The Walnut's LEGALLY BLONDE The Musical Opens Next Week

Walnut Street Theatre concludes its thrilling 210th season with the award-winning Broadway hit, LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL. Directed and choreographed by Richard Stafford, the high-energy musical begins previews on May 14, opens May 22, and continues through July 14.

Based on the smash hit movie, LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL follows the transformation of Elle Woods from a pink-loving SoCal sorority girl to a Harvard law student, all on her own terms. In this new production of the fabulously fun, award-winning Broadway musical, our blonde heroine tackles all obstacles, and educates us all on staying true to our dreams through rousing songs and dynamic show-stopping dance numbers. This feel-good musical comedy will be the most fashionable ticket in town and is so much fun, it should be illegal!

Inspired by the success of Amanda Brown's novel, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) brought Legally Blonde to the big screen in 2001. The movie was a box-office smash, grossing over $40 million in its first month. The movie inspired a 2003 sequel and the Broadway smash, LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL.

Richard Stafford returns to the Walnut as director and choreographer of LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL. In addition to directing and choreographing last season's production of Mamma Mia!, Stafford's previous Walnut credits include direction and choreography for Saturday Night Fever, Sister Act, Memphis, Curtains, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Beauty and the Beast, and Cats, as well as choreography for La Vie en Bleu, Evita, and The Goodbye Girl. On Broadway, Stafford was choreographer for In My Life, associate choreographer for Aspects of Love, and dance supervisor for Cats. His work has been seen on the national tours of Cats (director/choreographer), My Fair Lady (choreographer) and Joseph...Dreamcoat (choreographer), as well as numerous regional and international stages. Joining Stafford is Music and Vocal Director John Daniels, whose many Walnut credits include Mamma Mia!, Annie, A Funny Thing...Forum, and Saturday Night Fever.

After performing in Walnut productions as a child, Kathryn Brunner is thrilled to be back as an adult to play Elle Woods, the star of LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL! Brunner was seven years old when she was cast in the Walnut's production of The Sound of Music, her very first regional theatre credit. She followed that up by performing in the Mainstage productions of Evita in 2002 and Annie Warbucks in 2004 (at 10 years old). Since graduating from Temple University, Brunner has starred in many regional productions including Mamma Mia!, Oklahoma!, and Footloose. Elliott Styles will star opposite Brunner as Emmett Forrest. Styles was most recently seen on the Walnut stage as the Doctor in Roald Dahl's Matilda. The hilarious owner of Hair Affair, Paulette, will be played by Walnut veteran Rebecca Robbins. This will Mark Robbins' 18th show with the Walnut Street Theatre, with her most recent appearance being in Annie as Grace Farrell. Robbins has been seen performing on Broadway in The Phantom of The Opera and A Tale of Two Cities.

Paul Schoeffler returns to the Walnut stage as the conniving Professor Callahan. Schoeffler's many Broadway credits include Sunset Boulevard, Rock of Ages and Sweet Charity. He can be seen on TV's Blacklist and is featured on Amazon's new animated series, Bug Diaries. His Walnut credits include South Pacific, 9 to 5 and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Sean Thompson, who originated the role of Raoul on the national tour of Love Never Dies, plays Elle's ex-boyfriend and self-absorbed law student Warner Huntington III. Before making his Broadway debut in Sunset Boulevard, Thompson was last seen at the Walnut as Buzz Adams in South Pacific. Lindsey Bliven and Jenna Pinchbeck play Elle's fellow Harvard Law students, Vivienne Kensington and Enid Hoops, respectively. After joining national tours of Jekyll & Hyde and Mary Poppins, Bliven starred in the Walnut's production of Mary Poppins, where she played the titular role of the magic nanny. Jenna Pinchbeck will make her Walnut debut after recently starring in regional productions of Fallen Angels and Company. Sara Brophy returns to the Walnut as exercise video star Brooke Wyndham. Brophy has been seen in the Broadway production of Amazing Grace and the national tours of Burlesque to Broadway and Damn Yankees.

Joining the cast as Elle's entourage of sassy sorority sisters will be Lina Lee as Pilar, Adena Ershow as Margot, and Caroline Chisholm as Serena. In addition to her many regional credits, Lee performed in the Broadway production of Miss Saigon and can be spotted in TV's Gotham. Ershow has performed regionally at the Bucks County Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, and the Fulton Theatre, as well as internationally in Cats. Chisholm was most recently seen on stage playing Virtue in Westchester Broadway Theatre's production of Anything Goes. All three actresses are making their Walnut debut!

Rochelle Scudder (The Wizard of Oz) returns to the Walnut as part of the ensemble with her two furry canine co-stars, Frankie and Myrtle, playing Bruiser and Rufus respectively. This is not Frankie's first time on the Walnut stage - he could be spotted as the captured mutt in last season's production of Annie. The Walnut welcomes back Anthony Avino (Saturday Night Fever), Nicholas Karl Brown (Matilda), Chali Cooke (Matilda), Lexi Gwynn (Saturday Night Fever), Billy D. Hart (Mamma Mia!), Jesse Jones (Mamma Mia!), Scott Langdon (Annie), Adam Mandala (Mamma Mia!), Kathryn Miller (Matilda), Owen Pelesh (Mary Poppins), Kristyn Pope (Mamma Mia!), and Audrey Simmons (Holiday Inn) while welcoming to the Walnut Street Theatre for the first time, Parker Krug, who was recently seen on national tours of West Side Story and Elf: The Musical, and Katy Kauffman, who is making her regional theatre debut.

Scenic Designer Peter Barbieri (Mamma Mia!, Saturday Night Fever, Sister Act) returns to the Walnut to lead the design team in transporting audiences from the hills of Southern California to the halls of Harvard Law School. Joining him to re-create the iconic fashion of the movie will be Costume Designer Kurt Alger, as well as Lighting Designer Jack Mehler, Sound Designer Dave Temby, and Synthesizer Programming by Ethan Deppe.

LEGALLY BLONDE: THE MUSICAL runs at the Walnut May 14 - July 14. Open captioning will be available for the 7 p.m. performance on Sunday, June 9. ASL and audio described performance will be held Wednesday, July 3. This production is sponsored by TD Bank, Robert and Louise Harman, and Richard Mitchell and Marna Carlton. Media Partners are 6abc and Metro. For tickets and information, call 215-574-3550 or 800-982-2787. Tickets are also available online 24/7 by visiting www.WalnutStreetTheatre.org or Ticketmaster.

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