PAGEANT - THE MUSICAL Opens Off-Broadway Tonight

After a sold-out benefit run for BC/EFA this February, PAGEANT - THE MUSICAL returns in a limited Off-Broadway engagement at The Davenport Theatre (354 West 45th Street). Previews began Sunday, June 29, 2014, and the show will officially open tonight, July 14, 2014. The cast of tiara-crazed beauties includes Nick Cearley ("The Skivvies"),Nic Cory (Signs of Life), Alex Ringler (West Side Story), Marty Thomas (Wicked, Xanadu), Seth Tucker (Our Kiki), and Curtis Wiley (Motown), with John Bolton (A Christmas Story, "Gossip Girl") as the host.

The show will play Sundays at 7:30 pmand Mondays at 7 pm and 10 pm through Monday, September 1, 2014.

Like every beauty pageant you've seen before, PAGEANT features contestants desperately vying for a glittering tiara. With swimsuit, talent, and evening gown competitions - the show includes both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat! Unlike some beauty pageants you've seen before, the female contestants are all played by men. And the audience gets to select the winner each night. Filled with excitement and suspense, but first and foremost, beauty. Let the beauty begin!

PAGEANT has book and lyrics by two-time Tony nominee Bill Russell (Side Show, The Last Smoker in America) and Frank Kelly with music by Albert Evans and was conceived byRobert Longbottom. Matt Lenz directs, with choreography by Shea Sullivan, music supervision by Mark Hartman, music direction by Micah Young, scenic design by Paul Tate DePoo III, costumes by Stephen Yearick, lighting by Paul Miller & Kirk Fitzgerald, sound by David Sanderson, and casting by Benton Whitley / Duncan Stewart and Company. PAGEANT is produced by SAS Productions, Kitty Potapow, Drew Desky, and Michelle R. Rogers. ABS Productions serves as Executive Producer.

PAGEANT debuted Off-Broadway in 1991 at the Blue Angel in New York where it ran for more than a year before playing successful engagements on the West End and around the world.Pageant was last seen this February in a sold-out five-show special engagement that benefitted Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS at the Red Lacquer Club, which was the first time it had returned to the New York stage in more than twenty years.

JOHN BOLTON (Frankie Cavallier) received critical acclaim starring on Broadway as The Old Man in A Christmas Story: The Musical. For his performance he received a Footlight Award, a Drama Desk nomination, and was named to several publications' Top Ten lists. He originated the role of Daryl Grady in Broadway's Curtains, and was in the original Broadway casts of Spamalot, Contact and Titanic, all three of which won the Tony for Best Musical. He made his Broadway debut alongside Jerry Lewis in Damn Yankees and starred as Finch during Matthew Broderick's leave of absence in How to Succeed... He has worked extensively Off-Broadway and as a cabaret performer. He recently made his Carnegie Hall debut in the all-starGuys and Dolls In Concert. Other New York concert appearances include Chess with Josh Groban and Chance and Chemistry with Sir Paul McCartney. He has performed as soloist with The New York Philharmonic and with symphonies across the country. Mr. Bolton recently headlined productions of Clybourne Park, Same Time Next Year, Young Frankenstein and The Music Man and just completed the role of Frank in San Francisco Opera's Show Boat, filmed for PBS. Mr. Bolton's television work includes four seasons as Bruce Caplan on "Gossip Girl", guest-starring roles on "Boardwalk Empire", "The Good Wife", "Law and Order", and "Ed" and recurring roles on "All My Children" and "As the World Turns". He is a producer/writer of the viral video "Russian Broadway Shutdown" and is a frequent host of theatre-related events all across the city. Follow him on Twitter @ItsJohnBolton

Photo Credit: Walter McBride