THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY's Tour Cast Inspired By The Bridges That Inspired The Novel

"I write shows and they don't tend to run for very long in New York, which is fine," says composer/lyricist Jason Robert Brown in an interview with Iowa Public Radio.

Nevertheless, despite a lack of commercial success, Brown is admired by legions of fans who admire his character-driven musicals and he's gathered Tonys for his score of PARADE and for his score and orchestrations of THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY.

He's in Des Moines now for the opening week of an 18 city tour of THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, starring Elizabeth Stanley and Andrew Samonsky. Visiting the area where the musical based on Robert James Waller's novel is set helps the actors feel a stronger connection to the story of a traveling photographer who is sent to Madison County, Iowa to shoot its covered bridges for a magazine. He meets a married farm wife and the two fall in love during a week-long affair.

While walking on the red wood painted Roseman Bridge, Stanley notices hundreds of written notes scattered on the interior. "The sort of love notes of you know, we were here, we fell in love forever or you know I'm still waiting," she observes. "To me... the personal mementos people left, I didn't expect that."

"For my character Robert," says Samonsky. 'who never thought he was going to really love someone, and to have met the woman I think that he thinks he's supposed spend the rest of his life with and that this bridge is really what signifies that, that's special to be here and to feel the weight of that kind of moment for my character."

"The novel has very little of the community within it, whereas our show is very much about the community that Francesca lives in," says Brown. "It's really about the town of Winterset and her experience as an outsider in this place and how they welcome her in, and also how they exclude her and how they react and how she feels that reaction to when all of the events the story happen."

Brown conducts the orchestra during the Des Moines performances because he says it's rare for a short lived Broadway show to get a chance to tour. He also wants to stay connected to it for as long as possible, but he will relinquish the baton for 15 of the 18 cities the show plays in through July.

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The national tour of THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, winner of the 2014 Tony Award for Best Original Score and Best Orchestrations, launched in Des Moines, IA at the Des Moines Performing Arts Civic Center on November 28th and an official opening on Tuesday, December 1st.

Based on one of the most romantic stories ever written, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY will travel to more than 15 cities in its first season, including Los Angeles, CA (Ahmanson Theatre); Washington, D.C. (The Kennedy Center); Dallas, TX (Music Hall at Fair Park); Pittsburgh, PA (Benedum Center); Minneapolis, MN (Orpheum Theatre); Las Vegas, NV (The Smith Center); Houston, TX (The Hobby Center); West Palm Beach, FL (Kravis Center); Fayetteville, AR (Walton Arts Center); Dayton, OH (Schuster Center) and more.

Joining Elizabeth Stanley (On the Town, Million Dollar Quartet) as Francesca and Andrew Samonsky (The Hunchback of Notre Dame, South Pacific) as Robert are Cullen R. Titmas (The Last Ship, Avenue Q) as Bud, Mary Callanan (Mamma Mia!, Annie) as Marge, David Hess(Sweeney Todd, Annie Get Your Gun) as Charlie, DaveThomas Brown (The Legend of Georgia McBride, Heathers) as Michael, Caitlin Houlahan (Parade at Lincoln Center) as Carolyn and Katie Klaus (THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY Original Broadway Cast Member, Bonnie & Clyde) as Marian/Chiara/State Fair Singer. The ensemble is comprised of Cole Burden (LES MISERABLES), Caitlyn Caughell (Newsies), Brad Greer (I Am Harvey Milk at Lincoln Center), Lucy Horton (Cats), Amy Linden (Cheer Wars), Trista Moldovan (The Phantom of the Opera),Jessica Sheridan (Sister Act), Matt Stokes (Jesus Christ Superstar), Tom Treadwell (Annie) and Bryan Welnicki (Peter and the Starcatcher).

The critically acclaimed musical of THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY features one of Broadway's most accomplished creative teams with music and lyrics by three-time Tony Award-winning composer JASON ROBERT BROWN (Parade, The Last Five Years), book by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer MARSHA NORMAN (The Secret Garden, The Color Purple, 'night, Mother), and led by the Tony Award-winning director BARTLETT SHER (South Pacific, The King and I, The Light in the Piazza).

The team also includes scenic design by two-time Tony Award-winner MICHAEL YEARGAN (The Light in the Piazza, South Pacific), costume design by five-time Tony Award-winner CATHERINE ZUBER (South Pacific, The Light in the Piazza, The Coast of Utopia), lighting design by two-time Tony Award-winner DONALD HOLDER (South Pacific, The Lion King), sound design by JON WESTON, orchestrations by JASON ROBERT BROWN, and movement by DANNY MEFFORD.

Based on the best-selling novel by Robert James Waller, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, tells the story of Iowa housewife Francesca Johnson and her life-changing, four-day whirlwind romance with traveling photographer Robert Kincaid. It's an unforgettable story of two people caught between decision and desire, as a chance encounter becomes a second chance at so much more.

The Original Broadway Cast Recording of THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, now available on Ghostlight Records, was released on April 15, 2014, and debuted as the #1 Cast Recording on the Billboard charts. For more information or to purchase the Cast Recording, visit www.sh-k-boom.com/bridgesofmadisoncounty.

For more information, visit www.BridgesMusical.com.