Lyric Stage to Produce 'Fiorello!'; Gonzales Stars

Lyric Stage, Dallas County's only locally produced professional musical theater company, continues its sixteenth season with FIORELLO!, October 10-25, 2008. Performances are Thursday-Saturday evenings @ 8:00 PM with matinees on Sundays @ 2:30 PM. There is also a matinee on Saturday, October 25 @ 2:30 PM. Performances are in the Irving Arts Center's Dupree Theater, 3333 N. MacArthur Blvd. Irving, TX. Tickets can be Ordered Online by Clicking Here or by calling the box office at 972-252-2787.

Just in time for the 2008 election, Lyric Stage presents the North Texas premiere of FIORELLO!, a musical about the rise to power of New York’s Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia. In a time when the crooked political machine known as Tammany Hall was up to its ears in corruption, it took this small, honest man to break their stranglehold on New York City politics. Unlike the satire of most political musicals, FIORELLO! is really a love story set to the music and beat of a New York City in the midst of change. FIORELLO! is a melodic masterpiece whose take on corruption in government is as timely today as when it was written.

FIORELLO! opened at Broadway’s Broadhurst Theatre on November 23, 1959 and ran for 796 performances. Tom Bosley, who would later gain fame as Mr. Cunningham on television’s Happy Days, starred as Mayor LaGuardia, winning a Tony Award for his performance. FIORELLO! tied THE SOUND OF MUSIC for the Best Musical Tony Award (beating GYPSY) and became the third musical to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Brian Gonzales returns to Lyric Stage as Fiorello H. LaGuardia. He was last seen at Lyric Stage as Che in EVITA and was in the closing company of THE 25th ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE on Broadway. The FIORELLO! company includes Mark Oristano, Doug Jackson, Clayton Younkin, Brian Hathaway, Gary Moody, Connie Kegg, Noelle Stanley, Megan Woodall, Christine Cunningham, Deborah Brown, Martin Guerra, Jackie Kemp, Jeff Bailey, Sara Chasen, Kristin Cramer, Melody Denoia, Eddie Floresca, Linda Franks, Carlos Gomez, Alan Hannah, Summer Kenny, Jeff Kinman, Kelly McCain, Bobby Selah, Christine Cornish Smith, Laurie Spohn, Rebekah Turner and James Williams.

Cheryl Denson directs with music direction by Mark Stamper. Lighting design is by Julie Moroney, costumes by Drenda Lewis and properties by Jane Quetin. Production stage manager is Margaret J. Soch.

FIORELLO! runs October 10-25 in the Irving Arts Center’s Dupree Theater, 3333 N. MacArthur Blvd., with performances Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings @ 8 PM and matinees on Sundays @ 2:30 PM. There is also a matinee on Saturday, October 25 @ 2:30 PM. Tickets, priced from $23-$30, can be Ordered Online by Clicking Here or by calling the box office at 972-252-2787.

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