STAGE TUBE: Inside MAME Dress Rehearsal with Louise Pitre; Show Opens Today!

Goodspeed Musicals will "coax the blues right out ‘a the horn" with its much-anticipated new production of MAME. The bold and brassy musical comedy will runs now through July 1 at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Conn. [Official Press Opening is tonight, May 9, 2012.]

Check out a sneak peek into the April 28 dress rehearsal for MAME. Watch the video!

Come along for the madcap adventures of Auntie Mame and her adoring nephew. Surrounded by an eccentric cast of characters, she celebrates the Roaring 20s, overcomes tragedy and sails through life without missing a fad or a dance step. Jerry Herman's delightful score is packed with favorites "Bosom Buddies," "We Need a Little Christmas" and more.

Mame features Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman, a book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee and is based on the novel by PatRick Dennis and the play, Auntie Mame by Lawrence and Lee.

Louise Pitre, the Tony-nominated star of Broadway's Mamma Mia!, leads the stellar cast as Mame. Known as Canada's "first lady of musical theatre," Ms. Pitre also headlined the Toronto and US touring company casts of Mamma Mia! and is known for her signature performances as Fantine in Les Misérables (Toronto, Montreal, and Paris) and the title character in Edith Piaf.

Vera is played by Judy Blazer of Broadway's Lovemusik, 45 Seconds From Broadway, Titanic, A Change in the Heir, and Me and My Girl and Goodspeed's Bloomer Girl. Peter will be played by Lucas Schultz. Charles Hagerty will play Older Patrick. Agnes Gooch will be played by Kirsten Wyatt whose Broadway credits include Elf; Grease; High Fidelity; Urinetown; and You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. Ms. Wyatt's also appeared in Goodspeed's My One And Only and The Boy Friend.

The role of Ito is played by James Seol of Broadway's A Naked Girl on the Appian Way. Babcock will be played by Paul Carlin whose Goodspeed credits include 1776, The Boy Friend, Where's Charley, Brigadoon, Red, Hot & Blue, and On The Twentieth Century. Woolsey will be played by James Beaman of Goodspeed's How to Succeed in Business... and Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun. Beau will be played by James Lloyd Reynolds of Goodspeed's 42nd Street. Eli Baker will play Young Patrick.

The ensemble includes Erin Denman as Sally Cato (Goodspeed's 42nd Street), Alan Gillespie, Beau Landry as Junior, Peter Leskowicz (Goodspeed's Half a Sixpence), Denise Lute as Mother Burnside/Madame Branislowski (Broadway's Monday After the Miracle and Goodspeed's Show Boat), Eric Jon Malhum as Mr. Upson, Mary Jo McConnell as Mrs. Upson (Goodspeed's Big River and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn), Kim Sava as Peegan, Melissa Ann Steadman (Goodspeed's Carnival!), Kit Treece, Kellyn Uhl as Gloria (Goodspeed's How to Succeed...), and John T. Wolfe. The swings will be Brittany Bohn and Nick Nerio.

Mame is directed by Ray Roderick, who helmed many of Goodspeed's recent hits, My One And Only, 42nd Street, and Singin' in the Rain as well as Hello! My Baby and Double Trouble at The Norma Terris Theatre. Mr. Roderick served as the Associate Director of the 2000 Broadway revival of The Music Man as well as Co-conceived, Directed, and Choreographed the National Tour of Irving Berlin's I Love A Piano. Choreography will be by Vince Pesce, who was Associate Choreographer of Broadway's Anything Goes, The Pajama Game, Wonderful Town, and Little Shop of Horrors.

Scenic designs are by James Youmans whose designs have been seen on Broadway in Come Fly Away, West Side Story, Gypsy, and Swinging on a Star. Mr. Youmans has also acted as Scenic Designer for such Goodspeed favorites as My One And Only, Summer of '42, Paper Moon, Finian's Rainbow, and King of Hearts, and Captain's Courageous at The Norma Terris Theatre. Costumes will be designed by Gregg Barnes. Mr. Barnes' numerous Broadway credits include Costume Designer for Follies, Elf, Bye Bye Birdie, Legally Blonde and Souvenir and Associate Costume Designer for A Little Night Music, Shrek The Musical, The Little Mermaid, Fiddler on the Roof, and Beauty and the Beast. He has also designed the costumes for the Goodspeed Opera House production of Jim Henson's Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas as well as Band Geeks! and Radio Girl at the Norma Terris Theatre. Lighting design will be by Charlie Morrison who served as Lighting Designer for Goodspeed's 42nd Street and Flight of the Lawnchair Man at The Norma Terris Theatre. Sound design will be by Jay Hilton who is in his 27th season at Goodspeed.
The Music Director for Mame will be Michael O'Flaherty who is in his 21st season as Goodspeed's Resident Music Director. William J. Thomas will be assistant music director. Orchestrations will be provided by Dan DeLange, who created the orchestrations for Goodspeed's Show Boat, My One And Only, How To Succeed..., Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun, 42nd Street, High Button Shoes, Singin' in the Rain, The Boy Friend and many more.

Mame is produced for Goodspeed Musicals by Michael P. Price.

Mame runs now through July 1, 2012 [Official Press Opening May 9, 2011]. Curtain times are Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Thursday at 7:30 p.m. (with select performances at 2:00 p.m.), Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. (with select performances at 6:30 p.m.).

Tickets are available through the Box Office (860.873.8668), open seven days a week, or on-line at goodspeed.org. For show highlights and more visit the website or follow Goodspeed on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Dedicated to the preservation and advancement of musical theatre, Goodspeed Musicals produces three musicals each season at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Conn., and additional productions at The Norma Terris Theatre in Chester, Conn., which was opened in 1984 for the development of new musicals. The first regional theatre to receive two Tony Awards (for outstanding achievement), Goodspeed also maintains The Scherer Library of Musical Theatre and The Max Showalter Center for Education in Musical Theatre. Goodspeed gratefully acknowledges the support of the assisting production sponsor Liberty Bank; supporting sponsor Mohegan Sun; ovation sponsor The Shops at Mohegan Sun; Sennheiser, the official audio sponsor; United, the official airline sponsor; and Hoffman Audi, the official auto sponsor of Goodspeed Musicals. Goodspeed is supported in part by the Department of Economic and Community Development with support from the Connecticut Office of the Arts.

Watch a dress rehearsal for MAME below!