TAMAR OF THE RIVER, Starring Margo Seibert, to Launch Prospect Theater's 2013-14 Season

Prospect Theater Company will present the world premiere production of TAMAR OF THE RIVER, a new music theater work with music and book by Marisa Michelson and book and lyrics by Joshua H. Cohen. Directed by Daniel Goldstein (Godspell) and choreographed by Yin Mei, TAMAR OF THE RIVER will be the first production available through Prospect's new Membership Program.

The announcement was made today by Cara Reichel and Melissa Huber, the Producing Artistic Director and Managing Director of Prospect Theater Company.

TAMAR OF THE RIVER takes place in a war-torn world where the East and West are divided by a river red with blood. In this mythic landscape, one young woman is called to raise her voice. As Tamar sets out single-mindedly in pursuit of peace, she journeys to a foreign land, finding a new family and unexpected love. Inspired by the biblical story of Tamar, Cohen and Michelson bring to life an original new music theater work that illuminates the moral challenges inherent in the struggle for peace.

Performances will begin on September 21, 2013 and continue through October 20 at the Baruch Performing Arts Center located at 55 Lexington Avenue in New York City.

The cast of TAMAR OF THE RIVER will be headed by Margo Seibert (Saving Aimee, Circus in Winter at Playwrights Horizons,Next to Normal at the Weston Playhouse) as Tamar. Matt Aument is the musical director. Additional casting and creative team members will be announced soon.

Previously developed at the American Musical Voices Project: The Next Generation at Signature Theatre in Virginia, TAMAR OF THE RIVER has received commissioning and world premiere major support from The Ted & Mary Jo Shen Charitable Gift Fund.

Tickets for TAMAR OF THE RIVER will be available at www.ProspectTheater.org or by calling 212-352-3101 beginning August 1. For more information, visit www.TamarOfTheRiver.com.

Additionally, in honor of the organization's 15th year of operations, Prospect will offer a new annual Membership Programoffering valuable discounts and flexible ticketing to meet the needs of core audiences who are passionate about the company's mission to bring to life the next generation of the American musical.

A $50 annual membership, running from September 1 through August 31, offers benefits which include savings of more than 60% on all Prospect regular and premium ticket prices. Members will be able to purchase $15 regular tickets to TAMAR OF THE RIVER and $25 premium seating locations. All online and phone ticketing fees are waived. Members also receive exclusive exchange privileges and invitations to behind-the-scenes events with artists throughout the season. Memberships are now on sale at www.ProspectTheater.org or by calling 212-352-3101.

Prospect Theater Company is one of America's leading producers of new musical theater. Since 2000, the company has fully produced more than 20 premiere musicals in New York City, in addition to two new plays and numerous re-inventions of classic works. Year-round, Prospect supports developmental opportunities for emerging musical theater writers, especially through our annual musical theater lab. Prospect was founded in 1998 by five graduates of Princeton University in order to allow a diverse group of emerging theater professionals to work together in pursuit of artistic excellence and innovation. The company membership now includes a network of almost 1,000 affiliated artists. Notable productions include: the Drama Desk Award-winningWorking - A Musical (2012), Unlock'd (2013), Iron Curtain (2006, 2011), Myths and Hymns (2012), Cole Porter's NYMPH ERRANT (2012), With Glee (2010), The Blue Flower (2008), Golden Boy of the Blue Ridge (2009), The Hidden Sky (2010), Illyria (2002, 2008), and the Drama-Desk nominated The Pursuit of Persephone (2005).

JOSHUA H. COHEN (Lyricist and Co-Bookwriter) Joshua H. Cohen's honors include a Jonathan Larson Grant (with Marisa Michelson), the Anna Zornio Children's Theatre Playwriting Award for his lyrics to Keep On Walkin', the Chameleon Theatre Circle New Play Award for the musical Ordinary Island (music and lyrics), and a MAC Award nomination for his cult cabaret hit "The Sacrifice of Love" (a.k.a. the waxing song). His play The Thirteenth Commandment (semifinalist, Princess Grace and Playwrights First Awards) had its world premiere with Libra Theater Company this year. Member, Dramatists Guild; 2008-10 Fellow, American Lyric Theatre's Composer-Librettist Development Program; August 2012 CAP21 Writers Residency. BA: Amherst College, MFA: NYU-GMTWP.

Marisa Michelson (Composer and Co-Bookwriter) A composer, singer and singing teacher, Marisa is in-love with, entranced by, and passionate about the human capacity to sing. She received a 2011 Jonathan Larson Award and 2009 "American Musical Voices: The Next Generation" Award from the Shen Family Foundation. Musicals include Tamar of the River (Signature Theatre; Prospect Theater Company); Scheherazade written with Jason Grote (York Theatre); The Grid (NAMT Residency with Millikin University); Still Life with Toe Shoes (Old Deerfield Productions; Emerson College); Hotel Sarajevo (CAP 21; hotInk Festival; Smith College); The Lovers (Prospect Theater Company; Vineyard Playhouse on Martha's Vineyard; Calliope Theatre Company.) Residencies/commissions/awards: Theatreworks, Palo Alto, New Dramatists, Montclair University, Kennedy Center, St. Botolph Award.

Daniel Goldstein (Director) is the director of the Broadway revival of Godspell (2011). His recent projects include Anna Christie (Old Globe), God Of Carnage (Huntington Theater Company), ...Samantha Brown (Goodspeed Musicals), Golden Boy (Juilliard), Annie (St. Louis Muny), Aritficial Fellow Travelerby Ethan Sandler (Williamstown Theater Festival, Black Dahlia Theater Open Door Theater), Clear (O'Neill National Music Theater Conference), True West(Williamstown Theater Festival), Miss Margarida's Way (Bay Street Theater, with Julie Halston), A New Brain at the Toho Theater in Tokyo, The Unauthorized Autobiography Of Samantha Brown (Broadway Across America developmental production), Mary's Wedding at the Two Rivers Theater, and many more. He is a graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in Performance Studies.

YIN MEI (Choreographer) is a category-defying director/choreographer/performance artist known for creating dance theater works that fearlessly bridge geographic, technological, artistic and cultural divides to conjure a unique brand of theatrical magic. Having forged a dance style employing Chinese energy direction and spatial principles as a means of creating contemporary dance theater, Yin Mei has established herself as a choreographer and performance/visual artist uniquely positioned to explore themes of artistic and spiritual significance arising at the intersection between Asian traditional performance and Western contemporary dance.

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