SUNSET BOULEVARD Opens at Signature Theatre, 12/7

 Signature Theatre presents the legendary Hollywood musical Sunset Boulevard running December 7, 2010 through February 13, 2011. Headlining the production is Broadway's Florence Lacey (Evita; Hello Dolly!; Signature's Follies) as the tragic silent film star Norma Desmond, complemented by D.B. Bonds (The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Signature's The Visit) as Joe, Susan Derry (Wonderful Town) as Betty, and Ed Dixon (The Iceman Cometh, The Three Musketeers) as Max von Mayerling. Three time Helen Hayes Award winner J. Fred Shiffman is Sheldrake and Washington favorite Harry A. Winter is Cecil B. DeMille.

The new production is directed by Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer (Million Dollar Quartet) and music director and conductor Jon Kalbflesich will lead the 20-member orchestra. The creative team that masterminded Signature's current hit production of Chess will also collaborate on Sunset Boulevard: Karma Camp (choreography), Daniel Conway (sets), Chris Lee (lights), Kathleen Geldard (costumes), and Matt Rowe (sound).

The Sunset Boulevard ensemble features Sandy Bainum, Matt Conner, William Diggle, Rebecca Fale Ghiu, Gia Mora, Jake Odmark, Kirsten Riegler, Stephen Gregory Smith, Sean Thompson, Matthew Wojtal, and Kara Tameika Watkins.

Single tickets to Sunset Boulevard go on sale today, September 1. Tickets range in price from $59 - $85 and are available by calling Ticketmaster at (703) 573-SEAT (7328) or visiting www.signature-theatre.org. Group discounts are available for parties of ten or more by contacting Bethany Shannon at shannonb@signature-theatre.org or by calling (571) 527-1831. For more information please visit www.signature-theatre.org.

Based on the 1950s film noir directed by Billy Wilder, with book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton, Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard is one of the greatest Hollywood tales ever told on the musical stage. Silent film star Norma Desmond's infamous line "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up" is the stuff of Hollywood legend. In the glamorous film world of Los Angeles where youth and beauty were all, what happens when the lights dim and the audiences disappear? With such stunning songs as "With One Look," "As If We Never Said Goodbye" and "Perfect Year," Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard is a lush romantic tragedy of Hollywood proportions.

PERFORMANCE DATES
Performances of Sunset Boulevard run from December 7, 2010 to February 13, 2011. Show times are Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:30 pm, Thursdays and Fridays at 8:00 pm, Saturdays at 2:00 pm and 8:00 pm, and Sundays at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm. There are no performances of Sunset Boulevard on Saturday, December 11 at 2:00 pm, Tuesday, December 14, or on Christmas Day. Signature is presenting a special 2:00 pm performance on Christmas Eve.

SPECIAL NEW YEARS EVE EXTRAGANZA
Signature will bring in the New Year with a special Sunset Boulevard New Year's Eve Extravaganza including an 8:00 pm performance followed by a party with dancing and a midnight champagne toast. Tickets for New Year's Eve range from $76 - $81 each plus $100 per person for the party. (Subscribers can add the party to their ticket for only $75 each).