5th Avenue Theatre Welcomes '9 TO 5', 4/5-24

9 to 5: The Musical arrives at The 5th Avenue Theatre, just in time to brighten the final grey days of spring. Based on the wildly popular 1980s film of the same name, this outrageously funny Broadway delight features the original movie's blockbuster title tune, plus more than a dozen new songs by the queen of country music, iconic songwriter, movie star, and entrepreneur -- Dolly Parton! Parton's Tony Award-nominated score mixes her signature witty lyrics with infectious Broadway, pop and country-inspired melodies. 9 to 5: The Musical plays for three weeks only -- April 5th through the 24th -- at the historic 5th Avenue Theatre in downtown Seattle.

Set in the male-dominated, me-first world of 1980s office politics, 9 To 5: The Musical is a light-hearted story of friendship and revenge. It's all about teaming up, getting even, and taking care of business as three overworked and harassed secretaries turn the tables on their chauvinistic-sexist-egotistical-lying-hypocritical-bigot of a boss with side-splitting and satisfying results.

American Idol finalist, Diana DeGarmo plays Doralee Rhodes, the role made famous by the Dolly Parton in the original film. DeGarmo gained overnight fame at age 16 as a runner-up on the third season of television's number one series, American Idol. Her Broadway credits include Hair, Hairspray and Brooklyn: The Musical. She also starred in the off-Broadway musical The Toxic Avenger. DeGarmo was born in Birmingham, AL, raised in Snellville, GA, and currently resides in Nashville,TN where she continues to write and perform.

One of Seattle's favorite performers, Dee Hoty returns for her fourth appearance on the 5th Avenue stage. Hoty plays Violet, the role originally played by Lily Tomlin in the film. 5th Avenue audiences will no doubt remember Hoty for her star turn in the title role of Mame, as well as for her performances in 5th Avenue productions of Lone Star Love and Anything Goes. On Broadway, Hoty has earned three Tony Award nominations for her starring roles in Footloose, The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public and The Will Rogers Follies. Hoty also starred on Broadway and then toured eight major US cities as Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia! In addition to her work on Broadway and her tours, Hoty has been involved in many pre-Broadway workshop productions. Hoty has also made numerous television and film appearances including stints on Law & Order and Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

The role of Judy, originally played by Jane Fonda in the film, is played by Mamie Parris whose Broadway credits include the Tony Award-nominated revival of Ragtime, 110 In the Shade and the Tony Award-winning musical The Drowsy Chaperone. Always in demand, Parris turned the road pink in the first national tour of Legally Blond: The Musical, sang with the Radio City Rockettes, toured with country music icon Kenny Rogers, and participated in over a dozen readings with students of the BMI-Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop.

Joseph Mahowald plays Franklin Hart, Jr., the egomaniacal (and soon to get his come-uppance) office boss, a role originated by Dabney Coleman in the film. Seattle audiences will recall that Mahowald starred in the 5th Avenue production of 1776 as the exuberant Richard Henry Lee. On Broadway, Mahowald has appeared in the title roles of Jekyll & Hyde, as well as performing Javert in Les Misérables and Chiefton O'Flaherty in The Pirate Queen. In addition to playing off-Broadway and touring nationally, he has sung as a soloist with several major symphonies around the world and has also appeared on all of the New York City soaps. His extensive regional credits include being a founding member of the artistic company for the Tennessee Repertory and appearing in leading roles in numerous Tennessee Rep productions.

Comic, actress, and cabaret performer Kristine Zbornik plays the role of Roz. Zbornik has performed on Broadway in A Catered Affair and Off-Broadway in Forbidden Broadway, Mama Mi, and Man of La Mancha.
Rounding out the cast are Jane Blass, Patrick Boyd, Paul Castree, Holly Davis, Janet Dickinson Madeleine Doherty, Marjorie Failoni, Gregg Goodbrod, K.J. Hippensteel, Jesse J.P. Johnson, Michelle Marmolejo, April Nixon, Ryah Nixon, Rick Pessagno, Wayne Schroder, Micah Shepard and Travis Waldschmidt.

Meet the Artistic Team of 9 to 5: The Musical

The book for 9 to 5: The Musical was written by Patricia Resnick, who was also the co-writer of the original screenplay. Tony Award-nominated, Jeff Calhoun directed and choreographed the touring production. Calhoun elaborates, "I met Dolly Parton as a chorus kid dancing in the film The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas only a few years after 9 to 5 was already a hit movie. It was a thrill to work with her then and an honor and privilege to be entrusted to direct and choreograph this exciting new tour of 9 to 5: The Musical."

The co-choreographer for the production is Lisa Stevens. The artistic team also includes scenic design by Ken Foy, costume design by five-time Tony Award-winner William Ivey Long, lighting design by Tony Award and Drama Desk Award winner Ken Billington, sound design by Steve Kennedy, orchestrations by Bruce Coughlin., and music supervision by Stephen Oremus. Casting for the touring production was handled by Telsey + Company.

9 to 5: The Musical is based on the 20th Century Fox film and was originally produced on Broadway by Robert Greenblatt. The tour is produced by special arrangement with Music Theatre International and by Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, Fox Theatricals, and Theatre Under The Stars.

For Tickets and More Information
9 to 5: The Musical plays Tuesdays-Sundays, April 5-24, 2011. Tickets are available online at www.5thavenue.org, by phone at 206-625-1900 or toll-free at 888-5TH-4TIX (584-4849), or in person at The 5th Avenue Theatre Box Office, located at 1308 5th Avenue in downtown Seattle. Box Office hours are 10 AM to 6 PM weekdays, and noon to 6 PM weekends.

Special thanks to 5th Avenue Theatre 2010-11 season co-sponsors Safeco Insurance and US Bank.

More about the Cast of 9 to 5: The Musical
Dee Hoty (Violet) has earned three Tony Award nominations for her starring roles in Footloose, The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public and The Will Rogers Follies. She starred on Broadway and in eight major U.S. cities as Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia! More Broadway: Bye, Bye, Birdie (Roundabout), City of Angels (Outer Critics Circle nomination), Me and My Girl, Big River, The Five O'Clock Girl, and Shakespeare's Cabaret. Other highlights: Tours of Barnum, Doctor Dolittle; Phyllis in Follies at the Papermill (cast recording); Kay Thompson in Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne (Barrymore Award, LA Ovation Award). Otterbein College graduate and honorary doctorate. Proud Equity member. www.DeeHoty.com.

Diana DeGarmo (Doralee Rhodes) "Is happier than a puppy with two tails to be Workin' 9 to 5!" Runner-up third season of American Idol at age 16. No.1 Billboard's Hot 100 Singles. Broadway: Hairspray (Penny Pingleton), HAIR the Musical (Sheila). Tours: Brooklyn: The Musical (Brooklyn). Off-Broadway: The Toxic Avenger Musical (Sarah). Regional: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (OKC), West Side Story (San Jose), Back to Bacharach and David (Music Box, L.A.). Television: CMT's Gone Country, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and others. Country music singer/songwriter: Released acoustic EP Unplugged in Nashville. Debuted at the Grand Ole Opry at age 12. "Many thanks to Headline Talent Agency, Ellis Talent Group, Rogue, Steve & Will, & of course, my family and Momma!"

Mamie Parris (Judy) A native Texan, Parris attended the Paseo Academy of the Arts in Kansas City, Missouri, and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City. Her Broadway credits include the recent Tony Award-nominated revival of Ragtime, where as an understudy she received the unique privilege of closing the show in the role of Mother. Other Broadway credits include the five-time Tony Award-winner The Drowsy Chaperone and Roundabout Theatre's acclaimed revival of 110 In the Shade. Additional credits: the first national tour of Legally Blonde: The Musical; the acclaimed new musical See Rock City... and other destinations, presented Off-Broadway by the Transport Group; Chicago at the Macau International Music Festival in Macau, China; two national tours with country music icon Kenny Rogers; and The Radio City Christmas Spectacular. Regional roles: Millie, Rizzo, Audrey, and Grizabella. Workshops: It Shoulda Been You (Anselmi/Hargrove, directed by Casey Nicholaw). Parris currently resides in New York City with her husband, Johnathan, and their nutty dog, Cookie. More on Facebook and at www.mamieparris.com.

Joseph Mahowald (Franklin Hart) is a lyric-baritone who appeared on Broadway in Boublil & Schonberg's The Pirate Queen on Broadway and starred in the title roles of Jekyll and Hyde. He played Javert and Enjolras in Les Misérables, and he originated the role of Aaron James in Mike Reid's opera, Different Fields, commissioned by The Metropolitan Opera Guild. Mahowald also created the roles of Ace Gruver in William Luce's Tony Award-winning Sayonara and Captain Phoebus in Dennis DeYoung's (Styxx) adaptation of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Off-Broadway credits: Frank Ford in Lone Star Love, Hendon in the Prince and the Pauper, The Aviator in The Little Prince, and Haemon in Antigone. National tours: Javert in Les Misérables; Lancelot in Camelot with Stacy Keach; featured soloist in A Grand Night for Singing; and Ace Gruver in Sayonara. Recordings: Five CDs including Wonderful Words of Life, his first solo CD; Sondheim Tonight, recorded with the City of London Philharmonic, benefitting the Alan Jay Lerner Fund for research into Cancer at the Royal Marsden Hospital; Scattered Thoughts benefitting The Lord's Pantry in New York City; the original cast recordings of Lone Star Love and The Pirate Queen. His voice can also be heard in the Disney film, Mulan. Mahowald has also recorded dozens of "backers tapes" for new musicals and is currently working on a new original project. For television, Mahowald played Jason Gwynn on NBC's Another World, Nails on ABC's Guiding Light, and Standish on ABC's All My Children (recurring). He can also be seen on PBS in The Making of The Pirate Queen and in the series Front Row Center, a musical theatre spotlight. http://www.josephmahowald.com

More about The 5th Avenue Theatre
Now celebrating its 31st anniversary season, The 5th Avenue Theatre is acclaimed as one of America's leading musical theatre companies. Under the leadership of Executive Producer and Artistic Director David Armstrong, Managing Director Bernadine Griffin, and Producing Director Bill Berry, The 5th Avenue has premiered 10 new musicals during the past 10 years, five of which have moved to Broadway, and two of which have earned Tony Awards for Best Musical. Those productions include Hairspray (2003 Tony Award for Best Musical), Memphis (2010 Tony Award for Best Musical), The Wedding Singer, Shrek and Catch Me If You Can. In July 2011, The 5th Avenue Theatre will produce the world premiere of a new stage musical of Disney's Aladdin, and in the fall of 2011, The 5th will produce Saving Aimee, a new musical based on the life of evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson.

In addition to bringing new musicals to the stage, The 5th is also renowned for its exceptional productions of the best of contemporary and classic Broadway musicals. Unique in its Chinese-inspired design, this exquisite theater opened in 1926 as a venue for vaudeville and film. In 1980, the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre began producing and presenting top-quality live musical theater. Today, The 5th Avenue Theatre attracts an annual attendance of more than 287,000 and ranks among the nation's largest and most respected musical theater companies.

In addition to its main stage productions, The 5th Avenue Theatre is also committed to encouraging the next generation of theatergoers through its extensive educational outreach programs, which include: The Adventure Musical Theatre Touring Company, The 5th Avenue High School Musical Theatre Awards, the Student Matinee Program, and Spotlight Nights.

For more information about The 5th Avenue Theatre, its season and its programs, please visit www.5thavenue.org.

 

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