WONDERLAND Announces Broadway Cast; New Caterpillar

WONDERLAND - A New Alice. A New Musical has confirmed complete casting: Janet Dacal (In The Heights) as Alice, Darren Ritchie (Little Shop of Horrors, Thoroughly Modern Millie) as White Knight, E. Clayton Cornelious as Caterpillar, Jose Llana (Spelling Bee, Flower Drum Song) as El Gato, Karen Mason (Hairspray, Mamma Mia!) as Queen of Hearts, Kate Shindle (Legally Blonde, Cabaret, Jekyll and Hyde) as Mad Hatter, Carly Rose Sonenclar (Les Miserables, Little House on the Prairie) as Chloe and Edward Staudenmayer (Spamalot, Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me) as White Rabbit. With a book by Gregory Boyd and Jack Murphy, lyrics by Jack Murphy, music by Frank Wildhorn, choreography by Marguerite Derricks and direction by Gregory Boyd, WONDERLAND will open at Broadway's Marquis Theatre on Sunday, April 17, 2011, and performances will begin Monday, March 21. 

Rehearsals for WONDERLAND begin Monday, November 22 and tickets go on sale to the general public beginning Thursday, November 25 through www.Ticketmaster.com or by calling 877-250-2929.

WONDERLAND - A New Alice. A New Musical will play a pre-Broadway engagement at the Ferguson Hall at the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts (Judy Lisi, President and CEO) in Tampa, Florida January 4 through January 16, 2011.

The ensemble includes April Berry, Sae La Chin, Dan Domenech, Mallauri Esquibel, Derek Ferguson, Wilkie Ferguson, Laura Hall, Natalie Hill, Lauren Lim Jackson, Morgan James, Ryan Link, Heather Parcells, Stefan Raulston, Julius Anthony Rubio, Danny Stiles and Tanairi Vasquez.

The design team is comprised of Neil Patel (set), Susan Hilferty (costume), Paul Gallo (lighting), Peter Hylenski (sound) and Sven Ortel (video and projection).

WONDERLAND is the first production of the Broadway Genesis Project, an initiative by the Straz Center for the Performing Arts to develop and prepare new musical theater for Broadway. From a show's inception to final staging, the Project provides a safe and nourishing environment in a state-of-the-art complex with artistic, technical and administrative resources.

WONDERLAND was optioned by Judy Lisi, CEO of the Straz Center, and was subsequently produced as its world premiere at the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa, FL this past December. In association with the Alley Theatre in Houston, TX, in January of 2010, the show was transferred for further development, becoming one of the highest grossing shows in that theater's history.

A new spin on the classic story of Alice and her Looking-Glass world, WONDERLAND is about a modern-day woman who goes on a life-changing adventure far below the streets of New York City, where a colorful cast of strange but familiar characters help her rediscover what's really important. Featuring a fresh, contemporary pop score from the creator of Jekyll and Hyde, WONDERLAND arrives on Broadway this spring following two sold-out national stage premieres.

WONDERLAND will be produced on Broadway by the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts (Judy Lisi, President and CEO), William Franzblau and Nederlander Presentations, Inc.

Broadway ticket Information:
Tickets go on sale to the general public beginning Thursday, November 25 for WONDERLAND - A New Alice. A New Musical through www.Ticketmaster.com or by calling 877-250-2929.

Tampa Ticket Information:
Tickets for WONDERLAND - A New Alice. A New Musical may be purchased by calling 813.229.STAR (7827) or 800.955.1045 outside Tampa Bay, in person at the Straz Center Ticket Office or online at www.strazcenter.org

For more information about the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts and its upcoming events, please visit www.strazcenter.org

The WONDERLAND Concept CD is available through ITUNES from SONY Masterworks.

For more information, log on to www.WonderlandOnBroadway.com

Janet Dacal (Alice) is overjoyed and grateful to create the role of Alice in Frank Wildhorn's Wonderland. She just recently finished her run with In The Heights, playing the lead as Nina Rosario, after having originated the role of Carla in the original Off-Broadway and Broadway productions. Broadway: Good Vibrations. Off-Broadway: Byzantium. Regional: Señor Discretion Himself (Arena Stage); Five Course Love (Carbonell nomination); Four Guys Named Jose; Annie and others (Actors' Playhouse). Recordings and tours for various Grammy-winning artists, including Gloria Estefan, Jon Secada and Luis Enrique.

Darren Ritchie (White Knight, Jack/Lewis Carroll) is thrilled to continue down the rabbit hole in Wonderland, his sixth Broadway show. Other credits: Bells Are Ringing, Les Miserables, Dracula, Little Shop of Horrors and Thoroughly Modern Millie. National Tours: Fame The Musical and Little Shop of Horrors. Original workshops: The 60's Project, Altar Boyz, Me and Mrs. Jones and Ghost the Musical, opening on the West End this Spring. Television: Law& Order SVU, Fox News Half -Hour News Hour, Days of Our Lives, Guiding Light, and starred in the CBS pilot Stroller Wars, opposite Tiffani Amber Thiessan. Numerous regional theatre credits, TV commercials and voiceovers. Vocal recordings for award-winning composers Glen Ballard, Dave Stewart and Alan Silvestri. He is represented by Barry McPhearson of APA and Danielle Dell of D2 Management.

E. Clayton Cornelious (Caterpillar) is a Pittsburgh native who comes directly from the
Broadway company of this season's The Scottsboro Boys. Other Broadway credits include:
A Chorus Line (Revival), The Music Man (Revival), Kat & the Kings and The Lion King. National Tours: Dirty Dancing, Hairspray, The Lion King, A Chorus Line, The Goodbye Girl
and The Wiz. He also portrayed the role of Sammy Davis Jr. in the London's West End production of The Rat Pack; Live from Vegas! E. Clayton has been seen across the country in many regional theatres in shows such as: Smokey Joes Café, West Side Story, Bye Bye Birdie, 42nd Street, Five Guys Named Moe, Sophisticated Ladies, Peter Pan, Joseph, R&J (The Musical), Much Ado About Nothing, and The Pittsburgh Pops Orchestra with Marvin Hamlisch. Other credits include: Meet Dave, "One Life To Live," "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" and a national commercial for Chevy. He attended Point Park University of Pittsburgh and received a BA in Theatre Arts.

Jose Llana (El Gato) most recently appeared as Adam in the World Premiere of Joe DiPietro's Falling For Eve at the York. Broadway: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, original Chip Tolentino (Drama Desk Award); Wang Ta in Flower Drum Song; Angel in RENT; Jessie-Lee in Streetcorner Symphony; and Lun Tha in The King and I. Off-Broadway: Gabey in On the Town and Adam Guettel's Saturn Returns, both at The Public Theater. Regional: Martin Guerre (Guillaume, Guthrie Theater), Ballad of Little Jo (Steppenwolf Theater, Jefferson Nom.), Candide (Prince Theater, Barrymore Nom.) and as El Gato in the World Premiere of Wonderland (Straz & Alley Theater). Workshops: Frank Wildhorn's Havana, Melchior in Spring Awakening (Sundance Lab) and Honor (Prospect), among others. TV/film: Sex and the City and Hitch. Cast albums and solo album, VIVA Philippines label. www.josellana.com

Karen Mason (Queen of Hearts). Broadway: Hairspray, Mamma Mia! (Drama Desk nom), Sunset Boulevard (NY, LA), Jerome Robbins' Broadway, Torch Song Trilogy. Off-Broadway: Kander and Ebb's And the World Goes Round, Carnival (Drama Desk nom), Karen Mason Sings Broadway, Beatles and Brian. Regional: Wonderland (David A. Straz PAC, The Alley-Houston), White Christmas (St. Louis Muni Opera, world premiere), Side by Side... (Coconut Grove Playhouse), Gypsy (Sundance Theatre). Awards: 10 MACs, 3 Bistros, 1 Nightlife Award. CDs: Right Here, Right Now (MAC 2009 CD of the Year), Sweetest of Nights, When The Sun Comes Out, Better Days (1998 Emmy Award), Not So Simply Broadway, Christmas! Christmas! Christmas!. TV: "L&O," "L&O SVU"

Kate Shindle (Mad Hatter). Broadway: Legally Blonde (Vivienne), Cabaret (Sally Bowles), Jekyll and Hyde (Lucy). Elsewhere: After the Fall (Maggie) at The Alley, Restoration at La Jolla, Himself and Nora at The Old Globe, A Midsummer Night's Dream (Helena), First Lady Suite (Amelia Earhart), The Last Five Years, Gypsy, Into the Woods, The Mousetrap. She has sung everywhere from Carnegie Hall to Birdland to a dive bar in Portland, Oregon. Film/TV: Gossip Girl, White Collar, Capote, The Stepford Wives. Her writing has been published by Newsweek, salon.com, and The Advocate, and she has three different books in the works. www.kateshindle.com

Carly Rose Sonenclar (Chloe) started singing at the age of two, and has not stopped since. Making her Broadway debut at age seven in Les Miserables, she played the role of Young Cosette for the entire run of the show. Carly, who is 11 years old, recently returned from the national tour of Little House on the Prairie The Musical, originating the principal role of Carrie, the youngest of Melissa Gilbert's three daughters. She has also been seen on the big screen in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 and The Nanny Diaries. Carly makes time to volunteer her services for charitable causes as often as possible. She performed at the prestigious KIDS/Fashion Delivers benefit at which Barack Obama appeared as the keynote speaker. She also appeared at Carnegie Hall, playing the role of Kim in a benefit concert performance of Showboat. In early 2011, Carly will be appearing as Gilda Flip in the new season of The Electric Company on PBS. Carly is an avid softball pitcher, adores her 17-year-old brother Russell, and is a sixth grader in Westchester, NY. For more information, visit www.carlyrosesonenclar.com

Edward Staudenmayer (White Rabbit) starred in Monty Python's Spamalot in Las Vegas and played opposite Martin Short for many performances in Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me on Broadway. He's had an over 17 year association with Forbidden Broadway taking him Off-Broadway, around the world, and onto three cast recordings. He has toured in Beauty and the Beast (National Theater Award Nomination) Joseph..., and The Scarlet Pimpernel. Other credits: Cats Hamburg, The Great Ostrovsky (Barrymore Nomination), Newsical, On The Twentieth Century, and Noises Off. He was a Soloist with the Baltimore, Syracuse, Bartlesville, and Adelaide, Australia Symphonies, and provided voices for MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch.