Buck Creek Players Open Indianapolis Premiere of CARRIE: THE MUSICAL Tonight

The Buck Creek Players will continue their 40th Anniversary Season "Fabulous at 40" with the Indianapolis premiere of Carrie: The Musical, opening tonight, May 30th, and continuing for a limited run three weekends through Sunday, June 15th.

Curtain times will be at 8:00 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, with 2:30 p.m. matinees offered on Sundays. All performances will be held at the Buck Creek Playhouse on the southeast side of Indianapolis at 11150 Southeastern Avenue. Tickets are $18 for adults and $16 for students (through college), and senior citizens (ages 62 and older). Reservations are recommended and may be reserved securely online with no added fees at www.buckcreekplayers.com, or by calling our automated reservation line at (317) 862-2270. Group discounts are also available for parties of ten or more when purchased online.

Based on Stephen King's bestselling novel, Carrie:The Musical tells the tale of Carrie White, a misfit bullied at school by the popular crowd and at the mercy of her cruelly over-protective mother. But Carrie's just discovered she's got a special power, and if pushed too far, she's not afraid to use it.

Originally premiering on Broadway in 1988, the authors have reworked and reimagined this gripping version which first played to audiences at the MCC Theatre Off-Broadway in 2012. Time Magazine says, "The show has guts. This score does what a musical score should do: it moves the show along, illuminates the characters and deepens the emotions. Carrie The Musical has real weight and emotional conviction."

Set today in the small town of Chamberlain, Maine, it features a book by Lawrence D. Cohen (screenwriter of the classic 1976 film directed by Brian DePalma and starring Sissy Spacek), music by Academy Award-winner Michael Gore (Fame, Terms of Endearment) and lyrics by Academy Award-winner Dean Pitchford (Fame, Footloose).

D. Scott Robinson returns to direct after most recently directing the Buck Creek Players production of Vintage Hitchcock: A Live Radio Play this past January. Joining Robinson on the production team are Lynne B. Robinson (Producer), Matthew Konrad Tippel (Musical Director), Aaron B. Bailey (Set Designer/Technical Director), Sue Kuehnhold (Costume Designer), Donald Stikeleather (Lighting Designer), Rebecca Droeger (Assistant Director), David Schlatter (Special Effects Designer), Jeff Rowand (Sound Designer), Jay Ganz (Projection Animation Designer), Daniel Klingler (Hair and Makeup Designer), and Heather Aislynn Johns (Properties).
This production is recommended for mature audiences and parental guidance is suggested due to language and adult situations.

For more information or directions to the playhouse, visit the theater's website at www.buckcreekplayers.com.

About the Writers:

LAWRENCE D. COHEN (Book) - Lawrence D. Cohen's first feature script was his adaptation of Stephen King's debut novel, CARRIE (1976). His screenplay for the classic Brian de Palma film earned him an Edgar Award nomination from the Mystery Writers of America. After beginning his career as a film/theater critic and essayist for a number of leading periodicals, he worked as an assistant to famed Broadway director-choreographer Michael Bennett on the latter's Tony Award-winning TWIGS as well as the musical SEESAW. While working for film and TV producer David Susskind, he discovered the script of ALICE DOESN'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE, and went on to become Production Executive of the 1975 Martin Scorsese film. Continuing his ongoing relationship with Stephen King in 1980, he wrote the 4-hour teleplay of IT which USA Today called "the scariest movie ever made for TV." IT and his subsequent adaptation of King's THE TOMMYKNOCKERS (1993) became two of the network's highest-rated miniseries. In 2007, he was reunited with the Master of Horror with his adaptation of "The End of the Whole Mess" for TNT's NIGHTMARES & DREAMSCAPES anthology series. The Writers Guild of America nominated the script as Best Drama.

MICHAEL GORE (Music) - In 1981, Michael won two Academy Awards for the movie FAME - one for Best Original Score, and a second for Best Song with lyricist Dean Pitchford. He was also nominated for "Out Here On My Own" from the same film, making three nominations that year. Also for FAME, he won a Golden Globe for best song, and was nominated for a Grammy. The movie's soundtrack sold in excess of 7 million copies worldwide. In 1983, he was again nominated for a Best Score Oscar for James L. Brooks' TERMS OF ENDEARMENT. His instrumental version of the movie's theme went Top 5 on the Adult Contemporary charts. He composed the original score for John Hughes' PRETTY IN PINK in 1986, and was a major contributor to the musical underscore for James L. Brooks' BROADCAST NEWS in 1987. Other scores include Albert Brooks' DEFENDING YOUR LIFE, Anthony Minghella's MR. WONDERFUL, THE BUTCHER'S WIFE, and SUPERSTAR. As a songwriter, he collaborated with lyricist Pitchford on the song "Never" for Herbert Ross' FOOTLOOSE. With lyricist Lynn Ahrens, he wrote two original songs for Todd Graff's CAMP. Notable in Michael's songwriting credits is the music for Whitney Houston's multi-platinum seller, "All The Man That I Need," which simultaneously reached #1 on the pop, adult contemporary, and rhythm and blues charts. Artists including Luther Vandross, Patti Labelle and L.L. Cool J. have performed his compositions. Michael served as the Producer for a series of nine recordings for the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. His "The Gershwins in Hollywood" won Germany's prestigious Deutsche Schalplatten Award. His Rodgers and Hammerstein's CD of THE KING AND I starring Julie Andrews and Ben Kingsley received critical acclaim, was Number One on Billboard's Classical Crossover Album chart for 17 weeks, and remained in the Top Ten for almost a year. As the album's producer, he was nominated for a Grammy and won The Billboard Award for top Crossover Recording. In addition to Executive Producing ABC's acclaimed 3-hour Special Event telefilm of Rodgers and Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC starring Glenn Close and Harry Connick, Jr., he produced all the music for the film and its soundtrack recording. As a solo recording artist, he composed and performed "October Moon" for "Song Without Words II" for Windham Hill. Upcoming musical projects include a solo piano album of his own film themes and original pop compositions. As a film producer with partner Lawrence D. Cohen, he is co-producing a 3-D feature adaptation of Stephen King's THE SUN DOG with producer Bill Haber, set to begin production this coming spring. With Cohen, he is also developing 90 DAYS, an original drama with songs that the pair will produce for The Weinstein Company, as well as an original thriller set in New York and Buenos Aires.

DEAN PITCHFORD (Lyrics) Dean Pitchford was born and raised in Hawai'i and graduated from Yale. He began his performing career off- and on-Broadway (GODSPELL, PIPPIN) before turning to songwriting, screenwriting and directing. He has been nominated for four Academy Awards (winning Best Song for FAME, co-written with Michael Gore), three Golden Globes (winning for FAME), seven Grammys and two Tonys. His songs - recorded by such artists as Barbra Streisand, Whitney Houston, Cher, Peter Allen, LL Cool Jay, Kenny Loggins, Hugh Jackman, Dolly Parton, Bette Midler and Martina McBride - have sold over 70 million records. The musical stage adaptation (co-written with Walter Bobbie) of his original screenplay for FOOTLOOSE ran for more than seven hundred performances on Broadway and is now being seen all over the world. Dean's Young Adult novels, The Big One-Oh and Captain Nobody, have been published by Putnam/Penguin, and his performances of their audiobook recordings (released by Listening Library/Random House) were both nominated for Grammy Awards. His third novel, Nickel Bay Nick, was released in 2013.

A History of Buck Creek Players: Buck Creek Players began in 1973 when the Franklin Township Civic League formed a committee to present performing arts under the name of "Four C's Theatre." On November 13, 1974, the name was changed to Buck Creek Players, Inc., and was formalized under the Indiana Not for Profit Corporation Act of 1971 (501(c)3). Initially, Buck Creek Players performed in elementary and high schools, and in October of 1978, moved to its first home, a historic church located at 7820 Acton Road. The church was built in 1872 with an addition in 1952. The main space of the building was the sanctuary which was 31 feet wide by 48 feet deep, with the stage using one-half of the space and the seating using the other half. The space enabled BCP to offer performing arts in an intimate setting for a maximum of 90 people. In 2002, the church was sold to United Faith Baptist Church. In 2001, Buck Creek Players moved into its current home, the Buck Creek Playhouse, at 11150 Southeastern Avenue. The space was originally built as an indoor tennis facility that was later converted into a church. Much of the space was rebuilt to accommodate the productions it would now house. While increasing capacity, the space is still intimate, seating a maximum of 130 people.

Photo by Aaron B. Bailey.

To post a comment, you must register and login.