New Casting Announced for World Premiere BREAKING OUT OF SUNSET PALACE

Queensbury Theatre is proud to announce the cast for the world premiere of Breaking Out of Sunset Place, playing January 24 - February 10, 2019.

Krissy Richmond as Emmy - former principal dancer with the Houston Ballet. Roles she created include: Carabosse in the Sleeping beauty, the mad woman from Peer Gynt, Mimi in the Miraculous Mandarin, the Girl in the Red Dress from Ghost Dances, the Snow Queen and the Sugar Plum Fairy from the Nutcracker, the Dark Angel from Serenade, In the Night, Bartok Concerto, and the original cast of Paul Taylor's Company B. Upon leaving the ballet, Miss Richmond began a career performing featured and principal roles on Broadway which include: Hunyak and Roxie Hart from the musical Chicago, the Queen n Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake, and Elizavetta Grushinskaya in the Grand Hotel. She has performed locally as guest artist in Big Love for the University of Houston, Man from Nebraska at Stages Repertory Theater, Dorothy Shaw in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and guest artist as Ginger Rogers in Houston Grand Opera's Die Fledermaus, Most recently, she performed the starring role of Anna in the New Girl in Town. Miss Richmond has choreographed for the Alley Theater, Stages Repertory Theater, the Humphrey's School, and won the 2015 Tommy Tune Award for Best Choreography for A Chorus Line and 2016 Tommy Tune award for Hairspray with the Kinkaid School. In 2017and 2018, Ms. Richmond won back to back awards for Best Choreography from the Houston Press. 2017 for the AD Players production of Godspell and 2018 for the Obsidian Theater's production of Cabaret. Most recently, Ms. Richmond choreographed and staged the 4th Wall production of Pride and Prejudice. It is an honor to be performing at Queensbury.

Michele Harrell as Maudie - is thrilled to be making her Queensbury Theatre debut in Breaking Out of Sunset Place. She recently played Isabella Simmons in the Ensemble Theatre's Black Box production of Jimmy. At the Alley All New Festival, she appeared in Tender Mercies (Mrs. Hotchkiss/Ada). Other roles at the Ensemble include: Sassy Mamas (Mary); World premiere of Front Porch Society (Carrie). She has appeared in plays in New York and Los Angeles. One of her favorite roles is M'Lynn in Steel Magnolias. She has appeared in over 30 film and television shows. In addition, she has worked with Mashirika Performing Arts in Kigali, Rwanda. She is a graduate of Brown University and received an M.A. in Applied Theater Arts from the University of Southern California.

Mary Hooper as Olivia - has been active in the Houston theater scene for over thirty years, with appearances ranging from back room piano bars, improvised warehouse performance spaces, to more sophisticated venues such as the the Alley and Stages. She made her debut in 1978 in the Houston premiere of "The Rocky Horror Show" at Equinox Theater. Other credits from that time include "Why Hannah's Skirt Won't Stay Down", and "Neon Woman". Mary was a founding member of the company at Stages Repertory Theater, where her credits include "Blue Window", "Carnal Knowledge", "Hair", "Man of La Mancha", "Leader of the Pack", "Little Shop of Horrors", and the late night delight "Vampire Lesbians of Sodom". In contrast, she was also busy with Early Stages, for young audiences. Children of that era may also remember Mary as Miss Allegro, the beehive wearing hostess of Channel 39's Disney Afternoon. Denizens of the old Montrose neighborhood might recall her from "Women Behind Bars", "The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told", and "The Secret Tapes of Jesus" ( which she also produced and directed). Credits at Theater LaB Houston include "The Little Dog Laughed", "True Love Lies", "A Class Act", "Box Office of the Damned", "Johnny Guitar",, "Cooking With Elvis", and "The Book of Liz". She appeared in Celebration Theater's "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" and "Jezebel and Me" at Queensbury Theatre.

Jennifer Doctorovich as Elizabeth & Ensemble - Houston: Queensbury Playhouse (Shakin the Blue

Flamingo); Next Iteration Theater Company (Turquoise); Celebration Theater (Gay Marriage Plays, Beebo Brinker); Bootown Fringe Festival (Lemon Drops [writer/actor/]); Main Street Theater (Out of This World, Uncle Vanya); Theater Lab Houston (Unidentified Human Remains...,Assassins, Box Office of the Damned); HSF (A Winter's Tale); Stages (Broken Glass); Actor's Theater (Life with Father, The Torchbearers); New Heights Theater (The Glass Mendacity, Good Night Desdemona...) New York: Hotel Oubliette (with Austin Pendleton), The Glass Mendacity (Actor/Producer with the Genesius Guild); CalArts (Vinegar Tom, Shakespeare's Women, Flying Blind, Educating Rita) Film/TV: My 600lb Life (as Jennifer Doctorovich), Pollock, Law and Order. Jennifer received her BFA from the California Institute of the Arts and is a member of Actor's Equity, SAG and AFTRA.

Joyce Anastasia Murray as Charlotte & Ensemble - was last seen at Queensbury Theate in SHAKIN' THE BLUE FLAMINGO. She has been seen in Main Street Theater's productions of AKEELAH AND THE BEE and WOOF. The Ensemble Theatre in 8 TH DAY OF THE WEEK, THE NACIREMA SOCIETY, DANCE ON WIDOW'S ROW, WAITING TO BE INVITED, and BUSES. Stages Repertory Theatre: TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, WORLD OF BEAUTY and PACIFIC OVERTURES. Theatre Under the Stars in LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, BELLS ARE RINGING, SHOWBOAT and SOUTH PACIFIC. Joyce also serves on the board of the Landing Theatre.

Brandon Morgan as Mr. Phinex & Ensemble - has been a professional actor for six years. In that time he has been blessed to be involved in over 50 productions and has worked for many theatres; Stages Repertory Theatre, Houston Grand Opera, The Alley Theatre, Main Street Theatre, Ensemble Theatre, & Express Theatre. He studied Theatre Arts at Prairie View A&M University, some of his works include: The Piano Lesson, Macbeth, Platanos Y Collard Greens, Tristan & Isolde, Before It Hits Home, and My Manana Comes. Brandon's only intent is to be as versatile and as natural as an actor can be.

Breaking Out of Sunset Place is a geriatric "Thelma and Louise plus One" comedy. Two best friends Maudie and Emmy decide to take back their independence, "commandeer a car" and break out of Sunset Place. But when Emmy's dreaded roommate Olivia learns of their plans, they are forced to take her with them or she will tell! Each woman has her own reason for the break out. We root for, laugh and cry with these feisty ladies on their cross-country romp, from Texas to Louisiana on to Georgia, heading for Florida. There's something for everyone in this fall-off-your chair funny and heartfelt story of the ladies of Sunset Place! By Texas playwright Patricia Barry Rumble.

"I'm thrilled to be part of an all-female producing team and having theatre-veteran Marley Singletary direct only adds to the strength of this world premiere. I look forward to seeing audiences leave their age at the door and experience a hilarious tale of 3 seniors on the run," said Roselle Baldwin, Managing Producer.

Pantheon Producers aims to produce compelling, character-driven, commercial narratives that are also inclusive and entertaining. We strive to populate our projects with women, in front of and behind the camera, and to encourage ethnic and cultural diversity in support of stories that have universal appeal and resonance.

Our founders, Alicia Goodrow, Donna Fujimoto Cole, and Deborah Kainer, are trailblazing women who have excelled in businesses that are not traditionally considered female driven. They routinely ignored conventional wisdom and in the process created entirely new and successful business paradigms. They approach the entertainment industry with the same innovative, idiosyncratic, and pragmatic ethos.

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