Sarich and Bohmer to Star in Frankenstein Premiere at the Paper Mill
By Andrew Gans
and Kenneth Jones
31 Mar 2007
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Drew Sarich
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While Mel Brooks' new musical Young Frankenstein is making its debut on Broadway at the St. James Theatre, another musical about the famed creature — simply titled Frankenstein — will premiere at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ, in September prior to a national tour.
Ron Bohmer and Drew Sarich will star in the Paper Mill production, according to the official website for the Frankenstein musical. Bohmer will portray the Creature with Sarich as Victor Frankenstein. The two actors played these roles during developmental workshops this past year.
Billed as a "bold new theatrical experience" rather than "a musical," the song-rich show, told in flashback, has music by Mark Baron, book and lyrics by Jeffrey Jackson and original story adaptation by Gary P. Cohen. A recording of an earlier version of the score (seen in a New Jersey regional theatre production) is on sale at amazon.com (Tony winner Shuler Hensley is on the disc).
Bill Fennelly, recently named producing artistic director of the Actor's Express in Atlanta, and a resident director of The Lion King on tour, will direct Frankenstein, which is scheduled to play the Paper Mill through Oct. 28. Visual and projection design will be by Guy St-Amour, a founding member of Cirque du Soleil.
In a statement on the show's website Frankenstein producer Doug Evans said, "While [our Frankenstein and Mel Brooks' version] share an ancestor, they couldn't be more different. Mel's is a transfer of his film spoofing the old Hollywood/Boris Karloff 'Frankensteins,' while our musical is a serious adaptation of the original novel.
"Theoretically, I think someone could enjoy both shows on back-to-back nights and have completely different experiences. And greater awareness of the title could only help both productions."
Librettist Jeffrey Jackson added, "Few people realize how little the movie versions had to do with the original novel. So perhaps if people whet their appetite on the Hollywood spoof, they'll be all the more intrigued to see what Frankenstein is really about and what an important work Mary Shelley's novel is for our times."
Ron Bohmer starred on Broadway in The Woman in White, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Les Misérables and Fiddler on the Roof. He portrayed Joe Gillis in the first national tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard; the title role in Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera in Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, D.C.; and Alex in the Canadian company and U.S. national tour of another Lloyd Webber work, Aspects of Love. Television audiences have seen the singer-actor on "As the World Turns" and "Ryan's Hope," and his solo recordings include "Ron Bohmer — everyman" and "Ron Bohmer: Another Life."
Drew Sarich, who plays Grantaire in the current revival of Les Misérables, has also been seen on Broadway in Lestat and Off-Broadway in Tony n' Tina's Wedding and Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris. He played Quasimodo in the world premiere of Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame and also appeared in European productions of Hair, Dracula, Barbella The Musical and Hedwig and the Angry Inch.
For more information visit http://www.frankensteinontour.com.
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