Following rave reviews and a sold out run, COLLEGE The Musical has extended at this year’s New York Musical Theater Festival. Initially scheduled to close September 28, COLLEGE will add a performance at 10:30pm on Friday, October 3 at the ATA Chernuchin Theater (314 W 54th Street). Tickets are available at www.nymf.org
Critics have called COLLEGE The Musical “A preternaturally savvy tuner crammed with trenchant observations about the collegiate experience,” with a plot that offers “goofily perfect pearls of wisdom,” and “an unapologetically pop-rock score that's pretty, addictive, and outfitted with well-crafted lyrics” (
Adam R. Perlman, Theatermania). Backstage called the show “unexpectedly poignant,” saying that “
Jeremy Dobrish directs his uniformly excellent cast in this polished staging with flair” (
Harry Forbes), and Talkin’ Broadway praised the show as “an unusually advanced example of young men finding their voices while writing about other young people finding their own” (Matthew Murray). NYTheater.com says COLLEGE offers a “widely accessible portrait of the struggle to make the leap from adolescence to adulthood, one that should speak to everyone.… You’ll certainly leave the theatre with a smile on your face” (Zachary Fithian).
COLLEGE The Musical is directed by
Jeremy Dobrish, choreographed by
Boo Killebrew, and music directed by
Mark Hartman. The cast includes
Marie-France Arcilla (Shout! A Mod Musical),
Juliana Ashley Hansen (Saved),
Molly Ephraim (Fiddler on the Roof, Into the Woods),
Brandon Espinoza (
Gypsy, Les Miserables, Big,
Will Rogers Follies), Casey Ford Alexander (
Andrew Lippa's A Little Princess and COLLEGE The Musical world premieres), Damon Gravina, Rob Hancock (
Mamma Mia! National Tour),
Emily Klein (Parade), Kyra Lorraine Selman, Michael Jennings Mahoney,
Eric Petersen (Spelling Bee 1st National), and
Sandy Rosenberg (
Mamma Mia!, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Candide).
Hailed as "the Sundance of Musical Theatre," The New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) exists to revitalize one of America's greatest art forms by discovering, supporting and promoting new musical theater artists, producers, and projects, and by introducing a diverse audience to the vibrancy of contemporary musical theater.
Since its inception in 2004, the three-week annual festival has premiered more than 130 new musicals - many of which have gone on to award-winning productions in New York, in regional theaters and on tour in 38 states, and nine countries worldwide. NYMF 2004 hit
Altar Boyz has played well over 1,000 performances off-Broadway and is now in its fourth year at New World Stages; fellow NYMF alum
[title of show] recently began performances at the Lyceum Theatre on Broadway.
Widely regarded as the essential source for new material and talent discovery, NYMF is the flagship program of The National Music Theater Network, a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit organization, and is presented in association with BroadwayWorld.com and TheaterMania.com, and is supported by am NewYork, Barnes & Noble Booksellers, BroadwayBox.com, BroadwayInsider.com, King Displays, Panasonic Astrovision, and TheMENEvent. NYMF is supported, in part, by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.
Tickets for all NYMF productions are on sale now and can be purchased at
www.nymf.org or by calling 212-352-3101.
