Centered around TheatreWorks' current regional premiere of John Caird and Paul Gordon's Jane Eyre, the festival will start with composer Andrew Lippa (The Wild Party, A Little Princess) and librettist Daniel Goldfarb's Jewish Christmas musical, Jerry Christmas. The new work focuses on a Jewish comedian who once graced the silver screen but now is humbled to working a television Christmas special.
Brendan Milburn, Rachel Sheinkin, and Valerie Vigoda — the trio known to music fans as Groovelily — combine their talents to collaborate on the new rock musical Striking 12. A new take on Hans Christian Anderson's classic "The Little Match Girl," the musical spins the tale of a young girl selling light bulbs that brighten more than just rooms.
Marsha Norman won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama after penning 'Night Mother and also garnered a Tony Award for her book of the musical The Secret Garden. The author now takes on an unusual historic figure with the new musical Caraboo. Teaming up with last year's festival participants, Beth Blatt (lyrics) and Jenny Giering (music), Norman retells the story of a mysterious young woman who is found wandering the English countryside in the early 1800's and dubbed a princess.
Also featured in the festival is a new play by area writer-performer Tanya Shaffer, Baby Taj. The romantic comedy-drama involves a woman who journeys to the Taj Mahal on a peace-seeking pilgrimage when she discovers a fascination with Indian culture.
For tickets to the 2003 Spring Festival of New Works, call (650) 903-6000 or visit www.theatreworks.org.