Broadway's Footloose is going on the road -- with a new cast to bring the residents of the dance-free town of Bomont to life.
Joe Machota will play transplanted-to-the-sticks bad boy Ren McCormack. Machota most recently played Tulsa in the Betty Buckley/Deborah Gibson Gypsy at the Paper Mill Playhouse, as well as a taking a stint in EFX understudying David Cassidy and filling in for Michael Crawford while Crawford was absent for two and a half months.
Ren's love interest Ariel Moore will be played by Niki Scalera. Scalera has appeared on Broadway in Jake's Women and Off Broadway in Our Town with Hal Holbrook. For her television work, she was nominated for an Emmy for "Don't Touch."
Reverend Shaw Moore and his wife Vi will be performed by Daren Kelly and Mary Gordon Murray. Kelly, also a Gypsy graduate, has had featured roles in Deathtrap, Woman of the Year and Crazy For You. Tony nominated for Little Me, Gordon also performed on Broadway in Into the Woods, Coastal Disturbances The Robber Bridegroom, Grease!, Play Me a Country Song and I Love My Wife. Ren's mother, Ethel McCormack, is Marsha Waterbury, a Broadway veteran from Jake's Women, They're Playing Our Song and Smile.
Ariel's trio of friends will be played by Stephanie St. James (Rusty), Katie Harvey (Wendy Jo) and Andrea McCormack (Urleen). Richard H. Blake (Roger from Broadway's Rent) will play Chuck Cranston, Ren's rival for Ariel's affections, with Christian Borle (Willard Hewitt), Andrew Wright (Travis) and David Patrick Ford (Lyle) as some of Bomont's teen boys. Jessica Sheridan (Eleanor/Betty Blast/Doreen), Tina Johnson (Lulu Warnicker/Irene), Ted Bouton (Principal Clark), Robert Boles (Coach Dunbar) and Steve Luker (Wes Warnicker/Country Fiddler) round out Bomont's adult population.
The ensemble includes Ben Cameron, Jason DeRoest, Teri DiGainfelice, Lori Ann Ferreri, Daniel Kelley, Michelle Kittrell, Lance Olds, Kudra Owens, Nathan Peck, Timothy Quinlan, Lorraine Simone and Karl Wahl. Juliet Ewing, Ray Luetters, Jason Robert Dalton, Meredith Akins, Paige Harman and Jason Snow are the understudies and swings.
Harman also serves as the company's dance captain. Bryan Young will serve as production stage manager with Gregory Victor and Jill B. Gounder as the assistant stage managers.
Footloose kicks off its tour at the newly renovated Allen Theatre in Cleveland, OH, Dec. 15. The show will remain there until Jan. 3. Other cities follow:
Jan. 5-10: Green Bay, WI, Weidner Performing Arts Center
Jan. 12-24: Cincinnati, OH, Aronoff Center
Jan. 26-31: Pittsburgh, PA, Benedum Center
Feb. 2-7: Columbus, OH, Ohio Theatre
Feb. 9-14: Hartford, CT, the Bushnell
Feb. 15-21: TBA
Feb. 23-28: Baltimore, MD, Mechanic Theatre
Mar. 2-7: Memphis, TN, Orpheum Theatre
Mar. 9-14: Charlotte, NC, Ovens Theatre
Mar. 16-21: Atlanta, GA, Fox Theatre
Mar. 23-28: Louisville, KY, Kentucky Center
Mar. 30-April 4: Tulsa, OK, Chapman Music Hall
April 7-18: Ft. Lauderdale, FL, Broward Center
April 20-25: Miami Beach, FL, Jackie Gleason Theatre
April 27-May 2: Tampa, FL, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center
May 4-May 9: Nashville, TN, Tennessee Performing Arts Center
May 11-16: Houston, TX, Jones Hall
May 18-23: San Antonio, TX, Majestic Theatre
May 25-30: St. Louis, MO, Fox Theatre
June 1-6: Minneapolis, MN, Orpheum Theatre
July 6-11: Tempe, AZ, Gammage Memorial Auditorium
July 21-Aug. 15: Seattle, WA, Fifth Ave. Theatre
The summer will also include stops in San Diego and Dallas.
Based on the 1984 Kevin Bacon movie of the same name, Footloose features much of the film's original score. Songs include "Footloose," "Holding Out For A Hero," "Let's Hear It For the Boy" and "Almost Paradise," as well as several new tunes written expressly for the stage.
Directed by Walter Bobbie, Footloose features music by Tom Snow and lyrics by Dean Pitchford with Bobbie and Pitchford sharing a "stage adaptation" credit. Additional music is by Eric Carmen, Sammy Hager, Kenny Loggins and Jim Steinman.
Footloose opened on Broadway Oct. 22 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre.
