1776 Opens at Paliku Theatre in September

Ticket sales are open for Paliku Theatre's fall production of Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, 1776. The show opens Friday, Sept. 2, and runs through Sunday, Sept. 18 on the Windward Community College campus.

Witness the birth of a nation as America's forefathers struggle to craft the Declaration of Independence. Our current election year presents the ideal opportunity to learn about those crucial days, 240 years ago. It was a time when our country was divided down the middle, Congress got nothing done and the Declaration of Independence almost didn't get signed because of the unwillingness of politicians to compromise.

It's the summer of 1776, and the nation is ready to declare independence ... if only our founding fathers can agree to do it! 1776 follows John Adams of Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, and Richard Henry Lee and Thomas Jefferson of Virginia as they attempt to convince delegates from the Thirteen Colonies, known as the Second Continental Congress, to vote for independence from the shackles of the British monarchy by signing the Declaration of Independence.

Because this period-musical is about the Second Continental Congress, it features an unusually male-dominant cast of 25 men and just two women. John Adams is portrayed by Eli Kent Foster, a veteran Army paratrooper and historian who received a Po?okela for his role as Tevye in the HPU production Fiddler on the Roof. John Adams' wife, AbiGail Adams, is played by Kate Sarff, an opera singer with Hawaii Opera Theatre, who has acted the role previously on the mainland. Wise and charming Benjamin Franklin, is portrayed by Brother Gary Morris, professor of performing arts at Chaminade University. Noted Virginia author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, and his bride Martha, are played by Neil Scheibelhut and Vanessa Manuel-Mazullo, who recently performed together in Promises, Promises at Diamond Head Theatre. Opinionated South Carolina delegate, Edward Rutledge, is portrayed by Laurence Paxton, chairman of the music department at UH Manoa.

1776 - The Musical is directed by Miles Philips, who returns to Hawaii after three decades in New York City and on Broadway (www.milesphillips.com). Music director is WCC piano teacher So Jin Kimura, who has accompanied all of our Ron Bright musicals for the past decade. Set design is by recent Po'okela awardee and Paliku Theatre technical director R. Andrew Doan, and light design is by Lloyd "Sandy" Riford. Costume design is by Anna Foster and sound design is by WCC graduate Toby Carvalho.

Excitement surrounding recent Broadway production Hamilton has rekindled interest in the Founding Fathers of the United States, and the hotly contested presidential election this fall provides a perfect opportunity for audiences - adults and students alike - to rediscover American history and the vital Declaration of Independence, which reminds us that compromise has always been at the heart of our success as One Nation Indivisible.

Tickets for 1776 - the Musical cost $35 for adults, $25 for students/children (ages 4-25), and $30 for seniors (62-plus), active military, UH faculty and staff. Group tickets for parties of 10 or more are available $28/person (call for group reservations). Friday and Saturday performances begin at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 4 p.m. To purchase tickets, call the Box Office at (808) 235-7310 or visit www.Paliku.com.

For more information about 1776 - The Musical at Paliku Theatre, please call (808) 235-7310

Photo credit: Tom Holowach

The Jeffersons: Vanessa Manuel-Mazullo as Martha Jefferson, Neil Scheibelhut as Thomas Jefferson

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