APAC's BLOOD BROTHERS Begins Tomorrow

THE ASTORIA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER (APAC) is pleased to announce Willy Russell's (Educating Rita and Shirley Valentine) BLOOD BROTHERS, musical staging by Christine O'Grady, musical direction by Julianne B. Merrill, and directed by Tom Wojtunik. BLOOD BROTHERS will play a limited engagement at the Good Shepherd United Methodist Church (30-44 Crescent St, Astoria, NY 11102. Entrance on 30th Road.) Performances begin Thursday, May 2 and continue through Saturday, May 18. Opening Night is Saturday, May 4 (8 p.m.).

The Tony Nominated and Oliver Award Winning Best Musical BLOOD BROTHERS tells the tragic story of a mother who, unable to support her children, surrenders one of her newborn twins to a childless woman. Unaware that they are brothers, the boys grow up just streets apart in vastly different homes - one wealthy, the other poor. Despite their different upbringings, they become close friends. But when they fall in love with the same girl, their friendship is tested, and their fate sealed.

The musical debuted in 1983, winning the Olivier Award for Best New Musical. The recent West End revival was one of the longest-running musical productions in history; it opened in 1988, and ended its run on October 27, 2012, having played over 10,000 performances. The Broadway production opened in 1993 at the Music Box Theatre and closed in 1995 after 840 performances. The central role of Mrs. Johnstone has been played by, among others, Barbara Dickinson, Stephanie Lawrence, Kiki Dee, Petula Clark, Carole King, and Helen Reddy. The role of Mickey has been played by both Russell Crowe (in Australia) and David Cassidy (opposite his brother Shaun).

The production stars Colleen Hawks* (Shrek the Musical & The Boy from Oz, B'way) as Mrs. Johnstone, John Ashley Brown* (Grease, Nat'l Tour) as the Narrator, Rowan Michael Meyer* (Amadeus, Maltz Jupiter Theatre) as Mickey, Simon Pearl* (Les Miserables, B'way) as Edward, Kayla Wickes (Hamlet, Boomerang Theatre Co.) as Linda, Marisa Devetta* (APAC's The Secret Garden) as Mrs. Lyons, Matthew Labanca* (Young Frankenstein & White Christmas, B'way) as Mr. Lyons and Jonathan Gregg* (APAC's The Human Comedy & Ragtime) as Sammy. The ensemble includes Joey Donnelly (Non-Equity the Musical), Britain Gebhardt (APAC's Billy Witch & The Secret Garden), Mary-ElizaBeth Milton (Footloose, Nat'l Tour), Jan-Peter Pedross* (APAC's The Human Comedy & The Secret Garden), Jason Pintar (Titanic, Nat'l Tour) and Kristin Stewart (The Wizard of Oz, Nat'l Tour).

The production features scenic design by Stephen K. Dobay, costume design by Caitlin Cisek, and lighting design by Dan Jobbins. David M. Corsello is the sound designer, Aaron Sheckler is the props designer, Kenneth Garner is the dialect/accent coach, Ryan Kasprzak is the fight director, Jennifer Lane is the dramaturg and Michael Friedlander* is the stage manager. Casting by Scott Wojcik and Gayle Seay of Wojcik|Seay Casting.

BLOOD BROTHERS plays the following regular schedule through Saturday, May 18:

Thursdays at 8 p.m.
Fridays at 8 p.m.
Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Tickets are $18, available online at www.apacny.org or by calling 888-596-1027. Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the Theatre Box Office, 30 minutes prior to the performance.

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