Rick McKay's BROADWAY: BEYOND THE GOLDEN AGE Premieres Tonight at 2016 Palm Springs International Film Festival

BROADWAY: BEYOND THE GOLDEN AGE, Award-winning director Rick McKay's anxiously awaited sequel to his 2004 hit film, BROADWAY: THE GOLDEN AGE, will make its World Premiere at the 27th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival tonight, January 7. The festival runs through January 11, 2016.

The new film, the second installment of Rick McKay's BROADWAY: THE GOLDEN AGE FILM TRILOGY, once again features a cast of 100 legendary stars. McKay and his legendary cast tell the story of the heyday of Broadway, this time from 1959 to 1983, utilizing interviews commingled with extremely rare, restored, never-before-seen performance footage, home movies and photos, many from the casts' personal collections, to create a one-of-a-kind, first person history that comes to life on screen.

McKay profiles the rise of the Director/Choreographer on Broadway with Gower Champion, Michael Bennett, Bob Fosse and more. The film uses the original casts of legendary musicals to tell the story of the creation of Bye, Bye Birdie, Fiorello, Pippin, A Chorus Line, 42nd Street and Chicago - featuring appearances by Gwen Verdon, Chita Rivera, Jerry Orbach, Dick Van Dyke, Liza Minnelli, Ben Vereen, Candy Brown, John Rubinstein, Tom Bosley and many more. The original cast members Elizabeth Ashley and Robert Redford recount the casting and the opening night of the long-running hit play Barefoot in the Park.

Glenn Close, Alec Baldwin, Jeff Daniels, John Lithgow and Peter Weller relive the struggles and passion of starting a career on Broadway in the 70's when Times Square and New York City were at one of its lowest points. Regarding the "Other Coast", Uta Hagen, Debbie Reynolds, Kaye Ballard, Ben Gazzara, Elaine Stritch, Tammy Grimes, Jane Fonda, Ann Miller, Julie Harris, Tommy Tune, Tab Hunter, Frank Langella, Carol Channing, Lucie Arnaz, Don Pippin, Bea Arthur, Jerry Herman, Carole Cook and Marni Nixon tell of the fascinating conundrum of why certain talents make it on Broadway and a very, very select few can work in both fields.

Special attention is paid to minorities on Broadway, including the story of Jane White, whose father was the head of the NAACP in the 50's when Jane went "white face" to play the queen in 1959's Once Upon a Mattress. The show's composer, Mary Rodgers, its star, Carol Burnett and Ms. White bring to life the story of the creation of "Mattress" and racism on Broadway. Original cast members Ken Page, Andre de Shields, Armelia McQueen and Charlaine Woodard tell the story of the birth of Ain't Misbehavin'. And Raisin in the Sun's historic journey to Broadway with its groundbreaking creative team, is recounted by interviews with original cast members Lou Gossett, Jr. and Glynn Turman, as well as the final interviews of producer Philip Rose and director Lloyd Richards.

The critics are not ignored this time around, with Rex Reed, John Simon, Hal Prince, Stephen Sondheim and others recounting how Broadway has changed and how the hard-working critics worked during its halcyon, non-digital days.

The tale of legendary dance teacher and choreographer LUIGI, who passed away this year after teaching scores of Broadway and Hollywood legends, is told by his students Robert Morse, Liza Minnelli, Elliott Gould, Kelly Bishop, Valerie Harper, Estelle Parsons, Jane Summerhays, Gretchen Wyler, Barbara Luna, Kelly Bishop and Lesley Ann Warren.

Director Rick McKay will be at the festival to introduce all three screenings and to do Q&A's with some of the film's cast members after each screening tonight, tomorrow, and on January 10th.

Visit www.broadwaythemovie.com for more about the film, and watch the trailer below!