Crocodile, Inc. to Present World Premiere Reading of New Musical THE GRASSHOPPER Next Month

CROCODILE, INC. will present a world premiere reading of a new musical, THE GRASSHOPPER, with book, lyrics and direction by Academy Award- nominee Roger Allers (The Lion King), and music & musical direction by Genaro Pereira.  THE GRASSHOPPER will perform on Saturday, October 7 at 1:00pm at Pacific Resident Theatre, 703 Venice Blvd. in Venice.

In THE GRASSHOPPER, our hero is Jean de la Fontaine, the brilliant writer of fables, whose gift is to see the animal beneath the “Mask of Respectability.” His bold criticism of tyrants pits him against Louis XIV, and so the King does everything in his power to suppress him. In spite of this, his sharp wit makes him popular with the people. We witness his fables come to life on stage as characters transform into their true animal selves. 

ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM AND CAST

Roger Allers (Book, Lyrics & Direction) is the director of one of the most successful films of all time, The Lion King.  Following that, he wrote the Tony-nominated book for the Broadway adaption of his film. During his 16 years at Disney, Roger developed story for such films as The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin.” He has also directed the independent animated feature film Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet, as well as Open Season for Sony. Roger earned an Academy Award nomination for his direction of the Disney short The Little Match Girl.  He returns to Broadway as lyricist and writer with his original musical, The Grasshopper.                                                                                                 

GENARO PEREIRA (Music, Lyrics & Musical Direction) is a concert pianist and composer, born in Zimbabwe and raised in South Africa. As a young man he performed for President Nelson Mandela and simultaneously set the “Guinness Book of Records” record for the world's highest piano performance atop Cathkin Peak.  He composes in various styles for films such as those in the Re:voir catalogue and as an inter-disciplinary artist also for his own films that were shown at the “Cannes Film Festival” Shorts Corner. During his 15 years in Paris, he worked at among other places the prestigious “Schola Cantorum” and also created and performed in various original theatre pieces such as at the “Avignon Theatre Festival”. As a soloist he performs the virtuoso piano repertoire regularly on three continents, although he has the special privilege of sharing his music with Zimbabwe. He is based in Los Angeles and Lisbon and is cross-fertilizing his Baroque music influences with his dramatic and lyrical sensibilities to create a new sound for the Broadway stage in The Grasshopper.

The cast of THE GRASSHOPPER will feature (in alphabetical order): Tomasina Abate (Love Actually Live), Julia Black (“Were the World Mine”), Abby Carlson (The Sound Of Music), Sarah Chaney (The Oath), Ashley Faatoalia (Treemonisha with Volcano), Barrett Foa (“NCIS: LA”), Michael Thomas Grant (“Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist”), Doug Kreeger (The Visit), douglas Ladnier (Jekyll & Hyde), Jonathan Ritter (Finding Neverland), and Jason Michael Snow (The Book Of Mormon). THE GRASSHOPPER will also feature Barry Tan on Piano.

The Executive Producer is Matthew Rimmer. The Production Supervisor is Jill Gold. The Stage Manager is Margaret M. Saba. The Casting Director is Annie Stuart.  General Management by LDK Productions.