PIPPIN Comes to Madison Lyric Stage Next Month

Madison Lyric Stage will present Stephen Schwartz's musical comedy Pippin, July 21-31. The production will be presented inside MLS's brand-new tent on the grounds of Madison's Deacon John Grave House and will have a big-top carnival theme.

With music and lyrics by four-time Grammy and three-time Oscar winner Schwartz and book by Roger O. Hirson, the Tony award-winning musical follows a mysterious performance troupe, led by the commanding Leading Player, that tells the story of Pippin, a young prince on his search for meaning and significance.

Pippin becomes a soldier in his father's army, but is upset by the killing - and murders his father to stop the war. Now King himself, he is even more lost and unsure about what he wants in life and turns away from everything, including true love, before discovering that what he has been searching for has been there all along. Pippin features the well-known songs Corner of the Sky and Magic to Do.

"With an infectiously unforgettable score, Pippin continues to captivate and appeal to the young at heart," said Marc Deaton, artistic director of Madison Lyric Stage. "Pippin's messages of self-discovery and fulfillment in the family you create for yourself are universal. Like Pippin, we are all learning that happiness doesn't always lie in extraordinary endeavors, but in the unextraordinary moments that happen every day."

Leading a cast of 16 are Jamal Green as the Leading Player and Cedric Gegel as Pippin. Mr. Green won the 2021 Broadwayworld Connecticut award for Best Featured Performer in a Play for his performance in MLS's The Boys in the Band. Mr. Gegel is an award-winning stage and film actor, who recently starred regionally as Robert F. Kennedy in the one-man-show Kennedy: Bobby's Last Crusade.

Pippin also features John Johmann as Charlemagne, Allison Waggener as Catherine, Ariana Packer as Fastrada, Patty Carver as Berthe, Michael Prince as Lewis, and Theo Zucconi as Theo.

Marc Deaton directs, Nathaniel Baker serves as music director, with Sarah Kennedy as choreographer.

Tickets are $55 and can be purchased by visiting madisonlyricstage.org or by calling 203-215-6329. The Deacon John Grave House is located at 581 Boston Post Road in Madison.

The Madison Lyric Stage 2022 season continues in September with Edward Albee's play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? in September.

Madison Lyric Stage is supported in part by generous gifts from Chase, The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, Guilford Savings Bank, the Maureen E. and Peter F. Dalton Fund of The Madison Foundation, the New Alliance Foundation and the Rotary Club of Madison, along with support from the Connecticut Office of the Arts, with the support of the Department of Economic and Community Development, which also receives funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Support has also been provided from CT Humanities (CTH), with funding provided by the Connecticut State Department of Economic and Community Development/Connecticut Office of the Arts (COA) from the Connecticut State Legislature, as well as from the Arts Council of Greater New Haven, which received support from the National Endowment for the Arts - American Rescue Plan Act program.

Madison Lyric Stage is an award-winning, non-profit arts collective serving the Connecticut shoreline. Its mission is to expand participation in the arts by presenting accessible, inclusive and affordable professional-quality opera, musical theater and drama.

For more information about Madison Lyric Stage, visit madisonlyricstage.org.

To post a comment, you must register and login.