La Mirada Announces Cast and Creative for MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

La Mirada Theatre For The Performing Arts & McCoy Rigby Entertainment announce the cast and creative team for the West Coast premiere of Agatha Christie's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, adapted for the stage by Ken Ludwig and directed by Sheldon Epps. Agatha Christie's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS will preview on Friday, October 19, 2018 (with a press opening on Saturday, October 20 at 8pm) and perform through Sunday, November 11, 2018 at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Blvd in La Mirada.

All aboard! The exotic Orient Express is hurtling down the tracks...to a murder! With a train full of suspects and an alibi for each one, it's the perfect mystery for the dapper detective Hercule Poirot. Romantic, dramatic and sumptuous, this first-ever stage adaptation of Agatha Christie's suspenseful masterpiece comes to life in this stylish production. Book your passage today for the thrill-ride of the season!

Ken Ludwig (Adaptation) is a two-time Olivier Award-winning playwright whose work is performed throughout the world in more than thirty countries in over twenty languages. He has written twenty-five plays and musicals, with six Broadway productions and seven in London's West End. His first Broadway play, Lend Me A Tenor, won two Tony Awards and was called "one of the classic comedies of the 20th century" by The Washington Post.He has received commissions from the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Old Globe and the Bristol Old Vic, and he is a Sallie B. Goodman Fellow of the McCarter Theatre in Princeton. His awards include the Charles MacArthur Award, the Helen Hayes Award, the 2017 Samuel French Award for Sustained Excellence in the American Theatre, the SETC Distinguished Career Award, the Edgar Award for Best Mystery of the Year, and the Edwin Forrest Award for Contributions to the American Theater. His book How To Teach Your Children Shakespeare, published by Penguin/Random House, won the Falstaff Award for Best Shakespeare Book of the Year, and his essays are published by the Yale Review. His plays and musicals include Crazy For You (5 years on Broadway, Tony and Olivier Awards for Best Musical), Moon Over Buffalo (Broadway and West End, starring Carol Burnett, Lynn Redgrave and Joan Collins), The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Broadway starring Kristen Bell), Treasure Island (West End), Twentieth Century (Broadway starring Alec Baldwin), Leading Ladies, The Game's Afoot, A Fox on the Fairway, The Beaux' Stratagem, Baskerville, and A Comedy of Tenors. In 2017, his adaptation of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, written at the request of the Agatha Christie Estate, premiered at the McCarter Theatre, and his newest play, Sherwood opened at The Old Globe. He holds degrees from Harvard and Cambridge Universities. His plays and musicals are produced somewhere in the United States and abroad every night of the year. See www.kenludwig.com

Sheldon Epps (Director) was honored to be Artistic Director of the renowned Pasadena Playhouse for twenty years (1997-2017). Before beginning his tenure at the Playhouse, he served as Associate Artistic Director of the Old Globe Theatre for four years. He was also a co-founder of the Off-Broadway theatre The Production Company. Currently, he continues to serve Pasadena Playhouse as Artistic Director Emeritus. Mr. Epps has directed both plays and musicals at many of the country's major theatres including the Roundabout, Manhattan Theatre Club, the Guthrie, Playwrights Horizons, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Arena Stage, and The Goodman Theatre and Houston's Theatre Under the Stars. He conceived the highly-acclaimed musicals Play On! and Blues In the Night, which both received Tony Award nominations. He directed productions of both of those shows on Broadway, in London, and at theatres throughout the world. He also co-directed the Broadway production of Baby It's You! which had its world premiere at The Pasadena Playhouse.

He also has had a busy career as a television director, helming episodes of shows such as "Frasier," "Friends," "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Girlfriends"and many others. Mr. Epps received the James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award for his efforts and accomplishments at The Pasadena Playhouse. Under his leadership the Playhouse has earned distinction for productions of artistic excellence, critical and box office success, and highly praised theatrical diversity.

The Cast of Agatha Christie's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS will feature: Tony Amendola as "Hercule Poirot" and also (in alphabetical order) Julia Aks as "Greta Ohlsson," Hope Noel Bradley as "Daisy Armstrong," Will Block as "Hector MacQueen," Anne Gee Byrd as "Princess Dragomiroff," Brad Culver as "Michel the Conductor/Head Waiter," Christine Dunford as "Helen Hubbard," Zarah Mahler as "Countess Andrenyi," Matthew Floyd Miller as "Colonel Arbuthnot/Samuel Ratchett," Rachel Seiferth as "Mary Debenham" and Time Winters as "Monsieur Bouc."

The Design Team for Agatha Christie's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS is as follows: Scenic Design by Stephen Gifford; Lighting Design by Jared A. Sayeg; Sound Design by Josh Bessom; Costume Design by Shon LeBlanc; Hair/Wig/Makeup Design by EB Bohks; Properties Design is by Terry Hanrahan. The Casting Director is Julia Flores and the Production Stage Manager is John W. Calder III.

Agatha Christie's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS was originally staged by McCarter Theater Center, Princeton, NJ (Emily Mann, Artistic Director, Timothy J. Shields, Managing Director). The production subsequently transferred to Hartford Stage, Harford, CT (Darko Tresnjak, Artistic Director, Michael Stotts, Managing Director).

Agatha Christie's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS will preview on Friday, October 19, 2018 (with a press opening onSaturday, October 20 at 8pm) and perform through Sunday, November 11, 2018 at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Blvd in La Mirada.

Performances are Wednesdays & Thursdays at 7:30pm; Fridays at 8:00pm;

Saturdays at 2:00pm & 8:00pm & Sundays at 2:00pm. There will be no performance on Saturday, October 20 at 2:00pm.

There will be an Open-Captioned performance on Saturday, November 3 at 2:00pm and an ASL-interpreted performance on Saturday, November 10 at 2:00pm. Talkbacks with the cast and creative team will be on Wednesday, October 24 and Wednesday, November 7.

Tickets range from $20 - $84 (prices subject to change) and can be purchased at La Mirada Theatre's website, www.lamiradatheatre.com or by calling the La Mirada Theatre Box Office at (562) 944-9801 or (714) 994-6310. Student, Senior and group discounts are available. $15 Student Tickets available for the first 15 performances of the production.

LA MIRADA THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS is located at 14900 La Mirada Boulevard in La Mirada, near the intersection of Rosecrans Avenue where the 91 and 5 freeways meet. Parking is free.

 

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