Andrea McArdle, Joy Franz & Nicolette Hart to Star in 'MONSTERS' Reading

On Friday, October 17th there will be an ‘invitation only' reading of the new musical "MONSTERS" which is currently in development. The Book and Lyrics are by Boston playwright Gail Phaneuf, with Music and Lyrics by Ernie Lijoi. "MONSTERS" has been in development for several years with Lijoi penning a number of the songs at the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop. The show was a finalist in the Emerson College Rod Parker Playwriting Competition and went on to have a successful 2006 production at CentaStage in Boston, receiving favorable reviews. There has also been a reading of "MONSTERS" at the York Theatre.

TONY NOMINATED Andrea McArdle (ANNIE, LES MIZ, STATE FAIR) heads the cast of six. She will be joined by Joy Franz (INTO THE WOODS), Catherine Carpenter Cox (GODSPELL, JOYS OF SEX), Nicolette Hart (LEGALLY BLONDE, RENT), Patti Hathaway and Sam Belanger.

Steven Yuhasz (FLAMINGO COURT) directs and Michael Larsen (MENOPAUSE) serves as musical director for the reading.

According to the creators, "The show allows us to laugh at our demons and put them in their place, while capturing the humor, agony and insight experienced at one of life's milestones."

On her 40th birthday, Samantha meets her demons. A successful, single, Wall Street stockbroker living in Manhattan, she has decided to quit her job and strike out on a soul-searching adventure. When Samantha's mother learns these plans, she tries desperately to talk sense into Samantha: to keep her job, to keep climbing the ladder, to trim up. The encounter stirs up a toxic blend of fears and insecurities - in the form of living, breathing monsters, who descend upon Samantha one by one in a hilarious musical romp. The monsters try to derail her ambitions and drag her into their paranoid world. But in the end, Samantha finds an unlikely ally in this battle of wills, in a twist that helps her put the demons in their place.