Palo Alto Players Presents WORKING - A MUSICAL Next Month

Palo Alto Players opens its 91 season with WORKING - the groundbreaking, musical exploration of the American worker from all walks of life with songs by Stephen Schwartz (Wicked), Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton), as well as favorites by Craig Carnelia, James Taylor, Micki Grant, and more.

Directed by Players Artistic Director Patrick Klein, WORKING stars an ensemble cast of 8 Bay Area actors playing 26 roles and includes: Mai Abe, Ray D'Ambrosio, Izetta Fang Klein, Jomar Martinez, Jason Mooney, Linda Piccone, Stacey Reed, and Eiko Yamamoto.

WORKING runs for 11 in-person performances September 17 - October 3, 2021 at the Lucie Stern Theater, located at 1305 Middlefield Road in Palo Alto, with a live broadcast of the Sunday, September 26 performance, and a recording of the performance available to stream online September 30 - October 3.

In person tickets ($27-$57) and streaming tickets (starting at $25 per household) are on sale now at paplayers.org or by phone at 650.329.0891. Current information regarding Palo Alto Players' COVID policies can be found at paplayers.org/covid-19.

"I hear America singing." Based on Studs Terkel's 1974 best-selling book of interviews with American workers, WORKING paints a vivid musical portrait of the men and women that the world so often takes for granted: the schoolteacher, the waitress, the millworker, the mason and the housewife, just to name a few. Nominated for six Tony Awards, Working has been updated for the modern age and features the stories of 26 average working Americans, set to music by a diverse collection of extraordinary songwriters including Lin-Manuel Miranda (IN THE HEIGHTS, HAMILTON) and Stephen Schwartz (WICKED), as well as Craig Carnelia, Micki Grant, and James Taylor. WORKING is a brilliant, hilarious, and heartwarming examination of the essential worker and a celebration of the unsung heroes of our society.

"WORKING allows us to celebrate and hear the stories of the American workers that often go unnoticed but are vital to our lives. Some of the stories are funny, some introspective, some are heartbreaking, but all are genuine and represent the diversity of the American workforce," said Palo Alto Players Artistic Director Patrick Klein. "As we come back together as a theater community, I couldn't think of a better way to open our 91st season than with a musical that pays tribute to the essential workers - the heroes that have helped us get through the pandemic and will continue to be there for us."

WORKING is directed by Palo Alto Players' Artistic Director Patrick Klein with music direction by Dolores Duran-Cefalu and choreography by Stacey Reed. Klein began his tenure at Palo Alto Players in 2009 as Technical Director and in 2013 became the company's Artistic Director. He has worked as a scenic designer, stage manager, and actor across the Bay Area, New York City, and the Eastern Seaboard. His Palo Alto Players directing credits include Miss Saigon, Young Frankenstein, Big Fish, Into the Woods, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, The Man Who Came To Dinner, Disney's Tarzan, One Man, Two Guvnors, Bright Star, and most recently the fully-staged, streaming production of the award-winning Off-Broadway musical THE LAST FIVE YEARS. Music Director Duran-Cefalu has done over 80 musical theater productions as music director, associate, or keyboardist. Most recent shows include Associate Music Director, Hamilton (And Peggy Tour) SF and Puerto Rico with Lin Manuel-Miranda and playing keyboard for: The Book Of Mormon, Beautiful, Motown The Musical and Wicked. She also played keyboard and celeste for the Academy Award-winning Pixar short Piper. Choreographer Reed has previously been seen on the Palo Alto Players' stage in Tarzan, Big Fish and Young Frankenstein. Other credits include Hairspray, Rocky Horror Picture Show as well as several productions at CA's Great America. By day, Reed is the Dance Teacher and Choreographer at The King's Academy in Sunnyvale.

The WORKING cast features Bay Area actors Mai Abe, Ray D'Ambrosio, Izetta Fang Klein, Jomar Martinez, Jason Mooney, Linda Piccone, Stacey Reed, and Eiko Yamamoto. Klein and Reed will be alternating performances. The WORKING production team includes set design by Scott Ludwig, lighting design by Abby May, costume design by Robin "Dutch" Fritz, sound design by Jeff Grafton, and hair and makeup design by Gwyneth Price Panos.

Tickets for WORKING can be purchased online at paplayers.org, by phone at 650.329.0891, or by visiting the Box Office (Tuesday through Friday, 11am - 4pm) at the Lucie Stern Theater, located at 1305 Middlefield Road in Palo Alto. In-person performances at the Lucie Stern Theater begin on September 18 and continue through October 3, with a preview on September 17. In-person performance times are Thursdays at 7:30pm, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, and Sundays at 2pm. Masks and proof of vaccination (or negative COVID test within 72 hours for those medically exempt from or ineligible to receive the vaccine) are required to attend in-person performances. A live broadcast (streamed in real-time) of the performance will be presented on Sunday, September 26 at 2pm, a recording of the performance available to stream online September 30 - October 3 at the scheduled theater curtain times.

Every ticket purchase directly supports the actors, creative team, and staff for this production, and ensures that Palo Alto Players can remain a vital part of this community. For more information about tickets and Palo Alto Players' current COVID health and safety policies, visit paplayers.org/event/working.

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