Pride & Prejudice, A Musical Play will feature a 17-piece orchestra and a cast filled with Broadway actors, including the previously announced Colin Donnell (Jersey Boys) as Mr. Darcy. Sweeney Todd and Hollywood Arms actress Donna Lynne Champlin has just joined the cast in the role of Jane Austen. Additional casting will be announced shortly.

In a statement Champlin said, "How absolutely thrilling, not only to originate this wonderful role at the prestigious Eastman Theatre, but to do so in my hometown for family, teachers and friends – I'm ecstatic."

The Rochester venue is an appropriate choice for Pride & Prejudice: The musical was penned by two Rochester natives, Lindsay Warren Baker and Amanda Jacobs. Mark Lamos (Our Country's Good, Seascape, The Rivals) directs with musical direction by Fred Lassen.

Pride & Prejudice, A Musical Play has been optioned for a Broadway production by Lori Bajorek, also a Rochester native. Executive producer is Donald C. Farber.

In a statement producer Bajorek said, "We really want Rochester to 'own' this show from the start. This is 'Rochester's Musical,' and we want the whole community to come with us to Broadway!" A reading of Pride & Prejudice — which combines the world of the Bennet family in "Pride and Prejudice" with the world of Austen as she writes the novel — was presented in Manhattan in August 2007. "Jane Austen," according to previous production notes, "brings to life the world of 'Pride & Prejudice' through her writing process. She creates the classic love story of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy before our eyes for us to fall in love with all over again. . . . It is a story of love — the love an author has for her characters and the love the characters have for one another." That reading was also directed by Mark Lamos.

Tickets, priced $35-$75, for the 7:30 PM concert are available by calling (585) 232-1900 or by visiting www.tickemaster.com.

For more information about the musical, visitwww.prideandprejudicebroadway.com.