Howie Michael Smith to Lead AMERICA'S BREATH OF FRESH AIR at FringeNYC, Begin. 8/11

Are you sick and tired of being constantly bombarded and harangued by the foibles of contemporary celebrities from all walks of life who, thanks to the immediacy of the internet, You! Tube 24-hour TV newscasts, and radio and TV interview/talk shows, invade our living rooms and bedrooms and even our halls of Congress and public schools with their brash and outlandish public displays of profanity and inanity. Are you fed up with todav's D-List celebrities - Snooki, the Kardashians, the Lohans, the reality show housewives, the PED-injected athletes, and even our shameless politicians?

Well, so was one of America's renowned pop songwriters who decided to create his first theatrical musical on that very subject -- America's fascination with reality show celebrity! Composer Arnie Roman, who has written a multitude of hit songs since 1982 for numerous recording artists, has written the music, book and lyrics for AMERICA'S BREATH OF FRESH AIR, an over-the-top satirical musical comedy about the realities of 'reality TV,' the downside of fame, and relationships, which premieres at the 17th Annual NY International Fringe Festival in New York City starting Sunday, August 11 at 3:30 PM at Theatre 80 (80 St. Mark's Place) in the East Village.

There will be four additional performances: Saturday, August 17 at 1 PM, Sunday, August 18, at 9 PM Monday, August 19, at 3:45 PM Friday, August 23, at 8:15 PM.

(General Admission tickets are $15 and are available in advance online at www.fringenyc.org phone at 866-468-7619, everyday 9AM to 7 PM).

The cast includes Howie Michael Smith (Bob Summers), Mackenzie Bell (Jen), Lorraine Ferro (Harriet), Connor Moore (Ronnie), Melanie Brook (Narrator), Michael Lorz (Big Jimmy), David Perlman (Jake) and Lindsey Lake (Caitlin).

AMERICA'S BREATH OF FRESH AIR is an exciting and fresh new musical satire of contemporary celebrity culture, specifically as seen on Reality Show television. It is funny, often zany and hysterical, with 13 original songs, about the rise and fall of Bob Summers, an average Joe in a fame-obsessed world. When Bob wants to propose to his girlfriend, ex-Gerber baby model Jen, he knows he's got to offer her something special, something more than 'just Bob'; after all, Jen's ex, Jake, the front man of a popular boy band, will stop at nothing to win her back. Bob's mother, Harriet, whose life as a Fabio groupie ended when Bob was born, tries to convince him that he doesn't need fame to win Jen's love, but Bob seizes his chance for celebrity by winning a reality music talent show, America's Breath ojf Fresh Air.

Soon Bob is approached by Ronnie, an aggressive talent manager for performing animals, who wants to sign Bob as his first human client, and Bob rises to fame as a pop-star. But his elation is short lived as Bob is embroiled in a maelstrom of fame, fortune, sex, and a donkey named Matilda, losing sight of what made him want to be famous in the first place and risking losing Jen in the process. Watch the birth and death of a star -- and see what happens after.

For the past 30 years or so, working out of Nashville, Arnie Roman penned countless number of songs that were recorded by the likes of The Pointer Sisters, AI Green, Celine Dion and Kenny Chesney, among others. His songs have been on albums that have sold more than 80-million records and CDs world-wide, and he has had a slew of Top 10 singles on Billboard's Pop, Country, and Dance charts, as well as several Top 10 hits overseas. Over the last few years, Arnie has turned his attention to musical theater. His first musical, Is This The Word ...Bob Summers?, for which he wrote both the book and the songs, was a finalist for the 2012 Richard Rodgers Award, as well as the 2012 Reva Shiner Comedy Award. Subsequently rewritten -- and re-titled -- America's Breath of Fresh Air -- is currently being performed as part of the 2013 17th Annual New York International Fringe Festival.