The Supremes helped establish Motown with the 60's hits "Where Did Our Love Go," "Baby Love" and "Stop in the Name of Love," landing them 12 number-one hits and over 40 albums. 50's and 60's songwriter Ellie Greenwich has had a few hits of her own ("Leader of the Pack," "Chapel of Love"), so it's only natural that the two might pair up. Mary Wilson, a former Supreme, whose theatrical credits include Beehive, will lend her pipes to the latter's songs in Leader of the Pack April 14 29. The first dates, April 14-15, will be at the Bushnell in Hartford, Connecticut, followed by a run April 17-29 at Boston's Shubert Theatre.
The Tony and Grammy Award-nominated Leader of the Pack originally ran on Broadway in 1985 in a more traditional musical form with a book and characters. This Leader, however, now emulates Smokey Joe's Cafe in its format, playing as a song cycle instead of in story form. Among the Greenwich tunes are "Be My Baby," "Da Doo Ron Ron," "Hanky Panky," "River Deep, Mountain High," "Chapel of Love" and "(Today I Met) The Boy I'm Gonna Marry," as well as three new songs penned for the production - "If You Loved Me Once," "The First Time" and "The Sunshine After the Rain."
Joining Wilson are Shoshana Bean (Godspell), Todd DuBail, Duane Martin Foster, Angela Garrison, Amy Goldberger, Joe Machota, Ric Ryder, Denise Summerford, Jewel Tomkins and Ashley Howard Wilkinson. Dianna Bush and David Josefsberg are the swings.
Kurt Stamm (2000 MAC Award-winning Our Sinatra) directs with choreography by Tony Award winner Scott Wise (Jerome Robbins' Broadway, Fosse).
Designing Leader of the Pack are Michael Anania (sets), Theresa Squire (costumes), Jeffrey Koger (lighting) and Robert Kaplowitz (sound). Leader of the Pack began a national tour March 16 at the Playhouse Theatre in Wilmington, Delaware, then moved to East Lansing, Michigan. The rest of the tour follows:
April 10-15: Hartford, CT; Bushnell Theatre
April 17-29: Boston, MA; The Shubert Theatre
May 2-11: Denver, Co; Buell Theatre
May 22-27: Dallas, TX; Music Hall
May 29-June 3: Green Bay, WI; Weidner Center
For tickets in Connecticut, call (860) 987-5900. For other tickets, contact the individual venues.
— By Christine Ehren
