John Doyle Will Helm World Premiere of AUGUST RUSH at Washington DC's Signature Theatre

Signature Theatre has announced the world premiere production of the new musical August Rush. The musical, adapted from the Oscar and GRAMMY Award-nominated film, features music and lyrics by Mark Mancina, book and lyrics by Glen Berger, and orchestrations and additional music by David Metzger.

This premiere production will be directed by John Doyle. August Rush will run from February 5, 2019 - March 3, 2019 in Signature Theatre's MAX Theatre. The production will then transfer to Paramount Theatre in Aurora, Illinois and will run from April 24, 2019 - June 2, 2019.

The creative team boasts some of the most sought-after artists working in the dramatic arts. David Mancina, who scored the original film, will compose new music and lyrics for the musical. He is the GRAMMY Award-winning composer of many motion pictures, including Speed, Twister, Tarzan and Moana. He also provided additional music and lyrics for the Broadway production of The Lion King.

Emmy Award-winner Glen Berger co-wrote the book for Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark and wrote the critically-acclaimed one man play Underneath the Lintel. David Metzger has orchestrated dozens of films, including Frozen, Ant-Man, and Moana, and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Orchestrations for Broadway's The Lion King. Tony Award winner John Doyle is best known for his wildly inventive, highly acclaimed productions of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd and Company and the Broadway revival of The Color Purple.

In August Rush, it's love at first sight when a young concert cellist meets a gallivanting rock star. Their romance is quickly torn apart by circumstance, but not before producing a son that neither parent knows is alive. 11 years later, now a musical prodigy, their son desperately searches for his birth parents in a thrilling adventure through New York City. Compelling and heartfelt, this world premiere musical blends a rock and classical-tinged score with elements of fantasy in a dazzling escapade about the universal power of music and the unbreakable bonds of family.

"I'm excited about the development of this new and unique musical," said director John Doyle. "August Rush centers on the emotional and musical journey of a young boy - a lost boy. Through music he reunites with the parents he otherwise may never have found. The 'hope' that the story highlights is powerful. That, more than anything, is what attracted me to the material, and I'm honored to be a part of its journey."

"Signature Theatre is thrilled to be presenting the world premiere of August Rush as a co-production with Paramount Theatre," said Signature Theatre Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer. "This coming of age story about a young musical prodigy promises to be one of the highlights of our new season. Signature looks forward to welcoming Tony Award winner John Doyle to Washington to bring this special story to life."

The original Warner Bros. film was directed by Kirsten Sheridan written by Nick Castle and James V. Harts with a story by Paul Castro and Castle, and produced by Richard Barton Lewis. It starred Freddie Highmore, Robin Williams, Keri Russell, Terrence Howard, and Jonathan Rhys Meyers.

Casting and remaining creative team members will be announced in the coming months.

Founded in 1989, Signature Theatre is a Tony Award-winning regional theater that broadens and brightens the region's cultural landscape with its bold productions of challenging new and established works and engaging education and outreach programs. Under the leadership of co-founder and Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer and Managing Director Maggie Boland, musical theater has become Signature's "signature," and the Theatre is renowned for its definitive Sondheim productions, inventive adaptations of overlooked or forgotten works, and investment in fresh new projects. Called a "musical theater powerhouse" by The Washington Post, Signature combines Broadway-caliber productions with intimate playing spaces and aims to be a leading force in U.S. musical theater. Since its inception, the Theatre has produced 58 world premiere works-including 19 new musical commissions-and is home to the single largest musical theater commissioning project in the United States, The American Music Voices Project. Attracting talent from the DC metropolitan region and New York, Signature has grown to reach more than 100,000 people annually from the Washington, DC region and beyond. Signature has won 103 Helen Hayes Awards for excellence in the Washington, DC region's professional theater and has been honored with 411 nominations.

Signature Theatre is located at 4200 Campbell Avenue (22206) off I-395 at the Shirlington exit (#6 traveling north, #7 traveling south). After the exit, blue Signature signs mark the way to the Theatre. Free parking is available in two adjacent public garages. For directions visit http://www.sigtheatre.org/plan-your-visit/directions/

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos