Cerveris, Gemignani, Cuervo to Star in Public's ROAD SHOW (BOUNCE)

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 4:56pm

"Road Show is the new title of Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's new musical — once known as Bounce — The Public Theater announced Aug. 12. The fall Off-Broadway production, directed by John Doyle, will star Michael Cerveris and Alexander Gemignani as the Mizner brothers.

This marks the property's New York City premiere. Performances will play Oct. 28-Dec. 28 at The Public's Newman Theater. Opening is Nov. 18. The production is expected to be a hot seller given the fact Sondheim is revered in American theatre; the Tony Award-winning songwriter famously changed the course of musicals with such groundbreaking work as Company, Follies, A Little Night Music and Sweeney Todd.

Here's Road Show in a nutshell: "Spanning 40 years from the Alaskan Gold Rush to the Florida real estate boom in the '30s, Road Show is the story of two brothers whose quest for the American dream turns into a test of morality and judgment that changes their lives in unexpected ways."

The cast includes Cerveris (John Doyle's Sweeney Todd on Broadway) as Wilson Mizner; Alma Cuervo (Wicked national tour) as Mama; Aisha de Haas (Caroline, or Change on Broadway) in the Ensemble; Claybourne Elder (White Widow at Times Square Art Center) as Hollis; Colleen Fitzpatrick (Mother Courage and Her Children at Shakespeare in the Park) in the Ensemble; Gemignani (John Doyle's Sweeney Todd on Broadway) as Addison Mizner; Mylinda Hull (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels on Broadway) in the Ensemble; Mel Johnson, Jr. ("Star Trek: Deep Space Nine") in the Ensemble; Orville Mendoza (Romeo and Juliet at Shakespeare in the Park) in the Ensemble; Anne L. Nathan (Roundabout's Sunday in the Park With George on Broadway) in the Ensemble; Tom Nelis (Iphigenia 2.0 at Signature) in the Ensemble; William Parry (Passion on Broadway) as Papa; Matt Stocke (The Wedding Singer on Broadway) in the Ensemble; William Youmans (The Farnsworth Invention on Broadway) in the Ensemble; and Kristine Zbornik (A Catered Affair on Broadway) in the Ensemble...."

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/120382.html

Updated On: 8/12/08 at 04:56 PM

[DrTheatre]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:05pm

WOW, how many more name changes will this get?

[BustopherPhantom]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:07pm

That's... really interesting casting. And an interesting title.

This is (hopefully) gonna be cool.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:12pm

Not crazy about the new name and will probably be tempted to keep calling it Bounce out of habit, but I still can't wait.

Updated On: 8/12/08 at 05:12 PM

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:13pm

Wait, so no Matt Cavenaugh?

Who is playing the role that Gavin Creel originally played?

[scaryclowns223]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:13pm

I'm really hoping this will be good...

I love Michael Cerveris.

It just seems to me that they've changed it to the point where it could either be really good or not very good at all.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:14pm

Sondheim explains the new title:

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/120386.html

It might take some getting used to, but the reasoning behind it sounds promising.

[StarUsher]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:15pm

The changes they made at the reading I house managed seemed to be well recieved so hopefully this will be a success.

[winter_sky]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:17pm

Um, Vitamin C is in this? AWESOME.

[BustopherPhantom]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:21pm

Wow, that was a long article.

Now I'm even more excited, especially about this:
Sondheim once called them "two divergent aspects of American energy: the builder and the squanderer, the visionary and the promoter, the conformist and the maverick, the idealistic planner and the restless cynic, the one who uses things and the one who uses them up…"

That makes it sound as though the show will be somewhat darker, which can only be a good thing (as I've said many times, Wilson Mizner has no business being let off the hook after all he puts Addison, and others, through).

And Sondheim is actually writing his book! WOO!

Updated On: 8/12/08 at 05:21 PM

[commasplice]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:42pm

My initial reaction to the new title is "meh," but I'm sure that will change over time and once I hear the new songs.

Is Wilson's love interest, Nellie (Myra in the early readings), now gone? The only non-ensemble female on the list is Mama.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:50pm

Yeah, I believe in the playbill.com interview Sondheim says that the character is gone. Now apparently the only principals are the Brothers, the parents, and a male love interest for Addison.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:54pm

"and a male lover for Addison".

Interesting.

I hope this gets recorded.

[commasplice]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 5:57pm

Reading the interview probably would have helped, haha. Thank you for pointing that out.

Literacy FTW (or in my case, FTL).

[jv92]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 6:17pm

What exciting news! I can hardly wait! And the book he's writing sounds great too! Ahh! :) :) :)

[trav08]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 6:24pm

Don't really like the title. But I love the casting.

[EugLoven]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 6:54pm

EXCITING!!!!

Damn, can we hand it to Cerveris and Gemignani? They are WELL on their way to having performed (at least half of) the entire Sondheim cannon!

I'm really pumped for some new Mr.S tunes. Tickets to this? Impossible to get, I'm sure.

Interesting enough concept. I'll come along for the ride.

Anyone seen ANY sort of gestation of this show before?

[walkedthroughmany]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 6:55pm

winter_sky, they're two different people.
I thought they were the same person forever.
Crazy.

[walkedthroughmany]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 7:01pm

And oh my gosh, I just read the article interviewing Sondheim. It sounds great -- it sounds more like a Sondheim show. I can't wait.

[heathurrr]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 7:08pm

jfaifhgsdghsfjgjhsfkgjdfbn.
Sorry, I am just so FREAKIN' excited I can barely type.
I adore Cerveris and Gemignani. I will take any Sondheim, no matter how many different names it has, haha.
And a book!
Exciting Sondheim stuff to come!

[ljay889]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 7:52pm

WOW. how did I miss this thread?


LOVE the new name. A lot more exciting than BOUNCE or WISE GUYS.

[ljay889]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 7:57pm

Sondheim and Weidman are already discussing another show to write! Wow. Updated On: 8/12/08 at 07:57 PM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 8:29pm

I'm more excited about the book than about the show, really.
I can't stand Gemignani, but I'll probably still go to see the show just because it's Sondheim.

[ljay889]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 8:37pm

I agree with Sondheim that the title BOUNCE really didn't express what the show was about. ROAD SHOW sounds like a promising title. And if it transferred I can't help but think a title like ROAD SHOW would spark more interest/curiousity than a title like WISE GUYS or BOUNCE.
Updated On: 8/12/08 at 08:37 PM

[Amalia Balash]

Posted: 8/12/08 at 8:52pm

I'm another who's more excited by the lyrics book than the show, but it's always great to get new Sondheim and I loved Cerveris in Passion.