Bookstore, Believe, 'Smoker' Among Upcoming York Readings

More musicals have been announced for the York Theatre Company's Developmental Reading series.

In Unlock'd, "Hair sings, gnomes skulk, and enormous playing cards spring to life to do battle in this lush and whimsical musical comedy. The world of Unlock'd is a walled garden where English lords and ladies take tea and pursue romance as fanciful spirits try to intervene. Part drawing-room comedy, part green-world fantasy, part contemporary satire, Unlock'd, at its heart, looks at the struggles of growing up and falling in love," state York notes.  The show, with book and lyrics by Sam Carner and music by Derek Gregor, will be performed on Monday, October 23rd at 7:30 PM.

Grand and Glorious is "a new revue featuring the music of the incomparable Jerome Kern, with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein, Ira Gershwin, Dorothy Fields and many others. It is the engaging story of two couples told through the evocative, joyful melodies of Kern, with many familiar, but some refreshing, discoveries."  Conceived by Ed Wilson, it will be performed on October 30th at 3 and 7:30 PM.

"What does it take to run an independent bookstore in Manhattan when your rent skyrockets, you can't pay your bills, your ex-wife is constantly hassling you, and your customers are ordering books online? It takes a lot of nerve, a little blackmail, and a lot of scotch! Never judge a book by it's cover," state notes on Bookstore, which features book and music by Richard Wolf, and lyrics by Jane McAdams.  It will be performed on Wednesday, November 1st at 7:30 PM.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is "the traditional Irving classic, with a twist. There are familiar characters: the bold charismatic Brom Bones, the beautiful innocent Katrina Van Tassel, and the arrogant Ichabod Crane. Each initially play their traditional roles within the quiet ambiance of Sleepy Hollow; however, mysterious and unforeseeable consequences materialize when each character reveals their own personal ambitions. Heads will roll!"  With book, lyrics and music by Michelle Ackerman, it will be presented on Thursday, November 2nd at 7:30 PM.

Believe is "inspired by Anouilh's version of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, and tells the tale of a street musician and an actress who meet and fall in love in a train station in Toulon, France on the eve of World War II. With the Germans closing in from the North and Mussolini's Forces closing in from the south, the young lovers abandon their parents to run off together with the hope that their love can transform their lives."  The show features music and lyrics by Brad Howell Houghton, and a book by Houghton and George Barthel.  It will be performed on Sunday, November 5th at 7:30 PM.

In The Last Smoker in America, "Joyce, a college professor with a dysfunctional family, can't give up cigarettes, even as anti-smoking laws become more and more Draconian. After running off with the few remaining smoking renegades, she returns home to judgment and mayhem."  The musical features book and lyrics by Bill Russell, and music by Peter Melnick.  It will be performed on Monday, November 6th at 7:30 PM.

Visit www.yorktheatre.org for more information.