TV: Poughkeepsie or Bust! 2017 Casts and Creatives Get Ready for a New Powerhouse Season

Vassar & New York Stage and Film is preparing for the 33rd Powerhouse Season in Poughkeepsie, NY, running from June 23 through July 30, 2017:

The cast of Powerhouse alum and "How I Met Your Mother" star Josh Radnor's playwriting premiere Sacred Valley will include TV regulars Michael Chernus ("Orange Is The New Black"), Abigail Spencer ("Rectify," "Timeless"), and David T. Patterson ("The Path"). The first mainstage play will be directed by Sheryl Kaller, and will play the Powerhouse Theater from June 29 - July 9, 2017.

Powerhouse's first musical workshop, Stilyagi, featuring lyrics by Lisa Kron (Fun Home), music by Peter Lerman (Brooklynite), and direction by Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening, American Idiot), will include cast members Krysta Rodriguez (Spring Awakening, "Smash"), Dave Thomas Brown (American Psycho), Lauren Patten (seen last season in Powerhouse's smash hit The Wolves), Dale Soules ("Orange Is The New Black"), Jeb Brown(Beautiful: The Carole King Musical), George Salazar (The Lightning Thief), Alex Boniello(Spring Awakening), Joel Perez (Fun Home), Sarah Hunt, Marla Louissaint, Chelsea Turbin,Megan Masako Haley, Karl Josef Co, Daniel Jackson, Thomas Hettrick, in addition to lyricistLisa Kron who will also be performing in the workshop. The first musical workshop will play the Martel Theater at the Vogelstein Center from Drama and Film from June 23-25, 2017.

New to the Play Workshop series: The Homecoming Queen, by Powerhouse Founders Award recipient Ngozi Anyanwu. A bestselling novelist returns to Nigeria to care for her ailing father, but before she can bury him, she must relearn the traditions she's long forgotten. Having been absent for over a decade, she must collide with her culture, traumatic past, painful regrets, and the deep, deep love she thought she could never have. (The Homecoming Queen replaces the previously announced presentation of the play Hang Man, which has been postponed indefinitely because of scheduling conflicts. Tickets to Hang Man will be honored for the same performance time and seat location for the run of The Homecoming Queen.)

Three new projects to the annual Readings Festival include: Diana, a new musical about Princess Diana by the creative team behind Memphis (book & lyrics by Joe DiPietro, music & lyrics by David Bryan, direction by Christopher Ashley); One Good Egg by Annie Evans, directed by Melia Bensussen; and The Fit by Carey Perloff, directed by Daniel Aukin.

Some of the casts and creative teams just met the press and BroadwayWorld was on hand for the big day!