AMELIE, A NEW MUSICAL comes to Broadway, Spring 2017

BROADWAY ANNOUNCEMENT:

INITIAL CASTING, DATES, THEATRE & ON-SALE INFORMATION!

“A sparkling musical and an enchanting act of theatrical reinvention.” – Los Angeles Times

STARRING

Tony Award Nominee PHILLIPA SOO and ADAM CHANLER-BERAT

TO OPEN MONDAY, APRIL 3, 2017 AT THE WALTER KERR THEATRE ON BROADWAY

PREVIEWS BEGIN THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 2017

American Express Pre-Sale Begins Wednesday, November 16, 2016

Audience Rewards Pre-Sale Begins Tuesday, November 22, 2016

General On Sale Begins Monday, November 28, 2016

Book by Tony Award nominee CRAIG LUCAS

Music by DANIEL MESSÉ

Lyrics by NATHAN TYSEN and DANIEL MESSÉ

Musical Staging & Choreography by SAM PINKLETON

Directed by Tony Award winner PAM MACKINNON

(New York, NY) Producers announced today that AMÉLIE, A NEW MUSICAL will begin performances on Broadway on Thursday, March 9, 2017 at the Walter Kerr Theatre (219 W 48th Street) and officially open Monday, April 3, 2017, following a limited engagement at Center Theatre Group’s Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles (December 4, 2016 – January 15, 2017). The company will be led by Tony Award nominee Phillipa Soo and Adam Chanler-Berat, following the Los Angeles engagement.

Amélie, A New Musical is produced on Broadway by Harbor Entertainment, Triptyk Studios and Spencer Ross.

“We are thrilled to announce Broadway as the next chapter in the exciting journey of Amélie, following our acclaimed world premiere at Berkeley Rep, and the upcoming run at the Ahmanson in Los Angeles. It has been a joy bringing this musical to life with our incredible creative team,” notes producer Aaron Harnick of Harbor Entertainment.

Amélie captured our hearts in the five-time Academy Award-nominated 2001 French film. Now she comes to the stage in an inventive and captivating new musical directed by Tony Award winner Pam MacKinnon (Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Clybourne Park), with a book by three-time Tony Award nominee Craig Lucas (An American in Paris), music by Daniel Messé (Hem), lyrics by Nathan Tysen (Tuck Everlasting) and Daniel Messé, and musical staging and choreography by Sam Pinkleton.

AMÉLIE, A NEW MUSICAL has scenic and costume design by Tony Award winner David Zinn, co-lighting design by Tony Award nominee Jane Cox and Mark Barton, sound design by Tony Award nominee Kai Harada, projection design by Drama Desk Award winner Peter Nigrini, musical direction by Kimberly Grigsby, vocal arrangements by Kimberly Grigsby and Daniel Messé, and orchestrations by Tony Award winner Bruce Coughlin.

The musical follows the mesmerizing journey of the inquisitive and charmingly shy Amélie who turns the streets of Montmartre into a world of her own imagining, while secretly orchestrating moments of joy for those around her. After discovering a mysterious photo album and meeting a handsome stranger, Amélie realizes that helping others is easier than participating in a romantic story of her own.

In 2015, AMÉLIE, A NEW MUSICAL had its critically acclaimed world premiere at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, which topped “Best Theater of 2015” lists in the Los Angeles Times and the San Francisco Chronicle.

Additional casting will be announced at a later date.

Ticket Information

Tickets range from $49.50 - $179.50.

American Express Card Members can purchase tickets to AMÉLIE, A NEW MUSICAL before the general public beginning Wednesday, November 16 at 8:30am (EST) through Tuesday, November 22 at 9:59am (EST) by visiting ticketmaster.com or calling 877.250.2929.

Audience Rewards members can purchase tickets before the general public beginning Tuesday, November 22 at 10am (EST) through Monday, November 28 at 9:59PM (EST) at audiencerewards.com.

Tickets will go on sale to the general public beginning Monday, November 28, 2016 at 10:00am EST and will be available at ticketmaster.com or by calling 877.250.2929.

Performance Schedule

The regular performance schedule for AMÉLIE, A NEW MUSICAL is: Tuesday – Thursday at 7:30pm (8pm during previews); and Friday & Saturday at 8pm; with matinees at 2pm on Wednesday & Saturday, and 3pm on Sunday. For changes to the schedule, visit AmelieBroadway.com.

WHAT THE CRITICS ARE SAYING ABOUT AMÉLIE, A NEW MUSICAL

“A sparkling musical comedy that slyly revels in the infinite possibilities of theatrical merrymaking. The score flowers with originality. The impressive lyric writing of Tysen and Messé made me want to listen harder. The best songs mix outlandish wit with genuine feeling. It's a credit to the enchantment of the authors and MacKinnon's production that the storybook ending feels both earned and true.” – Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times

“A dreamy movie becomes a dream of a stage musical. Wit crackles and charms fill the house, emanating from the book, lyrics and melodies. The coming-of-age-through-love tale of a radiant, smart but — emotionally — almost cripplingly shy young woman. Messé and Tysen’s captivating, eclectic and humor-tinged songs keep the show moving at a swift clip. Director Pam MacKinnon creates a seamless blend of visual, narrative and performance delights.” – Robert Hurwitt, San Francisco Chronicle

“Sheer delight! A magical, timeless plunge into love, art, goldfish puppetry, snake-eyed marbles, coin-operated photo booths, Parisian bedrooms, sex shops, cafés, and all manner of desirable targets. Amélie is deft social commentary, too. Craig Lucas’ book bursts with joy, delight, imagination, talent, and tenderness. Skillfully directed by Pam MacKinnon, the production capitalizes on David Zinn’s brilliant, skewed set. Music Director Kimberly Grigsby’s robust delivery of Daniel Messé’s richly harmonic score and slyly clever lyrics by Messé and co-lyricist Nathan Tysen, invigorate the visuals. A charming coming-of-age story about a young woman whose life on the streets of Montmartre is a constant search for connection. Vivacious charm falls into lockstep with nostalgia and poignancy, it’s exactly this dance between absurd escapism, true and false memories and relatable heartache that elevates Amélie.” – Lou Fancher, San Francisco Weekly

BIOGRAPHIES

PHILLIPA SOO (Amélie) originated the role Amélie in the workshop productions of Amélie, A New Musical, and is best known for her lead role ‘Eliza Schuyler Hamilton’ in Broadway’s critically acclaimed Hamilton, which she joined shortly after its inception. The role garnered her the Lucille Lortel Award in 2015 for Lead Actress in a Musical during the shows sold-out run at The Public Theater before heading to Broadway. The role has also earned her a 2016 Tony Award nomination in the category of “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical.” After graduating from Juilliard in 2012, Soo was cast as ‘Natasha Rostova’ in the Ars Nova production of Dave Malloy's Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, based on Leo Tolstoy's War & Peace; the show went on to transfer Off-Broadway to Kazino. Previously on the small screen, Soo appeared on the NBC television series “Smash” in the role of Lexi.

ADAM CHANLER-BERAT (Nino) starred in the world premiere of Amélie, A New Musical at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and most recently played George in Sunday in the Park with George for Huntington Theatre Company. He originated the roles of Peter in Peter and the Starcatcher and Henry in Next to Normal in both the Off- and on Broadway productions. Off-Broadway, he appeared in The Fortress of Solitude (The Public Theater/NYSF, Lucille Lortel Award nomination for Best Actor), Fly by Night (Playwrights Horizons), and My Favorite Year (York Theatre Company). Mr. Chanler-Berat starred in the web series “It Could Be Worse,” and his recent television credits include “Elementary,” “Veep,” and “The Good Wife,” as well as a role in the new CBS series “Doubt." On film, he can be seen opposite Vince Vaughn in Delivery Man.

CRAIG LUCAS (Book). Craig’s plays include Missing Persons, Reckless, Blue Window, Prelude to a Kiss (Tony nomination), God’s Heart, The Dying Gaul, Small Tragedy (Obie Award), Stranger, Prayer for My Enemy, The Singing Forest, The Lying Lesson, and Ode To Joy. His movies include Longtime Companion, The Secret Lives of Dentists and The Dying Gaul, which he also directed. He wrote the libretti for The Light in the Piazza (Tony nomination), An American in Paris (Tony nomination), Three Postcards and the opera Two Boys (Metropolitan Opera). He directed the world premiere of The Light in the Piazza, Harry Kondoleon’s Saved or Destroyed and Play Yourself, and the film Birds of America. Craig has received three Tony nominations, the New York Film Critics Best Screenplay Award, the Sundance Audience Award, the Excellence in Literature Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Steinberg Award, three Obies (one for direction), and the Laura Pels Mid-career Achievement Award from PEN; he has been a Pulitzer finalist.

DANIEL MESSÉ (Music and Co-Lyricist) is the founder and principal songwriter of the band Hem, which has garnered worldwide acclaim over the course of six studio albums. Starting as a DIY project out of Dan’s bedroom, Hem was signed to DreamWorks Records by legendary music producer Lenny Waronker and has been featured in every major media outlet including The New York Times, New Yorker, NPR’s “All Things Considered,” “Fresh Air with Terry Gross,” and “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.” In 2009 the Public Theater tapped Hem to score Twelfth Night for Shakespeare in the Park (starring Anne Hathaway and Audra McDonald, directed by Daniel Sullivan) for which they earned a Drama Desk Award nomination. Daniel has written four shows for Theatreworks USA (including Black Beauty and Nate the Great) with collaborator Mindi Dickstein. They were the recipients of a Jonathan Larson Grant from the American Theatre Wing and were commissioned by Playwrights Horizons to write the full-length musical Trip through the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Commissioning Program.

NATHAN TYSEN (Co-Lyricist) was represented on Broadway last season with the new musical Tuck Everlasting. Recent projects include Stillwater with band Joe’s Pet Project at Kansas City Rep. In 2014, Nathan was awarded both the Edward Kleban Prize for most promising lyricist and the Fred Ebb Award for excellence in musical theatre songwriting (co-won with Chris Miller). Work with Miller includes lyrics for The Burnt Part Boys (2009 Lucille Lortel nomination for Best New Musical), and Fugitive Songs (2008 Drama Desk nomination for Outstanding Revue), both of which have cast albums available at iTunes and Amazon. Additional work with Miller includes songs for “Sesame Street” and “The Electric Company,” as well as two circuses for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey. Nathan was a contributing lyricist to the musical revue Stars of David, and has written material for the Broadway Inspirational Voices and BCEA's Gypsy of the Year. He has worked for over a decade writing and directing for the Lovewell Institute for the Creative Arts, helping to create over a dozen new musicals with young adults. MFA: NYU Tisch, BFA: Missouri State University.

PAM MACKINNON (Director) won Tony and Drama Desk Awards and received an Outer Critics Circle nomination for her direction of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Other Broadway credits include Bruce Norris’ Clybourne Park, for which she won an Obie Award and garnered Tony and Lucille Lortel Award nominations, David Mamet’s China Doll, Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance and Wendy Wasserstein’s The Heidi Chronicles. Her many off-Broadway and regional credits include Bruce Norris’ The Qualms (Steppenwolf Theatre Company and Playwrights Horizons), Sarah Treem’s When We Were Young and Unafraid (Manhattan Theatre Club), Craig Lucas’ The Lying Lesson (Atlantic Theater Company), Horton Foote’s Harrison, TX (Primary Stages) and Itamar Moses’ Completeness (South Coast Repertory and Playwrights Horizons). Pam is an alumna of the Drama League, and the Women’s Project and Lincoln Center Theater Directors Labs, and is an associate artist at Roundabout Theatre Company, as well as an executive board member of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, and board chair of the NYC downtown company Clubbed Thumb.

SAM PINKLETON (Musical Staging & Choreography) is a New York City-based director and choreographer. As a choreographer his recent work includes The Heidi Chronicle” (Broadway); Machinal (Broadway); Pretty Filthy (The Civilians); Kansas City Choir Boy (Prototype Festival, with Courtney Love); Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 (Kazino); Heisenberg (Manhattan Theatre Club); Significant Other (Roundabout Theatre Company); Mr. Burns, A Post-Electric Play; Fly By Night; and Stage Kiss (Playwrights Horizons); Marie Antoinette (Soho Rep); I Promised Myself to Live Faster (Pig Iron/Humana Festival); HAIR: Retrospection (Kansas City Repertory Theatre); The Understudy (McCarter Theatre Center); The Lightning Thief (Theatreworks USA); Spring Awakening (Olney Theatre Center); and Buyer and Cellar (Barrow Street Theatre/tour). He is an associate artist with The Civilians and Wit-Cartel’s ONTHEFLOOR. Sam teaches “Bustin’ Moves” at NYU.

@AmelieBroadway

AmelieBroadway.com

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