Snowlion Rep Receives Grants For Production Of New Musical MESMERIZED

Snowlion Rep, a nonprofit professional theater company in Portland, announces receipt of two grants funding production of the new musical Mesmerized which will perform May 3 - 12 at Portland Ballet Studio Theater in Portland.

The Davis Family Foundation has awarded a grant of $5000 for the project. This is Snowlion Rep's first grant from that foundation.

The Davis Family Foundation is a public charitable foundation established by Phyllis C. Davis and H. Halsey Davis of Falmouth, Maine, to support educational, medical and cultural/arts organizations located primarily in Maine. Visit www.davisfoundations.org for more information.

The Maine Community Foundation has awarded a grant of $3000 for Mesmerized. Snowlion Rep received funding from MCF last season for its production of the world premiere play A Cherry Orchard in Maine.

With offices in Ellsworth and Portland, the Maine Community Foundation works with donors and other partners to improve the quality of life for all Maine people. To learn more about the foundation, visit www.mainecf.org.

The two grants will be used to help pay artists' fees for the project. Snowlion Rep is grateful for this strong foundation support for its mission of bringing new and newly imagined works of cultural, ethical, and spiritual value to Maine stages.

Mesmerized is a new musical with book by Al D'Andrea, music by Darryl Curry, and lyrics by MK Wolfe. Set in 1777 Vienna, Mesmerized is the true story of Dr. Anton Mesmer, now regarded as the father of modern hypnosis, and the scandal that erupted when he restored the sight of the young blind prodigy pianist Theresa Paradies using the radical curative technique and invisible force he called "animal magnetism."

The show plunges the audience into Mesmer's world at the dawn of the Age of Reason, populated with real-life characters including Mozart, Benjamin Franklin, the Queen Empress of the Holy Roman Empire, and others - all 100% true encounters had by the infamous doctor, presented in dramatic musical theater format with an ample dose of humor throughout. The music is a classically-based contemporary musical theater score played entirely on piano.

A concert reading performance of Mesmerized was held during the first ever PortFringe at the St Lawrence Arts Center in Portland in 2012. Subsequent rewrites have led to the current script, which will have its world premiere outing as part of Snowlion Rep's 2018-2019 season.

The show will perform May 3 - 12 at Portland Ballet Studio Theater. Tickets and more information can be found at www.snowlionrep.org or by calling (207) 518-9305.

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