St. Louis Muny Announces Summer Season

The St. Louis Muny's website reads as follows: "Although many stars have appeared on stage at The Muny, one essential truth has remained about the nation's oldest and largest outdoor theatre; its story is the story of St. Louis - and of St. Louisans. It is about the countless individuals who have contributed their time, money, and talent to make this magical place a truly unique American experience." "Muny" is short for the Municipal Opera Association of St. Louis, founded in 1914. It is the largest, outdoor ampitheatre in the country (seating 11,000 people). It produces seven shows each summer (prepared by a crew of 12 throughout the year.) Each show is given eleven days of rehearsal and a tech run before opening Monday and running through Sunday. This season shapes up as follows: Beauty and the Beast (June 21-27, additional performances through the 30) Titanic (July5-11) Damn Yankees (July 12-18) Cats (July 19-25) The Sound of Music (July 26-August 1) Footloose (August 2-8) Showboat (August 8-15) As an example of the star power on hand, Disney's Beauty and the Beast will be lead by James Clow (Assasins, Company, Wonderful Town) and Sarah Darling (Jersey Boys Nat. Tour), with Ken Page (Cats, Guys and Dolls, The Wiz) as Maurice, Leslie Denniston (Happy New Year, To Grandmother's House We Go) as Mrs. Potts, and Jeb Brown (Grease, Romantic Poetry) as Cogsworth. It's a dream season for a Pirate Queen fan as three members of that cast: Jeff McCarthy (as Rev. Moore in Footloose), William Youmans (as J. Bruce Ismay in Titanic), and Stephanie J. Block (as Grizabella in Cats) make Muny appearances. For a complete list of the announced casts, visit Playbill.com: http://www.playbill.com/news/article/138681-EXCLUSIVE-Muny-Season-to-Feature-Brown-Block-Hewitt-McCarthy-Hoty-Bell-Beach-Page And for tickets, the official website of the Muny: www.muny.com Jess