"We are delighted to announce that we are mounting a co-production tour," Manos said. The tour will play Atlanta and TOTS' sister theatres around the country. No dates, creative team, casting or venues have been announced. The Broadway run of the show ends June 29 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.
"We have been huge fans of Curtains from the beginning and believe that the show is a perfect fit for theatre audiences around the country," added Chris Manos, producer of TOTS. "We called a few of our sister theatres, and they share our enthusiasm for this new, old-fashioned musical comedy whodunit."
The Tony Award-honored original musical comedy (which won David Hyde Pierce a Best Actor Tony Award for his role as a detective) has music and lyrics by Broadway legends John Kander and Fred Ebb (Chicago and Cabaret) and book and additional lyrics by Rupert Holmes (The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Say Goodnight, Gracie), based on an idea and original book by Peter Stone (My One and Only and The Will Rogers Follies). Kander also penned additional lyrics.
Curtains unfolds backstage at Boston's Colonial Theatre in 1959 during a pre-Broadway engagement of a musical. When the leading lady is murdered, a stage-struck police detective enters to solve the crime (and doctor the show).
Curtains opened on Broadway on March 22, 2007, and will close on June 29, 2008, having played over 500 previews and performances. The show was nominated for eight Tony Awards (including Best Musical, Best Book and Best Score). The Curtains co-production tour will travel "with a full contingent of Equity actors and IATSE stagehands and will be an affordable mid-priced show for the 2009-2010 subscription season," according to TOTS.
L. Glenn Poppleton and Ron Gubin of Avid Touring (www.avidtouring.com) will handle bookings for the tour.
Curtains is licensed by Theatrical Rights Worldwide (www.theatricalrights.com).
TOTS' 56th anniversary is being celebrated in 2008. This is the 48th year under the leadership of Chris Manos. For the past 20 years TOTS has staged major co-productions and regional tours of the musicals Parade, The King and I, West Side Story, The Deaf West Production of Big River, The Music Man, Oklahoma, Annie, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Bombay Dreams, The Sound of Music, My Fair Lady and White Christmas.
TOTS' recent Atlanta productions include Dreamgirls starring Jennifer Holliday and the professional premiere of Disney's High School Musical.
To learn more about TOTS' history visit www.theaterofthestars.com.
