Special Performance of STATE FAIR to Benefit RUNG on 9/29

Stages St. Louis concludes its 24th season with Rodgers and Hammerstein's Tony Award-winning Broadway musical State Fair at The Robert G. Reim Theatre in Kirkwood from September 3 - October 3, 2010.

The September 29 performance of STATE FAIR will be a special performance benefitting "rung." Stages will donate $10 from every full price ticket purchased for the Wednesday, September 29 evening performance of STATE FAIR to rung.

Your full price ticket also includes a ticket to a VIP reception with cast and crew after the show.

Tickets are available through the Stages box office by calling 314-821-2407. Be sure to mention the rung offer when you call.

With a soaring score by Rodgers and Hammerstein, State Fair takes us back to a simpler time when winning Blue Ribbons for prized boars, serving up mincemeat, and finding true romance on the midway were annual rites of "Spring Fever." State Fair invites you to travel with the Frakes as they leave behind the routine of the family farm for three days of adventure at the annual Iowa State Fair. Featuring the buoyant melodies of "It's A Grand Night For Singing," "All I Owe Ioway," and the Academy Award-winning song "It Might As Well Be Spring," State Fair is a tuneful treat for the entire family.

The 11th addition to the Rodgers and Hammerstein's catalog, State Fair opened on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre in 1996 after a National Tour, which began at the 1995 Iowa State Fair. Winning the Tony Award for Best Original Score, State Fair features five of the original songs from the 1945 film, one additional song from the 1962 remake, with the remainder of the score selected from the Rodgers and Hammerstein library for the Broadway stage production.

Direction and musical staging are by Stages St. Louis Artistic Director Michael Hamilton, with choreography by Dana Lewis and musical direction by Lisa Campbell-Albert. Completing the artistic team are Scenic Designer James Wolk, Costume Designer Lou Bird, Lighting Designer Matthew McCarthy and Orchestral Designer Stuart M. Elmore.

Starring in the production are St. Louis Resident and Actress Kari Ely as Melissa Frake, who recently was seen in Promises, Promises and Disney's The Aristocats at Stages St. Louis . Earlier this year, Ely appeared in Christopher Durang's Why Torture is Wrong and the People Who Love Them for HotCity Theatre; Broadway Actress Hollie Howard as Emily Arden returns to Stages St. Louis, having most recently played Sandy in the 2006 production of Grease. Her Broadway credits include the original Broadway Companies of Hairspray and Mamma Mia! Broadway Actor Jim Newman as Pat Gilbert will make his Stages St. Louis debut. His Broadway credits include the original Broadway companies of Curtains, Minnelli on Minnelli and Steel Pier. Other Broadway credits include Sunset Boulevard and The Who's Tommy and New York Actor Christopher Vettel as Abel Frank will make his Stages St. Louis debut. Among Vettel's numerous National Tour credits are The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, the 30th Anniversary tour of Annie and Sunset Boulevard starring Petula Clark.

Rodgers & Hammerstein's State Fair will run for a total of five weeks with evening performances Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8 PM, Sundays at 7:30 PM and matinees on Wednesdays at 2 PM, Saturdays at 4 PM and Sundays at 2 PM. For more information and to purchase tickets call 314-821-2407 or visit www.stagesstlouis.org.

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