Ben Nordstrom to Lead Stages St. Louis' 'HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS'; Cast Announced

STAGES St. Louis is thrilled to announce the opening of the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winning musical, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. The witty comedy about climbing the corporate ladder (in record time!) will run July 18th through August 17that the Robert G. Reim Theatre in Kirkwood.

Big business means big laughs in this delightfully clever lampoon of American corporate culture. A tune-filled comic gem that took Broadway by storm, How to Succeed...boasts an exhilarating score by Frank Loesser that includes hits such as "I Believe in You," "Brotherhood of Man," and "The Company Way." Bustling with humor, romance and song, this swingin' 60s send-up of Madison Avenue charts the spectacular rise of an ambitious Mr. Finch from a young window washer to VP of Advertising! Jam-packed with sly, swift, and sharp jabs to the funny bone, How To Succeed.... is a sure fire mid-summer tonic for the musical theatre lover!STAGES' production of How to Succeed...stars St. Louis Actor Ben Nordstrom as J. Pierrepont Finch and New York Actress Betsy DiLellio as Rosemary Pilkington.

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying opened on October 14, 1961 at the 46th Street Theatre on Broadway, playing 1,417 shows and featured Robert Morse as J. Pierrepont Finch. The show offered a musical spectacular interpretation of the highly successful satirical self-help book, written by St. Louis native Shepherd Mead. A film version of the musical, featuring members of the original Broadway cast, was produced in 1967 and was met with box office success. Two major Broadway revivals have been produced in the last twenty years. The 1995 revival put former Ferris Bueller's Day Off star Matthew Broderick and Megan Mullally in the spotlight and the 2011 revival, featuring former Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe, introduced a new generation to the show.

STAGES is delighted to present Ben Nordstrom and Betsy DiLellio in How to Succeed.... Nordstrom was last seen in STAGES' 2013 production of Legally Blonde, The Musical. Other credits include Title of Show, Next Fall, Big River, Footloose, and Amadeus. Making her STAGES debut, Betsy DiLellio has performed in the National Tours of The Light in the Piazza and Sound of Music. DiLellio has also sung at both Carnegie Hall and Radio City Music Hall.

Also starring is St. Louis Actor Whit Reichert as J. B. Biggley, who has appeared in 13 seasons and 18 productions with STAGES, including this season's Disney's Sleeping Beauty. A familiar face with St. Louis audiences, Whit also has appeared at The Muny, the Shakespeare Festival of St. Louis, and in 26 productions at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. Broadway Actress Heather Ayers makes her STAGES debut as Hedy La Rue. Ayers has appeared on Broadway in the original companies of Young Frankenstein, On A Clear Day You Can See Forever, and A Little Night Music.

Rounding out the cast in alphabetical order are Johmaalya Adelekan (Miss Jones), Stephen Barnowski (Tackaberry), Bill Bateman (Twimble/Womper), Brennan Caldwell (Office Boy), Christopher DeAngelis (Gatch/Toynbee), Lois Enders (Secretary/Wickette), John Flack (Jenkins), Juliane Godfrey (Miss Krumholtz/Wickette), Brittany Rose Hammond (Secretary/2nd Scrubwoman/Wickette), Erica Hebron (Secretary/Wickette), Charlie Ingram (Davis/Henchman), Steve Isom (Bert Bratt), Jonathan Kwock (Johnson/Wicket), Joseph Medeiros (Bud Frump), Claire Neumann (Smitty), Sean Quinn (Ovington/Henchman/TV Announcer/Andrews), Lauren Roesner (Secretary/1st Scrubwoman), Paul Sabala (Matthews/Security Guard), George Spelvin (Voice of Narrator), Bronwyn Tarboton (Secretary/Wickette), and Aaron Umsted (Peterson/Wicket).

The creative team for the production includes: Michael Hamilton (Direction), Steve Bourneuf (Choreography), Lisa Campbell Albert (Musical Direction), James Wolk (Scenic Design), Jeff Shearer and Lou Bird (Costume Design), Matthew McCarthy (Lighting Design), Stuart M. Elmore (Orchestral Design).

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