Alan Campbell & George Wendt Star in BTG's ROCK AND ROLL MAN; Plus Whitney Bashor, Jared Zirilli, and More

Berkshire Theatre Group presents Rock and Roll Man: The Alan Freed Story at The Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, with direction by Tony Award-nominee Randal Myler (It Ain't Nothin' But The Blues), music direction by Dave Keyes(Smokey Joe's Café) and choreography by Brian Reeder (American Ballet Theatre, ABT Studio Company). Performances begin June 27 and run through July 21.

This new high energy musical features Tony Award-nominated Alan Campbell (Sunset Boulevard) as Alan Freed and multiple-Emmy Award-nominated George Wendt (Norm from Cheers) as J. Edgar Hoover, along with Bob Ari (Act One, Frost/Nixon) as Leo, Morris Levy; William Louis Bailey (Freckleface Strawberry) as Dave Cooper, Frankie Lymon, Ensemble; Whitney Bashor (The Bridges of Madison County) as Betty, Alana, Ensemble;Early Clover (Lead singer of Cornell Gunter Coasters) as Quartet, Ensemble; Richard Crandle (Cruel Intentions) as Little Richard; AJ Davis (Dreamgirls) as Quartet, Ensemble;John Dewey (Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story) as Buddy Holly, Pat Boone, Ensemble; Janet Dickinson (Anastasia the Musical, Bullets Over Broadway) as Inga, Alan's Mother, Ensemble;Jerome Jackson (Singer for The Drifters) as Quartet, Nate, Ensemble; Tony and Grammy Award-nominated Valisia LeKae (Motown the Musical, 110 in the Shade, The Book of Mormon) as Lavern Baker, Ensemble; Brian Mathis (Jesus Christ Superstar) as Judge, Bill Haley, Ensemble; Matthew S. Morgan (The Lion King, Hairspray) as Chuck Berry, Jay Hawkins, Ensemble; Virginia Preston (Dirty Dancing) as Jackie, Ensemble; James Scheider(Million Dollar Quartet) as Jerry Lee Lewis, Dick Clark, Ensemble; Dr. Eric Turner (Rent, Ain't Misbehavin) as Quartet, Fats Domino, Ensemble; and Jared Zirilli (SUMMER: The Donna Summer Musical, Lysistrata Jones) as Danny Of Danny And The Juniors, Johnny Fabulous, Ensemble.

Kate Maguire says, "We are thrilled to have an amazing group of artists assembling on the gorgeous Colonial stage to tell this incredible story."

In the summer of 1954, in a small radio station in Cleveland, an unknown disc jockey heard the sound that would change America. And the rest is music history.

Rock and Roll Man is the new musical about the incredible rise and fall of Alan Freed, the man who coined the phrase rock and roll and brought its sound to the world. He discovered black artists-and got them record deals. He traveled the country-and got them heard from coast to coast. He spoke to the younger generation-and brought them to their feet. For the first time in history, Freed put black and white artists together on stage, performing for multi-racial audiences-an unprecedented move. By the dawn of the '60s, he was the biggest name in music-until scandal made him the biggest target in America.

This high energy musical highlights the greatest rock and roll legends of all time, such as Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Lavern Baker, Bill Haley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Screamin' Jay, just to name a few. Featuring original songs by Gary Kupper and some of the biggest hits of a generation, including "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," "Tutti Frutti," "Great Balls of Fire," "Roll Over Beethoven," "Ain't That a Shame" and many more, Rock and Roll Man takes you behind the scenes and behind the music of one of the most influential-and controversial-figures in pop music history.

Tickets may be purchased in person at the Colonial Ticket Office at 111 South Street, Pittsfield; at the Fitzpatrick Main Stage Ticket Office at 83 East Main Street, Stockbridge; by calling (413) 997-4444 or online at www.BerkshireTheatreGroup.org. Ticket Offices are open Monday-Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 10am-2pm or on any performance day from 10am until curtain. All plays, schedules, casting and prices are subject to change.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos