MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET to Arrive in Toronto This Winter
By: BWW News Desk Aug. 11, 2017
Drayton Entertainment will bring their popular production of the world-wide smash-hit musical MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET to Toronto. Written by Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux, the Drayton Entertainment production is directed by Alex Mustakas, the company's artistic director.
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET will play at Toronto's Panasonic Theatre December 12, 2017 through January 7, 2018. Media night is December 13 at 8PM. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Monday, August 21. Tickets are available by visiting mirvish.com, or by calling TicketKing at 416-872-1212 or 1-800-461-3333.
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET is inspired by the famed recording session that brought together rock 'n' roll icons Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins for the first and only time. On December 4, 1956, these four young musicians gathered at Sun Records in Memphis for what would be one of the greatest jam sessions ever.
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET brings that legendary night to life, featuring a score of over 20 classic hits including Blue Suede Shoes, Fever, That's All Right, Sixteen Tons, Great Balls of Fire, Walk the Line, Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On, Who Do You Love?, Matchbox, Folsom Prison Blues, Hound Dog and more.
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET opened on Broadway in 2010 followed by productions in Las Vegas, London's West End, and National Tours in the US and UK.
Director Alex Mustakas describes the show: "It's a nonstop, high energy rock 'n' roll juggernaut that audiences can't get enough of." Having directed successful music tribute productions like Legends of Rock 'n' Roll and Twist & Shout: The British Invasion, amongst others, it's no surprise that Mustakas is at the helm of this powerhouse production. In fact, Mustakas directed an acclaimed production of MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET at Stage West Calgary in 2016, which the Calgary Sun declared "sounded like a million bucks".
Mustakas brought together the same creative team as he had in Calgary - Music Director Konrad Pluta, Set Designer Laurin Kelsey, Costume Designer Rachel Berchtold, and Lighting Designer Jeff JohnstonCollins - to produce this production, which played four of Drayton Entertainment's seven venues across southwestern Ontario this summer - the Drayton Festival Theatre in Drayton, the Dunfield Theatre Cambridge in Cambridge, the Huron Country Playhouse in Grand Bend, and the King's Wharf Theatre in Penetanguishene. The Panasonic engagement will be the production's Toronto debut.
Casting for the production will be announced at a later date.
Alex Mustakas is the founding Artistic Director and CEO (Chief Entertainment Officer, as he likes to refer to it) of Drayton Entertainment. Over the past 27 years, he has directed over 100 productions for Drayton Entertainment and other theatre companies across Canada including Beauty and the Beast, the world premiere of Marathon of Hope: The Musical, Million Dollar Quartet, It Runs in the Family, Monty Python's Spamalot, Les Misérables, 9 To 5: The Musical, Blood Brothers, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (and North American Tour), and many more. He also created and directed the productions in Drayton Entertainment's esteemed 'Legends' series: Canadian Legends, Legends of Harmony, Country Legends, Dance Legends, Legends of Rock 'n' Roll, Twist & Shout: The British Invasion. Alex holds a Master's Degree in Arts Administration from City University in London, England, and an Honorary Doctorate from Wilfrid Laurier University. He is the recipient of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for Media & Entertainment, along with a national citation for outstanding community partnerships, the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal, and the Maggie Bassett Award from Theatre Ontario. Later this year, he will be awarded the Meritorious Service Medal by the Governor General of Canada.
IF YOU GO:
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET
December 12, 2017 - January 7, 2018
Panasonic Theatre - 651 Yonge Street
Tues - Sat 8PM, Wed 130PM, Sat & Sun 2PM
416.872.1212 or toll-free at 1.800.461.3333
Photo Credit: John Watson
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