Seth Womack to Star as 'Leo Frank' in WaterTower Theatre's PARADE Benefit Concert

WaterTower Theatre Artistic Director Joanie Schultz and Managing Director Greg Patterson today announced casting and creative team details for Parade in Concert, Directed by Kelsey Leigh Ervi, with Musical Direction by Scott A. Eckert.

With Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown and a Book by Alfred Uhry, Parade will play a special one-night only performance on Saturday, March 25, 2017 in the Canterbury Family Main Stage at the Addison Theatre Centre.

Inspired by the true events surrounding the 1913 murder trial of Leo Frank, a Brooklyn-raised Jew living in Georgia who is wrongly convicted of the murder of 13-year old Mary Phagan, Parade is filled with soaring music and a heart-wrenching story, offering a moral lesson about the dangers of prejudice and ignorance that should not be forgotten. Amid religious intolerance, political injustice and racial tension, the stirring Tony Award-winning Parade explores the endurance of love and hope.

WaterTower Theatre Board member Deborah Staggs Chair the Benefit Concert event with all proceeds going to support the Company's Artistic and Education programs. The Benefit Committee will include: Co-Chair Andrea Redmon, Maureen T. Anderson, Rosalind Benjet, Sharla DeFrancisco, Elizabeth Fratantuono, Phil Longacre, and Michelle Mew.

Individual tickets to Parade are on sale now and are available by calling the WaterTower Theatre Box Office at 972-450-6232 or online at mkt.com/watertower-theatre-inc/item/parade-in-concert-ticket. Tickets are $200, $150 and $50 (SOLD OUT). The Diamond Seating at $200 includes a pre-show VIP cocktail reception at WTT and a post-show Champagne Dessert reception at WTT; The Gold $150 seating includes the post-show Champagne Dessert reception only. The Silver $50 is the performance only. A portion of the ticket price is tax-deductible.

In keeping with the celebration of WaterTower's 20th Anniversary, this one-night only performance marks 10 years since WaterTower's original production of Parade in the 2006-2007 Season.

The cast includes Seth Womack as Leo Frank, Sarah Elizabeth Price as Lucille Frank, Greg Hullett as Hugh Dorsey, Alex Ross as Governor Slaton,Stan Denman as Old Confederate Soldier/Judge Roan, Winston Daniels as Jim Conley, Jad Saxton as Mary Phagan, Kyle Montgomery as Frankie Epps, Kyle Igneczi as Britt Craig, Luke Longacre as Tom Watson/Others, Sara Shelby-Martin as Mrs. Phagan/Others, Jeremy Davis as Newt Lee/Others, Victoria Teague as Mrs. Slaton/Others, Molly Welch as Iola Stover/Others, Allison Bret as Monteen/Others, Alex Heika as Young Soldier/Others, and Whitney Coulter as Minnie/Others. The Ensemble includes Justin Duncan, Aubrey Ferguson and Ian Mead Moore.

Making their WaterTower Theatre debuts in Parade will be Whitney Coulter, Winston Daniels, Jeremy Davis, Stan Denman, Justin Duncan, Ian Mead Moore, Alex Ross, Jad Saxton, and Victoria Teague.

The creative team, in addition to Director Kelsey Leigh Ervi and Musical Director Scott A. Eckert, includes Bradley Gray (Set Designer), Dan Schoedel (Lighting Designer), and Kellen Voss (Sound Designer).

IF YOU GO:

PARADE

In the Canterbury Family Main Stage at
The Addison Theatre Centre, 15650 Addison Rd, Addison, TX 75001

One Night Only: Saturday, March 25th, 2017 8:00pm

Ticket Prices: Diamond: $200; Gold: $150; Silver: $50 - SOLD OUT
Online: mkt.com/watertower-theatre-inc/item/parade-in-concert-ticket
By Phone: 972.450.6232
Or In-person: WaterTower Theatre at the Addison Theatre Centre, 15650 Addison Road, Addison, TX 75001
Email: boxoffice@watertowertheatre.org
Box Office Hours: Day of Performance - Saturday Noon-6 p.m.; Non-Performance Weeks - Tuesday-Friday Noon-6 p.m.; Closed Saturday-Monday. *The Box Office opens one hour before show time on performance days and remains open through intermission.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

KELSEY LEIGH ERVI, Director

Kelsey is thrilled to be directing Parade, a musical she's wanted to work on for years. Other directing credits include Silent Sky, Lord of the Flies, The Spark, The Santaland Diaries, The Tom Sawyer Project, Honky (WaterTower Theatre); Precious Little (Echo Theatre); Love Me, Tinder (FIT Festival, world premiere); Ask Questions Later (Rite of Passage Theatre, world premiere); and Dani Girl (Greyman Theatre Company). Kelsey is also an accomplished actor, having worked with many area theatre companies including WaterTower Theatre, Stage West, Shakespeare Dallas, Uptown Players, Echo Theatre, and Shakespeare in the Bar. When she's not directing or performing onstage, Kelsey can be heard on the Little Big Scene Podcast, a monthly podcast which serves to promote the past, present, and future of the DFW theatre community. Currently, Kelsey serves as Associate Artistic Director for WaterTower Theatre.

SCOTT A. ECKERT, Musical Director/Conductor

Prior WaterTower credits include: Company, Rockin' Christmas Party, and Smoke Joe's Café. Other music direction credits include Hedwig and the Angry Inch, The Boy from Oz, The Producers, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Next to Normal (Uptown Players); Titanic, Jane Eyre, The Human Comedy (Lyric Stage); NINE, Big River, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Main Stage); Goblin Market, Her Song (Echo Theatre); The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Little Women (Contemporary Theatre of Dallas); West Side Story, Nine to Five, Brigadoon (Garland Summer Musicals); The Hot Mikado (Theatre Three); and Fiddler on the Roof (Associate Conductor, National Tour). He has been recognized by the Dallas Theater League and The DFW Theater Critics Forum for his work as both music director and playwright.

GREGORY HULLETT, Hugh Dorsey

Greg is excited to be back at WaterTower Theatre! He debuted at WTT as Jackie Boudreaux in The Great American Trailer Park Christmas Musical. Greg was trained at KD Studio Actors Conservatory in Dallas and earned his degree in Acting Performance. Recent stage credits include: Chicago (Main Stage); Dancing at Lughnasa (Contemporary Theatre of Dallas); Catch Me If You Can (Uptown Players); Fellowship: The Musical Parody of Fellowship of the Ring (Theatre Too); and Oil (Theatre Three).

Kyle Igneczi, Britt Craig

Kyle is beyond proud to return to the WaterTower Theatre stage! Previous WTT credits include Dogfight, Bonnie & Clyde, and The Spark (Out of the Loop Fringe Festival). Other credits include Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Angels in America, Aida, Catch Me If You Can (Uptown Players); Memphis (Theatre Three); Seussical (Dallas Children's Theater); Rent, Spamalot (Casa Mañana); and The Explorers Club (Stage West / WaterTower Theatre). Kyle is also a puppeteer and puppet builder and will be teaching a course in puppetry as part of WaterTower Theatre's education program.

Luke Longacre, Tom Watson/Others

Luke has worked locally at Casa Mañana, Amphibian Stage, WaterTower Theatre, and Dallas Theater Center. Some of his other favorite non-local credits include Lincoln Center, The MUNY, Portland Center Stage, Papermill Playhouse, and 5th Avenue Theatre. He is currently attending Southern Methodist University pursuing his M.F.A. in Acting.

SARA SHELBY-MARTIN, Mrs. Phagan/Others
Sara Shelby-Martin regularly performs at theaters throughout the DFW area, appearing regularly at WaterTower Theatre, Uptown Players, Lyric Stage, Contemporary Theatre of Dallas, and Theatre Three. Recent credits include The Toxic Avenger, Godspell, The Great American Trailer Park Musical and The Great American Trailer Park Christmas Musical. When she's not on stage, Sara can be seen performing her cabaret show "The Alto Line: My Life in Harmony" at venues across DFW.

Stan Denman, Old confederate Soldier/Judge Roan

Stan is an actor, director, and playwright who lives in Waco, Texas. He was last seen in the Second Thought Theatre production of Booth. Previous to that he acted in the Out-of-the-Loop production of Craig Wright's The Unseen which went on to a run at the Cherry Lane Theatre in New York City. Stan worked with the late Horton Foote, portraying the role of "Slim" in the Drama Desk-nominated (Outstanding Revival of a Play) production of The Traveling Lady at the Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York. Doctor Denman is a professor in the Department of Theatre Arts at Baylor University.

J?D SAXTON, Mary Phagan

J?d is so happy to make her WaterTower Theatre debut! She was last seen as Lizzie in L.I.P Service's production of Trainspotting, and as Iris in Stage West's production of The Nether. Other credits include Chava in Fiddler on the Roof (Lyric Stage), Nina in Hearts Like Fists (Outcry Theatre), Margalo in the National Tour of Stuart Little (Dallas Children's Theater), Skilling's Daughter in Enron (Theatre Three), and Violet Hilton in Side Show (Pfamily Arts). J?d is also an ADR Director and Voice Actor who's voice can be heard in the anime Wolf Children, Michiko & Hatchin, Dimension W, Fairy Tail, and Space Dandy; and video games Smite, Paladins and Dragon Ball Xenoverse; in addition to her 150-plus voice-over credits for FUNimation Productions, Sentai Filmworks, and Okratron 5000.

Kyle Montgomery, Frankie Epps

Kyle's theatre credits include (Actor) National Tour: Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (National Tour); Lord of the Flies, Creep (WaterTower Theatre); Into the Woods, South Pacific (Lyric Stage); Catch Me If You Can, The Boy From Oz, Kiss of the Spider Woman (Uptown Players); A Midsummer's Night Dream, The Winter's Tale, The Comedy of Errors, The Tempest (Trinity Shakespeare Festival); Memphis (Theatre Three); and Day Light (Stage West); (Properties Designer) Ring of Fire, The Realistic Joneses (WaterTower Theatre); Venus in Fur (Co-Production with WaterTower Theatre and Circle Theatre); Lovers and Executioners, Other Desert Cities, Clever Little Lies, Under the Skin, Don't Talk to the Actors, The Taming (Circle Theatre).

SARAH Elizabeth Price, Lucille Frank

Sarah is grateful to be returning to the WaterTower Theatre stage! Previous WTT credits include Creep, Bonnie & Clyde, Putting it Together. Other Regional credits includeOrdinary Days (Our Productions); The Boy from Oz (Uptown Players); Camelot (Lyric Stage); and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Wishing Star Productions, National Tour).

Winston Daniels, Jim Conley

Winston is absolutely thrilled to be making his debut here with WaterTower. You may recognize him from Casa Mañana's productions of RENT, and Jesus Christ Superstar. Other credits include; (KWC's) Shrek the Musical - Donkey, (SSG's) Oklahoma - Mike, and (TA's) Hello Dolly. Outside of his day to day desk job with the American Association of Community Theatre, Winston teaches stilt walking/dance with Amphibian Stage Production's outreach program. He'd like to thank his friends and family for their continued support, and to WaterTower for the amazing opportunity! Be blessed and enjoy the show!

Alex Ross, Governor Slaton

Alex is happy to make his WaterTower Theatre debut in Parade. Regional credits include; Dallas Theater Center, Uptown Players, Theatre Three, Lyric Stage, Light Opera Oklahoma. TV credits include Queen of the South (USA) Murder Made Me Famous (REELZ), Revolution (NBC), and Salvation (NBC Pilot).

SETH WOMACK, Leo Frank

Seth is thrilled to be returning to the WaterTower Theatre stage, having previously been seen in The Spark, Creep, Lord of the Flies, and One Man, Two Guvnors. Other regional credits include LES MISERABLES (Dallas Theater Center & Casa Mañana); Fiddler on the Roof, The Golden Apple, Lady in the Dark, Into the Woods (Lyric Stage); andThe Light in the Piazza (Brick Road Theatre). Seth is proud to reprise the role of Leo Frank, having previously performed it in the historic Paramount Theatre's production ofParade in Abilene, TX in 2012. Seth is a 2013 graduate of Abilene Christian University with a B.F.A. in Musical Theatre.

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WaterTower Theatre, celebrating its 20th Anniversary Season, is one of the leading regional theatres in North Dallas and Texas. It is consistently recognized for its artistic excellence by the Dallas Theatre League, DFW Theatre Critics Forum, The Dallas Morning News, The Dallas Observer, D Magazine, and The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, among others. WaterTower Theatre has a subscription base of more than 2,000 subscribers and serves an audience of over 28,000 patrons annually.

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