5th Avenue Theatre to Host PAINT YOUR WAGON Spotlight Night

The 5th Avenue Theatre welcomes audiences to Spotlight Night, an exciting and exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpse at the next major musical in the 2015/16 season, Lerner & Loewe's Paint Your Wagon. This Spotlight Night is an evening of story and song exploring the world of this epic Gold Rush musical and its incredible journey to The 5th Avenue stage this season. Hosted by Executive Producer and Artistic Director David Armstrong, this free event will feature fascinating guests, insightful stories and performances from some of the show's brilliantly talented cast including Robert Cuccioli, Kendra Kassebaum and Justin Gregory Lopez.

Spotlight Night for Paint Your Wagon begins at 7:00 PM, Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at the S. Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium in Benaroya Hall. To reserve tickets to this free event, or for additional information, please visit https://www.5thavenue.org/show/paint-your-wagon-spotlight, call 206-625-1900 or stop by the Box Office at 1308 5th Avenue in Downtown Seattle. Spotlight Night is made possible through the generous support of U.S. Bank.

The evening begins with special guest Douglass Sackman and an exploration of the California Gold Rush in 1848 that set off an unprecedented mass migration that brought diverse people from all corners of the world together and changed America forever. Sackman is a Distinguished Professor of History at the University of Puget Sound.

Next, Armstrong and 5th Avenue Artistic Associate Albert Evans will take audiences inside the life of Frederick Loewe of the legendary musical theater writing team Lerner & Loewe. Complete with thrilling performances from their iconic musicals including Brigadoon, My Fair Lady and Camelot, not to mention Paint Your Wagon, audiences will learn how this Viennese-born New Yorker came to write two of the most beloved Western anthems of all time: "They Call the Wind Maria" and "Wand'rin' Star."

Finally, the evening will feature a panel discussion with the creative team behind this sensational new production moderated by former Seattle Times theater critic Misha Berson. The panel will include Director David Armstrong, Pulitzer Prize-nominated playwright Jon Marans, Music Director Ian Eisendrath and Choreographer Josh Rhodes and will cover the musical's brand new book (authorized by the Lerner & Loewe estate), the exciting new bluegrass-inspired orchestrations and the show's incredible journey through multiple workshops-including development at last summer's inaugural 5th Avenue NextFest Festival of New Musicals-to The 5th Avenue mainstage.