STAGES St. Louis to Present THE FULL MONTY, 9/4-10/4

STAGES St. Louis welcomes back its red-hot award-winning smash hit The Full Monty! Featuring a powerful story with enduring characters, this hilarious, yet heartwarming musical comedy will run September 4 - October 4 at the Robert G. Reim theatre in Kirkwood.

Meet Jerry, Dave, Harold, Ethan, Malcolm, and "Horse" - six unemployed steelworkers who come up with a bold and unconventional way to make some much-needed cash. In the process, they discover renewed self-esteem and the importance of family, friendship, and the very human desire to live life to the fullest. With razor-sharp humor, toe-tapping pizzazz, and a sizzling score from David Yazbek, this ten-time Tony Award-nominee is musical theatre at its most heart-warming.

The Full Monty originated as the 1997 Academy Award-nominated British film set in Sheffield, England. Three years later, the film was adapted into musical form. Tony Award-winning Broadway playwright, Terrence McNally, Americanized the book, transporting the story to Buffalo, New York. The musical held its world premiere at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego in June of 2000 before transferring to Broadway, opening at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on October 26, 2000. Setting box office records, the musical ran for 770 performances and earned ten Tony Award nominations, including Best Musical in 2001.

American lyricist and composer David Yazbek began his eclectic musical career as a recording artist and member of a pop band. Yazbek released five albums, the first of which, The Laughing Man, won the 1997 NAIRD Award for Best Pop Album of the Year. As a TV writer, he has penned songs and jingles for many films and children's shows and earned an Emmy for his comedy writing for the "Late Night Show with David Letterman." Yazbek burst on the musical theatre scene with The Full Monty. His work on the smash-hit comedy not only earned him nominations for both Tony and Grammy Awards, but he also received the Drama Desk award for Best Music, launching an illustrious career on Broadway. Yazbek has since written Tony-nominated scores for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown.

New York Actor Brent Michael Diroma stars as Jerry Lukowski. A familiar face at STAGES this season, Diroma most recently was seen in both STAGES' 2015 productions of Smokey Joe's Café and Anything Goes. Diroma has performed as Huey in Memphis, Hank Majewski/Bob Gaudio in Jersey Boys, Tony in West Side Story, and Princeton/Rod in Avenue Q.

New York Actor Todd A. Horman stars as Dave Bukatinsky. Horman most recently was seen in the Broadway production of Sting's The Last Ship and in the First National Tour of Sister Act. Other Broadway credits include Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Urinetown. Horman also has appeared in the National Tour of Victor/Victoria and in regional productions of The Full Monty and 1776.

New York Actor James Ludwig makes his STAGES debut as Harold Nichols. Ludwig has performed on Broadway in Spamalot as well as appeared in the First National Tour of 101 Dalmatians. Off-Broadway credits include Two Point Oh, Blue Man Group, and John & Jen. Regionally, Ludwig has appeared in Ctrl+Alt+Delete, A Christmas Carol, and The Full Monty.

New York Actor Adam Shonkwiler stars as Ethan Girard. Shonkwiler returns to STAGES, where he was last seen as Huck in the 2010 production of Big River. Shonkwiler has appeared in the National Tour of Whistle Down the Wind as well as regionally in Peter and the Starcatcher, Red, and Camelot. Film and TV credits include Rebecca Miller's The Private Lives of Pippa Lee and NBC's "The Playboy Club."

New York Actor Erik Keiser stars as Malcolm MacGregor. Keiser most recently appeared in STAGES' 2015 productions of Disney's The Aristocats and Anything Goes. He also was seen in STAGES' 2014 productions of Fiddler on the Roof and Disney's Sleeping Beauty as well as the 2013 production of Legally Blonde. Other favorite credits include the Off-Broadway premiere of The Bardy Bunch, the National Tour of Footloose, and regional productions of How to Succeed in Business... and High School Musical.

New York Actor Milton Craig Nealy makes his STAGES debut as Noah "Horse" T. Simmons. Nealy has appeared on Broadway in Motown, The Musical, Caroline, or Change, Miss Saigon (also London and Australian productions), and Five Guys Named Moe. National Tour credits include The Full Monty (also the Australian Cast), Dreamgirls, and Jesus Christ Superstar. Nealy also performed at The Muny in Jesus Christ Superstar and recently returned in 2012 for Dreamgirls. Television and Film credits include "Person of Interest" and The Blues Brothers.

Also starring is St. Louis Actress Zoe Vonder Haar, who previously played Jeanette Burmeister in STAGES' 2007 production of The Full Monty. A familiar face with St. Louis audiences, Vonder Haar has performed in over sixty productions at STAGES including Hello, Dolly!, Gypsy, Mame, and most recently starred as Louise in Always... Patsy Cline. Other credits include the First International Touring Company of A Chorus Line and numerous productions at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and The Muny.

Rounding out the cast in alphabetical order are Leah Berry (Pam Lukowsi), Shawn Bowers (Jackson/Police Sergeant/Repo Man), Julie Cardia (Vicki Nichols), Kari Ely (Marge/Molly MacGregor), Laura Ernst (Delores/Power Jogger), Morgan Amiel Faulkner (Estelle Genovese/Dance Instructor), John Flack (Gary Bonasorte/Tony Giordano), Cody Heuer (Marty/Repo Man), Cole Hoefferle (Nathan Lukowski), Steve Isom (Reg Willoughby), Ian Paget (Buddy "Keno" Walsh), Whit Reichert (Power Jogger/Minister), David Sajewich (2nd Stripper/Teddy Slaughter), Angela Sapolis (Susan Hershey), April Strelinger (Joanie Lish), and Lindsie VanWinkle (Georgie Bukatinsky).

The creative team for the production includes: Michael Hamilton (Direction), Stephen Bourneuf (Choreography), Lisa Campbell Albert (Musical Direction), James Wolk (Scenic Design), Garth Dunbar (Costume Design), Matthew F. McCarthy (Lighting Design), Stuart M. Elmore (Orchestral Design).

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