Stephen Hanna Joins the Cast of SILENCE! Tonight

Beginning tonight, September 19th, Stephen Hanna will be the new Dream Hannibal in Off-Broadway's SILENCE! The Musical at the new Elektra Theatre in the heart of Times Square. The Elektra Theatre has been specially constructed to be the new home of SILENCE! and is located at 669 Eighth Avenue (at 42nd St.)

Winner of the 2012 Off Broadway Alliance Award for Best Musical, SILENCE! The Musical is the unauthorized parody of The Silence of the Lambs, with book by Hunter Bell, music & lyrics by Jon and Al Kaplan, and direction & choreography by Tony Award winner Christopher Gattelli.

In the Academy Award-winning film The Silence of the Lambs, rookie FBI agent Clarice Starling matches wits with the brilliant but insane cannibal, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, to catch the serial killer known only as Buffalo Bill. Clarice faces her own demons while racing the clock to unlock Lecter's clues before another innocent girl is killed and skinned by Buffalo Bill. The laugh-out-loud raunchy satire, SILENCE! The Musical, features a singing chorus of floppy eared lambs narrating the action as Buffalo Bill gleefully dances a hoedown while kidnapping hapless Catherine Martin. Even Dr. Lecter, scary as ever, sings about the life he'd like to lead someday outside the prison walls.

Stephen Hanna played Older Billy in the original Broadway cast of Billy Elliot and he starred as Sid in the national tour of Come Fly Away. Stephen joined New York City Ballet in 1997, and in 2005 was promoted to the rank of principal dancer.

Married with Children star David Garrison (Hannibal Lecter) and Jenn Harris (Clarice Starling) head the cast of SILENCE! The Musical, which also features David Ayers, Harry Bouvy, Ashlee Dupré, Howard Kaye, Topher Nuccio, Ronica V. Reddick, Kimberly Stern, Pamela Bob and Doug Trapp.

Created by Jon and Al Kaplan in 2002, SILENCE! The Musical began as a collection of songs on the internet which immediately attracted a staggering number of fans. The Kaplans' subsequent screenplay SILENCE! The Musical was adapted by Hunter Bell into a live stage show, which also featured newly composed songs by the brothers. Fueled by a rabid cult following, SILENCE! shattered every box office record at the 2005 FringeNYC Festival, winning the award for Best Musical. SILENCE! met with further success in London where it garnered ecstatic reviews at the Above The Stag Theatre.

Set design for SILENCE! The Musical is by three-time Tony winner Scott Pask, with costume design by David Kaley, lighting design by Jeff Croiter, and sound design by Carl Casella.

SILENCE! The Musical has hosted an unusually large number of celebrity attendees over the past year including Jodie Foster, Matt Bomer (twice!), Joan Rivers, Jonathan Demme, Kelly Ripa, Perez Hilton, James Earl Jones, Josh Groban, Jeremy Jordan, T.R. Knight, Jonathan Groff, Justin Kirk, Neil Simon, Corbin Bleu, Ben Schwartz, Lisa Lampanelli, Willie Garson, Mario Cantone, Erin Cummings, Linus Roache, Stephen Schwartz, David LaChapelle, Steven Pasquale, James Lapine, John Kander, Chita Rivera, Christine Lakin, Georgia Engel, Danny Burstein, Brent Barrett, Donna McKechnie, John Rando, Christian Campbell, Reed Birney, Stephen Flaherty, Tovah Feldshuh, Karen Ziemba, Kara Lindsay, Alec Mapa, Chris Barron, Barrett Foa, Cady Huffman, Barbara Feldon, Shuler Hensley, Michelle Clunie, Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Seth Rudetsky, Scott Lowell, Telly Leung, Eden Espinosa, Daniel Reichard, John Cunningham, Charlotte d'Amboise, John McDaniel, Lindsay Nicole Chambers, Alex Wyse, Tricia Walsh Smith, Carol Woods, JohAnna Day, and Anthony Heald.

The playing schedule for SILENCE! The Musical is Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7 PM, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM, and Sundays at 3 & 7 PM. Running time is 88 minutes with no intermission. Tickets are available by calling 212-352-3101 or through www.SilenceTheMusical.com.