The weekend of performances is the first of the venue's fall Musicals in Mufti series, which presents "musical theatre gems in staged concert performances."
Coco features cabaret veteran Andrea Marcovicci in the title of role of Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel with Jessica Grové (Sunday in the Park with George) as Noelle and Tony nominee Charles Kimbrough (Accent on Youth) as Louis Greif.
The cast also includes Susan Blommaert (Grease), Lewis Cleale (Spamalot), Tom Galantich (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), Brian Hissong (West Side Story international tour), Julie Kotarides (Miss Liberty: Musicals in Mufti), Robert Lenzi (South Pacific), Peter Lockyer (South Pacific), Michelle Lookadoo (The Little Mermaid), Heather Parcells (A Chorus Line) and David Turner (Sunday in the Park with George).
Mark Kaufmann directs with music direction by Michael Horsley.
The series of semi-staged performances will also include The Roar of the Greasepaint— The Smell of the Crowd (Oct. 1-3), I Remember Mama (Oct. 8-10) and I Love My Wife (Oct. 22-24). Each show in the series will play five performances: Friday at 8 PM, Saturday at 2:30 and 8 PM, and Sunday at 2:30 and 7:30 PM. Audience discussions will follow all matinees.
Details of the shows follow:
Coco
Book and Lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner
Music by Andrè Previn
Suggested by incidents from the life of Gabrielle (“Coco”) Chanel
Sept. 10-12, 2010
"The glamour and excitement of Coco Chanel’s life and style take the stage in Coco. Offering an intriguing look at one of the fashion world’s most celebrated icons, Coco explores a period in Chanel’s life that led to her legendary 1950s comeback (long before the Devil ever wore Prada.) Katharine Hepburn famously originated the title role on Broadway in 1969."
The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd
Book, music and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley
Oct. 1-3, 2010
"Social norms and qualms are thrown out the window in The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd, a musical about 1960s London, where two gentlemen of different classes are always trying to get the best of each other and neither truly win." This comic musical premiered on Broadway in 1965 and includes “Feeling Good” and “Who Can I Turn To?”
I Remember Mama
Music by Richard Rodgers
Lyrics by Martin Charnin
Book by Thomas Meehan
Additional lyrics by Raymond Jessel
Based on the play by John Van Druten
Oct. 8-10, 2010
"Journey back to turn-of-the-20th-century San Francisco and join the Hansen family, a tight-knit group of recent Norwegian immigrants, as they make their way through an unfamiliar time and place with a little bit of luck, some laughs and a lot of love. Inspired by Kathryn Forbes’ Mama’s Bank Account, I Remember Mama was Richard Rodgers’ last Broadway musical."
I Love My Wife
Book and lyrics by Michael Stewart
Music composed and arranged by Cy Coleman
Oct. 22-24, 2010
"I Love My Wife is a dynamic, irreverent look at relationships and marriage during the sexual revolution of the 1970s. Grappling with the rapidly shifting spirit of the time, two New Jersey couples consider merging their marriages in this hilarious hit musical from Broadway’s 1977 season."
The York Theatre Company (James Morgan is the producing artistic director) plays the Theatre at Saint Peter's, which is located at 54th Street, east of Lexington Avenue. For more information or to purchase tickets, priced $39.50, call (212) 935-5820 or visit www.yorktheatre.org.
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"Mufti" means "in street clothes, without the usual trappings."
