Tony Winner Michael Rupert Returns to LEGALLY BLONDE on Tour, 2/10; Land Departs

Tony Award-winning actor Michael Rupert, who originated the role of Professor Callahan on Broadway, will be reprising the role on the LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL tour. Ken Land, who has played the morally dubious lawyer since the tour launched in September 2008, has joined the Broadway revival of Promises, Promises. Rupert's first performance in Denver will be Wednesday, February 10, 2010.

"We've been incredibly fortunate to have Ken Land in the show and wish him all the best," says producer Mike Isaacson. "We couldn't be happier to welcome back Michael Rupert, Broadway's original Callahan. We know Michael will be an exceptional addition to the National Tour."

In addition to LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL, Rupert been seen on Broadway in Ragtime, Falsettos (Tony nomination), City of Angels, Mail , Sweet Charity (Tony Award, Drama Desk Award), Shakespeare's Cabaret, Pippin and The Happy Time (Tony nomination, Theater World Award). His Off Broadway credits include Elegies A Song Cycle, Ancient History, Putting it Together, Falsettoland and March of the Falsettos. Regionally, Michael has appeared in productions of The Full Monday, Baby, Life(X)3, Adrift in Macao, A New Brain (Helen Hayes nomination), Golden Boy, Fiddler on the Roof, Don't Stop the Carnival (Carbonell nomination), Merchant of Venice, Falsettos (LA Ovation Award), Leonard Bernstein's Mass, Working, Another Midsummer Night and Elegies A Song Cycle (Barrymore Award). As a composer, his work includes the Broadway musical Mail (LA Drama Critic's nomination), the off-Broadway musical, 3 Guys Naked from the Waist Down (Drama Desk nomination) and the up-coming Streets of America. Rupert also directed Don't Stop the Carnival at the Atlantis Resort in The Bahamas; City at the NY Fringe Festival; and The Crucible, Ragtime and Parade, all at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA.

As previously announced, Becky Gulsvig, the Elle understudy in the original Broadway cast, plays Elle Woods in the tour. Fans of the MTV reality show "Legally Blonde The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods", which premiered on June 2, 2008, will also recognize a familiar face in the tour cast: Third runner-up and fan favorite Rhiannon Hansen appears as Elle's best friend Margot. The reality show represented the musical's second venture with MTV. In the fall of 2007, MTV aired LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL in its entirety to stellar ratings and was subsequently nominated for two 2007-2008 Daytime Emmy Awards.

Joining Gulsvig, Rupert and Hansen are DB Bonds as Emmett, Natalie Joy Johnson as Paulette, Jeff McLean as Warner, Megan Lewis as Vivienne, Coleen Sexton as Brooke, Tiffany Engen as Serena, Lucia Spina as Enid and Candice Marie Woods as Pilar.

Also featured in the cast are Barry Anderson, Sara Andreas, Kyle Brown, Liberty Cogen, Ven Daniel, Brooke Leigh Engen, Spencer Howard, Paul Jackel, Jason Kappus, Ashley Moniz, Kathleen Elizabeth Monteleone, Brian Patrick Murphy, CJay Hardy Philip, Alex Puette, Jonathan Rayson, Constantine Rousouli and J.B.Wing.

A West End production of LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL opened at London's Savoy Theatre on Wednesday, January 13, 2010 to rave reviews. The Independent's Paul Taylor calls the show "Perfection. Ridiculously enjoyable from start to finish. Four stars." Time Out London declares it "A Triumph." And The Daily Mail says "Jerry Mitchell's musical is fantastic."

In its first year on Broadway, LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL earned seven 2007 Tony Award nominations, ten 2007 Drama Desk Award Nominations, a 2007 Outer Critics Circle Award and the chorus of the musical was honored by Actors' Equity Association's Advisory Committee on Chorus Affairs (ACCA) with the first ever ACCA Award. The musical also ranked in the top ten list of the most requested Ticketmaster "Arts & Theatre Events" for 2007. LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL received three 2009 Touring Broadway Awards in New York City on May 4, 2009. The show won awards for Best New Musical, Best Production Design and Best Choreography of a Touring Production. The Awards, presented by The Broadway League, honor excellence in Touring Broadway. It is the only such national award.

The Original Broadway Cast Recording for LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL was released on Ghostlight Records, an imprint of Sh-K-Boom Records, and captured the #1 slot on the Billboard Cast Album chart and charted at #86 on the Billboard Top 200. The album has continued its success, charting every week as one of the top-selling Broadway cast recordings and soared to the Top 10 albums (of any genre) on iTunes once the show premiered on MTV.

As on Broadway, Tony Award-winner Jerry Mitchell is the director and choreographer. Music and lyrics are by both Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin, and the book is by Heather Hach. The production features scenic design by David Rockwell, costume design by Gregg Barnes, lighting design by Kenneth Posner and Paul Miller, orchestrations by Christopher Jahnke and sound design by Acme Sound Partners.

LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL is produced on tour by Hal Luftig, Fox Theatricals and Dori Berinstein, in association with MGM Onstage, Darcie Denkert and Dean Stolber. For more information and tickets visit www.LegallyBlondeTheMusical.com.