Mark Delavan, Alix Korey and Anne Runolfsson To Lead The Cast Of The York Theatre Company's MILK AND HONEY

The York Theatre Company (James Morgan, Producing Artistic Director; Evans Haile, Interim Executive Director; David McCoy, Chairman of the Board), dedicated to the development of new musicals and the preservation of musical gems from the past, has announced American operatic bass-baritone Mark Delavan (Tosca), Broadway's Alix Korey (Fiddler on the Roof) and Anne Runolfsson (The Phantom of the Opera) will lead the cast of the 1961 musical Milk and Honey, with book by Don Appell, and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman, the first of three shows in the Winter 2017 Musicals in Mufti Series where performances are set to begin Saturday afternoon, January 28, 2017 for 11-performnces only through February 5, 2017 at the York Theatre Company at Saint Peter's (entrance on East 54th Street, just east of Lexington Avenue).

Directed by York's Associate Artistic Director Michael Unger, and with music direction by Jeffrey Saver, the 12-member cast will feature Ari Axelrod (LES MISERABLES), Abby Goldfarb (Fiddler on the Roof), Jacob Heimer (Soul Doctor), Jessica Fontana (Cinderella), Joy Hermalyn (Candide), Joanne Sydney Lessner (Fermat's Last Tango), and John Little ("Boardwalk Empire"), with additional casting to be announced. Casting for the series is by Geoff Josselson.

Launching the Winter 2017 Musical in Mufti series is Milk and Honey, book by Don Appell, music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. Marking the Broadway debut of the incomparable Jerry Herman, Milk and Honey centers on the romance between two Americans in Israel-a lonely widow on tour and an unhappily married man visiting his daughter. Set against the backdrop of Israel's struggle for recognition as an independent nation, Milk and Honey is a tale of love, optimism, and second chances. With his first Broadway score, Mr. Herman showed the promise of the wealth of hummable, memorable songs he would compose in the future.

The York Theatre Company's acclaimed Musicals in Mufti series of musical theatre gems, performed in a simply-staged, book-in-hand concert format, celebrates its twenty-second historic year of shows from the past that deserve a second look. Mufti means "in street clothes, without the trappings associated with a full production." Milk and Honey will play the following 11-performance schedule-First Week: Saturday at 2:30 p.m. & 8:00 p.m., Sunday at 2:30 & 7:00 p.m.; Second Week: Wednesday at 7:00 p.m., Thursday 2:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

The second show in the Musicals in Mufti series is Berlin to Broadway with Kurt Weill: A Musical Voyage, music by Kurt Weill, text and format by Gene Lerner, lyrics by Maxwell Anderson, Marc Blitzstein, Bertolt Brecht, Jacques Deval, Michael Feingold, Ira Gershwin, Paul Green, Langston Hughes, Alan Jay Lerner, Ogden Nash, George Tabori, and Arnold Weinstein. Berlin to Broadway with Kurt Weill: A Musical Voyage is a joyous and moving celebration of Kurt Weill, a cantor's son and one of the most extraordinary composers of the twentieth century. Weill's greatest theatre songs are presented in a fluid blend of music and story, spanning twenty eventful years, from Von Hindenburg and Hitler in Germany to Roosevelt and Truman in the U.S. Berlin to Broadway with Kurt Weill: A Musical Voyage will be directed by Pamela Hunt, with music direction by Eric Svejcar. Performances begin Saturday afternoon, February 11, 2017 for a limited engagement through February 19, 2017.

The Winter 2017 series concludes with Dear World, book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, new version by David Thompson (based on an adaptation by Maurice Valency of the play The Madwoman of Chaillot by Jean Giraudoux), music and lyrics by Jerry Herman, starring 6-time Emmy Award and Tony Award-winner Tyne Daly as Countess Aurelia. When a group of businessmen scheme to drill for oil in Paris, there is only one force in the world that can stop them: Countess Aurelia, the Madwoman of Chaillot. With the help of idealism, love, and poetry-not to mention two other madwomen, a local sewerman, and a pair of young lovers-the Countess fights to save Paris and the world from greed. With Dear World's opening on Broadway in 1969, Mr. Herman became the first composer-lyricist to have three productions simultaneously running on Broadway, and for her performance 2015 Oscar Hammerstein Honoree Angela Lansbury received the second of her five Tony Awards. Michael Montel directs, with music direction by Christopher McGovern. Performances begin Saturday afternoon, February 25, 2017 for a limited engagement through March 5, 2017. In conjunction with the Winter 2017 Musicals in Mufti series, the York will present Hello, Jerry!, a multimedia presentation by Charles Troy, a musical theatre historian, graphic designer, and former theatre lyricist who has created more than 50 multimedia presentations on musical theatre subjects. His unique multimedia presentations employ a seamless blend of recorded songs (with lyrics projected onscreen), original graphics, scanned photos, historic video, and extensively researched, scripted narrative to dramatize the stories behind the great creations of the American Musical Theatre. Join Charles Troy and the York Theatre Company as he takes a look at the life and career of the legendary Broadway composer Jerry Herman. One night only: Tuesday, January 24, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.

"We are proud to add these shows to our Musicals in Mufti parade," stated James Morgan, the York's Producing Artistic Director. "Whether you are a returning member or a first timer, we think you will thrill to these true musical theater gems from On and Off-Broadway." SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE! Subscribe to a Special "Musicals in Mufti" Package and see all three Muftis for $118.50 (a savings of over $25). Single tickets are priced at $45 for Milk and Honey, and Berlin to Broadway with Kurt Weill: A Musical Voyage, $55 for Dear World, and $30 for Hello, Jerry! ($25 with a "Musicals in Mufti" Subscription). BEST SAVINGS: Become a York Member-member tickets are priced at $31.50 (a 30% discount for both Milk and Honey and Berlin to Broadway, and a 40% discount for Dear World). Member tickets for Hello, Jerry! are priced at $20. Musicals in Mufti and Hello, Jerry! tickets are now on sale and available online at www.yorktheatre.org, by calling (212) 935-5820, or in person at the box office at the York Theatre Company at Saint Peter's (Entrance on East 54th Street, just east of Lexington Avenue), Monday through Friday (12:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m). York Theatre Company offers the York! Membership Program, an exclusive membership package for as low as $75.00-with elite benefits that includes a 30% discount on tickets to York Theatre Productions, exclusive member pre-sale opportunities, 50% off on all lobby concessions, 20% off on all lobby merchandise, in addition to special member-only receptions. The York also offers a York Plus! Membership Program with additional perks, including complimentary tickets to Mainstage productions and invites to several VIP-only presentations throughout the season.

For additional information, please visit www.yorktheatre.org

The York Theatre Company is the only theatre in New York City-and one of very few in the world-dedicated to developing and fully producing new musicals and preserving neglected, notable shows from the past. For over four decades, York's intimate, imaginative style of producing both original and classic musicals has resulted in critical acclaim and recognition from artists and audiences alike. Under the guidance of Producing Artistic Director James Morgan since 1997, the York has focused on new musicals in its Mainstage Series-most of them world, American, or New York premieres-by some of the field's most esteemed creators, and has also helped launch the careers of many talented new writers. Over 35 cast recordings from York Theatre Company productions are now available on CD, including its acclaimed revival of Closer Than Ever (2013 Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best Revival); commercial transfers of such York premieres as The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!), Souvenir (Tony Award Nomination for actress Judy Kaye), and Jolson & Company, and revivals of Pacific Overtures and Sweeney Todd (four Tony Nominations including Best Revival) have all showcased the importance of the York and its programs. Recent hits have included Rothschild and Sons, Plaid Tidings and Cagney, currently playing to sold-out houses at the Westside Theatre starring Robert Creighton as James Cagney and the original York Cast.

Photo credit: Christian Steiner