Zakrin, Bundy Share The Spotlight As Elle In TPAC's LEGALLY BLONDE 6/15-6/29

LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL, presented by BMI, premieres at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center's Andrew Jackson Hall, June 23-28, 2009, as part of HCA/TriStar Broadway at TPAC.

Becky Gulsvig, who has received rave reviews for her performance as Elle Woods in the national tour of LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL, will be on vacation June 15-29, 2009. Stepping in to fill Elle's shoes once again are two actresses very familiar with the role: Lauren Ashley Zakrin, star of the MTV reality series, "Legally Blonde The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods," and Laura Bell Bundy, the Tony-nominated star of the Broadway Production. Zakrin will cover the role during the Dayton, OH engagement June 16-21, 2009.

Bundy, who recently has relocated to Nashville to pursue a country music career, will perform as Elle Woods during all evening performances at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center, June 23-28, 2009. Zakrin will perform during the matinee performances at TPAC.

"We are extremely fortunate to have these two amazingly talented actresses, who know this role inside and out, ready at a moment's notice to hit the stage," said producer Mike Isaacson.

Sorority star Elle Woods doesn't take "no" for an answer. So when her boyfriend dumps her for someone more "serious," Elle puts down the credit card, hits the books, and sets out to go where no Delta Nu has gone before: Harvard Law. Along the way, Elle proves that being true to yourself never goes out of style.

"The excitement of having LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL at TPAC has been building since we announced the title last spring. We're wrapping up our 2008-2009 season with a show that is absolutely, outrageously fun," said Kathleen O'Brien, TPAC's president and CEO. "And what a nice opportunity for Nashville audiences to welcome two amazing Elles to TPAC's stage. We've got an MTV star as well as a budding country star! Lauren Ashley Zakrin has made quite a name for herself since the MTV reality show aired. And we're thrilled to welcome Laura Bell Bundy back to the TPAC stage; she's performed as part of Broadway Meets Country as well as for our annual Fest de Ville Gala fundraiser in 2008, and seeing her in the role she originated and received a Tony nomination for will be a fantastic treat. Getting tickets is just a bend and snap away, so don't miss the chance."

In its first year on Broadway, LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL earned seven 2007 Tony Award nominations, ten 2007 Drama Desk Award Nominations, a 2007 Outer Critics Circle Award and the chorus of the musical was honored by Actors' Equity Association's Advisory Committee on Chorus Affairs (ACCA) with the first ever ACCA Award. The musical also ranked in the top ten list of the most requested Ticketmaster "Arts & Theatre Events" for 2007. LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL received three 2009 Touring Broadway Awards in New York City on May 4, 2009. The show won awards for Best New Musical, Best Production Design and Best Choreography of a Touring Production. The Awards, presented by The Broadway League, honor excellence in Touring Broadway. It is the only such national award.

Becky Gulsvig, the Elle understudy in the original Broadway cast, is Elle Woods in the tour. Fans of the MTV reality show "Legally Blonde The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods", which premiered on June 2, 2008, will recognize two familiar faces in the tour casting: Third runner-up Rhiannon Hansen plays Elle's best friend Margot and fourth runner-up Lauren Zakrin is an ensemble member and will cover the role of Elle while Ms. Gulsvig is out on vacation. The reality show represented the musical's second venture with MTV. In the fall of 2007, MTV aired LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL in its entirety to stellar ratings and was subsequently nominated for two 2007-2008 Daytime Emmy Awards.

The Original Broadway Cast Recording for LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL was released on Ghostlight Records, an imprint of Sh-K-Boom Records, and captured the #1 slot on the Billboard Cast Album chart and charted at #86 on the Billboard Top 200. The album has continued its success, charting every week as one of the top-selling Broadway cast recordings and soared to the Top 10 albums (of any genre) on iTunes once the show premiered on MTV.

As on Broadway, Tony Award-winner Jerry Mitchell is the director and choreographer. Music and lyrics are by both Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin, and the book is by Heather Hach. The production features scenic design by David Rockwell, costume design by Gregg Barnes, lighting design by Kenneth Posner and Paul Miller, orchestrations by Christopher Jahnke and sound design by Acme Sound Partners.

LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL is produced on tour by Hal Luftig, Fox Theatricals and Dori Berinstein, in association with MGM Onstage, Darcie Denkert and Dean Stolber.

Tickets for LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL range from $22.50-74.50, and are available at the TPAC Box Office (Downtown or at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in The Mall at Green Hills), online at www.tpac.org/legallyblonde, or any Ticketmaster outlet, including area Kroger stores and Macy's. Tickets may also be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at 615/255-ARTS (2787). Tickets for groups of 15 or more are available by calling 615/782-4060 or contacting groups@tpac.org. For more information, please visit www.tpac.org/legallyblonde.

LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL is part of the HCA/TriStar Broadway at TPAC season, and is presented by BMI. The media sponsors for LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL are The Tennessean, WSMV Channel 4, and WRVW 107.5 The River. Institutional sponsors for TPAC include American Airlines, Coca-Cola and Dasani. Nissan is a Sustaining Partner for TPAC.

The Tennessee Performing Arts Center is a private, non-profit corporation dedicated to providing and supporting the presentation of the performing arts to the citizens of Tennessee. Its four stages are home to Broadway in Nashville at TPAC, Nashville Ballet, Nashville Opera, Tennessee Repertory Theatre and a variety of special engagements. TPAC administers one of the largest and most comprehensive arts-in-education programs in the United States, offering learning opportunities for children and adults. The organization has served more than 1.5 million students from pre-school to high school over the past two decades. For more information, visit the web site, www.tpac.org.

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