Carmen Cusack to Return for BRIGHT STAR at the Ahmanson This Fall

Center Theatre Group has announced that Carmen Cusack will reprise her Tony- nominated role as Alice Murphy in "Bright Star" at the Ahmanson Theatre.

The Tony- nominated Best Musical, with music, lyrics and story by Grammy, Emmy and Oscar winner Steve Martin and Grammy winner Edie Brickell, will be presented by Center Theatre Group by special arrangement with Joey Parnes Productions at the Ahmanson Theatre October 11 through November 19, 2017. The opening is set for October 20 and individual tickets go on sale Wednesday, July 26.

The powerfully moving new musical is directed by Tony winner Walter Bobbie and choreographed by Josh Rhodes. "Bright Star" won the 2016 Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Musical and Best Score and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music. It also received five 2016 Tony Award nominations including Best Musical, Best Score, Best Book, Best Lead Actress in a Musical and Best Orchestrations.

Inspired by a real event, this original musical tells a sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and '40s. Propelled by an ensemble of onstage musicians and dancers, the story unfolds as a rich tapestry of deep emotion, beautiful melodies and enthralling performances. Marc Snetiker of Entertainment Weekly called "Bright Star," "A genuinely delightful show bolstered by an incredible debut from Carmen Cusack."

Carmen Cusack made her Broadway debut last year in "Bright Star," for which she received a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. She was featured last fall in New York City Center's gala concert of "Sunday in the Park with George" and in Los Angeles in "For The Record - Scorsese: American Crime Requiem." Other credits include "The First Wives Club: The Musical" (Chicago's Oriental Theatre), "Sunday in the Park with George" (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), "Carrie" (MCC), "South Pacific" (Lincoln Center Theater and national tour at the Ahmanson) and "Wicked" (first U.S. tour and Melbourne, AU). West End credits include "Over the Rainbow" (the Eva Cassidy story),

"Les Miserables" (Fantine), "The Secret Garden" (Rose), "Personals" (Kim) and "Phantom of the Opera" (Christine). This year, Carmen starred in the world premiere of Karen Siff Exhorn's "Do This," a one-woman play at Gulfshore Playhouse in Naples, FL. She recently released the Live at 54 Below album, "If You Knew My Story," and she sold out eight shows at Feinstein's/54 Below in NYC. Most recently, she starred in "Sondheim on Sondheim" with the Boston Pops in Tanglewood, Boston and at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

The Grammy-nominated original cast recording of "Bright Star" charted on five different Billboard lists in its first week of wide release. The cast album from Ghostlight Records placed at No. 1 on the Top Current Blue Grass Albums chart, No. 2 on the Top Broadway chart, No. 5 on the Americana/Folk Albums chart, as well as hitting the Top 100 on the Billboard Top Albums chart and Top 200 on the Overall Digital Albums chart.

The "Bright Star" creative team includes Tony and Emmy Award winner Eugene Lee (scenic design), Tony Award winner Jane Greenwood (costume design), Tony Award nominee Japhy Weideman (lighting design), Tony Award nominee Nevin Steinberg (sound design), Tom Watson (hair and wig design), Grammy Award winner Peter Asher (music supervision), Rob Berman (musical direction and vocal arrangements) and Tony-nominee August Eriksmoen (orchestrations).

Center Theatre Group, one of the nation's preeminent arts and cultural organizations, is Los Angeles' leading nonprofit theatre company, programming seasons at the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum and 1600 to 2000-seat Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles, and the 317-seat Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. In addition to presenting and producing the broadest range of theatrical entertainment in the country, Center Theatre Group is one of the nation's leading producers of ambitious new works through commissions and world premiere productions and a leader in interactive community engagement and education programs that reach across generations, demographics and circumstance to serve Los Angeles.

Tickets for "Bright Star" will be available beginning July 26 by calling (213) 972- 4400, online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org or at the Center Theatre Group Box Office located at the Ahmanson Theatre. Tickets range from $30 - $130 (ticket prices are subject to change). The Ahmanson Theatre is located at The Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, 90012.