Grey Gardens to Close at the Walter Kerr on July 29

The Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Grey Gardens will play its final performance on Sunday, July 29, 2007.  Following that day's matinee, the production will have played a total of 307 performances and 33 previews at The Walter Kerr Theatre (219 West 48th Street).  

"Grey Gardens is a great work of art that will have a long life beyond this Broadway run," said Kelly Gonda, president of East of Doheny, the lead producer of the musical.  "Everyone in the Grey Gardens family is proud that we were able to bring this unique show to Broadway – the first-ever musical to be made from a documentary.  We are honored and thrilled to have received rapturous reviews, ecstatic audiences and award recognition.  We're happy the show was preserved with a new cast album and filmed as the subject of a soon-to-be released documentary by the legendary original filmmaker, Albert Maysles himself...Finally, I must say that it was a real pleasure, both personally and professionally, to work with everyone involved with the Broadway production of Grey Gardens, including the creative team, the cast, the crew and everyone else responsible for the welcome we enjoyed at The Walter Kerr."

The musical opened on Broadway on November 2, 2006.  Starring 2-time Tony Award winner Christine Ebersole and Tony Award winner Mary Louise Wilson, the production earned 10 2007 Tony Award nominations, including Best Musical, and winning three: Christine Ebersole for Best Actress in a Musical, Mary Louise Wilson for Best Featured Actress in a Musical and William Ivey Long for Best Costumes.  

It was previously announced that Grey Gardens will have its London debut next season with Tony Award winner Christine Ebersole recreating her performance.  For London, the producers will be teaming with London producers to present the show in its UK bow during the 2007-2008 season.  London partners, dates and additional casting will be officially announced in the coming months.  Producers are also in discussions about the possibility of presenting the show in U.S. engagements across the country. 

In addition to Ebersole and Wilson, Grey Gardens stars John McMartin, Bob Stillman, Matt Cavenaugh, Michael Potts, and Sarah Hyland (all from the Playwrights Horizons production), as well as Broadway newcomer Erin Davie as Young 'Little' Edie Beale, and Kelsey Fowler.  The show opened at the Walter Kerr Theatre on November 2nd.

The musical features a book by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner Doug Wright (I Am My Own Wife, the play and film Quills), music by Scott Frankel (musical director for Broadway's Falsettos, Putting It Together) and lyrics by Michael Korie (Harvey Milk, Zhivago). Directed by Tony Award nominee and Obie winner Michael Greif (Rent), the production has musical staging by Tony Award nominee Jeff Calhoun (Big River, Grease!). It will be produced by Producers East of Doheny, Randall L. Wreghitt/Mort Swinsky, Michael Alden and Edwin W. Schloss, in association with Playwrights Horizons,

"Not since Mama Rose and Gypsy has there been a mother/daughter act as hilarious, as heartbreaking and as utterly unforgettable as Edith and Edie Beale - Jackie Kennedy's most outrageous relatives - in Broadway's acclaimed musical smash Grey Gardens.  From the grandeur of an East Hampton high society party in 1941 to the sensational tabloid headlines that rocked the Kennedy clan in 1973, Grey Gardens is scandalously entertaining.  This witty and passionate ride features Christine Ebersole's already-legendary performance and breaks new ground as the first musical ever based on a documentary.  Step into the world of Grey Gardens and see the other side of Camelot," state press notes.

The Broadway production of Grey Gardens reunites the original creative and design team, featuring scenic design by Allen Moyer, costume design by five-time Tony Award winner William Ivey Long, lighting design by Tony Award winner Peter Kaczorowski, sound design by Brian Ronan and projections by Wendall K. Harrington. Orchestrations are by Tony Award winner Bruce Coughlin and Music Director is Lawrence Yurman.

Grey Gardens had its world premiere at Playwrights Horizons, opening March 7, 2006 and completely sold out its initial limited engagement as well as three extensions. The musical was named Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical by the Outer Critics Circle Awards and was also the winner of a 2006 Richard Rodgers Production Award, administered by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. It was most recently honored by the theater annual Best Plays as one of the ten best of the 2005-2006 season, and the only musical cited. Leading lady Ebersole also won several awards, including the Obie and the Drama Desk.

Visit www.greygardensthemusical.com for more information. 

Photo of Christine Ebersole by Joan Marcus