Photo Flash: Meet the Cast of SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON at NYMF

The New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) presents Swiss Family Robinson a world premiere musical comedy by John and Patrick J. Kennedy. Patrick J. Kennedy directs a cast of seventeen including Tom Bozell*, William James Daniels*, Paul DeBoy* (Mamma Mia),Alexander Ferguson, Danielle Gimbal, Patrick Oliver Jones* (The Addams Family), Heidi Kloster, Michael Lorz (Gross Indecency), Matt Mundy*,Sergio Pasquariello, James Patterson* (Mary Poppins), Jessie Shelton*, Barbara Tirrell* (Wicked), Meg Schneider, Emily Shoolin* (Spider-man: Turn Off the Dark), Sam Tedaldi*, and Elisa Van Duyne* (Finian's Rainbow, 110 in the Shade).

Last Saturday, June 8th, several members of the cast of 17 and production team for "Swiss Family Robinson," a new musical sailing in to the 2013 NYMF beginning July 9th, celebrated on the Schooner Adirondack as it sailed New York Harbor. The 80-foot sailing vessel flies just under 2,000 square feet of sail. Scroll down for a first look at the cast below!

Swiss Family Robinson is being staged at The Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre at The Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 West 42nd Street (bet. 9th & 10th Avenues) in NYC for five performances fromTuesday, July 9 through Wednesday, July 17, 2013. The Pershing Square Signature Center is the official hub of The New York Musical Theatre Festival.

The shipwreck was only the beginning. This classic adventure comes to life in a magical new musical tale. Join the Swiss Family Robinson as they survive a stormy shipwreck only to be left to fend for themselves on an exotic tropical island. Together, they bravely face the mysteries and perils of their new home but soon discover they are not alone. French sailors are in hot pursuit, and wait, do you hear drums? Jungle drums? Filled with hilarious hijinks, the hope of rescue and the bloom of romance, this fresh new musical tells a tale of how the winds of fate can lead you to find your destiny.

Swiss Family Robinson is presented by The New York Musical Theatre Festival. Director: Patrick J. Kennedy; Music Director/Orchestrations: Matt Aument­­­­­­­­­­­­; Technical Director: Tom Donohue; Choreographer: Walter Kennedy; Fight Choreographer: Ron Piretti; Lighting Designer: Cory Pattak; Scenic Designer: Lewis Folden; Costume Designer: Cheryl McCarron; Sound Designer: Randy Bobo; Stage Manager: Denise Wilcox; Assistant Stage Manager: Kristine Schlachter; General Manager: Suellen Vance; Photographer/Videographer: Seth Walters; Publicist: Paul Siebold/Off Off PR. Casting by Michael Cassara, CSA.

John Kennedy (book, music & lyrics) was introduced to musical theatre in high school while playing french horn in the pit for many shows. During college he was musical director for several productions including Company, Chicago, West Side Story, Guys and Dolls and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum; often working with his brothers Walter and Patrick. During this time he also wrote three original musicals. After a career in hotels, he has now returned to his first passion...words and music. John has a B.Mus. in film scoring; from the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He lives in Marin County, California with his wife, Ruth, and two dogs, Dashiell and Bertram.

Patrick J. Kennedy (book, producer/director) worked in Los Angeles for several teleVision Productions companies, most notably Witt, Thomas, Harris, on the hit shows Benson, It's A Living, and the pilot of Golden Girls. He was also a staff writer on a cable version of the Universal-MCA program Airwolf. Mr. Kennedy has directed several short plays and readings as well as six short films, including the award winning Each Man To His Work. As a playwright, Mr. Kennedy's plays have been produced at the Washington, DC Source Theatre's Summer Festival and the Actor's Theatre of Louisville's Ten Minute Play competition where two of his short plays were finalists in the same year. Mr. Kennedy's newest work, Pilot Fish will debut at this year's New York Fringe Festival at the 29th Street Rep. He has enjoyed several NYC productions of his shorter works, including Sunset Diabolical, (Finalist - Samuel French short play competition). Mr. Kennedy produced Soho Shorts, an eight part series of short plays at the Soho Playhouse. He regularly enjoys participating in Naked Angels' Tuesday's at 9. He has a M.F.A. from the playwrighting program at the Catholic University of America.

Walter Kennedy (choreography/musical staging) is a dance artist and educator. He was a principal dancer with the internationally acclaimed Lewitzky Dance Company for nearly twenty years and was trained by the legendary Bella Lewitzky to be one of her master teachers of technique, improvisation, and composition. He served as the company's rehearsal director from 1990 until its farewell performance in 1997. Walter has worked with such diverse choreographers as Lar Lubovitch, Laura Dean, Joe Goode, Anna Sokolow, and Mary Oslund. His choreography has been seen at The Krannert Center at University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign; Mark Taper Forum; Highways Performance Space and the Dance Kaleidoscope Festival in Los Angeles; and The Yard, an artist's colony on Martha's Vineyard. Since 2000, he has collaborated with director John Schmor at the University of Oregon in productions of Waiting for Emily, Kafka's Parables, Mary Zimmerman's Metamorphoses, Batboy, Big River, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, among others.

Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online at nymf.org or by calling 212-352-3101. For more information, visit nymf.org. The runtime for Swiss Family Robinson is 120 minutes with one intermission. *Appearing courtesy of Actors' Equity Association.

Photo Credit: Seth Walters

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