Goodspeed Musicals to Aid Paper Mill for 'Pirates!'

Weeks after Paper Mill announced it was in danger of closing its doors due to a severe financial crisis, the company's officials have announced that Goodspeed Musicals has offered support in producing their upcoming production of Pirates!, a fully-staged adaptation of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance.

Goodspeed offered to supply items such as costume and props from their acclaimed production of The Pirates of Penzance, which premiered at the Connecticut theatre in October of 2006. "Paper Mill was our collaborator on Pirates! and it is our pleasure to support them in every way we can," stated Goodspeed Musicals Executive Director Michael P. Price in the press notes. "At one time or another, every theatre goes through troubling times and it is heartwarming to see how many people have joined to save the theatre.  Along with our props and costumes come the very best wishes from the Goodspeed family to our friends at Paper Mill."
 
The creative team behind Pirates! met in New York City with Goodspeed Musicals and Paper Mill Playhouse in 2006 to pitch the production, and both theatres embraced the idea and commissioned the team to create the show.

Pirates! was conceived by Gordon Greenberg (Jacques Brel…), Nell Benjamin (Legally Blonde), and John McDaniel ( "The Rosie O'Donnell Show") and will run at the Millburn theatre, June 7 through July 8, 2007. The production stars Farah Alvin (Mabel), Ed Dixon (Modern Major General), Barrett Foa (Frederic), Liz McCartney (Ruth), Gerry McIntyre (Sergeant) and Andrew Varela (The Pirate King), and is produced with support from RBC Dain Rauscher. Tickets may be purchased by calling 973-376-4343, or at the Paper Mill Box Office on Brookside Drive in Millburn, or online at www.papermill.org.  Visit www.goodspeed.org for more on Goodspeed Musicals.