Roundabout Theatre Co. Announces Bank of America Sponsored $10 Tickets To First 'BIRDIE' Preview 9/10

Roundabout Theatre Company (Artistic Director, Todd Haimes) is pleased to announce Bank of America's support of the upcoming Broadway production of Bye Bye Birdie. As part of their generous support, Bank of America has made it possible for all tickets to the first performance on September 10 to be sold for $10.00.

These tickets will only be available for purchase at the Henry Miller's Theatre box office, beginning at 12pm on Monday, August 10. The box office is located at 124 West 43rd Street. Limit two tickets per person.

Bye Bye Birdie is the inaugural production of the new Henry Miller's Theatre, which is located in the new Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park. Performances begin September 10 and the official opening is October 15, 2009.

"Bank of America is committed to improving access to the arts for all New Yorkers and those who visit the city and want to experience our rich cultural heritage for themselves," said Jeff Barker, Bank of America Market President. "Now, more than ever, Americans are looking for ways to save and stretch every dollar. We hope that this offer will not only provide them with the incentive to be one of the first in New York to experience the new theatre and the performance, but support the local economy by taking in a Broadway show."

Roundabout Artistic Director Todd Haimes said: "We are very grateful to Bank of America whose history with Roundabout stretches back to 1983. Bank of America has helped us through two challenging decades of growth, including our first move to Broadway and reaching our eventual home at the American Airlines Theatre. Their support of our education programs, in particular, has been vital in our efforts to provide services to tens of thousands of New York City public school students and teachers. It is significant that they are not only supporters of Roundabout but also many other performing arts organizations in New York City and across the country. They understand that the arts are important to the economies of the communities they serve and thus see investment in the arts as an important investment in those communities."

After a 48 year absence, Roundabout Theatre Company presents the first new Broadway production of Bye Bye Birdie as the inaugural production of the new Henry Miller's Theatre (124 West 43rd Street).

Bye Bye Birdie will star John Stamos (Albert Peterson), Gina Gershon (Rose Alvarez) & Bill Irwin (Mr. Harry MacAfee) with Jayne Houdyshell (Mrs. Mae Peterson) & Dee Hoty (Mrs. MacAfee).

The cast will also feature Matt Doyle (Hugo Peabody), Molly Ephraim (Ursula Merkle), Jake Evan Schwencke (Randolph MacAfee), Allie Trimm (Kim MacAfee) and as "Conrad Birdie" Nolan Gerard Funk. Robert Longbottom will direct and choreograph Bye Bye Birdie with a book by Michael Stewart, music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams.

In Bye Bye Birdie, the exuberant rock n' roll musical comedy, it's 1960 and hip-swingin' teen idol superstar Conrad Birdie (Funk) has been drafted into the army. Birdie's manager Albert (Stamos) and his secretary Rosie (Gershon) have cooked up a plan to send him off with a swell new song and one last kiss from a lucky teenage fan... on "The Ed Sullivan Show"!

Bye Bye Birdie received the 1961 Tony Award® for Best Musical and features such beloved songs as "Put on A Happy Face," "Kids," "Spanish Rose," "The Telephone Hour" and "A Lot of Livin' To Do."

Major support provided by Bank of America. Lead support provided by Roundabout's Musical Theatre Production Fund partners: Perry and Marty Granoff, The Kaplen Foundation, Peter and Leni May, John and Gilda McGarry, Tom and Diane Tuft. Generous support also provided by The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation.

Bank of America is a major supporter of arts and heritage in the United States, and increasingly in Europe. Its support is built on a foundation of responsible business practices and good corporate citizenship that helps improve access to the arts and arts education in local communities nationwide. Bank of America offers customers free access to more than 120 of the nation's finest cultural institutions through its acclaimed Museums on Us® program, while the Art in Our Communities program shares exhibits from the bank's corporate collection with communities across the country through local museums. In addition, the Bank of America Charitable Foundation provides philanthropic support to museums, theaters and other arts-related nonprofits to expand their services and offerings to schools and communities. Bank of America's unique arts and heritage program makes good business sense by providing customers with a distinct benefit, while supporting the economic and cultural vitality of the communities it serves.

Roundabout Theatre Company's mission has remained consistent for 42 years. At the very heart of the not-for-profit company is a commitment to re-energize classic plays and musicals by teaming great theatrical works with the industry's finest artists, providing great theatre and a quality experience to their subscribers. Each year, over 40,000 subscribers see up to eight new productions at Roundabout all at a cost well below Broadway box office prices. An equally important core value of the organization is its dedication to providing the highest possible level of customer servIce To its audiences and loyal subscribers. Friendly and welcoming staff, comfortable state-of-the-art venues, audience enrichment programs, and initiatives such as ACCESS ROUNDABOUT, are all an integral part of the Roundabout experience.

Roundabout Theatre Company currently produces at three permanent homes each of which is designed specifically to enhance the needs of the Roundabout's mission. Off-Broadway, the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre, which houses the Laura Pels Theatre and Black Box Theatre, with its simple sophisticated design is perfectly suited to showcasing new plays. The grandeur of its Broadway home on 42nd Street, American Airlines Theatre, sets the ideal stage for the classics. Roundabout's Studio 54 provides an exciting and intimate Broadway venue for its musical and special event productions. Together these three distinctive venues serve to enhance the work on each of its stages.

American Airlines is the official airline of Roundabout Theatre Company. Roundabout productions are made possible, in part, with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the National Endowment for the Arts; and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

Roundabout Theatre Company's 2008-2009 season includes Christopher Hampton's The Philanthropist, starring Matthew Broderick, directed by David Grindley; Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, starring (in order of speaking) Nathan Lane, Bill Irwin, John Goodman, John Glover, directed by Anthony Page. Roundabout's sold out production of The 39 Steps made its second Broadway transfer to the Helen Hayes Theatre on January 21, 2009.

Roundabout Theatre Company's 2009-2010 season includes Mark Saltzman, Irving Berlin & Scott Joplin's The Tin Pan Alley Rag, directed by Stafford Arima; Patrick Marber's After Miss Julie, starring Sienna Miller & Jonny Lee Miller, directed by Mark Brokaw; Michael Stewart, Lee Adams and Charles Strouse's Bye Bye Birdie, starring John Stamos, Gina Gershon, Bill Irwin & Nolan Gerard Funk, directed and choreographed by Robert Longbottom; Carrie Fisher's Wishful Drinking, directed by Tony Taccone; and Noël Coward's Present Laughter starring Victor Garber, directed by Nicholas Martin.

For more information visit, www.roundabout.org.