The Lower East Side Tenement Museum and Orchard Street Productions are presenting the New York premiere of Jay Kholos' musical, directed by Lon Gary.
The Lower East Side's 200-seat Mazer Theater is at 197 East Broadway. According to production notes, "Inspired by a visit to The Lower East Side Tenement Museum, Jay Kholos' A Stoop On Orchard Street is a new musical that brings to life the colorful and often trying world that was the Lower East Side around 1910. It follows the trials and tribulations of the Lomansky family, as they adjust to a new life in America after leaving Eastern Europe."
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Producer-librettist-composer-lyricist Kholos began his show business career at CBS, working on such classic shows as "The Dick Van Dyke Show," "The Red Skelton Hour," "Make Room For Daddy," "The Jack Benny Show" and more. He later wrote, produced and syndicated the award-winning TV shows "History In the Company of Women" and "History In the Company of Children," starring John Ritter. He created and executive produced Rod Sterling's syndicated radio series "Zero Hour." His companies have produced more than 1,500 commercials, including platinum sales of music compilations. His original screenplay, "Turnstiles," is due to be filmed in the fall of 2004.
Director Lon Gary has directed extensively in Nashville for the past 10 years. His credits include Brighton Beach Memoirs, Viet Rock and Zoo Story. A Stoop premiered in Nashville and this is the second staging, which includes some cast holdovers. The commercial run in open-ended. The cast of 23 includes Edward Anthony, Selby Brown, Jeremy Chase, Lili Corn, Valerie David, Eleni Delopoulos, Lon Gary, Deborah Grausman, Joel Halsted, John Kirkwood, Matthew Laclair, Kristian Hunter Lazzaro, Stuart Marshall, Sarah Matteucci, David Mendell, Jonathan Schneidman, Joseph Spiotta, Scott Steven, Antonia Garza Szilagi, Sharon Taylor, Anne Tonelson, Marla Weiner, and Stephanie Wilberding.
Designers are Jason Lee Courson (set and costumes), Sabrina McGuigan (lighting and sound), Jason Summer (co-choreographer) and Tom Berger (musical director and co-choreographer).
Performances play Tuesday-Saturday at 8 PM; matinees on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 2 PM and Sunday at 3 PM. Tickets are $45 adults, $25 children 12 and under. For tickets visit www.TicketWeb.com or call (866) 468-7619. For more information, visit www.astooponorchardstreet.net.
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The Lower East Side Tenement Museum's mission is "To promote tolerance and historical perspective through the presentation and interpretation of the variety of immigrant and migrant experiences on Manhattan's Lower East Side, a gateway to America." The heart of the Museum is its landmark tenement building, home to 7,000 immigrants from over 20 different nations between 1863 and 1935. The Museum also offers walking tours and various other programs such as art exhibits, plays, and readings on a rotating basis throughout the year. For more information, visit (212) 431-0233 or visit the Museum's website at www.tenement.org.
