FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
National Press Representative:
CARAMOOR CENTER FOR MUSIC AND THE ARTS OPENS
ITS 68TH SUMMER FESTIVAL WITH SHE LOVES ME
CELEBRATING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ORIGINAL AWARD-WINNING BROADWAY PRODUCTION
STARRING ALEXANDRA SILBER, SANTINO FONTANA, JOHN CULLUM, MONTEGO GLOVER, RYAN SILVERMAN,
BRAD OSCAR, ETAI BENSHLOMO, AND JONATHAN FREEMAN
DIRECTED AND CONDUCTED BY TED SPERLING WITH THE ORCHESTRA OF ST. LUKE’S
Saturday, June 22 at 8:30pm and Sunday, June 23 at 4pm
Katonah, NY – On Saturday, June 22 at 8:30pm and Sunday, June 23 at 4pm, Caramoor kicks off the 68th Summer Festival with its first ever Broadway production, She Loves Me. The 50th anniversary of the award-winning and rarely performed musical will star critically acclaimed actress Alexandra Silber, Drama Desk Award-winner and Tony® nominee Santino Fontana, Tony® Award-winner John Cullum, Drama Desk Award-winnerMontego Glover, theater veteran Ryan Silverman, Tony® nominee Brad Oscar, rising Broadway actor Etai BenShlomo, and Tony® nominee Jonathan Freeman. Tony® Award-winner Ted Sperling will lead theOrchestra of St. Luke’s and will direct the semi-staged production, choreographed by Michele Lynch, in theVenetian Theater.
With a score by legendary duo Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick (Fiddler on the Roof) and a book by Joe Masteroff (Cabaret), She Loves Me was first seen on Broadway in 1963. The musical is based on the play Parfumerie by Hungarian playwright Miklos Laszlo, which became the basis of the classic film The Shop Around the Corner and more recently You've Got Mail. She Loves Me is a warm romantic comedy with an endearing innocence and a touch of old world elegance and nostalgia. The story follows Amalia and Georg, two feuding clerks in a European parfumerie who secretly find solace as anonymous romantic pen pals, little knowing their respective correspondents are actually each other!
TICKETS
Tickets are priced at $15, $21, $36, $51, $66, and $85. To order tickets, call the Box Office at 914.232.1252 or visitwww.caramoor.org. Groups of 16 or more may purchase discounted tickets by contacting Matthew Scarella at 914.232.5035 ext. 252 or matthew@caramoor.org.
PRESS TICKETS
For press tickets, images, artist information or interviews, contact: Brittnee Walker at 412.601.2474,bwalker@lcohnpr.com.
PROGRAM
SATURDAY, JUNE 22 AT 8:30PM IN THE VENETIAN THEATER
SHE LOVES ME
$15, $21, $36, $51, $66, $85
ALEXANDRA SILBER AS AMALIA BALASH
SANTINO FONTANA AS GEORG NOWACK
JOHN CULLUM AS MR. MARACZEK
MONTEGO GLOVER AS MISS ILONA RITTER
RYAN SILVERMAN AS STEVEN KODALY
BRAD OSCAR AS LADISLAV SIPOS
ETAI BENSHLOMO AS ARPAD LASZLO
AND JONATHAN FREEMAN AS THE HEAD WAITER
ENSEMBLE
BERNARD DOTSON
REBECCA EICHENBERGER
CARMEN RUBY FLOYD
GAVIN GREGORY
JESSICA HERSHBERG
BARBARA MARINEAU
LAUREN MUFSON
T. OLIVER REID
TED SPERLING, STAGE AND MUSIC DIRECTOR
MICHELE LYNCH, CHOREOGRAPHER/ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
ORCHESRTA OF ST. LUKE’S
WILL CRUTCHFIELD
SUNDAY, JUNE 23 AT 4:00PM IN THE VENETIAN THEATER
SHE LOVES ME
$15, $21, $36, $51, $66, $85
ALEXANDRA SILBER AS AMALIA BALASH
SANTINO FONTANA AS GEORG NOWACK
JOHN CULLUM AS MR. MARACZEK
MONTEGO GLOVER AS MISS ILONA RITTER
RYAN SILVERMAN AS STEVEN KODALY
BRAD OSCAR AS LADISLAV SIPOS
ETAI BENSHLOMO AS ARPAD LASZLO
AND JONATHAN FREEMAN AS THE HEAD WAITER
ENSEMBLE
BERNARD DOTSON
REBECCA EICHENBERGER
CARMEN RUBY FLOYD
GAVIN GREGORY
JESSICA HERSHBERG
BARBARA MARINEAU
LAUREN MUFSON
T. OLIVER REID
TED SPERLING, STAGE AND MUSIC DIRECTOR
MICHELE LYNCH, CHOREOGRAPHER/ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
ORCHESTRA OF ST. LUKE’S
WILL CRUTCHFIELD
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
ALEXANDRA SILBER, AMALIA
Alexandra Silber graduated from The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 2005 and was named The Faculty Student of the Year just days before her West End debut as Laura Fairlie in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Woman in White. She later portrayed Hodel in Lindsay Posner’s 2007 production of Fiddler on the Roof, and its subsequent transfer to the West End. Alexandra joined director Posner once again, portraying one of the deepest and most complex characters in the history of musical theatre: Julie Jordan in Rodgers and Hammerstein’sCarousel at The Savoy Theatre in London’s West End.
She made her American acting debut as Julie Jordan in a revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel to overwhelming critical acclaim. She joined Tony Award winner Tyne Daly in Terrence McNally’s Master Class at The Kennedy Center, directed by Stephen Wadsworth, and made her Broadway debut in the same production garnering a nod from Backstage for one of the great theater performances of 2011. Last fall she portrayed Jenny Cavilerri in the North American Premiere of Love Story the Musical at The Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, followed by a highly-acclaimed performance of Arlington - a new one woman musical.
Recently, Alexandra debuted two of her solo cabarets entitled “London Still” and "Ex Libris," both at the legendary nightclub Feinstein’s at The Loews Regency. She was also honored to be a part of Barbara Cook’s Spotlight Series at The Kennedy Center in December of 2011. In Spring 2013, Alexandra will be making her Carnegie Hall debut with the American Symphony Orchestra, followed by an engagement at Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts in She Loves Me.
SANTINO FONTANA, GEORG
Santino Fontana is currently starring in the Broadway production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, for which he has received a Tony nomination for “Best Performance by An Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical.” He made his Broadway debut in 2007 in Sunday in the Park with George and then went on to originate the role of Tony in the Broadway production of Billy Elliot. He was awarded with the 2010 Drama Desk Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his work in Brighton Beach Memoirs and has also appeared on Broadway in The Importance of Being Earnest. Off Broadway credits include Roundabout's acclaimed production of Sons of the Prophet for which he received the 2012 Obie Award. He also starred as Matt in the 2006 revival of The Fantasticks.
MONTEGO GLOVER, ILONA
Montego Glover made her Broadway debut in The Color Purple in the roles of Celie & Nettie. Shortly after, she turned heads on Broadway by originating the role of Felicia in Memphis, in which she currently stars. She developed the role for many years before the show hit the Great White Way and garnered the Tennessee native a Tony Award nomination and a Drama Desk Award. She has also starred in various other national productions such as Aida (Aida, IRNE Award-Best Actress in a Musical), Ragtime (Sarah), Dreamgirls (Lorrell), Into The Woods(Red Riding Hood), Oklahoma (Ado Annie), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Hermia), Westside Story (Anita), Jesus Christ Superstar (Mary Magadelene), Smokey Joe's Cafe (Brenda), Cookin’ at the Cookery (Narrator, IRNE & Dora Award Nominations), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Charlaine), and Once On This Island (TiMoune, Helen Hayes Award Nomination) among others.
BRAD OSCAR
Brad Oscar was most recently seen on Broadway in the Tony-winning hit musical comedy Nice Work If You Can Get It. Previous Broadway credits include The Addams Family, The Producers (Tony® nomination), Spamalot,Jekyll & Hyde, and Aspects of Love. He also appeared on the West End in The Producers. He has appeared in the national tours of Young Frankenstein and Jekyll & Hyde. Off-Broadway he has been seen in Forbidden Broadway, Encores! Bells Are Ringing, and Do Re Mi. Regional credits include Fiddler on the Roof (Barrington Stage); Barnum (Asolo/Maltz Jupiter; Carbonell Award, Best Actor – Musical); The Mystery of Irma Vep, Cabaret, Damn Yankees (Arena Stage); and First Wives Club (Old Globe). He has appeared in the films Ghost Town andThe Producers; and on TV in The Good Wife, Smash and Law & Order.
ETAI BENSHLOMO
Etai BenShlomo is a New York-based actor. He recently completed a two-year run as Boq in the smash musicalWicked on Broadway. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan's acclaimed BFA Musical Theatre Department and the Moscow Art Theatre School. Other credits include: Freddy Honeychurch in the world premiere of A Room with a View at The Old Globe; Con Man in the premiere of Windows at American Opera Projects; The Muny (Les Miserables, Annie, Gypsy, High School Musical); Kansas City Starlight (Fiddler on the Roof). Readings and workshops: Newsies, Little Miss Sunshine, Nobody Loves You, Somewhere in Time, and the upcoming To Paint the Earth. He is currently developing a new musical with composing team Zachary Redler and Sara Cooper and director Noah Himmelstein.
TED SPERLING, DIRECTOR AND CONDUCTOR
Ted Sperling is renowned for his work as a director, conductor, and orchestrator. Mr. Sperling won the 2005 Tony and Drama Desk Awards (with Adam Guettel and Bruce Coughlin) for his orchestrations of The Light in the Piazza, for which he was also music director. Other Broadway credits include the Tony Award-winning revival ofSouth Pacific and recent revivals of Guys and Dolls, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Full Monty, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Angels in America, My Favorite Year, Falsettos, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Les Misérables, Roza, and Sunday in the Park with George. Mr. Sperling was also an original cast member of the Broadway musical Titanic. Off- Broadway credits as music director include: A Man of No Importance, Wise Guys, A New Brain, Saturn Returns, Floyd Collins, Falsettoland, and Romance in Hard Times. His work as a director includes the world premieres of four musicals: V-Day, See What I Wanna See, Charlotte: Life? Or Theater? and Striking 12, as well as a revival of Lady in the Dark.
Ted is the Director of the Music Theater Initiative at the Public Theater, as well as the Creative Director of the 24-Hour Musicals. He has an active concert career, working with singers Audra McDonald, Victoria Clark, Patti LuPone, Kelli O’Hara, Nathan Gunn, Paulo Szot and Deborah Voigt. He has conducted concerts with the New York Philharmonic, for Live at Lincoln Center, the American Songbook Series at Lincoln Center and the Lyrics and Lyricists series at the 92nd Street Y. He recently conducted a concert presentation of Ricky Ian Gordon’s opera,The Grapes of Wrath, at Carnegie Hall.
PAUL ROSENBLUM, PRODUCER
Appointed Caramoor’s Managing Director in 2001, Paul Rosenblum had been General Manager of the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts since the summer of 1992. As part of the management team it has been his particular mission to enhance Caramoor’s unique status and stature, making it as attractive and accessible to the public as possible through the modernization and upgrading of the facility, while maintaining and enhancing the excellence of Caramoor’s artistic programming. He has overseen the diversification of musical presentations which now include Jazz, Bel Canto Opera, Broadway, Sonidos Latinos, American Roots Music and Family programs, while continuing the classical symphonic and chamber music at the core of Caramoor’s tradition since 1946.
Moved by a special affinity for Caramoor’s timeless and magical serenity, beauty, intimacy and elegance, Paul has used his experience in music performance, advertising and management to contribute to Caramoor’s blossoming and recognition as the home of one of America’s finest summer music festivals. Paul was Director of Operations for the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the resident orchestra of the Caramoor Festival, prior to becoming General Manager of Caramoor.
ABOUT CARAMOOR
“We built a home, my husband and I, not to be old or new, just to be beautiful. And we built it for music.” ~ Lucie Rosen
Caramoor, the country estate of Walter and Lucie Rosen, was where they built their home and filled it with treasures. Enjoying the pleasure their friends took in the beauty of Caramoor with its art collection, gardens, and musical programs, in 1946 the Rosens established a public trust to open Caramoor to the community. Their musical evenings were the inspiration for the Caramoor International Music Festival, now in its sixty-eighth year, and the ongoing Music in the Rosen House series.
Since its founding, Caramoor has gained international renown as a cultural institution, presenting music of all types and inspiring artists and audiences alike.
Caramoor enriches the lives of its audiences through intimate, innovative and diverse musical performances of the highest quality. Education is a valued component of Caramoor’s mission, and Caramoor offers programs for the mentoring of young professional musicians as well as curriculum-based programs for school children emphasizing music, history and visual and decorative arts. Caramoor is often described as “a Garden of Great Music,” where audiences are invited to explore the beautiful grounds and gardens, discover the fascinating collection of period rooms and antiquities, and enjoy beautiful music in the Music Room, Spanish Courtyard and Venetian theater.
Concert Venues and Gardens
Summer concerts take place in two outdoor theaters: the 1,714-seat, acoustically superb Venetian Theater and the more intimate, romantic 558-seat Spanish Courtyard. In the fall and winter all concerts are presented in the magnificent Music Room in the Rosen House. Caramoor’s gardens, also used for concerts, are also well worth the visit and include nine unique perennial gardens. Among them are a Sense Circle for the visually handicapped, the Sunken Garden, a Butterfly Garden, the Tapestry Hedge, and the Iris and Peony Garden.
GETTING TO CARAMOOR
By car from the West Side of Manhattan and New Jersey, take the Saw Mill River Parkway north to Katonah. Exit at Route 35/Cross River. Turn right and, at the first traffic light, make a right turn onto Route 22 south. Travel 1.9 miles to the junction of Girdle Ridge Road. Follow the signs to Caramoor. (For detailed directions call 914.232.5035 and press 4, or online at www.caramoor.org). Parking at Caramoor is free.
By train, take the Harlem Division of the Metro-North Railroad to Katonah, New York. Taxi service from the station to Caramoor (5 minutes away) is available.
CLICK THE FOLLOWING LINK FOR A FULL FESTIVAL CHRONOLOGY:
https://caramoor.org/pdf/Festival_Listings.pdf
CREDITS
Performances are made possible, in part, by ArtsWestchester
with funds from Westchester County Government.
Performances are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts
with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.
The 2013 International Music Festival is supported in part by
an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
CARAMOOR CENTER FOR MUSIC AND THE ARTS IS LOCATED AT
149 GIRDLE RIDGE ROAD, KATONAH, NEW YORK 10536.
ALL PROGRAMS AND ARTISTS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE