Luna Stage West Presents RAZORHURST: A New Musical

Razorhurst, a new musical commissioned by Luna Stage, will begin performances February 1 and run through March 4, as the second show in Luna's 25th anniversary season. The show is directed by Luna's Artistic Director Cheryl Katz with book and lyrics by Kate Mulley and music composed by Andy Peterson. The two person cast features Catherine Fries Vaughn as Kate Leigh and Claire McClanahan Tilly Devine, both are New Jersey based performers.

In 1929, the streets of Sydney, Australia ran with blood as a pair of notorious crime bosses led their rival empires to war. The twist? These two crime bosses were women. Kate Leigh and Tilly Devine spent years battling for control of the booze, drug, and prostitution trades. This new musical traces their historical reign as queens of their domains, and asks if they were truly evil ladies - or just enterprising women ahead of their time.

Performances start Thursday, February 1 and run through Sunday, March 4. Luna Theater is located at 555 Valley Road in West Orange, NJ and is part of the Valley Arts District. For tickets and more information visit the Luna website www.lunastage.org or call the Box Office (973) 395-5551.

Please note: Razorhurst contains graphic language.

Kate Mulley (Book and Lyrics) is a playwright, librettist/lyricist, producer, dramaturg, and founding member of Vox Theater. Her plays have been developed and performed on three continents at theatres including Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center, Dixon Place, the Flea, Theatre503, and the Soho Theatre. Kate has been a Playwriting Fellow at Shanghai Theatre Academy, a Tennessee Williams Scholar at the Sewanee Writers Conference, a finalist for the Juilliard Playwriting Fellowship, a semi-finalist for the O'Neill, Princess Grace, ATHE Playwriting Award and Bay Area Playwrights Festival, and an Artist in Residence at the Catwalk Institute and the Nantucket Island School of Design and Art. She graduated from Dartmouth College with a degree in Theater and History, received an MA in Writing for Performance at Goldsmiths College, London, and an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University. In addition to Razorhurst, Kate and Andy Peterson are currently developing Outlaw, a new musical about Australian outlaw Ned Kelly with director Benita de Wit.

Andy Peterson (Music) is a New York-based composer, musical director, arranger, and orchestrator who has worked around the world. Born and raised in Australia, Andy began his training in music at the late age of 15, taking quickly to the piano and composition. He holds a Bachelor of Music (Composition) from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. He is currently the Musical Director for the Off-Broadway show Red Roses, Green Gold, featuring the music of Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter. As a composer, he recently contributed music and orchestrated songs for the film Happy Yummy Chicken starring Taryn Manning (Orange is the New Black). He composed the score for the original musical, Stalker, to which Theatre in the Now described as "fun and catchy filled with zingers" after playing successful runs in the New York City and Chicago. He also regularly creates film scores for award winning artist, Todd Fuller, which have played all across Australia and around the world. As an arranger/orchestrator, Andy has worked extensively around the world helping to create new theatre and has been praised by the NEW YORKER for his "lovely vocal arrangements". His credits include: Atomic (Off-Broadway, Sydney & Detroit), More Than All The World (Theatre For The New City), Sinbad: The Musical (Malaysia), Wendy's Shadow (NYMF), Orpheus and the Underworld (Sydney).

Cheryl Katz (Director) has been with Luna Stage since 2003. She served as Director of Play Development for eight years before becoming Associate Artistic Director in 2011. She was appointed Artistic Director in 2013. During her time at Luna, she has contributed to the development of over fifty new works for the stage and has directed the world premieres of Tranquil by Andrew Rosendorf, The High Water Mark and King of the Mountains by Ben Clawson, Carnaval by Nikkole Salter, Mercy and The Firefly by Amy Hartman, The Fastest Woman Alive by Karen Sunde, the NJ professional premiere of Thrill Me by Stephen Dolginoff, and all three Luna productions of The Man In Room 306 by Craig Alan Edwards (1995 and 2008 in New Jersey, 2010 in New York). Prior to her position at Luna, Cheryl developed and directed new plays in the New York area and worked as a producer, administrator and special projects manager for LaMama E.T.C., Under One Roof, Electronic Arts Intermix, Arts International and The School of Hard Knocks. She has worked in script development for The Young Playwrights Festival, The O'Neill Theatre Conference and The Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey and is a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

Cast Bios:

Catherine Fries Vaughn (Katy) made her Broadway debut in "Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?" She played opposite Anjelica Huston in the L.A. production of "Tamara," and she was in the L.A. company of "CATS," and the national tour of "Beauty and the Beast." She received a Los Angeles Dramalogue Critics' Award for her performance as Eva in Evita. She has portrayed Mary Todd Lincoln in Civil War Voices at The Midtown International Theater Festival, and The York Theater play reading series in New York City. Regional credits include Norma, in Sunset Blvd at Cohoes Music Hall, and Paper Moon, at The Goodspeed Opera House, and The Walnut Street Theater. As a company member of The Hippodrome Theater of Gainesville, Florida, she has performed in many productions including, The Great American Trailer Park Musical, The Memory of Water, The Carpetbagger's Children, and most recently in the play, "Becky's New Car." Catherine is on the advisory board of Central Alabama Theater, and has performed there in The Bikinis, as well as her one-woman show, "Judy Calls: The Music of Judy Garland". Currently, Catherine is based out of Weehawken, New Jersey where she shares a home with her husband and daughter.

Claire McClanahan (Tilly) was last seen in Luna Stage Company's 2016 production of "Old Love, New Love" and couldn't be happier to be back. As an actor she has appeared Off-Broadway, in regional theater, and independent film projects. Most recently, she has appeared in the web series, "Rent a Friend" (Brooklyn Web Fest, NYC Web Fest) and short film, "My Daughter," written/directed by Dana Verde (The Perfect Match). As a writer/producer, her work has been honored at the Gracie Allen, Telly, and New England Emmy Awards and screened at the Arizona and LA Shorts Film Festivals. She has most recently completed a new documentary series with Guinness World Records / Facebook, and is developing a new narrative series with director, Tracie Laymon (recently named to IFC's list of emerging "Icons"), writer Vanessa Stewart (Stoneface, Louis and Keely: Live at the Sahara), and star, French Stewart (Third Rock From The Sun, Mom, Seinfeld, The Larry Sanders Show, Just Shoot Me, The Drew Carey Show and News Radio.) Her debut feature film, "Carbon," was a semi-finalist in the 2016 Nashville Film Festival Screenwriting competition, is an official project in the Big Vision Empty Wallet film/media incubator, and was a finalist for the 2017 Tribeca Film Institute All-Access and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Grants. Carbon will begin filming in Spring 2018. clairemcclanahan.com, carbonthefilm.com.

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