Laura Griffith & Louis Hobson to Lead 5th Avenue Theatre's A ROOM WITH A VIEW

Love is blossoming in Seattle this spring when The 5th Avenue Theatre debuts the lush new musical, A Room with a View. Based on the E.M. Forster novel that inspired the Merchant Ivory film, this enchanting adaptation features a wonderfully rich score by Jeffrey Stock and a witty and moving book and additional lyrics by Marc Acito. This beguiling and intimate romantic comedy features a cast of Seattle's best-loved musical theater stars including Laura Griffith and Louis Hobson as Lucy and George. Directed by The 5th Avenue's David Armstrong, A Room with a View also features Patti Cohenour, Jadd Davis, Allen Fitzpatrick, Richard Gray, Suzy Hunt, Matt Owen, Will Reynolds, and Jenny Shotwell.

A Room with a View plays April 15-May 11, 2014 (press opening April 30) at The 5th Avenue Theatre (1308 5th Ave, Seattle, WA 98101). Tickets (starting at $29) may be purchased online at www.5thavenue.org, by phone at 206-625-1900, or at the Box Office at 1308 5th Avenue in downtown Seattle.

"A Room with a View is one of the most beautiful musicals I've encountered," said 5th Avenue Theatre Executive Producer and Artistic Director David Armstrong. "Following in the footsteps of musicals like Memphis and A Christmas Story, A Room with a View is getting a second life at The 5th, and with the support, experience, and dedication of our artistic staff, I believe this show could have a very bright future ahead of it."

Set in the Downton Abbey era - a world of privilege and tradition on the precipice of change - A Room with a View tells the story of the very proper Lucy Honeychurch. During a vacation in Florence, Lucy's whole life is turned upside down when she unexpectedly falls in love with the handsome and rebellious George Emerson, a man beneath her class. Torn between love and duty, Lucy soon learns that sometimes love is worth breaking all the rules. As in the novel and film, this new musical includes a lively, non-sexual skinny dipping scene.

The radiant Laura Griffith returns to The 5th Ave to play Lucy Honeychurch. Griffith recently lit up the stage to great acclaim as the glamorous Lady of the Lake in Monty Python's Spamalot. Seattle audiences will recall her from previous performances at The 5th in The Music Man and Candide, among others. A recent Broadway-to-Seattle transplant, Griffith has appeared on Broadway in several critically acclaimed and innovative productions, including the Lincoln Center revival of South Pacific, The Light in the Piazza, Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, and Sweet Smell of Success. She toured the country in The Light in the Piazza, and was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for her performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

Puyallup native Louis Hobson stars opposite Griffin as the devilishly handsome and ever contrary George Emerson. Hobson was one of the all-local all-star cast of Monty Python's Spamalot, in which he played Dennis. He recently returned from Broadway where he played featured roles in shows such as Next to Normal, Leap of Faith and Bonnie and Clyde. A 5th Avenue favorite, Hobson has starred in previous productions including West Side Story, Miss Saigon, Claude, and The Rocky Horror Show. After his recent return to Seattle, Hobson made headlines when he accepted the position of Artistic Director of Balagan Theatre. He has been seen as Jean Valjean in Balagan's production of LES MISERABLES and Corny Collins in The 5th's Hairspray in Concert. Hobson recently made his directorial debut at the helm of Balagan's Carrie, the Musical starring Tony Award-winner Alice Ripley.

Patti Cohenour returns to The 5th Avenue to play Charlotte Bartlett. Last season she gave a stunning tour de force performance in the dual roles of Edith Bouvier Beale and "Little Edie" in Grey Gardens, an ACT/5th Avenue collaboration. She has performed at The 5th Avenue Theatre many times, most recently in the cast of Damn Yankees. Cohenour has performed on Broadway in productions including The Light in the Piazza, The Sound of Music revival, Phantom of the Opera, Big River, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood. She has performed at leading houses throughout Seattle and is the recipient of a Tony nomination, two Drama Desk nominations, a Jeff Award nomination, the Clarence Derwent Award, a Theatre World Award, and three Seattle Footlight Awards.

Jadd Davis returns to The 5th to play the Italiano and Albert. Previously, he appeared at The 5th in A Christmas Story, The Musical, The Sound of Music, Sweeney Todd, Cabaret, Candide, Miss Saigon and others. From 2011-2014, Davis worked at Village Theatre as casting director and company manager, and in many capacities with The Inverse Opera, which he co-founded in 2011. After A Room With a View closes, he will move to Coeur d'Alene, ID where he has recently been named Artistic Director for CDA Summer Theatre.

Broadway alum Allen Fitzpatrick returns to The 5th Avenue stage as Mr. Emerson. He has starred in a number of 5th Avenue productions - most recently as King Arthur in Monty Python's Spamalot and Mr. Brownlow in The 5th's holiday show Oliver! His Broadway appearances include LES MISERABLES, Memphis, 42nd Street, Driving Miss Daisy, and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, among many others. At The 5th, Fitzpatrick was a hit as Sweeney in Sweeney Todd (Footlight Award), and has appeared in numerous 5th Avenue productions including Hairspray in Concert, Grey Gardens, and ELF-The Musical, to name a few. He is artistic director of Icicle Creek Theatre Festival.

Richard Gray has performed in 19 productions with The 5th Avenue Theatre including Monty Python's Spamalot, The Music Man, ELF-The Musical, and the pre-Broadway run of First Date. He joins the cast of Monty Python's Spamalot as Sir Bedevere. He has been seen recently as Centipede in the premiere of James and the Giant Peach at Seattle Children's Theatre and as Amos Hart in Chicago at Village Theatre. Gray is a mainstay of Seattle's musical theatre scene, with numerous credits at Village, The 5th, ACT - A Contemporary Theatre, Empty Space, and Crepe de Paris, to name a few.

Seattle theater veteran Suzy Hunt plays the novelist in search of a story, Ms. Lavish. She recently was seen as "Big Edie" in Grey Gardens, an ACT/5th Avenue collaboration. She has performed many times at The 5th in productions of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Singin' in the Rain, On the Town, and Cabaret. She has performed at top regional theatres throughout the country, and throughout Seattle.

Matt Owen returns to The 5th Avenue Stage as Freddy Honeychurch after appearing in Monty Python's Spamalot. No stranger to The 5th Avenue stage, the Edmonds native has performed at the theater previously in roles including ELF-The Musical, Grey Gardens (a co-production with ACT - A Contemporary Theatre) Oklahoma!, and others. Other regional credits include Yankee Doodle Dandy at TUTS Houston, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at North Shore.

Will Reynolds makes his 5th Avenue debut in A Room with a View as Cecil Vyse. No stranger to new works, Reynolds was a member of The Old Globe cast of A Room with a View in 2010 as well as Emma. He also performed in the US premiere of Love Story at Walnut Street Theatre. He performed in the national tour of Mamma Mia and has New York credits including Passion at Classic Stage Company, The Illusion at Signature Theater, and It's a Wonderful Life at the Engeman Theatre. Also a composer, Reynolds' song "Tavern" can be heard on Audra McDonald's latest album, Go Back Home.

A cross-over artist between musical theater and opera (a perfect blend for this stunning new show), Jenny Shotwell returns to The 5th Avenue stage after recently performing in The 5th's hit production of Pirates of Penzance. She was also seen in The Music Man, Titanic, A Christmas Story. She has been seen throughout Puget Sound at Seattle G&S Society, Seattle Musical Theater, and Tacoma. Shotwell has been honored to sing the national anthem for the Seahawks, Mariners and Seattle Storm.

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