pavilion

Mark Morris Dance Group will bring their acclaimed Mozart Dances to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion October 20 and 21 for three performances only. Formed in 1980, Mark Morris Dance Group is recognized as one of the world's leading dance companies and noted for its commitment to live music, a feature of every performance on its full international touring schedule since 1996. The Southern California Premiere of Mozart Dances will feature pianists Garrick Ohlsson and Yoko Nozaki with a full orchestra conducted by Jane Glover. The engagement, part of the Dance at Music Center season, is October 20 at 7:30pm, and October 21 at 2:00pm and 7:30pm.

Mozart Dances features Piano Concerto No. 11; Sonata in D Major for 2 Pianos and Piano Concerto No. 27 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The dancers perform against bold, fluid backdrops designed by acclaimed British artist, Howard Hodgkin. Choreographed for 16 dancers; Mozart Dances had its premiere in August 2006 at Lincoln Center’s New York State Theater as part of the Mostly Mozart Festival’s celebration of Mozart’s 250th birthday. The music was chosen collaboratively by Morris, the pianist Emanuel Ax (who performed in all three compositions; his wife, the pianist Yoko Nozaki, joined him for the sonata), and Louis Langrée, the conductor of the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra.

Voice of Dance called the evening “one of the greatest dance events of the new century.” Mozart Dances was commissioned by Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (New York), New Crowned Hope (Vienna) and the Barbican Centre (London).

Tickets for Mark Morris Dance Group are priced from $25 to $95. Advance tickets are available at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Box Office, 135 N. Grand Avenue. Day of the performance tickets go on sale at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Box Office, 135 N. Grand Avenue, at 6:00 pm for evening performances and at 12:00 noon for matinee performances. Tickets are also on sale through Ticketmaster Phone Charge at 213/365-3500 or 714/740-7878, online at www.ticketmaster.com, and at all Ticketmaster Outlets.

About Mark Morris Dance Group

Mark Morris Dance Group was formed in 1980 and after giving its first concert that year in New York City, the company's touring schedule steadily expanded to include cities both in the U.S. and in Europe. In 1986, it made its first national television program for the PBS series “Dance in America.” In 1988, MMDG was invited to become the national dance company of Belgium, and spent three years in residence at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels. The company returned to the United States in 1991 as one of the world's leading dance companies, performing across the U.S. and at major international festivals. MMDG made its debut at the Mostly Mozart Festival in 2002 and at the Tanglewood Music Festival in 2003 and has since been invited to both festivals annually. The company's London seasons have garnered two Olivier Awards.

It has maintained and strengthened its ties to several cities around the world, most notably its West Coast home, Cal Performances in Berkeley, CA, and its Midwest home, the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts in Urbana, IL. MMDG also appears regularly in Boston, MA; Fairfax, VA; Seattle, WA; and at the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival in Becket, MA.

MMDG is noted for its commitment to live music, a feature of every performance on its full international touring schedule since 1996. MMDG collaborates with leading orchestras, opera companies, and musicians including cellist Yo-Yo Ma in the Emmy Award-winning film “Falling Down Stairs” (1997); Indian composer Zakir Hussain, Mr. Ma and jazz pianist Ethan Iverson in Kolam (2002); The Bad Plus in Violet Cavern (2004); pianists Emanuel Ax and Yoko Nozaki for Mozart Dances (2006) and with the English National Opera in Four Saints in Three Acts (2000) and King Arthur (2006), among others. In May of 2007 Mark Morris made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera as a choreographer and director with the first new Metropolitan Opera production of Gluck's early masterpiece Orfeo Ed Euridice in over 35 years. MMDG's film and television projects also include “Dido and Aeneas,” “The Hard Nut” and two documentaries for the U.K.'s South Bank Show.

In fall 2001, MMDG opened the Mark Morris Dance Center in Brooklyn, NY, the company's first permanent headquarters in the U.S., housing rehearsal space for the dance community, outreach programs for local children, as well as a school offering dance classes to students of all ages.

bout Mark Morris
Mark Morris was born on August 29, 1956, in Seattle, Washington, where he studied as a young man with Verla Flowers and Perry Brunson. In the early years of his career, he performed with Lar Lubovitch, Hannah Kahn, Laura Dean, Eliot Feld, and the Koleda Balkan Dance Ensemble.

He formed the Mark Morris Dance Group in 1980, and has since created more than 120 works for the company. From 1988-1991, he was Director of Dance at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, the national opera house of Belgium. Among the works created during his tenure were three evening-length dances: The Hard Nut; L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato; and Dido and Aeneas.

In 1990, he founded the White Oak Dance Project with Mikhail Baryshnikov. Morris is also much in demand as a ballet choreographer. He has created six works for the San Francisco Ballet since 1994 and received commissions from American Ballet Theatre, and the Boston Ballet, among others. His work is also in the repertory of the Pacific Northwest Ballet, Dutch National Ballet, New Zealand Ballet, Houston Ballet, English National Ballet, and The Royal Ballet.

Morris is noted for his musicality and has been described as “undeviating in his devotion to music.” He has worked extensively in opera, directing and choreographing productions for The Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, English National Opera, and The Royal Opera, Covent Garden. Morris was named a Fellow of the MacArthur Foundation in 1991. He has

received eight honorary doctorates to date. In 2006, Morris received the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Mayor's Award for Arts & Culture and a WQXR Gramophone Special Recognition Award.

He is the subject of a biography by Joan Acocella (Farrar, Straus & Giroux) and Marlowe & Company published a volume of photographs and critical essays entitled “Mark Morris' L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato: A Celebration.” Morris is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2007, he received the Samuel H. Scripps/American Dance Festival lifetime achievement award.

About Garrick Ohlsson

Since his triumph as winner of the 1970 Chopin International Piano Competition, pianist Garrick Ohlsson has established himself worldwide as a musician of magisterial interpretive and technical prowess. Although he has long been regarded as one of the world’s leading exponents of the music of Frédéric Chopin, Mr. Ohlsson commands an enormous repertoire, which ranges over the entire piano literature. A student of the late Claudio Arrau, Mr. Ohlsson has come to be noted for his masterly performances of the works of Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, as well as the Romantic repertoire. His concerto repertoire alone is unusually wide and eclectic – ranging from Haydn and Mozart to works of the 21st century – and to date he has at his command some 80 concertos.

In the 2007-08 season, Mr. Ohlsson appears in North America with the symphony orchestras of Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Fort Worth, Houston, Indianapolis, Minnesota, Nashville, San Francisco, Seattle, and Toronto. Special projects include performances in Berkeley and Los Angeles with Mark Morris Dance Group and pianist Yoko Nozaki in the critically acclaimed “Mozart Dances”; performances with the Russian National Orchestra and Vladimir Jurowski in California and at New York’s Lincoln Center; and a Florida tour with the Pittsburgh Symphony. With the Sydney Symphony and Vladimir Ashkenazy, he will perform Rachmaninov’s Third Piano Concerto to be recorded live on the Octavia Records label. A recital project focusing on the piano music of Scriabin and Russian contemporaries will begin in San Francisco and San Diego in the spring and will carry through the 08/09 season. Additionally, he performs with the Warsaw Philharmonic, RTVE Madrid, and the MDR Leipzig Symphony Orchestra.

In 2006-07, Mr. Ohlsson opened the Mostly Mozart Festival in New York in a live, nationally televised performance. Mr. Ohlsson is an avid chamber musician and has collaborated with the Cleveland, Emerson, Takács and Tokyo string quartets, among other ensembles. Together with violinist Jorja Fleezanis and cellist Michael Grebanier, he is a founding member of the San Francisco-based FOG Trio.

About Yoko Nozaki

Since her 1972 New York City debut recital, pianist Yoko Nozaki has won consistent critical acclaim during two decades of chamber music performances, recitals, and concerts with several major American orchestras. She has also appeared at such music festivals as Mostly Mozart, Ravinia, Ojai, and Tanglewood and frequently collaborates with her husband, pianist Emanuel Ax.

Ms. Nozaki and Mr. Ax’s joint appearances have included recitals in the Distinguished Artist Series at the 92nd Street Y and the Metropolitan Museum in New York. They have performed together with several major orchestras, including St. Louis, Minnesota, Detroit, and Cleveland. During the summer of 1992, they gave performances of the Mozart Two-Piano Concerto at the Mostly Mozart Festival in New York with Edo de Waart and at the Blossom Festival with Leonard Slatkin. They also participated in a Tanglewood Festival evening featuring the Brahms Leibeslieder Waltzes and the Rossini Petite Messe Solennelle, commemorating that composer’s 200th birthday.

A performance of the Mozart concerto with Mr. Ax and the Minnesota Orchestra under the direction of David Zinman soon followed. In August 1996, Ms. Nozaki made her Ravinia Festival debut in a performance of the Mozart Three-Piano Concerto with Mr. Ax and Christoph Eschenbach. That season also included debut appearances at the Ojai Festival and at Carnegie Hall with the New York String Orchestra.

More recently, Ms. Nozaki and Mr. Ax highlighted a four-city tour in 1999-2000 with an acclaimed performance at the Freer Gallery in Washington, D.C. In 1999, the pair also toured with Jamie Laredo and the Brandenburg Ensemble, including a Celebrity Series performance at the Symphony Hall in Boston.

In 2001, Ms. Nozaki and Mr. Ax were joined by the percussionists Mark Damaloukis and Matt Wood for a Lincoln Center Great Performers concert exploring modern music for piano and percussion. Last season, she made her debut appearance at The Hollywood Bowl. Recent and upcoming engagements include appearances with The Toronto Symphony, and Orchestre de Lyon in Paris.

Dance at the Music Center presents some of the world’s most renowned ballet and contemporary artists on stage at the Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Ahmanson Theatre and Walt Disney Concert Hall. At Dance at the Music Center, the audience can experience compelling, sensual, and provocative dance events with works by some of the world’s greatest choreographers. This season includes The Mark Morris Dance Group, American Ballet Theatre, COMPLEXIONS Contemporary Ballet, and the Teatro alla Scala Ballet Company.

Dance at the Music Center tickets are priced from $25 to $115 and are available at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Box Office, 135 North Grand Avenue. Tickets are also available through Ticketmaster Phone Charge at 213/365-3500 or 714/740-7878, and at all Ticketmaster Outlets and online at www.ticketmaster.com. For groups of 15 or more, call Connie Nelson at (310) 831-1022. For more information about Mark Morris Dance Group and all Dance at the Music Center engagements, visit musiccenter.org.

Reprise! Broadway’s Best

“Damn Yankees”

Music and lyrics by Richard Adler & Jerry Ross

Book by George Abbott & Douglass Wallop

Based on the novel by Douglass Wallop 


"The Year The Yankees Lost the Pennant"


Choreography by Lee Martino

Directed by Jason Alexander

Limited engagement of 16 Performances Only!

November 6 to November 18 (Press Opening Nov. 7)

at UCLA’S Freud Playhouse

Jason Alexander, new Artistic Director of Reprise! Broadway’s Best will direct the second production of its 2007-2008 season, “Damn Yankees,” music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross, book by George Abbott & Douglass Wallop, based on the novel "The Year The Yankees Lost the Pennant,"
by Douglass Wallop. “Damn Yankees” won seven 1956 Tony Awards including Best Musical. Reprise! musical director Gerald Sternbach conducts, and the choreography is by Lee Martino, who just choreographed the recent Reprise! “On Your Toes.” “Damn Yankees” is presented by special arrangement with Jeff Richards and James Fuld.

“Damn Yankees” will preview on Tuesday, November 6 and will open on Wednesday, November 7, and continue through Sunday, November 18 at UCLA’s Freud Playhouse.

The authors of this classic musical have given Reprise! permission to update and adapt this classic musical – and bring it forward in time from the mid-fifties to 1981, Los Angeles, where Joe, a middle aged man is endlessly frustrated that his beloved Dodgers are constantly thwarted by those … well, damn Yankees.

Desperate, Joe makes a deal with the devil, Applegate, to exchange his soul for becoming a youthful baseball star leading his team towards the pennant. In the battle of fantasy vs. true love, Joe finds he misses his wife more and more – when Applegate sends in his secret weapon – the irresistible temptress Lola. “Whatever Lola Wants, Lola Gets” she sings – but does she? And does Joe lead Dodger Blue to victory before the devil owns him for eternity?

“Damn Yankees” first opened on Broadway in 1955, just one year after “The Pajama Game,” created by the “Yankees” creative team, took Broadway by storm. That team was the new composer-lyricist duo Richard Adler and Jerry Ross, veteran book writer and director George Abbott, and producers Harold Prince, Robert Griiffith and Frederick Brisson. Prince would go onto one of the most prolific careers in musical theatre as a producer and director with credits including “West Side Story,” “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Cabaret,” “Company,” “Sweeney Todd,” “Evita,” and “The Phantom of the Opera.” “Damn Yankees” also solidified Bob Fosse’s career as a choreographer, along with its two stars Gwen Verdon and Ray Walston.

The original “Damn Yankees” ran 1,019 performances, followed by a London production, and a very popular film, directed by Abbott and Stanely Donen, featuring Tab Hunter and almost the entire original Broadway cast.

“Damn Yankees” had a successful Broadway revival in 1994, which starred Bebe Neuwirth and Victor Garber as Applegate, and was directed by Jack O’Brien and choreographed by Rob Marshall, who went on to make the film of “Chicago.” Garber was succeeded by Jerry Lewis, who then starred in a national tour and the London production.

“Damn Yankees” is the second attraction of the 2007-2008 Reprise! Broadway’s Best season. It will be followed by “Li’l Abner” February 5 to 17, 2008 (press opening February 5) and “Flora the Red Menace” May 6 to 18 (press opening May 7).

“Damn Yankees” will preview on Tuesday, November 6 and will open on Wednesday, November 7 (press opening). It will perform Tuesday through Friday evenings at 8:00pm; Saturdays at 2:00pm & 8:00pm, and Sundays at 2:00pm & 7:00pm through Sunday, November 18. Single ticket prices are Tuesday, August 14 (preview) $60.00; Opening night - $75.00; Tuesday through Thursday performances - $70.00; Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, (all performances) - $75.00. Reprise! offers a $20.00 Student/Senior rush 15 minutes before showtime (subject to availability). For tickets, please call the UCLA Central Ticket Office at 310/825-2101.

For further information on Reprise! Broadway’s Best, please visit www.reprise.org.

About Reprise! Broadway’s Best

Reprise! Broadway’s Best, now in its eleventh season at UCLA’s Freud Playhouse was founded by Marcia Seligson, who served as Producing Artistic Director from 1995 – 2005, and is honored as its Founding Artistic Director. In 2007, Jason Alexander was named Artistic Director. In 2005, Jim Gardia became Producing Director. Reprise! has presented twenty-seven of America’s best and most classic musicals of this century. The late Peter Matz, one of Broadway, television and popular music’s most important conductor-arrangers, served as the musical director from the founding of Reprise! until his death in August, 2002. Gerald Sternbach has succeeded him.

Since the beginning (“Promises, Promises” starring Jason Alexander, Alan Thicke, and Jean Smart) the scope of Reprise! productions has grown considerably – the rehearsal time has doubled, costumes and scenery have increased, and orchestras have been enlarged as Reprise! has worked its way through some of the great, and often infrequently seen American musicals. Originally presented as “in concert” (i.e. scripts in hand), the productions are now completely staged and choreographed. The casts are drawn from the best Broadway performers working today and actors working here in Los Angeles who rarely have the opportunity to appear in musicals. The number of performances of each show has grown from seven to sixteen.

The productions have included “Finian’s Rainbow” with Andrea Marcovicci and Rex Smith; “Wonderful Town” with Lucie Arnaz and Stephanie Zimbalist; “Of Thee I Sing” with Gregory Harrison and Maureen McGovern; “The Boys From Syracuse” with David Hyde Pierce and Lea DeLaria; “Call Me Madam” with Karen Morrow; “Mack & Mabel” with Douglas Sills, Jane Krakowski and Donna McKechnie; “Strike Up The Band” with Charles Nelson Reilly; “1776” with Roger Rees and Orson Bean; “The Most Happy Fella” with Rodney Gilfry; “Anything Goes” with Rachel York and Brent Barrett; “On The 20^TH Century” with Bob Gunton, Carolee Carmello, Mimi Hines, Robert Picardo and Dan Butler; “She Loves Me” with Rebecca Luker and Scott Waara; “Babes In Arms” with Joey McIntyre and Jodi Benson; “Kismet” with Len Cariou and Anthony Crivello; “Company” with Christopher Sieber and Judith Light; “Brigadoon” with Marin Mazzie and Jason Danieley; “Pippin” with Sam Harris and Michael Arden; “Applause” with Sheryl Lee Ralph and Jean Louisa Kelly; “On The Town” with David Elder and Harriet Harris; “City Of Angels” with Stephen Bogardus and Burke Moses; “Zorba” with Marc Kudisch and Judy Kaye; “My One and Only” with Michael Gruber and Rachel York. “Sunday In The Park With George” with Kelli O’Hara and Manoel Felciano; and “No Strings” with Scott Bakula and Sophina Brown.

Reprise! also produced three large special events – “Sweeney Todd” with Kelsey Grammer and Christine Baranski; “Hair” with Steven Weber, Sam Harris and Marissa Jaret Winokur; and “Follies” with Patty Duke, Vikki Carr, Bob Gunton and Harry Groener.

CALIFORNIA PHILHARMONIC
2007-2008 CONCERT SERIES

Begins November 10, Continues December 15 Saturdays at 8PM
Ambassador Auditorium, Pasadena

CalPhil and Maestro Victor Vener
perform concerts featuring Classic Works by Dvorak and Holiday Favorites

The California Philharmonic begins its 2007-2008 season concerts of classical music and popular favorites with two concerts this fall. The first in November is dedicated to the music Dvorak composed influenced by his experience of America and the latter a celebration of the holidays through timeless favorites, both classical music and favorite carols. All take place Saturday at 8PM at the finest venue for classical music in Southern California, the legendary Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena.

On Saturday, November 10 at 8PM, Cal Phil performs two of Dvorak’s works known to have been written during the period of his residence in America from 1892-1895. His Symphony #9 “From The New World”, composed in New York in 1892 and based upon his travels in Iowa, remains an audience favorite. The Cello Concerto in B Minor was written later in his stay in this country in 1895 and is a mainstay of the orchestra repertoire.

November 10, 8PM

Dvorak in America
Two Masterpieces Inspired by America
Dvorak: New World Symphony
Dvorak: Cello Concerto in B Minor
Soloist to be announced

December 15 at 8PM, The orchestra performs a trio of classical works associated with the holidays: Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Suite, the Russian composer’s ballet music for the E.A. Hoffman story of Clara and her beloved Nutcracker’s battle with the mice and triumphant journey to The Land of the Sweets. Along with Handel’s Messiah and the Toy Symphony, these works are followed by a mix of traditional seasonal songs and tunes.

California Philharmonic 2007-2008 Season – pg 2

December 15, 8PM

Holiday Spectacular

Celebrate the holidays with music you know

Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker
Handel: The Messiah
Angerer: Toy Symphony
Traditional: Christmas Carols

These concerts are followed by a concert on February 17 featuring Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony and works by Haydn, Mozart and Wagner that influenced it; one on March 15 with a Celtic theme with music from Riverdance and the movie Braveheart; a concert April 26 featuring all six Brandenburg concertos by Bach and finally, a performance on May 17 of Holst’s The Planets along with music from Star Wars and the world premiere of Earth by resident composer Roger Allen Ward.

Maestro Victor Vener
Dr. Vener has an expansive repertoire. He is recognized as a musicologist and an expert on 18th and 19th century instrumental performance practices, which are showcased on the California Philharmonic Winds’ CD of music by Mozart and Richard Strauss. He played solo French horn in many European orchestras, on soundtracks for all of Hollywood’s major studios and with Stan Kenton’s Neophonic Jazz Orchestra. A native of Southern California, he lives with his family and two dogs in Pasadena, California.

The California Philharmonic was founded in the mid-1990s to bring excellent, professional performances of great music to the widest possible audience in Southern California. Led by its Musical Director Victor Vener, it has been one of the fastest growing orchestras in the nation, presenting 18 full orchestra concerts this year, and is currently the sixth largest orchestra in California. It has been recognized for its many high-quality, professional performances of music from the diverse genres of classical, opera, pops, Broadway and jazz, as well as premieres of new music.

Tickets for Cal Phil at the Ambassador Auditorium: $30-95, call 626-300-8200 or visit www.calphil.org. Parking and directions at www.calphil.org. Concert series sponsored by Zeilstra Foundation. Before each concert, at 7PM, Talks with the Maestro allows patrons to hear about the music from Victor Vener directly.

www.calphil.org.

Cirque du Soleil returns with CORTEO
Under the blue and yellow Grand Chapiteau (big top)

Premieres in Orange County on November 8, 2007 Under the Grand Chapiteau at Orange County Fair & Exposition Center in Costa Mesa

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL returns to the Southland after a four-year absence with the big top touring show Corteo, proudly presented by iShares, under the trademark blue and yellow Grand Chapiteau in Los Angeles and Orange County.

Created and directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca, Corteo is now performing in Los Angeles for a limited engagement at The Forum. On November 8, Corteo will open at the Orange County Fair & Exposition Center in Costa Mesa.

These engagements celebrate the 20th anniversary of Cirque du Soleil in Los Angeles and the United States.Corteo, which means “cortege” in Italian, is a joyous procession, a festive parade imagined by a clown.

The show brings together the passion of the actor with the grace and power of the acrobat to plunge the audience into a theatrical world of fun, comedy and spontaneity situated in a mysterious space between heaven and earth.

The Corteo cast includes 61 artists from 16 countries. The clown pictures his own funeral taking place in a carnival atmosphere, watched over by quietly caring angels. Juxtaposing the large with the small, the ridiculous with the tragic and the magic of perfection with the charm of imperfection, the show highlights the strength and fragility of the clown, as well as his wisdom and kindness, to illustrate the portion of humanity that is within each of us. The music, by turns lyrical and playful, carries Corteo through a timeless celebration in which illusion teases reality.

Corteo explores the circus arts in a way that is brand new to Cirque du Soleil. Once again, the very limits of acrobatics are challenged as Daniele Finzi Pasca lends his unique touch to Cirque du Soleil spectacular performances. Corteo redefines the springboard, the Korean frame and the tightwire, and presents acts that are as original as they are innovative.

The filmed version of CORTEO was nominated for two 2007 Emmy Awards – Outstanding Set Direction Variety, Music or Nonfiction Programming and Outstanding Picture Editing for a Special. The Awards will be given in September.

The Creators
The members of the creative team are: Guy Laliberté, Guide; Daniele Finzi Pasca, Creator and Director; Line Tremblay, Director of Creation; Jean Rabasse, Set Designer and Decorator; Dominique Lemieux, Costume Designer; Philippe Leduc, Composer and Musical Director; Maria Bonzanigo, Composer and Musical Director; Martin Labrecque, Lighting Designer; Jonathan Deans, Sound Designer; Hugo Gargiulo (Teatro Sunil), Acting Designer; Antonio Vergamini (Teatro Sunil), Acting Designer; Dolores Heredia (Teatro Sunil), Dramaturgical Analyst; Danny Zen, Acrobatic Rigging Designer; Nathalie Gagné, Make-up Designer.

Sponsors and Media Partners
Cirque du Soleil gratefully acknowledges iShares, Presenting Sponsor of the 2007 US Tour, as well as CGI, DELTA AIRLINES and AMERICAN EXPRESS as the Official Sponsors. The media partners are LA WEEKLY and OC WEEKLY, ABC7 and Univision 34/Telefutura 46.

Tickets are now on sale online at cirquedusoleil.com or through Admission Network at 1 800-678-5440.

Jazz Tap Ensemble
AMERICAN TAP MASTERPIECES
The Hollywood Journey

Saturday, October 13, 2007 at 8pm

Irvine Barclay Theatre (949) 854-4646
Online: http://www.thebarclay.org/custom/events/event10.asp?eventID=932

"It will make you jump out of your shoes and beat your feet."
- Wall Street Journal-


This vivid, action portrait captures memorable dances from the big screen with Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell, and the Nicholas Brothers interspersing live dance and film sequences. It also takes a fresh look at the theater works of contemporary tap masters Jimmy Slyde and Gregory Hines. This company of 6 dancers, performing to live music, reflects the vibrancy of American tap dance, the brilliance of choreography and improvisation, and the dancers' ability to draw on the past as they create the future.

JTE was commissioned by the California Arts Council as part of the National Endowment for the Arts' American Masterpieces Program to create this work as part of a project to celebrate the best of American cultural and artistic legacy. Funding by the CAC and NEA are enabling us to offer this special event for just $10 per ticket.

JAZZ TAP ENSEMBLE (JTE), founded in 1979, is the first American dance company to bring the art of rhythm tap dance and live jazz music to the concert stage. JTE's vision of excellence, innovation, and collaboration, along with a deep respect for the masters, has inspired a repertory of virtuosity, wit, and far reaching musicality.

Renowned for its stellar artistic personnel, original choreographies, concert presentations, worldwide touring, residencies and workshops, and dedicated to community service through their Caravan Project for gifted teen tappers (since 1991), and JTE Goes to School (for K-12 throughout Los Angeles and Orange Counties, CA), JTE has been honored to present and work with living tap masters Jimmy Slyde, Dianne Walker, LaVaughn Robinson, Brenda Bufalino, Savion Glover, and late greats Charles "Honi" Coles, Cholly Atkins, Fayard Nicholas, Harold Nicholas, Steve Condos, Eddie Brown, and the beloved Gregory Hines.

Los Angeles-based JTE has appeared at the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, London's Riverside Theatre, Paris' Theater de la Ville, Lyon's Maison de la Danse, Salzburg Jazz Festival, as well as Jacob's Pillow, Spoleto USA, several seasons at New York's Joyce Theater, Playboy Jazz Festival, Hollywood Bowl, and major tap festivals in New York, Boulder, Denver, Portland, Houston, Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

The Ensemble has toured extensively in Southeast Asia and Latin America under the auspices of USIA's "Art America" program. Performance highlights include Gregory Hines' Evening of Tap at Carnegie Hall, Dancin' in the Streets at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, Madrid en Danza festival, and Lyon's 4th Biennale, An American Story.

Television and film credits include London's Channel 4 TV special, JTE Live in Concert (on BRAVO in the USA), San Francisco's KQED special with Honi Coles, Los Angeles' KCET Holiday Special, and Christian Blackwood's award-winning film Tapdancin'.

LYNN DALLY (Artistic Director, Choreographer) co-founded the Jazz Tap Ensemble with Fred Strickler and Camden Richman in 1979. She has created a large body of original tap choreography for the concert stage and has performed worldwide with JTE. She has appeared often with tap legends Honi Coles, Eddie Brown, Steve Condos, the Nicholas Brothers, Brenda Bufalino, Dianne Walker, Sarah Petronio, Jimmy Slyde, and Gregory Hines in venues from Carnegie Hall to the Apollo.

Lynn Dally has received multiple grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Irvine Fellowship in Dance, City of Los Angeles (COLA) Fellowship, and was the first tap dancer/choreographer to receive the Guggenheim Fellowship in Choreography.

Her long list of commissions includes Ruby, My Dear (Thelonious Monk) and Black Iris (Duke Ellington) for Seattle's Pacific Northwest Ballet; The Moment (Kenny Barron) for Chicago's Human Rhythm Project; Tribute: A Valentine to Tap Dance in the Movies for the Palm Beach Festival; Tribute to Fred Astaire for the Getty Museum, Los Angeles.

She received the 2006 Hoofers Award for her choreographic contribution to tap dance from American Tap Dance Foundation at NY Tap City Festival. She is an Adjunct Professor in UCLA's Department of World Arts and Cultures, and continues to teach and perform internationally. Recent delights include Tap Divas at the Duke; Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl, Salzburg Jazz Festival, Lyon's Maison de la Danse, and NY's Joyce Theater with Jazz Tap Ensemble. Her first published article, "No Maps On My Taps: An Appreciation," appears in the book Envisioning Dance.

Her first DVD, SOLEA, explores cross cultural rhythms in new choreography for a quartet of diverse soloists in Bharata Natyam, Flamenco, Modern, and Rhythm Tap Dance. Her next project is Women in Tap, a national conference of leading tap dance artists, scholars, writers, and documentary filmmakers, scheduled for Feb, 2008, at UCLA.

WICKED INTRODUCES D-SCRIPTIVE,

I-CAPTION AND SHOWTRANS

State-of-the-art customer services provide scene-by-scene information for hearing and sight challenged and multi-lingual commentary for non-English speaking audiences

Now available for all performances at Pantages Theatre

The Los Angeles company of WICKED is now offering D-Scriptive, I-Caption and ShowTrans, new state-of-the-art customer services that provides scene-by-scene dialogue and commentary of the production for hearing challenged patrons (I-Caption), sight challenged patrons (D-Scriptive) and translations for non-English speakers (ShowTrans) in Spanish, Japanese, French, German and Portuguese. D-Scriptive, I-Caption and ShowTrans are now available at all performances of WICKED at the Pantages Theatre.

More than a word-for-word translation, these three services give patrons the actual dialogue, as well as continual plot and descriptive information that enables them to follow the action, intention, humor and emotion of the show.

D-Scriptive, I-Caption and ShowTrans are available in the theatre lobby prior to all performances. These services can also be reserved in advance by calling the toll-free reservation line (888) 876-0801. ShowTrans multi-language commentary may be rented for $10 per ear receiver; the two other services –

D-Scriptive and I-Caption -- are offered for the hearing and sight challenged at no charge to the patron.

These new programs are created and serviced by Sound Associates, and sponsored in part by the National Institute for Special Need Audiences, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to using technology to make theatre accessible for those who may otherwise not be able to enjoy it. The proceeds help to fund programs for the blind, the deaf and the hearing impaired.

D-Scriptive, I-Caption and Showtrans were originally introduced in New York, and are currently available at the Broadway productions of WICKED, Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, Rent, Hairspray and Mamma Mia!

The precise timing of the commentary to the action of the show is critical.

D-Scriptive, I-Caption and ShowTrans are integrated into the show’s cueing system so that the commentary keeps pace with the action onstage. Even if there are greatly varying factors in the performance, the system does not miss a beat, and will always find its exact spot in the show.

When using Showtrans, a signal is transmitted, via either light wave or radio wave, to a multi-channel receiver that has been tuned to the desired language. The theatre patron wears a tiny earphone in one ear through which they can hear the commentary throughout the show.

D-Scriptive is an automated system for the sight-challenged, that works by exactly the same process and is controlled by the same master system. During the show, the blind or sight-impaired audience member hears a detailed description of all the visual aspects of the production, including choreography, lighting, sets and costumes. It too is timed perfectly to the show’s cueing system, and adjusts itself according to any fluctuations in the performance.

I-Caption is a hand-held captioning system for the deaf and severely hearing-impaired theatergoer, and is the newest and latest development offered as part of these special services. Also automated, it receives the signal from the master system and displays verbatim texts of the entire show, including lyrics, announcements and show information.

The captioning device, approximately the size of a small PDA, can either be held by the patron, or placed in a specially fitted receptacle on the seat-back in front of them, specifically tailored to each theater. The incredibly sharp screen is not visible to anyone not directly in front of the device, so as to avoid any distraction to neighbors. Even though the text keeps pace with the show, the user can scroll backwards at any time, to review previously displayed information.

About D-Scriptive, I-Caption and ShowTrans and Sound Associates, Inc.

Sound Associates, Inc. has been at the forefront in the development of assistive devices and services since 1979, when it introduced the Infrared Listening System for the hearing impaired. This system enabled the hard of hearing to attend and enjoy a show in a way not previously possible.

In 1981, its designer, Richard Fitzgerald, CEO of Sound Associates, was the recipient of a Tony Award in special recognition of this groundbreaking innovation, which has now become the standard on Broadway and throughout the world. "Using assistive technology, our goal is to make every performance available to all theatre lovers," says Fitzgerald.

Anne Tramon, who spearheaded the Infrared Division of Sound Associates, has since helped to form The National Institute For Special Need Audiences with the goal of evolving and expanding the Infrared Listening System to include many other applications, making theatre available to many new audiences.

A non-profit organization, NISNA is combining theatrical tradition with the latest in assistive technology from Sound Associates, to help diversify the audience for live theatre in the 21^st Century. NISNA funds the development of state-of-the-art communication tools for such special theatergoers as the blind, deaf, non-English speaking, and the senior citizen.

Carl Tramon, Director of Special Services for Sound Associates on Broadway, said, “Every time I see the emotional reaction of someone benefiting from one of our services, it makes me realize how much we take for granted, and how important it is that we persist in the development and application of such services. As we evolve, technology expands our potential. The services are like having a friend next to you whispering in your ear, and giving you what you need; except now the friend is freed up to watch and enjoy the show with you.”

The ADA has mandated comprehensive changes to accessibility requirements in all theatres. NISNA is not only fulfilling these requirements, but have taken it to the next level. Very soon, these services will be the standard in all Broadway houses as an irreplaceable aid for those who require it.

About WICKED in Los Angeles
The record-breaking Los Angeles company of WICKED is now performing at the Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd.

Based on the novel by Gregory Maguire, WICKED has music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. The musical is directed by Joe Mantello, with musical staging by Wayne Cilento. The Grammy Award-winning original cast recording of WICKED, produced by Stephen Schwartz for Decca Broadway, has been one of the fastest selling Broadway recordings of recent years and has been certified ‘Platinum’ by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Winner of 15 major awards including the Grammy Award and three Tony Awards, WICKED is the untold story of the witches of Oz. Long before Dorothy drops in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One, born with emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. WICKED tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.

Tickets for WICKED are on sale at www.ticketmaster.com or www.BroadwayLA.org, by phone at 213-365-3500 or 714-740-7878, in person at the Pantages Theatre Box Office, 6233 Hollywood Blvd., or at any Ticketmaster outlet. Groups of fifteen (15) or more can call 866-755-3075 or online at www.nedgroups.com.

For more information, visit www.wickedthemusical.com.

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