Uptown Players Become First To Regionally Present NEXT TO NORMAL 6/10-7/2

Uptown Players is pleased to announce that it will be presenting the startling new musical, next to normal, June 10 - July 2, 2011, at the historic Kalita Humphreys Theater. Uptown Players is among the first regional theaters in the United States to produce next to normal, following its long Broadway run which ends on January 16, 2011, after 21 previews and 733 regular performances.

next to normal was nominated for eleven 2009 Tony Awards and won three: Best Original Score, Best Orchestration and Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical Alice Ripley. It also won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, becoming just the eighth musical in history to receive the honor. next to normal features music by Tom Kitt and book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey. With a thrilling contemporary score, next to normal is an emotional powerhouse of a musical about a family trying to take care of themselves and each other.

next to normal was chosen as "one of the year's ten best" by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, Time Out New York, New York Daily News, The Bergen Record and NY1 - more than any other musical from the 2009 Broadway season.

Ben Brantley of The New York Times calls next to normal "a brave, breathtaking musical and a work of muscular grace and power." Peter Marks of The Washington Post calls it "a moving, blisteringly honest, and inordinately powerful new musical. It is stocked with beautiful songs that get to the heart of the story and simply get to the heart."

Uptown Players' production will be under the direction of Michael Serrecchia, with music direction by Scott A. Eckert. Individual tickets are $30-50 and are on sale now. The production is part of Uptown Players 2011 season, which includes the regional premieres of The Young Man From Atlanta and the recent off- Broadway hit, The Temperamentals, along with the hysterical musical comedy, Victor/Victoria. Season tickets for all 4 productions start as low as $100.

Individual tickets for next to normal or season tickets for the entire 2011 season can be purchased at www.uptownplayers.org or by calling 214-219-2718.