Herdlicka Will Star in Pittsburgh Workshop of New Musical Bubble Boy

By Adam Hetrick
October 17, 2008

Casting has been announced for the Scott Schwartz-helmed workshop presentation of the Cinco Paul-Ken Daurio musical Bubble Boy, which will be presented Oct. 18 in Pittsburgh.

The Pittsburgh presentation is a partnership between the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, ASCAP Foundation and Carnegie Mellon University's New Works Program. The privately staged reading is the culmination of a week-long workshop of the aborning musical.

The cast for Bubble Boy features Hunter Herdlicka in the title role as Jimmy Livingston with Ryah Nixon (Mrs. Livingston), Charlie Murphy (Mr. Livingston), Laura Mixon (Chloe), Zachary Berger (Mark), Jon-Michael Reese (Slim), Steffie Garrard (Lorraine) and Kyle Beltran (Pushpahp).

The ensemble comprises Ian Harding, Will Brill, Roberta Burke, Brittney Campbell, Jonathan Freeman, Michaela Watkins and Ethan Saks.

Featuring music and lyrics by Cinco Paul, who co-wrote the book with Ken Daurio, Bubble Boy "tells the story of Jimmy Livingston, born without immunities and confined to a plastic bubble room. When he finds out the girl of his dreams is getting married, he builds a bubble suit and sets off on a cross-country quest to stop the wedding, encountering cult members, bikers, circus freaks, and his controlling mother along the way."

The property is based on the screenplay penned by Cinco and Dario for the 2001 movie of the same title.

Bubble Boy was previously presented at the ASCAP/Disney Workshop in Los Angeles. Tony-nominated and Academy Award-winning composer Stephen Schwartz, who led the ASCAP/Disney Workshop that featured Bubble Boy, will be in attendance for the Oct. 18 Pittsburgh presentation.