McLean Community Players to Stage Tony-Winning Musical 1776

The McLean Community Players' production of the musical 1776, based on the events surrounding the drafting and signing of the Declaration of Independence, opens Friday, Feb. 5, 2016, and runs weekends through Feb. 21 at McLean's Alden Theatre. With music by Sherman Edwards and a book by Peter Stone, 1776 became an improbable hit and won three Tony Awards, including Best Musical in 1969. Director Annie O'Neill Galvin leads an award-winning cast and crew for this production.

In 1776, the founding fathers, who participated in the creation and signing of one of the most important documents in our nation's history, are presented in a humorous way as human beings with their foibles and failings. The "obnoxious and disliked" John Adams, supported by Benjamin Franklin, Richard Henry Lee, and Thomas Jefferson, leads the struggle to persuade the delegates from the thirteen colonies to break away from the British Crown. After Thomas Jefferson is persuaded to write a document declaring independence, epic debates and personality clashes ensue. All this happens in the sweltering spring and summer of Philadelphia in 1776 and at the same time that General George Washington is sending pessimistic reports from the battlefield about the progress of the Continental Army in fighting the British.

Director Annie O'Neill Galvin says "Massachusetts is my home state, so it's no surprise 1776 is one of my all-time favorite musicals. One of the things I love most about it is how

you get pulled into the story, even though we all know how it ends. You develop a new appreciation for the sheer enormity of what our Founding Fathers were trying to do: overcome nearly impossible odds to create a new nation. The journey from idea, to pen, to action is an incredible one - and it's an honor to be able to work with this cast and crew to bring history to life for McLean."

The Mclean Community Players are proud to announce that they are offering performances with accessibility for both the hearing impaired and the visually challenged. For 1776, audio description services will be offered at the second matinee performance on Feb. 14, and, for the first time, American Sign Language interpretation will be offered at our last matinee performance on Feb. 21. See the Accessibility page at www.McLeanPlayers.org for more information.

1776 opens Feb. 5, 2016, and runs weekends through Feb. 21. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. at the Alden Theatre in the McLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Ave., McLean, VA 22101.Tickets are $23-$25 and are available at McLean Players.org or 866-811-4111. 1776 is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI).

The Cast of 1776

John Adams .......................................................................................................... Brent Stone

Ben Franklin ....................................................................................................... Jeff Westlake

John Dickinson ...................................................................................................... Shawn Cox

Edward Rutledge ................................................................................................. James Myers

Thomas Jefferson ........................................................................................ Scott Gustaveson

Richard Henry Lee ............................................................................................... Mytheos Holt

Abigail Adams .............................................................................................. Marissa Chapman

Martha Jefferson ................................................................................................... Leslie Lewis

Robert Livingston .............................................................................................. James Maxted

Roger Sherman .................................................................................................. Jerry Hoffman

John Hancock ..................................................................................................... Bob McGrath

Courier ................................................................................................................. Derek Marsh

Charles Thomson ................................................................................ Jonathan Cagle-Mulberg

Andrew McNair ................................................................................................ Michael Bagwell

Josiah Bartlett ...................................................................................................... Mike Holland

Stephen Hopkins .................................................................................................... Bob Ashby

Lewis Morris ......................................................................................................... Richard Dahl

John Witherspoon ................................................................................................. Todd Meikle

James Wilson ................................................................................................... Michael Gerwin

Caesar Rodney ................................................................................................... Michael Doan

Thomas McKean ..................................................................................................... Bob Cohen

George Read ...................................................................................................... Jon Simmons

Samuel Chase ........................................................................................................ Matt Bogen

Joseph Hewes .................................................................................................... David Weaver

Lyman Hall ................................................................................................... Kevin McCormack

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