Production sources have confirmed that the actors comprising the company for the new Don Schlitz-Ken Ludwig musical, The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer, based on the Mark Twain novel, will be joined by the show's creative team to record a CD sampler on Oct. 28 in New York City.
A spokesperson earlier described the CD sampler as a "commonly used tool" for shows that are new or that are planning a cast recording, "to provide a taste of the music of the show."
It is assumed that some casting remains to be finalized for Tom Sawyer because no official cast announcement has been made and a non-union casting call for the show was issued for as recently as Oct. 13 at the Chelsea Studios in New York City. A recent Theatrical Index names John Dossett, Beth Fowler, Kevin Gray, Brian d'Arcy James, John Christopher Jones and Linda Purl as possible members of the cast.
Tom Sawyer is written by two-time Grammy Award winner Don Schlitz, an established country songwriter with fifty Top Ten hits, 24 Number One records and four ASCAP Country Songwriter of the Year awards to his credit. Among Schlitz' numerous songs is the hit, "The Gambler."
Ken Ludwig (Crazy for You, Lend Me a Tenor) wrote the book for Tom Sawyer, which is being directed by Scott Ellis (1776, She Loves Me, Company). Choreography for the show is by David Marques, set design by Heidi Ettinger, costume design by Anthony Powell, lighting design by Kenneth Posner, sound design by Tony Meola, music direction by Paul Gemignani and orchestrations are by Michael Starobin. In any case, principal casting for Tom Sawyer is well underway with negotiations said to be in the final stages.
Tom Sawyer opens at a Nederlander Theatre on Broadway April 26 (previews from April 4), 2001, after a Feb. 27-March 4 tryout at the Shubert Performing Arts Center in New Haven.
Tickets for the New Haven run range from $28-$60. Various subscription rates are available for the Shubert theatre's season. The Shubert Performing Arts Center is located at 247 College Street in New Haven, CT. For information call (203) 562-5666 or visit www.shubert.com.
