THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, Starring Will Swenson, Opens Tonight at Barrington Stage

Barrington Stage Company (BSC), the award-winning theatre in Downtown Pittsfield, MA, under the leadership of Artistic Director JuliAnne Boyd and Managing Director TriStan Wilson, presents Gilbert & Sullivan's THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, starring Will Swenson as "The Pirate King."

Directed by Tony Award winner John Rando and choreographed by Emmy Award winner Joshua Bergasse, the team behind the acclaimed and Tony Award nominated Broadway revival of ON THE TOWN, Gilbert & Sullivan's THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE began performances July 15, 2016, opens tonight, July 20, and runs through August 13, 2016.

The cast will feature Jacqueline Petroccia (Sweeney Todd with the New York Philharmonic) as "Kate," Lindsay O'Neil (The Phantom of the Opera National Tour) as "Edith," Alex Gibson (Bombshell in Concert) as "Sergeant," and Darius Barnes, Tommy Bracco, Michael Hartung, Samuel Ladd, Melanie Leinbach, Jeanette Minson, Drew Nellessen, Benjamin Rivera, Morgan Rose, ALanna Saunders, Claire Saunders, Eric Stretch, and Michael Williams.

They join previously announced Tony Award nominee Will Swenson (Broadway's HAIR) as "The Pirate King," Scarlett Strallen (Broadway's Mary Poppins) as "Mabel," Kyle Dean Massey (Broadway's Pippin, Next To Normal) as "Frederic," Tony Award nominee David Garrison (Broadway's Wicked) as "The Modern Major General," Jane Carr (Broadway's A Gentleman's Guide To Love and Murder) as "Ruth," and Tony Award winner Phillip Boykin (Broadway's Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, On The Town) as "Samuel."

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE features scenic design by Beowulf Boritt, costume design by Jess Goldstein, wig design by Leah Loukas, lighting design by Jason Lyons, sound design by Ed Chapman, music direction by Darren R. Cohen, fight choreography by Ryan Winkles. Michael Andrew Rodgers will serve as production stage manager, with Heather Klein as assistant stage manager. Casting is by McCorkle Casting Ltd.

The performance schedule for THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE is as follows: Tuesday and Wednesday at 7pm, Thursday through Saturday at 8pm, Wednesday and Friday at 2pm, and Sunday at 5pm. Please note - there is no 2pm performance on Friday, July 15 or on Wednesday, July 20.

Both single tickets and 2016 season passes are now on-sale and available at www.barringtonstageco.org or by calling 413-236-8888 or visiting the Mainstage box office (30 Union Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201). Tickets range from $20 to $69, with limited onstage seating available for $75.

Currently playing on the Boyd-Quinson Mainstage is the world premiere of American Son by award-winning playwright Christopher Demos-Brown, winner of the prestigious Laurents/Hatcher Award for Best New Play of 2016. Starring Tamara Tunie ("Law and Order: SVU") and Michael Hayden (Broadway's Carousel), American Son began performances June 17, opened June 22, and runs through July 9, 2016. On the St. Germain Stage, Debra Jo Rupp ("That 70's Show") stars as the titular character in Kimberly Akimbo by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire, which began performances June 16 and opened June 19, for a run through July 16, 2016.

The 2016 season at BSC includes the world premieres of two new musicals-Presto Change-O and Broadway BounTy Hunter. Presto Change-O features book and lyrics by Eric Price, music by Joel Waggoner, and direction by Marc Bruni of Broadway's Beautiful The Carole King Musical. Jonathan Larson Award winning composer Joe Iconis's Broadway BounTy Hunter, starring Annie Golden, features a book by Joe Iconis, Lance Rubin and Jason SweetTooth Williams, choreography by Jeffrey Page, and direction by Leah C. Gardiner.

The 2016 Barrington season will also include Peerless by Jiehae Park (Hannah and the Dread Gazebo, Wondrous Strange), and directed by Louisa Proske (Engagements), which recently premiered at Yale Rep; the acclaimed Drama Desk Award winning play Tribes by Nina Raine and directed by Jenn Thompson; and Mark St. Germain's Camping with Henry and Tom, the recipient of both the Outer Critics Circle Award and the Lucille Lortel Award, directed by Christopher Innvar.

In addition to the theatrical productions, BSC will present two special one-night-only performances for the Boyd-Quinson Mainstage. On Monday, July 25, 2016 at 8pm, Ann Hampton Callaway and Amanda McBroom will appear in Divalicious, accompanied by Michele Brourman; and on Monday, August 8, 2016 at 8pm, married stars Marin Mazzie and Jason Danieley return to BSC in Broadway and Beyond: Reprise Edition after their tremendously successful concert at BSC last summer.

Barrington Stage Company, a professional award-winning Equity regional theatre located in the heart of the Berkshires, in Pittsfield, MA, was co-founded in 1995 by Artistic Director JuliAnne Boyd. Barrington Stage's mission is three-fold: to present top-notch, compelling work; to develop new plays and musicals; and to find fresh, bold ways to bringing new audiences into the theatre-especially young people. Barrington Stage garnered national attention in 2004 when it premiered William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin's musical hit The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which later transferred to Broadway, where it won two Tony Awards. In 2009/2010 Barrington Stage produced the world premiere of Mark St. Germain's Freud's Last Session, which later moved Off-Broadway and played for two years. St. Germain's Becoming Dr. Ruth (which premiered at BSC as Dr. Ruth, All the Way in 2012) played Off-Broadway at the Westside Theatre in fall 2013. BSC's all-time record-breaking musical, On the Town, originally presented in 2013, opened on Broadway in 2014 with BSC as a co-producer, where it was nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival. Barrington Stage was named "Best Theatre Company" in Metroland's Best of the Capital Region 2009-2012, and was voted "Best Live Theatre" by The Berkshire Eagle readers in 2011, 2012, and 2015.

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