HANDS ON A HARDBODY to Begin Previews on Broadway, Feb 23

The new American musical Hands on a Hardbody will begin preview performances this Saturday, February 23, 2013 at 8pm at Broadway's Brooks Atkinson Theatre (256 West 47th Street), with an official opening night of Thursday, March 21, 2013.

Inspired by true events and based on the acclaimed 1997 documentary of the same name that was created by S.R. Bindler and produced by Bindler and Kevin Morris, the musical features a book by Doug Wright (Pulitzer Prize winner, I Am My Own Wife), lyrics by Amanda Green (Bring It On: The Musical), music by Trey Anastasio (Phish) and Amanda Green, direction by Neil Pepe (Broadway's Speed-The-Plow), and musical staging by Sergio Trujillo (Memphis, Jersey Boys).

For ten hard-luck Texans, a new lease on life is so close they can touch it. Under a scorching sun for days on end, armed with nothing but hope, humor and ambition, they'll fight to keep at least one hand on a brand new truck in order to win it. In the hilarious, hard-fought contest that is Hands on a Hardbody only one winner can drive away with the American Dream.

The Broadway production will feature the full cast from the La Jolla Playhouse engagement: Keith Carradine (Tony Award nominee, The Will Rogers Follies), Allison Case (Hair), Hunter Foster (Tony Award nominee, Little Shop of Horrors), Jay Armstrong Johnson (Catch Me If You Can), David Larsen (American Idiot), Jacob Ming-Trent (Shrek The Musical), Kathleen Elizabeth Monteleone (Tales of the City), Mary GorDon Murray (Into The Woods), Jim Newman (Curtains), Connie Ray (Next Fall), Jon Rua (In The Heights), Keala Settle (Priscilla Queen of the Desert), Dale Soules (Hair), Scott Wakefield (Ring of Fire), and William Youmans (Wicked).

HANDS ON A HARDBODY also boasts an award-winning design team including scenic design by Tony Award winner Christine Jones (American Idiot), costume design by Tony Award winner Susan Hilferty (Wicked), lighting design by Tony Award winner Kevin Adams (Spring Awakening), sound design by Tony Award winner Steve Canyon Kennedy (Jersey Boys), orchestrations by Trey Anastasio and Don Hart, and vocal arrangements/musical direction by Carmel Dean (American Idiot).

The La Jolla Playhouse production of Hands on a Hardbody is produced on Broadway by Broadway Across America - Beth Williams, Barbara Whitman/Latitude Link, Dede Harris/Sharon Karmazin, Howard & Janet Kagan, and John & Claire Caudwell, Rough Edged Souls, Joyce Primm Schweickert, Paula Black/Bruce Long, and Off The Aisle Productions/Freitag-Mishkin.

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