Ebersole to Star in London Grey Gardens; US Tour Planned

The producers of the hit Broadway musical Grey Gardens announced today that the production will have its London debut next season with its acclaimed leading lady, Tony Award winner Christine Ebersole, recreating her performance. 

The announcement comes on the heels of the production earning 10 2007 Tony Award nominations, including Best Musical.  The Broadway producers – East of Doheny, Staunch Entertainment, Randall L. Wreghitt/Mort Swinky, Michael Alden and Edwin W. Schloss in association with Playwrights Horizons – will be teaming with London producers to present the show in its UK bow during the 2007-2008 season.  London partners, dates and additional casting will be officially announced in the coming months.

To make sure audiences across the U.S. also get to see the acclaimed musical production, the Grey Gardens producers also confirmed that they are in the planning stages for a U.S. National Tour.

"With three productions of Grey Gardens on the horizon, a casting search has already begun to find other stars to play the leading dual role of Edith Bouvier Beale/"Little" Edie Beale.  As Ebersole's year-long contract with the Broadway production will end in October, her Broadway replacement is now being sought.  This A-list search, spearheaded by the musical's casting company Telsey + Company, will also determine who will head the U.S. National Tour.  It hasn't been determined if Ms. Ebersole will be playing any U.S. markets," according to press notes. 

"Everyone in the Grey Gardens family is excited to bring the Beales to cities across the country and – as Edie herself sings – Around the World," said Kelly Gonda, president of East of Doheny, the lead producer of the musical.  "

Additional touring and casting news will be announced in the coming months.

In addition to stars Christine Ebersole (42nd Street, Dinner at Eight) and Mary Louise Wilson (Cabaret, Full Gallop), Grey Gardens stars John McMartin, Bob Stillman, Matt Cavenaugh, Michael Potts, and Sarah Hyland (all from the Playwrights Horizons production), as well as Broadway newcomer Erin Davie as Young 'Little' Edie Beale, and Kelsey Fowler.  The show opened at the Walter Kerr Theatre on November 2nd.

The musical features a book by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner Doug Wright (I Am My Own Wife, the play and film Quills), music by Scott Frankel (musical director for Broadway's Falsettos, Putting It Together) and lyrics by Michael Korie (Harvey Milk, Zhivago). Directed by Tony Award nominee and Obie winner Michael Greif (Rent), the production has musical staging by Tony Award nominee Jeff Calhoun (Big River, Grease!). It will be produced by Producers East of Doheny, Randall L. Wreghitt/Mort Swinsky, Michael Alden and Edwin W. Schloss, in association with Playwrights Horizons,

"Not since Mama Rose and Gypsy has there been a mother/daughter act as hilarious, as heartbreaking and as utterly unforgettable as Edith and Edie Beale - Jackie Kennedy's most outrageous relatives - in Broadway's acclaimed musical smash Grey Gardens.  From the grandeur of an East Hampton high society party in 1941 to the sensational tabloid headlines that rocked the Kennedy clan in 1973, Grey Gardens is scandalously entertaining.  This witty and passionate ride features Christine Ebersole's already-legendary performance and breaks new ground as the first musical ever based on a documentary.  Step into the world of Grey Gardens and see the other side of Camelot," state press notes.

The Broadway production of Grey Gardens reunites the original creative and design team, featuring scenic design by Allen Moyer, costume design by five-time Tony Award winner William Ivey Long, lighting design by Tony Award winner Peter Kaczorowski, sound design by Brian Ronan and projections by Wendall K. Harrington. Orchestrations are by Tony Award winner Bruce Coughlin and Music Director is Lawrence Yurman.

Grey Gardens had its world premiere at Playwrights Horizons, opening March 7, 2006 and completely sold out its initial limited engagement as well as three extensions. The musical was named Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical by the Outer Critics Circle Awards and was also the winner of a 2006 Richard Rodgers Production Award, administered by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. It was most recently honored by the theater annual Best Plays as one of the ten best of the 2005-2006 season, and the only musical cited. Leading lady Ebersole also won several awards, including the Obie and the Drama Desk.

Visit www.greygardensthemusical.com for more information. 

Photo of Christine Ebersole in Grey Gardens by Joan Marcus