Riverside Theatre Stages HELLO, DOLLY! Tonight

Riverside Theatre, led by Producing Artistic Director/CEO Allen D. Cornell and Managing Director/COO Jon R. Moses, present the enduring Broadway classic, HELLO, DOLLY!, which performs on the Stark Stage from tonight, March 8, to March 27, 2016.

Winner of ten Tony Awards, including Best Musical, HELLO, DOLLY! is one of Broadway's most delightful musical comedies. Based on the comedy The Matchmaker by Thornton Wilder, HELLO, DOLLY! tells the story of widowed matchmaker Dolly Levi, who connects, meddles and negotiates everyone's perfect match. Through a series of comedic romantic entanglements, even she finds her perfect man. Thrilling audiences for over 50 years, HELLO, DOLLY! features the irresistible, show-stopping, Jerry Herman penned songs: "Put on Your Sunday Clothes," "It Only Takes A Moment", "Before The Parade Passes By," and the unforgettable title song, "HELLO, DOLLY!".

HELLO, DOLLY! opened on Broadway in 1964 and ran for 2,844 performances. It held the record for most Tony Award wins by a show in a single year until 2001 when it was surpassed by The Producers, which won twelve.

Set in New York at the turn of the twentieth century, Dolly is a brassy widow who works as a matchmaker, dance instructor and mandolin teacher. She is hired by Horace Vandergelder, a wealthy merchant from Yonkers, NY, to find him a wife. Consequently, Dolly decides she is ready to remarry, and contrives to win Horace for herself. The first candidate, Irene Malloy, is the owner of a hat shop in Manhattan. When Horace goes to Manhattan to meet Irene, he finds some men hiding in Irene's shop and storms out in a huff. He doesn't realize the men are his clerks, Cornelius and Barnaby, who have been encourage by Dolly to pretend they are wealthy playboys when they visit the hat shop. Dolly mollifies Horace by introducing him to another candidate, the unsuitable heiress, Ernestina Money. When all characters converge at a fancy restaurant, love blossoms, matches are made, and happiness reigns.

Carol Channing was cast as Dolly in the original production when it opened at the St. James Theatre on Broadway. In the six years of the original run, many stars took over the role including Ginger Rogers, Betty Grable, Pearl Bailey, and Phyllis Diller and Ethel Merman, both of whom originally turned down the role. The original cast album was the number one album on the Billboard pop chart in 1964 and Louis Armstrong's recording of the title song, HELLO, DOLLY!, was the number one single, making Armstrong, at age 63, the oldest chart-topper ever.

Riverside Theatre's production is directed and choreographed by James Brennan and stars: Michele Ragusa as Dolly Levi, Adam Heller and Horace Vandergelder, Jeff Sears as Cornelius Hackl, Ryan Breslin as Barnaby Tucker, Jazmin Gorsline as Irene Malloy, Alyssa Malgeri as Minnie Fay, John Jeffords as Ambrose Kemper, Kristen Brooks Sandler as Ermengarde, Kara Mikula as Ernestina Money, James Beaman as Rudolph Reisenweber, Emily Esposito as Mrs. Rose, and Roger Preston Smith as Judge.

The remaining cast members include: Maddy Apple, Halley Cianfarini, Chloé O. Davis, Michael Peter Deeb, Kelsey Flannery, Chloe Fox, Danielle Marie Gregoire, Samantha Cho Grossman, Tripp Hampton, Katherine Hintz, Katie Keller, Elliott Mattox, Bethany Anjelica Menjivar, Jeremy Miranda, Linda Neel, Sean Potter, Jennifer Seifter, Adam Soniak, Lucas Thompson, Ian Thomson, Christopher Tipps, and Jake Weinstein.

The production crew includes: Anne Shuttlesworth (Music Director), Cliff Simon (Scenic Designer), Kurt Alger (Costume Designer), Julie Duro (Lighting Designer), Craig Beyrooti (Sound Designer) Mark Johnson (Production Stage Manager) and Amy M. Bertacini (Assistant Production Stage Manager). Casting was done in New York City by Wojcik / Seay Casting.

HELLO, DOLLY! performs March 8 - 27, 2016 on the Stark Stage at Riverside Theatre. Performances are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 7:30pm; Opening Night (the first Tuesday performance), Fridays, and Saturdays at 8pm; with matinees on Wednesdays, select Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 2pm. Tickets start at $35. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 772-231-6990 or online at www.riversidetheatre.com.

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