Morrow is Aramis, Schiappa portrays Athos and Smagula plays Porthos in the East Coast premiere of the musical, which runs at the Massachusetts theatre through Sept. 9. Aaron Tveit is D'Artagnan, the young man who leaves home to become a musketeer.
The cast also boasts Kate Baldwin (Milady), Steven Booth (Planchet), Jeff Edgerton (Bonacieux), Jenny Fellner (Constance) and Kingsley Leggs (Father/Treville) with Chad Ackerman (Ensemble), Mark Aldrich (Ensemble), Adam Alexander (Ensemble), Becky Barta (Ensemble), Allison Blackwell (Ensemble, Landlady of the Inn), Mick Bleyer (Ensemble, Bicarat), Heather Curran (Ensemble, Queen Anne), Nick Dalton (Ensemble), Holly Davis (Ensemble, Cecile), Constantine Germanacos (Ensemble), Emily Harvey (Ensemble), David Mann (Ensemble, Rochefort), Jonathan Sanford (Ensemble), Matt Stokes (Ensemble) and Anne Tolpegin (Ensemble).
Francis Matthews directs The Three Musketeers, which is a co-production with Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. The creative team also features Dennis Callahan (choreographer), Dale Rieling (music director), Lez Brotherston (scenic and costume designer), Hugh Vanstone (lighting designer), John A. Stone (sound designer), Gerard Kelly (hair and wig design), Bryce Bermingham (fight choreographer), David Shrubsole (orchestrations), Joanna Strange (assistant director), Bethany Ford (production stage manager) and Alicia D. Reece (assistant stage manager).
Based on an original concept by William Hobbs, The Three Musketeers features music by George Stiles, lyrics by Paul Leigh and a book by Peter Raby. The musical, according to press notes, "celebrates Dumas's romantic vision of honour, friendship, and lust for life. The energy and the passion of the four heroes Ñ Athos, Porthos, Aramis and the young D'Artagnan Ñ form the central focus, as they thread their way through the political intrigues that surround them. The story follows the fortunes of the young D'Artagnan, who leaves home to seek for adventure and glory in Paris with the King's Musketeers. It explores three intense love affairs. In the background, there is the clandestine passion of the English Duke of Buckingham for the French Queen, Anne, and all its political fall-out. In the foreground, D'Artagnan falls in love with the Queen's seamstress, Constance Bonacieux, and finds himself entangled with the mysterious Milady de Winter, a beautiful adventuress with several pasts Ñ one of them as the wife of Athos."
Related free events include "Meet the Theatre," post-show audience discussions with the artists (Aug. 28 and 29 and Sept. 8); "Spotlight on History," a pre-show discussion that focuses on historical issues related to the show (Sept. 2); and "Out at the North Shore," an evening for the gay and lesbian community with a post-show reception. The North Shore Music Theatre is located in Beverly, MA, at 62 Dunham Road. Tickets, priced $35-$75, are available by calling (978) 232-7200, by visiting the theatre's box office or by logging on to www.nsmt.org.
