Melissa Gilbert, Abigail Breslin, and More To Star In RUNAWAY HOME Industry Reading

The new musical "Runaway Home" with book/lyrics by Darren J. Butler and music/lyrics by Judy Rodman will receive a 2-week developmental staged reading at NYC's Theatre Row this fall. Directed by Emma Denson and music directed by EMMY-winner Sean P. Pallatroni, the piece will be presented by an award-winning cast and creative team.

The principal cast will feature Oscar nominee Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine, The Miracle Worker, Signs, Scream Queens) as Kit, Melissa Gilbert (Little House on the Prairie, The Miracle Worker) as Mrs. D'Angelo, Michael Park (Dear Evan Hansen, Stranger Things) as Father Liam, Olivia Hardy (Kimberly Akimbo) as Aleah, Ellis Gage (James & The Giant Peach, Next To Normal) as Steve, Max Bartos (Sing Street) as The Preacher, Ali Gallo (Unhuman, The Sex Lives of College Girls) as Lil' C, Cadence Baker (American Idol 2022: Top 20, Peter and the Starcatcher) as Pyper, King Orba as Duke, and Mat Hayes as Shorty. The ensemble will include Dani Apple, Freedom Bremner, Albert Guerzon, and Cassandra Kubinski, with Michael Boxleitner reading stage direction.

The story follows 21-year-old Aleah, former internet music sensation, now human trafficking victim as she fakes her death to escape her circumstances of forced sex work. She is taken into a sanctuary; a small, run-down Catholic Church, by a clergyman who has opened his doors to the homeless where she befriends a disabled young man known to everyone as "The Preacher." However, when her owner whom she has escaped learns she is alive, capture is just a breath away.

Set against the backdrop of urban America, this soft-pop/rock musical tackles relevant themes of teen homelessness and trafficking, the staggering statistics of which are seldom reported but growing each year. Featuring a predominantly female cast, with a powerhouse lead in Aleah, Runaway Home is a call to combat the needless death and destruction of our nation's most vulnerable, and offers sanctuary to anyone who feels trapped, outcast, and alone.

"We're excited to be attaching some incredible talent to the project," Butler said. The show has been a twenty year odyssey for the writing duo, who debuted the show regionally in 2006 and 2008. "It's all in the timing, and the time is finally right for 'Runaway Home.' It's a unique sort of reading. The world of "Runaway Home" is big - we have materials in place for the stage musical as well as a television series."

Two monologues from the show were published in Young Women's Monologues from Contemporary Plays #2 edited by Gerald Ratfliff. "One of those monologues still exists in the show," Butler added. "The other was transformed into an incredible song called, 'Light a Candle' sung by the protagonist."

Produced by Bartos Entertainment Group and general managed by Visceral Entertainment, the showings will take place on September 21st and 22nd at 2pm, and will be open to producers, directors and other industry professionals of the stage and film. Visit www.runawayhomethemusical.com to follow the show's journey.