Jason Gotay, Ephie Aardema & More to Lead Private Reading of Ryan Scott Oliver's DARLING

A private reading of Ryan Scott Oliver's DARLING, a dark sexy re-telling of Peter Pan, is set for January 21st at the Pearl Studios in New York City.

Directed by Bobby Longbottom, the cast features Ephie Aardema (Bridges of Madison County), Jason Gotay (Spider-Man, The Anthem), Jessie Hooker (Legally Blonde Tour, Sistas), Richard Todd Adams (Les Miserables 25th Anniversary National Tour) with a supporting ensemble including Kathyrn Allison, Ethan Carlson, Tony L. Clements, Kathrina Feigh, Ben Garrett, Adam J. Levy, Tatiana Lofton, Michael Mendez, Michael Millan, Emily Rogers, and Daniel Yearwood.

Set in 1900s Boston, DARLING follows sixteen year old Darling as she encounters a boy named Peter, who offers the opportunity to run away with him. She takes it and finds herself swept into a seedy underground of jazz, sex, lost rentboys, and a mysterious white powder called Dust.

DARLING was featured on the "Bound for Broadway" episode of NBC's The Apprentice in 2010, and in 2012, was given a private workshop and developmental production as a collaboration between Retrop Production and RareWorks Theatre Company, in association with Sh-K-Boom Records, at Emerson College. In 2013, Darling received The Weston Playhouse Theatre Company New Musical Award. DARLING was conceived by Brett Ryback.

WalkRunFly Productions (Hunger Games London) helms the production led by producers Warren Adams and Brandon Victor Dixon. Jennifer Isaacson will executive produce. WalkRunFly is also currently developing Daniel J. Watts' THE JAM, Gilbert Bailey's BOUT TO BLOW, Charles Randolph-Wright's LOVE IN AFGHANISTAN, and Dan Fogelberg's PART OF THE PLAN.

RYAN SCOTT OLIVER was called "the future of Broadway... a major new voice in musical theatre" (Entertainment Weekly) and the "best composer working today without a major production" (Backstage Magazine). He is the winner of a Larson Grant, Rodgers Award, Lortel Award Nomination, ASCAP Harold Adamson Award, and New Musicals Awards from Weston Playhouse and Pace University. He wrote the music and lyrics for 35mm: A Musical Exhibition (licensed by Samuel French, original cast recording avail. on Ghostlight Records), Darling (workshopped at ACT, featured on NBC's The Apprentice), Mrs. Sharp (read at Playwrights Horizons July 2009 starring Jane Krakowski, dir. by Michael Greif), Out of My Head (licensed through Steele Spring Stage Rights), as well as the commission We Foxes (Broadway Across America) among others. He is currently at work on the new musical Rope, a commission for Grove Entertainment, and Jasper in Deadland will perform a month-long run at Seattle's Fifth Avenue Theatre in May 2015.

BOBBY LONGBOTTOM made his Broadway debut as Director/Choreographer on the original production of SIDE SHOW, which earned four TONY Award nominations including Best Musical. Other Broadway credits include Rodgers and Hammerstein's FLOWER DRUM SONG following its premiere at The Mark Taper Forum. This production earned Mr. Longbottom a TONY Award nomination for his Choreography as well as Fred Astaire, and Outer Critics Circle nominations. Other Broadway credits include THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL, BYE BYE BIRDIE, and a new production of DREAMGIRLS that premiered at the Apollo Theatre prior to an international tour. He also Conceived, Directed and Choreographed the original Off-Broadway production of PAGEANT. Other credits include: Disney's ON THE RECORD, CARNIVAL for the Kennedy Center, Directing & Choreographing The Radio City Music Hall CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR 1994-2000 and SHOW BOAT at Carnegie Hall. Plays include MISTER ROBERTS for the Kennedy Center and HAY FEVER for the Old Globe. He recently Directed CAMELOT for the Glimmerglass Festival.