Les Freres to Premiere DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION at the Ohio Starting 12/3; Hansis to Star

Les Freres Corbusier, creators of Hell House, Heddatron, Boozy, and A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant, will present their latest show, the world premiere of Dance Dance Revolution, created by the company, directed by Alex Timbers, and featuring original songs by Gary Adler (Altar Boyz) and Phoebe Kreutz. Performances begin Wednesday, December 3 at the Ohio Theater, 66 Wooster Street. Tickets are $18 general admission and may be purchased at www.smarttix.com or by phoning 212-868-4444.

Les Freres transforms the Ohio Theater into a fully immersive, bombed-out discothèque as it fuses unmerciful Japanese rave music with deeply regrettable sophomoric comedy in the futuristic dance spectacular, Dance Dance Revolution.

Riffing on fizzy dance musicals like Flashdance and death sport movies such as Rollerball, Dance Dance Revolution is set in an Orwellian society where dance is illegal. A group of local street toughs harbor no hope of overthrowing the fascistic no-fun government—until a mysterious dance prophet named Moonbeam Funk arrives.

Inspired by the wildly popular video game of the same name, Dance Dance Revolution is like Footloose set in the future—but much scarier, and with 40 really attractive, barely-clothed young actors as well as free beer!

The cast of 40 actors includes B. Brian Argotsinger, Van Hansis (who plays out character Luke Snyder on “As the World Turns”), Greg Hildreth, Amelia McClain, Vayu O’Donnell, Ben Steinfeld, and Ian Unterman.

Dance Dance Revolution marks Les Freres Corbusier’s first New York show in two years since its revival of the OBIE Award-winning A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant at New York Theatre Workshop.  Called a “punk post-modernist theater company” by Paper Magazine, Les Freres is known for its exhaustively researched, topically relevant, comically avant-garde theatrical creations.  Its past productions include the Off-Broadway hit Boozy, the Drama Desk-nominated Hell House, and the Oppenheimer-winning Heddatron, by Elizabeth Meriwether, which will receive its west coast premiere July 2009 at Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles, directed by Alex Timbers.  Despite its name, Les Freres Corbusier is not, in fact, French.

Alex Timbers is Artistic Director of Les Freres Corbusier and has directed all of the company’s shows.  Recent credits include: The Language of Trees (Roundabout Underground), Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (CTG, LA; co-written with Michael Friedman), Gutenberg! The Musical! (Drama Desk nomination, Best Director of a Musical).  Upcoming: Disney’s Peter and the Starcatchers at La Jolla Playhouse (co-director) and Heddatron at CTG.  Mr. Timbers is currently developing a half-hour comedy pilot for 20th Century Fox.

Gary Adler received two 2005 Drama Desk nominations (along with Michael Patrick Walker) for both his music and lyrics for Altar Boyz.  The show itself received seven Drama Desk nominations, four Lucille Lortel nominations (winner, Outstanding Choreography), two Drama League nominations, and won the 2005 Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical.  Mr. Adler has composed songs for “Johnny and the Sprites” on the Disney Channel and serves as its Musical Supervisor.  He is currently the Conductor of Broadway’s Avenue Q.  Other NYC conducting credits include Chita Rivera: The Dancer’s Life, Urinetown, The Fantasticks, and Nunsense.

Dance Dance Revolution is produced by Andrew Kircher for Les Freres Corbusier.  Choreography is by Danny Mefford; set design is by Donyale Werle; costume design is by Emily Rebholz; lighting design is by Justin Townsend; sound design is by Jeremy Lee; video design is by Jacob Pinholster; production stage manager is Andrea Wales.

Dance Dance Revolution was developed and workshopped at the Williamstown Theatre Festival.

The performance schedule for Dance Dance Revolution is Tuesday through Sunday at 8pm.  Dance Dance Revolution plays through Saturday, December 20 at the Ohio Theater, 66 Wooster Street. Tickets are $18 general admission and may be purchased at www.smarttix.com or by phoning 212-868-4444.  For more information, visit www.lesfreres.org.

Photo Credit Linda Lenzi