Photo Flash: Rock Odyssey THE PORTAL Celebrates Opening Night Off-Broadway

The New York premiere of THE PORTAL began an Off-Broadway open-ended run on October 27, 2016 at the Minetta Lane Theatre. THE PORTAL is a rock odyssey conceived and directed by Luke Comer, with original music composed by Tierro Lee and Luke Comer, starring Billy Lewis Jr. (Mason McCarthy on the Fox series "Glee"), and choreographed by Jessica Chen. Opening night was Saturday, December 3, and BroadwayWorld has photos from the festivities below!

Pulsing with tribal rock, trance and electronic beats, THE PORTAL is part rock concert, part movie, and part performance. Enter THE PORTAL as we follow Dante through majestic deserts and alpine mountains as he seeks the beautiful and mysterious Beatrice while also being pursued by his own inner-demons. Is his quest real? A dream? Or an allegory of our own desire for transformation? Inspired by Burning Man, Pink Floyd, EDM, and world mythology, THE PORTAL not only entertains but also immerses the audience in a modern shamanic journey of transcendence and empowerment.

THE PORTAL's soundtrack album is composed by Tierro Lee (formerly of the band Kan'Nal) and Luke Comer. Upon the show's move to NYC, music producers Charles Newman (Magnetic Fields, Soko) and David Sisko (Passion Pit, Bryan Ferry) were brought on by Comer to enhance the original tracks from the show. THE PORTAL soundtrack was released on December 2. Some songs are based on Tierro's original compositions that have been adapted to the show, and others are collaborations between the two. Additional lyrics were written by Daniel Katsuk (from the band Katsuk). Two songs licensed for the show include "Space Weaver," from Lisa Gerrard (of the band Dead Can Dance), a Golden Globe Award winner for the music score to the film Gladiator, and "Space Child," from the band Kan'Nal.

The performers include lead vocalist/frontman Billy Lewis Jr. (Fox's "Glee," The Who's Tommy, Spring Awakening, Hedwig & the Angry Inch), dancers Marija Juliette Abney (Broadway's After Midnight, Anna Nicole with New York City Opera), Jessica Aronoff (company member of J CHEN PROJECT & Eryc Taylor Dance) and Nicole Spencer (Dirty Dancing national tour, "Saturday Night Live"), on-screen actors Christopher Soren Kelly (Ink) and Zarah Mahler (Broadway's Soul Doctor, Emily Raydor on TNT's "Major Crimes"), and Joey Calveri (Broadway's Rock of Ages & Wonderland). Live music is performed by guitarist Paul Casanova and percussionist Gilly Gonzalez.

The creative team includes Sound Designer Peter Fitzgerald (Broadway's Sylvia & All The Way), Lighting Designer Traci Klainer Polimeni (The Most Deserving with Women's Project), Scenic Consultants Peter Feuchtwanger and David Goldstein, Costume Designer Liene Dobraja and Associate Director Paul Stancato (Jekyll and Hyde, The Lion King & The Wedding Singer national tours).

The production team includes Grace Starr (Associate Producer), Gregg Bellón (Production Stage Manager), Mogul Productions/Jill Bowman (General Management), PRF Productions (Production Supervisor), Charles Newman (Music Consultant), Amanda Bohan Marketing (Advertising/Marketing/Social Media), Wojcik/Seay Casting (Casting) and Krista Robbins (Company Manager).

The Minetta Lane Theatre is located at 18 Minetta Lane between MacDougal Street and 6th Avenue in New York City. Performances are Wednesdays - Fridays at 8pm and Saturdays at 5pm and 9pm. Tickets, from $49 to $69 with premium seating at $89, are on sale for all shows through December 31. Visit www.TicketMaster.com or call 1-800-745-3000.

Photo Credit: Russ Rowland