Striking 12 Featured on 'Weekend Today,' December 24

On Sunday morning, December 24, NBC's "Weekend Today in New York" will feature a series of live performances from GrooveLily, the indie pop-rock band behind this season's musical hit Striking 12.
 
Anchored by David Ushery and Carolyn Gusoff, the Christmas Eve broadcast of "Weekend Today in New York" airs from 7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. in the New York metro area on WNBC-4.
 
The performances will air live from the Daryl Roth Theatre – the home of Striking 12 – located at East 15th Street in the heart of Union Square.
 
The show is currently enjoying an eight-week limited holiday engagement at the Daryl Roth Theatre (101 E. 15th St.), through Sunday, December 31, 2006.
 
Striking 12 "is the story of a Grumpy Guy who decides to avoid the hectic, loveless world on New Year's Eve, until he's visited by an incandescent salesgirl with the promise to chase away his winter doldrums," press notes state.  "Combining pop-rock, musical comedy and old-fashioned uplift with a healthy dose of 21st-century skepticism, this festive tale will ignite the holiday spirit and illuminate the coming season with an electrifying, rockin' performance that cannot be matched."
 
Directed by Tony Award winner Ted Sperling (The Light in the Piazza), the musical is written by Brendan Milburn (book, music and lyrics), Tony Award winner Rachel Sheinkin (book and lyrics) and Valerie Vigoda (book, music and lyrics). The score features songs such as "Red and Green (And I'm Feeling Blue)," "Give the Drummer Some," "Caution to the Wind" and "Screwed-Up People Make Great Art."
 
The New York City trio GrooveLily – featuring band members Gene Lewin (drums/vocals), Brendan Milburn (keyboards/ vocals) and Valerie Vigoda (electric violin/vocals) – "crosses the boundaries laid down by words like rock, folk, jazz and pop. With intelligent, original songs and no shortage of wit, GrooveLily connects lush musical textures and soaring vocals to make a new music that's all their own."
 
Vigoda and Milburn are the winners of a 2006 Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation Award for Excellence in Writing for the Theater.
 
The show features scenic design by David Korins, costume design by Jennifer Caprio, lighting design by Michael Gilliam and sound design by Rob Killenberger. It is produced by Nancy Nagel Gibbs and Greg Schaffert, in association with Mark Johannes and Amy Danis. The live cast recording of STRIKING 12 was released in 2004 on the PS Classics label at www.psclassics.com.
 
Tickets are $50-$75 for all performances except Thursdays at 10 p.m., which are only $35.
 
Striking 12 plays Monday, Tuesday and Friday evenings at 8 p.m., Thursday evenings at 10 p.m., Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets are available via Telecharge.com at 212-239-6200, or in-person at the Daryl Roth Theatre Box Office. For more information, please visit www.striking12.com.